ZEN.COM, an innovative European fintech, has been awarded the Digital First certificate by Mastercard. The key benefit that ZEN.COM will provide to individual customers through its certification is a higher level of card security. This is another step in the company's global strategy to deliver the most secure and fully mobile financial services.

With the Digital First certificate, ZEN Mastercard users are even better protected. Cards bearing this certificate have an additional security feature: data such as number, CVC and expiry date are not printed on the physical card. They can only be accessed by logging into the ZEN.COM app. As a result, even if a plastic card is lost, there is no risk of losing control of the most sensitive data.

When the account’s registration is completed, ZEN.COM users receive an automatically generated virtual card that is immediately available in the application to be used just like a traditional card. Free physical cards are also available too, although they are sent on request after placing an order in the ZEN.COM app. With the implementation of the Digital First certificate, plastic cards will no longer contain visible sensitive data, only the holder's name. After logging in, the card number and CVC2 will be available in the ZEN.COM application.

“As UK Finance data show, in the first half of 2021, a total of £753.9 million was stolen through fraud, which was an increase of 30% in comparison to the first half of 2020. It’s to be expected that this year’s amounts will be even higher as cybercriminals find new ways to obtain private data. This shows how important it is to maintain security when paying in physical outlets. Initiatives such as Digital First are primarily a nod towards consumers who, for various reasons, do not want to give up plastic cards and, at the same time, want to improve the security level of physical transactions,” comments Michał Bogusławski, Chief Commercial Officer at ZEN.COM.

The implementation is underway, and the certified solution will be ready for use with ZEN.COM soon. It will be available for users using both Android and iOS, with the possibility to quickly connect to the electronic wallet in Apple Pay, Garmin Pay, Google Pay or Xiaomi Pay.

Accounting firms are missing a key opportunity to adopt Open Banking to help meet the needs of small businesses facing a cash flow squeeze, according to a report by iwoca, one of Europe’s largest small business lenders, and AccountingWeb.

The report, titled ‘Open Future | What does Open Banking mean for accounting firms’, is based on a survey of accountants representing more than 25,000 small business clients. It explores how the accounting industry has adopted Open Banking so far, identifies existing limitations, and discusses what needs to be done to increase Open Banking usage in accounting firms in the future.  

Accountants missing opportunity to support small businesses with cash flow concerns amidst rising business costs

The biggest financial issue for small businesses, according to accountants, is a cash flow squeeze (52%) – unsurprising, given the current volatile economic climate. This stress on businesses’ liquidity is exacerbated by other issues related to accessing finance (35%) and getting paid late (35%). 

Despite the prevalence of these issues, only a quarter of firms (25%) offer cash flow management support, and only 18% offer clients support with sourcing finance.

Open Banking offers tailored financial solutions that meet the needs of small businesses

The report outlines a number of benefits of Open Banking to accountants, and how it can address the issues their clients face. 

Firstly, Open Banking leads to more thorough, accurate and up-to-date data for cash flow forecasting apps. And secondly, this live data feeds into easier finance application processes for small businesses. The overall result is faster access to vital funds for businesses in need of urgent cash injections.

The report data suggests that Open Banking can connect with precisely the issues that small businesses struggle with. The most pressing issue for SME clients, according to accountants, is record keeping and management information (73%). Correspondingly, the most popular use cases for Open Banking were bookkeeping (57%), followed by Accounts Receivable (43%) and Accounts Payable (42%). This proves the potential for Open Banking to streamline the data capture process via better integration with financial data sources. 

Open Banking adoption amongst accountants is low despite clear benefits

Despite these benefits, over a third of accountancy firms (34%) still aren’t using Open Banking. And the report suggests that if accountants don’t use it, their clients won’t either: data revealed that 40% of small business clients don’t use Open Banking, and over 70% of these clients were from firms who don’t use the technology themselves. (Equally, 74% of accountants who do use open banking said most of their clients also use the technology.) 

The research identifies key issues preventing a bigger adoption of Open Banking in accountancy practices. These are:

1. trust and interest from clients (48%)

2. lack of understanding/ confidence from accountants (38%)

3. concerns over data security (34%), and 

4. general distrust of the technology (24%). 

Change of attitude needed to drive Open Banking adoption 

The report outlines the steps needed to drive Open Banking adoption and radically enhance the value accountants can provide to small businesses. 

First, there requires a change in attitudes whereby accountants show clients how Open Banking can benefit their businesses and demonstrate trust in their solutions, deploying use cases that are targeted at real problems firms face. 

Second, accountants must create a significant competitive advantage by increasing efficiency, lowering costs and solving the problems that matter most. 

Colin Goldstein, Commercial Growth Director at iwoca said: “Considering the increasingly volatile economy at present, which is forcing many small businesses into a cash flow crisis, it’s disappointing to see that so few accounting firms offer tailored solutions to this issue. 

