Published
- 09:00 am

Viva.com, Europe’s first technology bank for payments powering card acceptance on any device in 24 markets, has announced the launch of Merchant Advance. A new credit solution that will solve critical cashflow issues for thousands of businesses across Europe, helping them invest in growth.
Viva.com’s Merchant Advance offers transparent capital to businesses, based on merchant acquiring data. Loan disbursement is instant, meaning businesses of any size or type can immediately access capital for growth.
Merchant Advance by Viva.com is currently available in Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, and Spain, with more European countries of operation following soon.
Unlike other capital providers which can force businesses into lengthy application processes, Viva.com’s Merchant Advance leverages merchant’s payment history with Viva.com allowing access to near-instant capital with no fuss. Benefits include:
- Smart Prescoring, based on advanced payments data analysis for each business.
- Near-instant loan disbursement: Fast and easy access to capital.
- Charged with a single, explained fixed fee: No hidden costs, no interest charges.
- Seamless and easy repayment: Flexible automated repayment process via a percentage of daily card sales.
- Adjustable repayment time: Νo late payment fees.
- Fully digital process with no collateral or other commitments.
Merchant Advance is the latest inclusion in Viva.com’s market-leading digital payments bundle, a collection of integrated services that combine to power all businesses across Europe. From acquiring and issuing to business accounts and tailored financing, Viva.com’s solutions help businesses grow without limits.
“Having access to reliable and flexible capital is critically important for growing businesses, but for millions of European merchants it’s a real struggle to find the right solution. Traditional capital providers, and even newer market entrants, have to vet businesses properly, which results in time-consuming processes before any decision is made.
“Viva.com’s Merchant Advance changes the game, allowing our customers instant access to working capital based on smart prescoring. This allows us to offer instant, flexible and transparent capital that they can use to grow without restrictions. Merchant Advance is the latest addition to our product suite, built to solve payment issues for businesses of all shapes and sizes,” said Yannis Larios, Senior VP Strategy & Business Development at Viva.com.
Viva.com’s Merchant Advance is provided through leading financial partners.
Viva.com is Europe’s first technology bank for payments, powering card acceptance across 24 countries and 985+ devices. With an ECB-approved banking license and physical presence in 24 European markets, Viva.com’s Tap on Any Device for in-store payments, Smart Checkout for online payments, and marketplace payment solution, help European businesses of any size to accept and manage payments how they want. All of Viva.com’s technology is built in-house over MS Azure, and is fully scalable, supporting any payment checkout journey.
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- 09:00 am

As consumers continue to navigate cost-of-living pressures, new research shows that younger age groups face significant barriers when it comes to accessing credit.
This is according to a survey of 1,000 UK borrowers by Tink, the market-leading payment services and data enrichment platform. It found that over three quarters (78%) of 18-34 year olds have had a loan application rejected. When asked why they’d been disqualified from a loan, 12% cited thin credit history (e.g. not having enough credit history to qualify) and 11% noted the inability to prove their financial history.
Cumbersome processes causing loan application abandonment
Tink’s insights also show that younger age groups abandoning arduous applications, suggesting they have zero tolerance for friction-filled processes and may not be capitalising on the financial services available to them.
The research shows that nearly a quarter (22%) of 18-34 year olds have abandoned a loan application and used a different lender because the process was too cumbersome. What's more, when applying for a loan, 20% of respondents said they had the correct documents, but abandoned the process because they needed to submit them manually (e.g. had to print them off and post them).
A Tink survey of 200 UK lenders supports these findings, with research showing that 36% of lenders cite manual income verification as the point when they see the most drop off in the loan application process.
Similarly, the research suggests that cumbersome manual processes can be costly and time consuming for lenders. 32% of lenders surveyed cite manual income verification as the most time consuming step in their own risk decisioning process, and a quarter (25%) say document validation (capturing application information and analysing its authenticity) is the highest cost they face.
Appetite for data-driven decision making
As a solution to overcome these barriers, younger age groups cite a willingness to give lenders permission to view transaction data from their bank accounts in return for smoother application processes and a better chance of securing a loan.
For example, encouragingly 40% of 18-34 year olds surveyed would enable lenders to digitally view transaction data from bank accounts to improve the application process (e.g. remove the need to manually submit documents on income and expenditure), while over half (57%) would like the option of having loans tailored to their financial situation (e.g. repayment plans which adapt to their monthly incomings and outgoings).
What's more, the research highlights that lenders recognise that improving the loan application process makes sound business sense. More than three quarters (78%) of lenders surveyed agree it’s important to reduce friction in the lending application to give them a competitive advantage, while 77% say it’s crucial to improve risk decisioning models to give a more accurate view of people’s finances.
Jack Spiers, Banking & Lending Director at Tink comments; “Our research highlights a clear access issue amongst younger generations trying to borrow. Not only are a significant amount wrestling with cumbersome application processes, they’re also being rejected for loans based on factors that suggest blinkered financial assessments.
“It is important lenders are harnessing data-driven risk decisioning solutions to offer fair, accurate affordability checks, while also removing the friction associated with manual application submissions. And it’s not just benefiting the end user. Adopting these models can help lenders too - boosting customer acquisition through improved success rates, while reducing operational costs.”
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- 01:00 am

