Through the 10-year Power Purchase Agreement, the Group will purchase 50 GWh of clean electricity annually, the equivalent of powering more than 14,000 homes. The energy will be generated from two of Low Carbon’s UK projects – Meadow Solar Farm in Hampshire and Pepperhill Solar Farm in Staffordshire.

The use of the new solar farms represents a significant step forward in the Group’s renewable energy approach. As part of the Climate Group’s RE100 initiative, the Group already purchases 100% renewable electricity. This PPA with Low Carbon allows for a better understanding of where the Group’s renewable energy comes from, helping to meet industry best practice.

Lloyds Banking Group’s investment means both solar farms will now develop vital enhancements to support nature, biodiversity and local wildlife, in line with the recent 10% Biodiversity Net Gain requirements which came into force in England in February 2024. This includes species-rich wildflower grassland and hedgerows to support pollinators, new UK native woodland planting, and vital foraging and sheltering features for local wildlife.

Last year, Lloyds Banking Group increased its goal to reduce direct carbon emissions from its operations from 75% to at least 90% by 2030. To complement its renewable electricity procurement, the Group has also pledged to reduce its total energy consumption by 50% by 2030 and is already over halfway towards its target.

Dave Blott, Future Ways of Working Director at Lloyds Banking Group said: “Working with Low Carbon on this great initiative will enable us to take a hugely important step towards meeting our net zero goals. The first electricity from these solar farms will be delivered in 2025, helping us to accelerate our transition to using cleaner, renewable energy. We’re committed to reducing the carbon emissions we generate through our own operations to help Britain prosper, and this PPA helps us realise this ambition.”

Marco Verspuij, Head of Power Management at Low Carbon said: “Lloyds Banking Group have been a key partner supporting Low Carbon on our journey to develop new renewable energy capacity at scale. Transitioning away from fossil fuels to renewable energy by developing different finance options is critical if we are to make progress on tackling climate change. Our partnership with Lloyds can help to address this challenge and offers a blueprint for what can be achieved when commercial banks and renewable energy developers work together.”

EDF Business Solutions will provide route-to-market services for Low Carbon enabling energy from the solar farms to help power Lloyds Banking Group’s UK property estate and avoid over 21,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year.

The Agreement will further strengthen the existing relationship with Low Carbon as it aims to deploy large-scale renewable infrastructure globally. As an original partner of Low Carbon’s multi-bank £540 million finance facility, Lloyds Bank is supporting the construction of a 1 GW portfolio of solar projects in the UK and the Netherlands.

The five-year agreement includes solutions in cybersecurity, collaboration, data center, networking, and services. The agreement with BBVA spans operations across multiple countries. It includes proactive services provided by a specialized Cisco team and promotes collaborative innovation. Additionally, the deal simplifies management by consolidating 3,000 individual contracts into a single unified agreement. This streamlines BBVA’s global IT operations, significantly improving efficiency.

“BBVA’s alliance with Cisco is more than a supplier-customer relationship. After eight years of Strategic Partnership working together, BBVA premises and employees worldwide will have access to not only current but future Cisco technological developments,” says José Luis Elechiguerra, Global Head of Engineering at BBVA. “Additionally, the agreement allows BBVA to achieve significant efficiency and productivity gains,” adds Jordi García, Global Head of Strategy & Performance of Engineering at BBVA.

According to Oliver Tuszik, President of Cisco’s Europe, Middle East and Africa region (EMEA), “We are proud to support the continued growth of one of the world’s leading financial institutions. For over a decade, BBVA has pioneered the digitization of banking in Spain and globally by putting customer experience at the center. During the next stage of our strategic partnership, together we will leverage the power of Cisco’s whole portfolio, including the latest AI-driven innovations, to accelerate their transformation.”

BBVA is a customer-centric, global financial services group founded in 1857. Winner of Global Finance’s 2023 Best Digital Bank Awards for Spanish businesses, its services include retail banking, private banking, asset management, wholesale banking and other related financial solutions.