“Our data suggest that Open Banking can help. But, to increase adoption, a change in attitude is needed: accountants need to proactively engage with clients about the ways Open Banking can solve real problems for them, and providers need to demonstrate trust and reliability in their solutions. Firms that can harness the power of Open Banking have the potential to create significant competitive advantage: through using Open Banking technology to solve the problems that matter the most to their clients, they can grow their client-base while reducing overheads.”

Max Whiteley, Head of Accounts, Accounts & Legal added: “If your client doesn’t care about Open Banking, then it’s our job to educate them so that they do. Open Banking is the gateway to real-time data, so we can make real-time business decisions.”

Tom Herbert, Technology Editor at AccountingWEB said: “The accounting profession needs to make sure it’s up to speed with the latest developments in Open Banking and educate their clients on the benefits. Open Banking not only has the potential to help practitioners prepare their clients for MTD ITSA, it can also open the door to more valuable advisory conversations with clients.”

iwoca is accredited to the Recovery Loan Scheme, having distributed nearly £400 million to small businesses through the Government's Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). In June 2020 the lender launched iwocaPay – an online buy now pay later invoice checkout to help small businesses get paid. Most recently iwoca launched a Revenue Based Loan, where businesses can spend on growth and repay at their own pace, based on their revenue. iwoca is reaching 2.3 million businesses across the UK and Germany through its embedded lending technology, which allows businesses to access loans through a range of platforms such as accountancy software apps and digital neo-banks. The company also offers free mental health support for all small businesses in the UK, in partnership with the online therapy platform Spill.

Embedded finance startup Monite has appointed Alex Akimov as Head of API, formerly also Head of API of Adyen, in the latest move in its platform scaling strategy.

Like Adyen, currently capitalized at nearly $40 billion, Monite’s embedded finance strategy is built on API interconnectivity. Monite’s embeddable API enables B2B brands to add new finance automation features, such as invoicing, accounts payable, expense management, and more, directly into their existing interface. These embeddable finance management modules, a first in fintech, offer the potential for any type of business to become a ‘super-app’ environment for their own customers. 

An early employee at Adyen, Akimov rose rapidly to become Head of API in 2019, overseeing APIs that processed more than €500 billion in 2021. He brings to Monite the experience and insights gained from scaling an API-led European fintech to global prominence. With this world-class API expert on board, Monite is set to further extend its platform’s capabilities and attractiveness, and become the leading provider of embedded finance automation for B2B platforms, neobanks, and marketplaces.

Akimov, who holds a Master's degree in neural networks and pattern recognition, is passionate about creating a great developer experience. At Monite he is responsible for intuitive API design, versatile developer tools, simple and comprehensive technical documentation, empowering the developer community and authentic developer relations. 

Alex Akimov comments: “I am excited to join the Monite team. Monite is a truly API-first company that possesses the vision, ambitions and expertise for creating a global fintech API platform. The Monite team is focusing on building a secure, reliable and robust API platform, excelling in every single piece of API design, documentation and developer tooling. It’s a challenge and a pleasure to work on setting a new standard of high-quality APIs, inspired by the success of truly API-first companies like Amazon, Twilio, Adyen, and Stripe. I moved over to Monite because I think this is truly the next big thing."

"APIs are everywhere, powering the modern economy and innovation in many areas. And it is in fintech that they are demonstrating the fastest speed and greatest development. While it's very easy nowadays to create an API, it's notoriously hard to get it right – bringing together all the technical components like security, scalability, usability and great developer experience. Ability to successfully tackle this complexity is what distinguishes prominent API-first companies from others,” he continued.

Ivan Maryasin, Monite’s Co-Founder and CEO says: “Alex’s decision to join Monite validates our ambitions to create a global-scale leader in embedded finance. He has been there and done it with Adyen, one of the world’s most successful fintechs. He is a true API thought leader who travels the world to talk about API-first, and who constantly looks for ways to give back to the API community. Monite gives any organization the opportunity to offer world-class finance automation tools on its own platform, or to build out a super app as part of a low-risk winner-takes-all strategy. APIs are the fulcrum in our world and having Alex on board is a fantastic endorsement of our vision.”

nCino, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCNO), a pioneer in cloud banking and digital transformation solutions for the global financial services industry, today announced that Chris Ainsworth has joined the Company as its first Chief People Officer, serving as a member of the nCino Executive Leadership Team.

“At nCino, one of our highest priorities and most valuable assets has and will continue to be our people,” said Pierre Naudé, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of nCino. “Chris brings to nCino more than two decades of experience and a proven track record of leading high-performing human resources and talent teams in complex global financial organizations. I am confident his knowledge and perspective will enable us to continue attracting, hiring, developing and retaining the best people in the industry and around the globe.”