Nium, the leader in real-time cross-border payments, today announced its partnership with Secret Escapes, one of the world’s leading luxury travel and experiences companies, to deliver enhanced payment services for its global network of hotel partners.
Secret Escapes partners with trusted providers to offer its 60 million members hand-picked luxury travel deals at prices they can’t find anywhere else online. The company also completes over 1 million price checks across all types of deals every month to ensure that it offers its members the best value anywhere online.
Using Nium’s Virtual Card solution, Secret Escapes can efficiently pay its partners and suppliers around the world in over 20 local currencies, enabling its new and long-standing providers alike to get paid instantly without the headaches of manual reconciliation and costly foreign exchange fees.
Increased acceptance rates, better protection against fraud, and the ability to get money back for undelivered services are also among the benefits to Secret Escapes’ hotel customers.
Tanith Langford, Director of Financial Operations at Secret Escapes, said: “At a time when hotels are grappling with inflation and evolving consumer expectations, expensive, rigid, and lengthy payment processes are the last thing they need. Our partners are a crucial part of our business, and we are constantly striving for ways to make their lives easier. With Nium, we are providing more flexibility and choice for our providers, in turn driving better deals for our members. To us, it’s all about adding value to our members’ lives and our partners’ businesses, now and in the future.”
Spencer Hanlon, Global Head of Travel Payments at Nium, said: “For too long, the travel industry has retrofitted outdated payment methods to its unique ecosystem of travellers, tourism suppliers, and third-party vendors. Our partnership with Secret Escapes is yet another excellent example of how virtual card payment solutions are driving the travel industry towards a better future, for the benefit of all its participants. I look forward to watching our partnership grow and continuing to deliver innovative solutions at the forefront of travel and fintech together.”
Building on Nium’s virtual credit card solution, Secret Escapes will have the opportunity to expand its partnership via access to Nium's real-time cross-border payments network for collections and payouts to bank accounts, digital wallets, and cards in over 100+ currencies and 190+ markets around the world.
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- 01:00 am