Since 2016, BBVA and Cisco’s dedicated team have collaborated to create the bank of the future, leveraging technologies like collaboration, networking, data center and security. This strategic digital partnership, along with alliances with other leading tech companies, has accelerated BBVA’s transformation. As an early adopter of digitalization, BBVA is now at the forefront of financial services innovation.

Profile, a leading international financial solutions provider, announces the launch of its pioneering AI.Adaptive solution and incorporates the cutting-edge technology introduced by Artificial Intelligence, revolutionising the digital landscape. The solution, enhanced by the capabilities of OpenAI, adopts an LLM-agnostic strategy, enabling the direct and flexible interaction with Profile’s Axia Suite, Finuevo Suite, Acumen.plus, Centevo Suite, RiskAvert and RegiStar platforms.

AI.Adaptive has been designed to enable users to pose ad hoc queries to application databases, in natural language, both written and spoken. This is accomplished through the development of advanced natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning (ML) algorithms, leveraging the adaptability of the LLM-agnostic platform to enhance its capabilities.

The solution provides users with the capability to rapidly obtain personalised, reliable information without using predefined reports, to make fast decisions, maximising efficiency across the operations of their organisation.

AI.Adaptive integrates seamlessly into Profile’s Fintech platforms, but can operate autonomously, with various Business Intelligence and Data Warehousing (BI/DW) subsystems of another origin. With an innovative approach, the solution is independent of the specific LLM language model used, offering an LLM-agnostic platform that guarantees flexibility and compatibility with various AI engines.

Mr. Evangelos Angelides, Chief Executive Officer at Profile says that “We have been committed to continuously enhance the user experience by leveraging cutting-edge technologies. In this context, we are making significant investments, enriching our portfolio with AI.Adaptive, which marks a significant advancement in user-centric design, accessibility, as well as flexible and personalised information, aiming in immediate decision-making and overall productivity enhancements.”

He also stated that “Today, AI.Adaptive is fully functional with the Axia Suite platform and we are moving forward quickly with the rest of the company’s platforms, whilst more functionalities of this technology will soon be announced in areas such as data analysis, consulting, etc.”

Profile remains committed to its vision of providing innovative solutions based on cutting-edge technology that enable financial institutions to navigate complex financial ecosystems with confidence and agility.

TrustCommerce, a Sphere company and a leading provider of end-to-end integrated healthcare payments and security software, announced today that it is adding PayPal and Venmo, in the U.S., to its healthcare-focused payments platform, enabling providers to offer patients additional flexibility and modern healthcare payment options.

Through this collaboration with PayPal, patients will have the ability to use PayPal and Venmo to make payments to healthcare providers online, seamlessly within the existing payment experience they are already familiar with.

“In conversations with healthcare providers, we have heard loud and clear that they would like to maximize payment flexibility for their patients by offering new, user-friendly payment options,” said John Welch, Chief Product Officer, TrustCommerce. “We are excited to integrate with PayPal and Venmo to give our clients the ability to further simplify the checkout experience for patients and allow them to use a convenient and familiar payment method while maximizing on collections.”

The collaboration reflects TrustCommerce and PayPal’s shared vision to deliver seamless modern payment experiences that reduce patient friction and help providers increase collections. Together, TrustCommerce and PayPal are providing a solution that gives providers the foundation for ongoing success.

Jack Henry™ announced today that High Plains Bank is leveraging the company’s open technology to create a user experience that caters to Spanish-speaking customers.

Headquartered in Colorado, where the Latino population has grown 72% since 2000, the bank recognized the importance of helping this traditionally underserved market better manage its finances. “We believe everyone deserves the financial services and support to make healthier financial decisions,” explained Brian Otteman, chief experience officer of High Plains Bank. “By taking this approach, we can create a more inclusive financial experience that serves our entire community.”