For the past 25 years, Ainsworth has led people functions and teams in a range of industries including insurance, cards and payments, banking and capital markets. Most recently, he served as Global Chief Human Resources Officer of CFA Institute, a global association of investment professionals. Prior to CFA Institute, Ainsworth held senior talent and HR roles at institutions including TD Bank, American Express and GMAC Insurance. In his new role, Ainsworth will oversee nCino’s global talent functions, encompassing human resources (which also includes DE&I and community involvement and philanthropy), recruiting and employee training and enablement.

“As I learned about nCino and its incredible journey to becoming the worldwide leader in cloud banking, I have been impressed with their ability to develop and maintain a strong company culture through a solid set of human-centric core values, a clear vision and mission, and unwavering customer service ethic and a high level of employee respect and empowerment,'' said Ainsworth. “I’m extremely flattered and excited to be invited to be a part of the nCino team and to contribute to all of the great progress already accomplished across these areas, while also helping the Company innovate and elevate its strategic people functions in new ways.”

Griffin, the UK-based Banking as a Service firm, today announces the promotion of Maria Campbell to Chief Operating Officer. Campbell first joined Griffin in 2021 as Vice President of People. 

Campbell will be responsible for executing the firm's commercial growth strategy in this new role, and embedding operational excellence and resilience into the business as it scales. Her appointment as COO comes after Adam Moulson was announced as interim CEO, while David Jarvis takes parental leave.

"This promotion reflects Maria's immeasurable impact on our business and culture. Her exceptional leadership, people-first approach, and unwavering focus on excellence make her a natural choice as COO. I’m excited to see what she brings to the role as we set out on our next phase of growth“ said Griffin, CTO and co-founder Allen Rohner.

Before Griffin, Campbell was Head of People at GoCardless and Monzo Bank and held several senior people roles at technology firms. Earlier this year, Campbell was recognised as one of the Top 25 Women Leaders in Financial Technology in Europe by The Financial Technology Report and as one of London's 20 Most Impressive & Successful Banking VPs by Best Startups.

"I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to support our wonderful team and business as we scale from startup to unicorn. I'm excited to apply what I have learned in creating commercially-minded, people-led cultures to my new role as COO. As someone who has their sleeves perpetually rolled up, I can't wait to get stuck in."

David Jarvis and Allen Rohner co-founded Griffin in 2017, with the mission of becoming a technology-first bank designed to help fintechs and innovative companies quickly launch and scale financial products. The company recently submitted its application for a UK banking license, a significant step in its journey to becoming the bank that fintechs can build on.

NinjaTrader Group, LLC, a global leader in clearing, brokerage and technology solutions for active traders through its subsidiaries NinjaTrader and Tradovate, today announced that that its firms are among the first to offer the new Nano Bitcoin futures (BIT) contract just launched by Coinbase Derivatives Exchange. Individuals can trade this cryptocurrency futures contract via NinjaTrader or Tradovate without any commissions or market data fees.

Martin Franchi, CEO of NinjaTrader Group, said: “We’re thrilled to continue supporting global exchange product innovation tailored to the retail community. These exciting, affordable and accessible products will be available on our platform from the moment they launch. Our unique offering of commission-free trading and innovative trading solutions provides active and new traders alike a straightforward way to take a position or hedge their exposure in the crypto market in a regulated U.S. exchange environment. We anticipate significant interest in this new contract and believe it is a perfect product and market fit as retail investors continue to flock to the futures markets.”

Boris Ilyevsky, Head of Coinbase Derivatives Exchange, said: "We're excited to be working alongside the NinjaTrader and Tradovate team. NinjaTrader's reputation within the retail futures sector is unparalleled, and Tradovate has collaborated with us from day one by sharing our values in creating best-in-class products for their customers. We couldn't be more excited to continue our partnership with them and innovate on new products together for the retail community."

Each Nano Bitcoin futures contract is sized at 1/100 the price of a bitcoin, representing the smallest size cryptocurrency futures contract available today. The contract enables traders to go long or short bitcoin, providing an opportunity to take advantage of the markets going in either direction. Those who have an existing crypto position can use the new Nano Bitcoin contract to hedge against that position, and others who may have been reluctant to invest in bitcoin directly can participate in the movement of the price for a much smaller investment.

Nano Bitcoin futures are the most recent addition to the tradable products available through NinjaTrader and Tradovate designed to increase accessibility to the dynamic futures markets.  Through support of the rapidly expanding retail trader audience, as well as ongoing product and service innovation following NinjaTrader’s acquisition of Tradovate Holdings, LLC in January 2022, the combined entity exceeded 10.2 million futures contracts traded in May 2022.