Temenos today announced that it has been named a Leader in two US flagship reports – the IDC MarketScape: North American Small Business LendingCustomer Experience Solutions 2023-2024 Vendor Assessment and the IDC MarketScape: North American Small Business Lending Decisioning Platforms 2023–2024 Vendor Assessment.
Both IDC MarketScapes evaluated 11 technology vendors in the small business lending segment, which includes any secured or unsecured loan provided to a small business owner, except for mortgage-related products. To be considered a Leader, vendors must be able to address most small business lending needs of any North American institution and support several use cases consistent with providing a complete end-to-end small business banking solution.
Temenos was positioned as a Leader for its comprehensive digital banking and lending platforms, as well as its support for alternative credit data sources for lending decisions, and composable banking features that provide choice and flexibility for bank clients.
Temenos believes being named a Leader in the two reports reflects the front-to-back capabilities of Temenos’ cloud-native solution. Temenos enables US financial institutions to deliver tangible value to small and medium businesses, from onboarding to origination, with digital and face-to-face servicing, advisory and cross-sell for accounts, as well as lending and asset finance.
According to a recent Economist Impact study for Temenos, 71% of bankers view unlocking value from AI as a key differentiator between winning and losing banks, and improving the user experience through greater customer personalization is considered to be the most valuable use case. With Temenos, banks can leverage an AI-powered Smart Banking Advisor to provide comprehensive customer 360° view capabilities and proactively support small business customers’ growth with personalized advice, intelligent insights and tailored solutions.
Marc DeCastro, Research director, Consumer Banking Digital Strategies at IDC, said: "Over the past few years, the amount of small business ownership has risen sharply creating more opportunities for financial institutions to deepen their relationships with their customers. As these small businesses grow, they will likely require access to credit and will gravitate toward solutions that are easy to use and tailored to their needs, whether that be from a traditional lender, a nonbank lender, or a pure digital lender. Finding the right solution will be key to attract this growing and profitable customer segment. Banks and credit unions should consider Temenos when looking for front-to-back core and digital banking platforms for small business lending.”
Philip Barnett, President – Americas, Temenos, said: “We believe being named a Leader by IDC reflects our ongoing investment in innovation and our strong momentum in the North American market. Temenos’ highly scalable, advanced cloud technology, combined with robust localization and US compliance capabilities, is helping US and Canadian banks of all sizes to increase efficiency and speed to value. With over 30 million SMEs in the US, banks have a huge opportunity to tap into this traditionally underserved market by providing more personalized services and improved data insights. Temenos’ cloud-native composable banking platform, embedded with AI-powered tools designed for SMEs, enables North American banks to grow their small business relationships and expand their customer base in a scalable, cost-efficient way.”
This recognition by IDC offers further validation of the market-leading position of Temenos, which in 2023 was named as a Leader in Digital Banking Platforms and in Cloud-based Core Banking by Omdia, as well as coming first in eight categories, including core and digital banking, in the IBS Sales League Table.
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- 09:00 am

Kroll, the leading independent provider of global risk and financial advisory solutions, today announced the launch of two new digital solutions designed to help organisations identify and manage compliance, fraud and legal risks.
As organisations globally respond to shifting financial, regulatory and reputational risks, these solutions enable compliance and risk professionals to proactively detect fraud and corruption and automate routine compliance tasks.
Kroll’s Risk Analytics Monitor is an easy-to-use fraud detection solution that helps identify high-risk transactions and third parties that could lead to financial and reputational damage for an organisation, providing an auditable trail of risk identification and response.
Incorporating the trusted expertise of Kroll's Compliance Consulting team, the new Kroll Managed Compliance Software helps financial services firms to proactively address changing regulations by streamlining and automating routine compliance tasks, supporting regulatory compliance while saving time and resources.
“Technology’s role in governance, risk management and compliance outcomes will take centre stage in the coming years, with solutions that help detect and mitigate risks and threats early becoming a necessary addition to any compliance and risk management framework,” commented Giles Derry, Co-President of Kroll’s Risk Advisory practice. “Kroll’s digital offerings provide our clients with proactive and efficient solutions to help them manage risks to their operations, assets, reputation and people. These solutions can be integrated into organisations’ existing compliance programs, embedding our global expertise into day-to-day risk management activities.”
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- 01:00 am

Ziglu, the UK's leading personal investment, digital asset, and banking platform, today announced the appointment of Simon McNamara to its Board of Directors. McNamara brings over 30 years of experience in the global financial services industry, holding senior leadership roles at major institutions like RBS Group and Standard Chartered Bank.
"I am delighted to welcome Simon to the Ziglu Board," said Mark Hipperson, Founder & Chairman of Ziglu. "His deep understanding of technology, proven track record in leading digital transformation, and extensive experience in the financial services industry will be invaluable as we move to the next level of growth through innovation."
McNamara most recently served as a Director and Chief Administrative Officer at NatWest Group, where he led the transformation of their technology and services proposition. He has also held senior IT and Operations positions at Westpac Banking Corporation, Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, and Midland Bank. Additionally, he also co-founded a successful software start-up, CATS INC, in Silicon Valley.
"I am excited to join Ziglu at such a pivotal time in the company's journey," said McNamara. "Ziglu is at the forefront of innovation and has some really exciting plans, which we will be announcing soon, and I trust that my experience will help in this next stage of growth."
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- 03:00 am