The bank worked with Jack Henry to enrich its website and digital banking platform with Spanish-language options, making services more accessible for customers in Spanish. These inclusive technology features are complemented by personal bilingual support through the secure, authenticated chat service available on their banking app, HPBGO. This translation capability has significantly increased the usage of the banking app, ultimately contributing to higher levels of customer acquisition and engagement.

“Jack Henry continues to provide the technology we need to customize and build solutions for this growing yet largely underserved population,” Otteman said. “And the results speak loudly. It’s common to find that about 1/3 of our customers at any given branch self-identify as Latinx and/or Spanish speaking – sometimes more. We knew it was time to double down on our efforts to support these communities, which is why we’ve worked closely with providers like Jack Henry to help.”

Jack Henry’s open banking platform also enables the bank’s customers to view all their financial relationships in one place in a secure, well-connected manner – and without screen scraping. Transactions and expenses are enriched and categorized, providing easy visibility into spending habits and patterns. By gaining a better understanding of money flow, customers will further improve their financial health.

To solidify its commitment to creating a safe and comfortable banking environment, High Plains Bank added comprehensive technology to proactively prevent and detect fraud and financial crimes.

“We’re proud to work alongside High Plains Bank. It’s rewarding to see a bank intentional and committed to filling the gaps and making a real impact in underserved markets,” said Stacey Zengel, senior vice president of Jack Henry and president of Bank Solutions. “These efforts differentiate community financial institutions and reinforce their commitment to financial health.”

Ecommpay, a leading international Payment Service Provider and UK and European direct bank card Acquirer, is gearing up for a remarkable debut at the Merchant Payments Ecosystem (MPE) event, taking place from March 12-14, 2024, in Berlin. Ecommpay will present their proprietary full-stack payment solution tailored to the online retail sector addressing the specific needs and pain points of these merchants. 

As e-commerce continues to thrive in Europe, online merchants face escalating challenges. Recent statistics reveal heightened e-commerce fraud in Germany and France, where up to two-thirds of online retailers report a substantial increase. 

Additionally, cart abandonment remains a pressing issue, with a striking 70% average of European shoppers leaving their carts before checkout. Ecommpay’s research highlights the need for innovative solutions across industries, with almost three-quarters of consumers surveyed stating that digital payment service experiences could be improved. Notably, businesses involved in the research also expressed difficulties with keeping up with new payment trends and matching consumer expectations. 

Ecommpay's strategic entrance at MPE 2024 aims to help merchants tackle these and other challenges head-on. Contributing to the overarching theme of payment innovation at MPE, Ecommpay will spotlight a diverse range of products designed to help businesses reduce time to revenue, combat payment fraud, and ensure a best-in-class checkout experience for customers worldwide. 

The showcase includes a myriad of hero products encompassing over 100 Alternative Payment Methods including BNPL, a full suite of Open Banking products with a unique card payment and Open Banking transaction orchestration platform, award-winning fraud prevention tools and risk-control systems, and much more. As Ecommpay prepares to present its comprehensive suite of solutions and their capabilities, the company is thrilled to also be shortlisted at the MPE Awards for its Open Banking Advanced offering.  

Ecommpay is a Payment Service Provider, Principal Member of Visa and Mastercard, and a Mastercard MoneySend and Visa Direct certified partner. The company’s diverse payment service portfolio and global coverage enable it to support fast and flexible payments, as well as individual and mass payouts, in 70 countries and 40 currencies.

Ecommpay is committed to partnering with businesses to offer a comprehensive arsenal of tools, each tailored to the needs of individual e-commerce merchants to enhance their success in the dynamic world of e-commerce.

Looking forward to Ecommpay’s participation at MPE, Karan Johal, Global Head of Sales at Ecommpay, says: "Our debut of the full-stack e-commerce solution at MPE 2024 marks a significant stride for Ecommpay. We're thrilled to showcase a suite of integrated products addressing the evolving needs of online merchants. From card acquiring to advanced Open Banking solutions, Ecommpay is committed to providing a seamless and secure payment experience."