The First Neo Financial Institution in KSA; Loan Financing Company (LFC), a newly-established microfinance company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has selected ICS BANKS Digital Platform, a worldwide digital Shari’a compliant software solution, from ICS Financial Systems (ICSFS), the global software and services provider for banks and financial institutions.

The LFC has received a no-objection letter from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), which regulates and oversees the operations of banks and financial institutions across the country. 

The average credit card holder in the UK believes they will continue to use a physical card for just 9 and a half more years, according to a new report, Plastic surgery: Are credit cards being reinvented, from personal finance comparison site finder.com.

This figure is quite consistent across all age groups, ranging from millennials who expect to keep using them for under 9 years, all the way through to the silent generation who estimate the figure at around 11 and a half years.

Across all ages, 37% of cardholders believe they will stop using their physical card within 5 years, while a further 1 in 10 (9%) only use their card via their phone or watch (via payment methods like Apple or Google Pay), and 4% use virtual credit cards like Bits.

This means that half (50%) of all credit card customers don’t plan to be using a physical card at all within 5 years.

While those among gen Z and millennials who have a physical card expect to use it for about as long as their older counterparts, there are noticeably fewer of them. When asked what method they would be most likely to use to pay for an expensive item (£100+), just 1 in 10 (9%) and 1 in 8 (12%) respectively would use a physical credit card, as opposed to 3 in 10 (29%) baby boomers and 2 in 5 (41%) of the silent generation.

In terms of the number of cards held, figures from UK Finance show there were 59 million credit cards in issue in February 2022, down from 63 million in 2021 and 66 million in 2020.

Physical credit cards also appear to be losing their prestige with consumers. When asked what they consider to be the coolest method of paying, the same survey respondents said that paying with a phone or watch was the coolest way (18%). In contrast, metal, personalised and see-through cards got just 6% each, gold cards got 5% and vertical cards got 4%.

To see the research in full visit: www.finder.com/uk/credit-cards/best-credit-cards#cardwp

Commenting on the findings, Rachel Wait who wrote an industry report featuring experts’ insights alongside the new research for finder.com, said:

“It is clear that credit cards don’t hold the same cachet with consumers as they once did. Not only are they declining in use but the fact that consumers actively find paying with a phone or watch to be cooler shows they are no longer a status symbol.

“Although currently, just 4% of Brits use virtual credit cards instead of physical ones, this number will no doubt grow as consumers are drawn to their X and the convenience of using your phone for everything.”

Babel Finance Raises $80 Million in a Series B Funding Round, Valuation Hits $2 Billion

Babel Finance, a crypto-financial service provider that provides digital asset loans, recently raised $80 million in a Series B funding round. The investment increased the company's worth to $2 billion. Leading venture capital companies such as Circle Ventures, 10T Holdings, Jenerations Capital, BAI Capital and Bertelsmann, and Dragonfly Capital led the fundraising. Babel Finance's $80 million funding round is not it's first. 

SumUp Raises €590m at €8bn Valuation in a Funding Round Led by Bain Capital Tech Opportunities

SumUp, a London-based mPOS provider, has raised €590 million in a capital round that values the company at €8 billion - a decrease from the €20 billion valuation it sought earlier this year.  Bain Capital Tech Opportunities led the round, with participation from BlackRock, btov Partners, Centerbridge, Crestline, Fin Capital, and Sentinel Dome Partners funds. SumUp, which was founded in 2012, offers small businesses a free business account and card, an online store, and an invoicing solution, in addition to in-person and remote payments connected with its card terminals and point-of-sale registers.

Fintech Infrastructure Firm Prime Trust Raises $107m in a Series B Funding Round 

Series B funding was raised by Prime Trust, a one-stop-shop for API-based financial infrastructure for fintech and digital asset entrepreneurs. The following investors participated in the round: FIS, Fin Capital, Mercato Partners, Kraken Ventures, Commerce Ventures, William Blair & Company, Decasonic, University Growth Fund, Gaingels, GateCap Ventures, and Seven Peaks Ventures.

B2B BNPL Startup Playter Raises $55m from Klarna, Sofia and Pipe

Playter, a buy now, pay later company based in the United Kingdom, has secured a $55 million loan and equity round led by Klarna, SoFi, and Pipe. Adit Venture Capital and Fasanara Capital led the round, and Fin Capital, Act Venture Capital, and 1818 Ventures also participated. The financing follows $1.7 million in seed funding in March. Playter offers to assist SMBs minimise their burn rate by allowing for the instalment payment of professional services fees.

Cleo Raises $80m for Money Management Bot at $500m Valuation 

Sky News reports that the British AI-based personal finance chatbot Cleo has been valued at $500 million thanks to a $80 million fundraising round. Sofina, a tech investor, participated in the financing, which occurred around 18 months after a $44 million funding round, according to Sky. Cleo, a 2016 London-based startup, interacts with users' bank accounts and analyses their spending patterns and transaction histories using artificial intelligence to assist with money management.