wagely, Asia’s leading financial wellness platform, has secured US$ 23 million in new funding amidst the current funding drought as the company surpasses more than one million salary disbursements since its inception.
wagely’s financial wellness platform allows workers to better manage their money by letting them access their pay after each workday. It is offered free to employers who then provide it as an optional benefit to employees. Pioneering this concept in both Indonesia and Bangladesh, wagely also allows users to track their salary and access financial literacy resources, empowering workers to not only mitigate financial stress but to move closer to financial freedom.
In 2023 alone, wagely says it has disbursed over US$25M in salaries, processing close to one million transactions and being accessible by 500,000 workers, making it the leading financial wellness service in the region poised for continuous growth.
The latest funding round comprises a mix of equity and debt financing. Capria Ventures, a Global South specialist venture capital firm investing in applied Generative AI, is leading the equity portion along with existing investors' participation. The round is further accompanied by a significant contribution from a notable private debt fund aimed at expanding wagely's core EWA service in Indonesia and Bangladesh. This collective investment underscores strong confidence in wagely's potential to enhance financial wellness in these key markets.
Dave Richards, Managing Partner, Capria Ventures, said, “The wagely team has demonstrated excellent execution with impressive growth in providing a sustainable and win-win financial solution for underserved blue-collar workers and employers. We see a huge opportunity for wagely to apply Generative AI across multiple use cases, such as automated document processing and local language conversational interfaces for workers to make better financial decisions.”
As many as 75% of the nearly 195 million workers in Indonesia and Bangladesh navigate financially challenging situations, relying on each paycheck to make ends meet. Lack of access to conventional financial services leaves a significant number of workers without the necessary financial tools and support to help improve their financial wellbeing.
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- 09:00 am

Bank of Ireland has announced an investment of €50 million on customer fraud prevention and protection. The investment includes €15million on new fraud prevention technology, along with a range of high-profile consumer awareness campaigns and support for customers who are targeted by fraudsters.
Bank of Ireland runs one of the most comprehensive consumer fraud awareness programmes in Ireland as a central part of its commitment to safeguarding the financial wellbeing of its customers. The majority of members of the public surveyed see Bank of Ireland as the financial institution most associated with educating the general public about fraud (Red C, Feb ‘24). This latest investment enhances the Bank’s response to this important issue, and includes a nationwide series of free fraud awareness events for consumers. Over the coming six weeks 12 meetings are planned, and details on further events will be published shortly.
Across Bank of Ireland 225 colleagues are now solely dedicated to fraud prevention and protection, the provision of 24/7 phone support to customers every day of the year, and the detection of financial crime. Three in four consumers want to be able to speak directly with someone at their bank or financial service provider if they fall victim to fraud.
In the past 12 months, the vast majority of the population (90%, Red C, Feb ‘24) have experienced fraudulent communications via text, email or on the phone. According to the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, reports received by Gardaí from victims of fraudulent texts increased by over 30% in 2023. Bank of Ireland’s fraud teams intercept or prevent the majority of fraud attempts, and this is a 24/7 job. In the remaining cases, where a fraud has been successful, all efforts are made by the fraud team to recover funds for customers.
Myles O’Grady, Group CEO of Bank of Ireland commented: “The vast majority of us have received texts, emails, or calls from fraudsters. At first glance, these look like they come from trusted organisations like government departments, banks, the post office, or delivery companies. Some of them even pose as coming from family or colleagues, but whatever form they choose they all have one common aim – to steal your money.
“Banks are on the front line in defending our customers, and wider society, from this threat. However more action is needed from all of us including telecoms companies, social media and tech firms, banks and fintechs, and State agencies.
“I encourage everyone – regardless of whether they are a Bank of Ireland customer or not – to come to one of our fraud awareness events taking place over the coming months.”
“The investment we are announcing today helps equip our people with the latest resources to support and protect customers. It also ensures that if our customers are targeted by a fraudster they can talk to a real human – not a bot – 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year.”
Nicola Sadlier, Head of Fraud, Bank of Ireland said: “Our message is clear – Stop, Think, Check. If something sounds too good to be true, it is. Treat every unsolicited call, text or email as a potential fraud attempt. Be suspicious. Keep your guard up.
“Our teams are constantly monitoring for emerging threats. We see more and more fraud attacks starting from social media and tech platforms. Fake ads should be caught before they are published online, but many are not. If we see a fake ad, we report it to the channel operator, but even then some ads are removed very slowly and sometimes not at all.”
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- 04:00 am