Book a personal consultation at MPE 2024 to meet with Ecommpay’s payment experts and chart the course to enhance revenue through streamlined payment processing.

Kiwibank has successfully gone live with ACI Worldwide’s Enterprise Payments Platform, a managed cloud solution that will process all of Kiwibank’s account-to-account real-time payments.

“Aligned with our vision for transformation and to build a new, modern, flexible tech stack, the ACI Enterprise Payments Platform is vital for future-proofing our payments system. By moving everything to ACI’s platform, we’ve replaced over 50% of the tech underpinning our banking solutions and opened our business up to embrace technology faster, while maximising performance and enhancing security,” said Mark Stephen, Kiwibank Chief Customer Officer.

“We’re the first bank in New Zealand to do this, and we’re really excited about what it means for our customers. Future phases of our migration will include moving domestic and international payment functionality out of our old systems and onto ACI Enterprise Payments Platform as well as offering services like real-time payments,” said Stephen.

Working with ACI to move its infrastructure to the cloud provides Kiwibank access to cutting-edge technology at scale to streamline operation of multiple, and growing, payments services. “This significantly improves our readiness for future innovation. It also means we will be able to implement change at lower cost and lower risk, not having to work around multiple systems, utilising the expertise of the ACI managed service model,” commented Stephen.

“We’re always working to improve our offer of being simple, easy, accessible and providing expertise for our customers, this move will help us deliver on that promise. ACI has helped us provide the tools our customers need in today’s fast-moving society. It’s a really exciting time for us as we continue to grow and gear up for future growth of the bank,” said Stephen.

For ACI Worldwide, this project epitomizes how ACI’s technology and global expertise can help our customers meet the increasing demands of their customers and their markets. “The cloud-native managed service Enterprise Payments Platform solution is a transformative move for Kiwibank to leapfrog the competition. It enables the bank to realize the convergence of all payment rails and offers scalability and flexibility to bolt on additional technology solutions without having to build the architecture from the ground up. We’re very excited to have implemented such an advanced solution for one of New Zealand’s leading banks,” said Leslie Choo, Senior Vice President, Managing Director – APAC, ACI Worldwide.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has urged local banks to pick up the pace in New Zealand's journey towards real-time payments. New Zealand’s economy could benefit from additional economic growth of $271 million, or 0.1%, by 2027 if the country were to introduce a domestic real-time payments scheme, according to a study by the Centre for Economic and Business Research commissioned by ACI and Payments NZ, the payments industry association responsible for the governance of New Zealand's core payment systems.

Kiwibank is a long-standing ACI banking customer, leveraging ACI’s ATM/POS and AI-powered Fraud Management solutions. The strategic partnership with ACI marks a significant milestone in Kiwibank’s digital transformation efforts and sets the foundation to unlock the benefits of real-time payments.

To scale its credit business and streamline the management and operation of its private debt portfolio, NorthWall Capital, a London-based credit investment firm offering private capital solutions, has adopted the Sentry loan portfolio management solution from global Fintech leader Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.

"As we enter our next phase of growth, the adoption of Sentry will be invaluable in strengthening our current technology infrastructure and empowering our firm to scale its private credit offering," said Ian Lokkerbol, founding partner and chief operating officer, NorthWall Capital. "We were quickly impressed by the superior functionality of Sentry, and we look forward to leveraging it to streamline our investment operations and equip our team with the tools they need to continue building strong, opportunistic portfolios for our clients."

"By automating critical investment management functions and supplying fund managers with technology that allows them to make more informed decisions, Broadridge's Sentry solution is enabling transformation in the private credit industry," said Mike Sleightholme, Broadridge's president of international and head of asset management solutions. "We are pleased to provide NorthWall Capital with our award-winning solution and are excited to see the opportunities it will create for the firm through operational efficiencies and long-term business growth. Broadridge continues to empower high-performance asset managers and alternative investment managers by delivering flexible technology solutions and insights that provide the confidence and the agility to pursue growth in any market climate."