Payments Orchestration Startup Formance Raises $3.1m from Hoxton Ventures, Frst, Y Combinator

Formance, a French fintech startup that provides organisations with a "low-code" template for tracking payment flows in real time, has secured $3,1 million from Hoxton Ventures, Frst, Y Combinator, and a number of business angels. Fomance, which was founded in 2021 by Clément Salaün and Anne-Sybille Pradelles, provides pre-built, fully-customizable use-case templates for the tracking of financial flows between pay-ins and payouts.

Partnerships 

Phundex Limited and Gibson Strategy Formed a Strategic Alliance

Phundex and Gibson Strategy announced a strategic alliance to leverage our combined expertise within the global private wealth sector. The Phundex Management team has helped clients across the financial services sector leverage technology to improve efficiencies, meet regulatory requirements, and reduce costs and operational risk. Gibson Strategy has expertise in experience-led research, business development, and growth in the private wealth sector. 

G2G Partners with TripleA for Cryptocurrency Payments

G2G, one of the world’s leading digital marketplaces, has partnered with TripleA to enable customers to make purchases on their website with cryptocurrency. Now, over 2.7 million G2G users can shop for in-game items and services, as well as various digital goods using Bitcoin (BTC), Tether (USDT), and Ethereum (ETH). G2G has supported more than 200 payment options across the globe prior to the partnership, and accepting digital assets will make the marketplace even more flexible for customers, especially those who own and transact regularly with crypto.

TransUnion Helps Millions Check Credit Health With Lloyds Bank

TransUnion, a global information and insights company, is empowering customers of Lloyds Bank to look after their credit health with free access to their TransUnion credit score via an interactive dashboard. The Lloyds Bank ‘Your Credit Score’ service, which uses TransUnion’s Consumer Platform, is filling a clear demand – with almost one million of the bank’s customers checking their credit score for the first time in April.

SentinelOne Expands Singularity Marketplace with New Integrations for SIEM, SOAR, and Malware Analysis

SentinelOne, an autonomous cybersecurity platform company, has announced integrations with IBM, Swimlane, and Intezer, increasing use case offerings available via SentinelOne’s Singularity Marketplace. The new integrations cover security information and event management (SIEM), security orchestration, automation and response (SOAR), and malware analysis.

APEXX Partners with Scott Dunn, Streamlining Payments Across Global Travel Markets

APEXX Global, the multi-award-winning global payments platform, has partnered with Scott Dunn, the luxury tour operator, to increase transaction efficiency and boost conversion rates across the United States and Singapore. This follows APEXX’s successful integration with Scott Dunn in the United Kingdom in January 2022. APEXX combines acquirers, gateways, shopping carts and Alternative Payments Methods into one API connection. 

TS Imagine Connects to Coinbase Prime and Provides Clients with Another Venue for Regulated Cryptocurrency Trading

TS Imagine, a global leader in trading, portfolio and risk management solutions for capital markets, has successfully connected with Coinbase Prime, the prime broker for digital assets, to offer institutional clients a fully regulated path to trade cryptocurrencies. TS Imagine clients can now connect to Coinbase Prime with TradeSmart, the all-asset execution and order management system, and use the full range of crypto-trading functionality native to the TradeSmart platform.

China Construction Bank, ADDX To Partner On China Offshore Investments

China Construction Bank (Chongqing and Singapore branches) and ADDX have entered a partnership to help domestic investors in China participate in the country’s official offshore investment scheme. The financial institutions announced today the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that paves the way for them to work together on the custody and distribution of a US$200 million quota allocation under the QDLP scheme.

Tillful Announces Partnership With Experian to Help Small Businesses Get the Credit They Deserve

Small business credit platform Tillful, backed by ING Ventures, Experian Ventures, Bitrock Capital, and Katalyst Ventures, announced that it's partnering with Experian® to help establish credit profiles for businesses that are new to credit or otherwise credit invisible and thereby potentially expand the range of credit options that can be made available to them. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the creation of new businesses is booming with over 5.4 million new business applications filed in 2021.

Finastra and ITC Infotech Extend European Partnership to Deliver Treasury Automation in the Cloud

Finastra announced a strategic partnership with ITC Infotech to deliver Finastra’s Fusion Kondor cloud-based Treasury as a Service solution to its growing customer base in Europe. Customers will benefit from increased automation of treasury services, an evergreen system that keeps pace with regulatory change, and rapid time to go live for new features and functionalities. The partnership strengthens Finastra’s long-standing relationship with ITC Infotech.