NayaOne, the global Digital Transformation Platform, and Digital Sandbox provider, has joined forces with Smart Data Foundry, a leading AI-simulated Synthetic Data provider, in a strategic partnership aiming to drive digital transformation within the financial services sector.
Through the integration of Smart Data Foundry’s aizle synthetic data sets into the NayaOne Digital Sandbox, this collaboration seeks to unlock new possibilities for accessing data within a safe and secure environment designed to support and drive financial innovation.
NayaOne Digital Sandbox provides secure access to Smart Data Foundry revolutionary aizle® platform, empowering users with controlled access to synthetic data sets alongside robust data interrogation tools. This initiative enables cloud deployment of APIs, supporting customer data calls while maintaining control over sensitive information. The result is an acceleration of innovation and a reduction in regulatory risk, while maintaining security of sensitive data assets.
The alliance between NayaOne and Smart Data Foundry seeks to unlock the full potential of financial data securely. Their shared vision is dedicated to driving positive change and fostering a dynamic ecosystem for financial institutions and fintechs, facilitating the acceleration of digital transformation and innovation in the financial services industry.
“The integration of aizle’s AI-simulated synthetic data into the NayaOne Digital Sandbox is a game-changer for safe collaboration. Together, Smart Data Foundry and NayaOne are forging a path towards a future where innovation is not hindered by data privacy concerns, but rather fueled by data-driven insights and collaborative innovation” – Bryn Coulthard, Chief Product & Technology Officer, Smart Data Foundry
“I’m delighted to combine the strengths of Smart Data Foundry’s industry leading synthetic data with the security and versatility of NayaOne’s platform. Together we can help drive innovation across the financial services ecosystem.” Karan Jain, CEO, NayaOne
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- 09:00 am

To elevate its securities finance offering, CGS International Securities Pte. Ltd. (CGS International), a leading integrated financial services provider in Asia, has implemented global Fintech leader Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.‘s, Securities Finance and Collateral Management (SFCM) platform. The single platform enables CGS International to minimize costs via automation as well as simplify workflows and exception-based processes.
“Providing a wide range of products and services to cater to the diverse needs of our clients is a strategic imperative for CGS International,” said Ademola Olopade, Group Head of Prime Brokerage and Wealth Solutions at CGS International. “Broadridge’s solution enables us to introduce additional functionalities and scalability according to our business needs, and helps us to optimize workflows for our customers.”
"We are delighted to have welcomed CGS International to our expanding clientele in the Asia-Pacific region," said Darren Crowther, Head of Securities Finance and Collateral Management Solutions at Broadridge. "In the dynamic landscape of securities finance, financial institutions must adeptly respond to emerging market trends, diversify revenue streams, and accommodate a growing customer base. The Broadridge SFCM platform enables CGS International to scale easily to further expand their business by region or business entity, and also positions them to effectively navigate evolving market dynamics and regulatory demands."
Broadridge simplifies and innovates trading across a complex ecosystem through global, scalable solutions. The SFCM platform is a functionally rich, front-to-back SaaS solution for securities finance, used widely across the global buy- and sell-side securities lending, repo, and collateral trading markets. SFCM has given firms the ability to improve their existing securities finance businesses and expand into new global markets and opportunities, with a core foundation that is fully scalable for business growth.