Lazard announced today that Michael Schwartz has joined its subsidiary, Lazard Middle Market LLC, as a Managing Director and Head of Corporate Finance Advisory. He is based in New York.

Akamai Technologies, announced that, in an all cash transaction, it has acquired Soha Systems, an innovator in enterprise secure access delivered as a service. The acquisition is intended to complementAkamai's strategy of securing, protecting and accelerating enterprise applications and services in the cloud.

Sterling’s plunge is an indication that the markets clearly believe that there will be a ‘hard’ Brexit, following on from Theresa May’s comments over the weekend. In the short term, this means that the currency’s value could plumb new depths due to the atmosphere of uncertainty, with the slightest pronouncement having a profound impact on the currency markets.

With cybercriminals, digitisation and the revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2), there’s no doubt our payment industry is facing both challenge and change. So how do new initiatives dedicated to bringing us up to speed plan to pay off?

Anybody who’s wracked their brain for a forgotten password at an online “checkout”, had their computer throw them “the spinning wheel of death” mid-payment or been the victim of cybercrime will know that electronic payments, for all their advantages, still present consumers with obstacles to the simplicity we’re used to with cash transactions.

Banks and financial services are racing to innovate in order to enhance the customer experience. Mastercard recently launched Selfiepay whilst HSBC has said they’ll allow their customers to use selfies to open bank accounts. Samsung has also announced that they’re planning to launch voice and facial recognition biometrics for mobile banking.

 Further to its announcement this morning, Temenos, the software specialist for banking and finance, confirms that Bank of Ireland Group has selected UniversalSuite, its front-to-back solution for retail, commercial and corporate banking, to be implemented as Bank of Ireland’s new core banking and channels platform.

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), a top-tier financial services institution, has partnered with Fidor Bank to launch the region’s first ‘community based digital bank’. The new platform is designed to fit the lifestyle of millennial consumers also known as Generation Y, as well as those looking for a digital offering that matches their banking needs.

Coupa Software, a leader in cloud-based spend management, today announced that Paul Watts will lead the company’s Asia Pacific (APAC) region as Vice President of Sales. Watts combines more than 20 years of experience based in the APAC region with his extensive knowledge of the enterprise software space.

In his new role, Watts will be responsible for advancing the company’s go-to-market strategy, business development, overseeing Coupa’s sales team, and supporting enterprise customers in APAC.

 Bink – the new loyalty app that, for the first time, links consumer card payments to loyalty schemes - has today announced the appointments of Bob Wigley (former Chair of Merrill Lynch EMEA) as Chairman to its board and Dr Steve Perry (former Head of Visa Europe) as a Non-Executive Board Director. 

In announcing the formal appointment of the board members, Bink adds deep financial services expertise to its team, ahead of its launch to consumers in the Autumn.

 HDFC Bank Ltd., one of India’s premier banks, providing innovative products and smart banking solutions to over 37 million customers across India, has selected Backbase, the omni-channel digital banking market leader, to deliver its new digital omni-channel banking platform, running both its online and mobile banking apps. Backbase will play a key role in delivering HDFC Bank’s next generation of banking architecture. Thus platforms like the mobile banking app, digital banking portal, and web site will run on the Backbase platform.