Interswitch and Compass Plus Technologies Partner to Ease Payments Across Africa

Interswitch, Africa’s leading integrated payments and digital commerce company, and Compass Plus Technologies, an international provider of retail banking and electronic payments software, have announced a partnership to further strengthen Interswitch’s payment card processing capacity in Africa. The strategic partnership will see Interswitch utilise TranzAxis, an award-winning, token-based, cloud-native and API first open development payments platform developed by Compass Plus Technologies with innovation at its core, for Verve, Visa and Mastercard credit card processing.

Citi Partners with METACO to Develop Institutional Digital Asset Custody Capabilities

Citi announced that it has selected METACO to develop and pilot digital asset custody capabilities. This collaboration brings together METACO’s technology and digital solutions with Citi’s expansive custody network to develop a platform to enable clients to store and settle digital assets seamlessly and securely. Citi intends to fully integrate METACO's bank-grade digital asset custody and orchestration platform, Harmonize, into its existing infrastructure, to develop and pilot digital asset custody capabilities.

Embedded Finance Startup Kernolab Partners with Ondato for KYC and Compliance Boost

Kernolab, the Vilnius-based fintech startup that focuses on helping businesses drive value through embedded finance solutions, is partnering with Ondato for all KYC compliance capabilities. The partnership comes as Kernolab prepares to make inroads in the booming marketplaces vertical, where merchant onboarding is heavily reliant on smooth KYC and compliance checks.

IXOPAY partners with Concardis

Leading payment orchestration platform IXOPAY has partnered with Concardis / Nets Group, a payment service provider that provides a complete service for cashless and digital payments. Together they give businesses access to state-of-the-art infrastructure and payment processing. IXOPAY’s intuitive architecture and three solutions give merchants complete control of their payment setup no matter their size.

SEON Announces Partnership with Provenir to Help Customers Fight Fraud

Global fraud fighters, SEON announced a new partnership with Provenir, a global leader in AI-powered risk decisioning software for the fintech industry. The exciting partnership will help organizations to build powerful new fraud prevention solutions. With its innovative technology, Provenir provides an AI-powered decisioning platform that can assess risk in areas like identity, credit, and fraud. 

ChainUp Inks Strategic Partnership with Asset and Wealth Management Firm Bedrock

ChainUp Group, a blockchain technology solutions provider, announced a strategic partnership with Singapore-based asset and wealth management firm Bedrock Trust Pte Ltd (“Bedrock”). This marks a significant first step in the collaboration between both firms to strengthen their core competencies and provide clients with comprehensive digital asset management solutions.

Bitbns Collaborates with Tradetron to Facilitate Automated Trading

Bitbns, a leading Indian cryptocurrency exchange, has partnered with Tradetron, the country's most widely used algorithm automation platform, to facilitate automated crypto trading for its traders and investors. With this strategic partnership, Bitbns aims to empower its users to automate their investment strategies while facilitating seamless trading and investment in the digital asset class.

Launches 

Muse Finance Launches Combined Supply and Invoice Finance Solution

Muse Finance, the business finance startup, announced that it has launched a new solution combining supply finance and invoice finance, to help businesses pay overseas suppliers while unlocking cash tied up in their pending invoices. Muse developed the new business finance product after recognising a rising demand for an extension to working capital in the UK. With Supply Finance, Muse pays suppliers on its customers’ behalf for goods they are bringing into the UK from overseas for their business.

Revolut to Launch its "Responsible" BNPL Product Across all of Europe

Pay Later will be the first BNPL product in Ireland with an approved credit limit and affordability. Customers won't be limited to select merchant agreements while using Pay Later. In Ireland, where Pay Later will launch first, 1.9 million adults hold a Revolut account. The challenger bank will sell the product in Poland and Romania by 2022.

Mastercard Spearheads New Web3 and Crypto Community to Make Emerging Tech more Accessible 

Mastercard, alongside leading industry influencers, announces the launch of The Belle Block™, a new community focused on educating and empowering women and non-binary individuals to benefit from Web3 technology and crypto. Mastercard believes in the power of technology and its ability to build a better future that includes everyone. The technology company is creating a platform that prioritizes education, listening and learning from a diverse community - bringing more people into the digital ecosystem safely and securely.

Fintech Wirex Launches Services for New and Existing Customers in the UK

Wirex, a leading digital payments platform, revealed a variety of features for new and existing customers in the UK. Following constructive dialogue with UK regulators, the Financial Conduct Authority, the company has announced that they will be resuming services in the UK. Founded with the goal to help users make the most out of their money, Wirex is an innovative payments platform that gives customers the ability to buy, hold, exchange and sell multiple different currencies from a centralised, intuitive app.