Broadridge's Sentry solution brings greater accuracy and transparency to the private credit process and provides front-to-back-office functionality to increase overall efficiency. Sentry is a scalable web-based solution that captures, calculates and analyses the borrower's KPIs, monitors the pipeline, improves credit selection, and creates reusable covenant rules. Besides managing day-to-day loan administration, Sentry allows users to monitor compliance issues and reconcile and aggregate data.

JustPaid, the AI-powered FinTech company, has just announced new capabilities for its conversational AI financial chatbot. The chatbot is being enhanced to provide more tailored and dynamic insights for users based on their specific financial needs and feedback.

The chatbot will feature custom action tiles and metrics tailored for topics like cash flow, allowing founders and business operators to have more focused conversations. Financial data from sources like QuickBooks and Chase Bank are connected to provide context on where insights are coming from.

Part of JustPaid’s overarching vision for the chatbot is to integrate with Stripe and other tech-leading money movement vendors, allowing company operators, bookkeepers, and accountants to process transactions seamlessly and directly within the chatbot, and thus providing a more straightforward experience for payments and services.

Leveraging new AI technology, the financial chatbot will display interactive components for a richer experience, opening up possibilities to visualize cash flows and other financial data over time in a more engaging format.

“We are committed to creating the best financial experience possible for businesses,” says Anelya Grant, co-founder of JustPaid. “Business operators should be able to interact with financial data and know what is happening in real-time.”

Chat.justpaid.io aims to provide everything startups need for financial management and conversations in one place through its conversational interface. The new features announced today further this mission by enhancing insights, integration, and interactivity.

“We are aiming to have a super context-relevant focused chat, so that when you log in, the chatbot immediately tells you what is happening in your business with real-time tiles,” says Vinay Pinnaka, co-founder of JustPaid. “If something changes in the business, you’ll know immediately.”

Airbase, the leading procure, pay, close software to stop uncontrolled spend, today announced a strategic collaboration with Sardine, the leader in behavior-based fraud management. Airbase and Sardine’s partnership underscores a shared commitment to enhancing customer financial security against a backdrop of soaring vendor and payment fraud.

“Airbase has been an amazing partner to us. Together, we’ve created the safest way for companies to procure, pay, and close their books,” said Soups Ranjan, CEO of Sardine. “We’re excited to expand our relationship with Airbase and help them onboard and serve more legitimate customers in a frictionless way.”

“We are constantly at the forefront, fighting against fraudulent attacks on our customers. Our partnership with Sardine, marked by a deep and seamless integration, significantly bolsters our risk management capabilities,” says Nayeem Mano, VP of Risk Management at Airbase. “This collaboration isn’t just about combining efforts; it’s about leveraging Sardine’s powerful software to enhance the vigilance and effectiveness of our risk team.”

Under the stewardship of CEO and Founder Thejo Kote and CFO Aneal Vallurupalli, Airbase maintains a steady commitment to trust and safety. The company prioritizes long-term strategies over short-term gains, investing in personnel and technology to ensure a resilient operational foundation.

“In a rapidly transforming market, our focus on fraud prevention and our commitment to protecting our customers’ funds will remain steadfast,” asserts Vallurupalli.

Sardine’s unique approach to fraud prevention resonates with Airbase. “Collaborating with Sardine feels like expanding our internal team,” explains Airbase’s Manager of Fraud and Chargeback, Preston Miller. “Their deep understanding of fraud, combined with their flexible product, enhances our ability to offer superior fraud prevention to our customers.”

This strategic collaboration with Sardine underscores Airbase’s commitment to safeguarding customer finances and reinforces its standing as a trusted spend management platform.