Wealth Dynamix Launches First Simplified Client Lifecycle Management Benefit Calculator for Wealth Managers

Wealth Dynamix today announces that they have launched the first CLM benefit calculator for Wealth Managers. Using a handful of typical use cases throughout the client lifecycle, the benefits calculator gamifies business case generation by allowing firms to generate the likely benefits of mitigating to a digital-first CLM platform - all reflected in terms of revenue in, or costs out of the firm.

AstroPay Launches VISA Debit Card

AstroPay, the online payment solution of choice for over six million users worldwide, has launched its new product in Europe, a VISA debit card. This move expands the reach of AstroPay’s user base while simultaneously providing existing customers with more benefits. The product will be available in Europe with the launch in other markets expected in the next few months.

Impel Launches Next-Gen Alternative to SWIFT, SEPA on the XDC Network

Impel and the XDC Network (XinFin) announced the official launch of Impel, an alternative solutions platform for quickly and securely sending ISO 20022-compliant financial messages. It includes the option to add $XDC as collateral for instant settlement and a bridge to the R3 Corda platform for future-facing banks and fintechs.Impel was created as a cost-effective alternative to legacy financial messaging solutions, like SWIFT and SEPA, providing an interoperable standard for financial data exchange while also streamlining settlement and reconciliation.

ION Launches FI EMS to Simplify Fixed Income Trading

ION, a global leader in trading, analytics, treasury, and risk management solutions for capital markets, commodities, and treasury management announces the launch of a new product for both buy and sell-side fixed income traders. ION’s new FI EMS will ease challenges around selecting counterparties and sourcing liquidity by digitalizing the entire dealer-to-customer (D2C) trading process.

Klarna Hits the High Street with New Loyalty and In-store Payment Features in the UK

Klarna, a leading global retail bank, payments, and shopping service announced the launch of its new Loyalty Card feature in the Klarna App. This allows app users to store and access their physical loyalty cards as digital versions, removing the need to carry plastic equivalents while shopping in-store. In addition, Klarna today launched its new in-store payment feature “Digital Cards”, empowering UK consumers to pay for any purchase in three, interest-free instalments in the physical stores of participating retailers.

PPRO Adds Gojek’s GoPay to its Comprehensive Indonesian Payment Method Offering

PPRO, the leading provider of digital payments infrastructure, has integrated Gojek’s GoPay e-wallet onto its platform, taking PPRO a step closer to offering complete Indonesian market coverage. According to the World Economic Forum, the Indonesian market is expected to be the fourth-largest consumer market in the world by the end of the decade, with close to 76 million Indonesians joining the consumer class by 2030. 

Following 3AC Insolvency Crisis, OKX Launches Custody Trading Sub-Account to “Solve Trust Issue”

OKX, the world-leading cryptocurrency platform, announced the launch of its Custody Trading Sub-Account product for customers looking to benefit from trading team strategies and institutional and high-net-worth investors. Custody Trading Sub-Account involves OKX acting as a trusted third party between the investor and their money manager or trading team. The product mitigates the risks investors face by granting them greater control over their investments and delivering multi-layered risk management.

The World's First Hybrid DEX is Launched by Delta.Theta and Just2trade, Opening Crypto Trading to Major Financial Institutions

Fintech company Delta.Theta has launched the world's first decentralized and regulated P2P options exchange. Through partnering with regulated broker Just2trade, the platform is able to ensure KYC/AML processes, followed by gaining access to the P2P crypto trading platform provided by Delta.Theta. 

ComplyAdvantage Launches a Free Tool to Verify Customers Using PEPs, Adverse Media & Additional Data Insights

ComplyAdvantage, a global data technology company transforming financial crime detection, announced the release of  a new tool called ComplyTry, enabling anyone to verify prospective customers using live sanctions, politically exposed people (PEPs) and adverse media data for free. The cornerstone of a successful anti-money laundering (AML) program is not only thorough and accurate identity verification, but also the context that surrounds an identity and whether this context signals any form of illegal behavior, intent, history or association.

Merger & Acquisition

Marygold acquires the UK's Tiger Financial & Asset Management

Marygold & Co.  Limited has announced the completion of its acquisition of Tiger Financial & Asset Management Limited, (“Tiger”) a UK-based investment adviser. Based in Boughton, Northampton, England, Tiger has approximately £42 million in assets under advice. The firm’s core business is managing clients’ financial wealth across a diverse product range.

Payroll Company Papaya Global Acquires a Payment Transfer App

Leading global payroll provider Papaya Global is expanding the range of products and services it provides to its business customers worldwide as a result of its acquisition of the digital money transfer platform Azimo.This follows the announcement that Papaya Global’s valuation has soared to $3.7 billion, which comes on the back of raising an additional $250 million through its latest Series D funding round. 

Raisin Bank Enters the Payments Market by Acquiring Bankhaus August Lenz

German BaaS provider Raisin Bank is entering the payments industry after agreeing to acquire a Bankhaus August Lenz division. No financial details were given. By acquiring the payments business of the German private Bank, Raisin will be able to offer electronic payment transactions and cash solutions to its partners and their clients. Specifically, the company will have access to over 4,500 ATMs in Germany through partnerships with large bank-independent operators, merchants, restaurants, and gas station chains.

Job Moves

Cion Digital Announces Sundar Nagarathnam as New Chief Operating Officer

Cion Digital, developers of the first enterprise SaaS blockchain orchestration platform, announced the appointment of senior executive Sundar Nagarathnam as Chief Operating Officer (COO). Sundar will play a dynamic role in accelerating execution and innovation as the company executes on its growth and expansion goals. Cion Digital, which provides businesses with the infrastructure required to rapidly deploy new compliant crypto-backed payments, finance, and lending systems, has expanded rapidly since launching in 2021.

Matt Parker Joins Closed Loop Partners as CFO & Managing Director

Matt Parker, former Partner & Chief Financial Officer of New  York-based venture capital firm Greycroft, has joined circular economy-focused investment and innovation firm Closed Loop Partners as Chief Financial Officer & Managing Director. Matt will manage the financial operations of Closed Loop Partners’ asset management business as well as the firm’s innovation hub, the Center for the Circular Economy. 

PayFuture Hires ex-Barclays Payments Sales Lead James Scrivens as Direct Global Sales Director as it Enters Nigerian Market

PayFuture, the payment gateway connector allowing merchants the ability to offer multiple local payment methods in global emerging markets, has announced the appointment of James Scrivens as its Global Sales Director. The news comes as PayFuture successfully goes live with its unique technology in the Nigerian market, building on its existing presence in emerging markets including India, Brazil and Pakistan.

Confluence Appoints Sanjoy Chatterjee as Chief Strategy Officer

Confluence Technologies, Inc. (Confluence), the global technology solutions provider helping the investment management industry solve complex investment data challenges, announced the appointment of Sanjoy Chatterjee as Chief Strategy Officer. Chatterjee is also the Managing Director of Confluence’s Investment Insights & Research product division and will be responsible for defining the strategic direction of Confluence to meet the growing demands of the investment management industry across analytics, regulation, and data solutions.

Financial Risk Solutions Appoints Thomas Patterson as Vice President Sales North America

Financial Risk Solutions (FRS), provider of the award-winning investment administration software Invest|ProTM to asset owners, life insurance and investment management companies worldwide, announcedthe appointment of Thomas Patterson to the role of Vice President Sales North America. Thomas joins FRS with 30 years of commercial experience in marketing, communication and sales. 

Marie Luchet Joins ACA Group to Head up ESG Advisory for Europe

ACA Group (ACA), the leading governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) advisor in financial services, announced that Marie Luchet has joined the firm as Managing Director of ESG, heading up the practice’s strategy and vision for Europe. Marie brings 20+ years of experience in sustainable finance, ESG research, and corporate sustainability. She was previously the Director of Continental Europe with Principles for Responsible Investment (UN-PRI), the leading global association in sustainable finance.

AutoRek Appoints New CTO Andrew Elmore

Andrew Elmore has been appointed as Chief Technology Officer at AutoRek. Elmore comes with significant experience as CTO of PagoFX and in C24 Technologies during its sale to Gresham in 2016. He has extensive financial services knowledge gained from previous roles including Head of Technical Architecture at PagoNxt, VP Engineering at Velo Payments and heading up development at SmartStream.

Zumo Appoints Digital Visionary Clark Povey as Operations Director

Zumo, the Edinburgh-based crypto wallet and payments platform, has appointed Clark Povey as its new Operations Director to shape the moments that matter in people's crypto experience. Clark has over 20 years of experience leading global operations at financial services and technology companies. He will oversee Zumo’s operations and customer service strategy, and implement digital-first solutions to help the company to scale and expand geographically. 

Mambu Appoints New Suite of Leaders to Support Future Growth

Mambu, the leading SaaS cloud banking platform, has welcomed four new senior hires as it embarks on the next stage of its ambitious growth. Fintech has appointed Werner Knoblich as Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), Fernando Zandona as Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Tripp Faix as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Sabrina Dar as Chief of Staff to the CEO. Knoblich and Zandona both join from global hypergrowth, customer-centric environments - a key element to Mambu’s value proposition.

GTreasury Names Victoria Blake as Chief Product Officer and Ashley Pater as General Manager, Hedge Trackers

GTreasury, a treasury and risk management platform provider,  announced that it has named Victoria Blake as GTreasury’s Chief Product Officer, and Ashley Pater as General Manager at Hedge Trackers. Recently acquired by GTreasury, Hedge Trackers is the global leader in accounting, consulting, and software services that protect clients against financial risk.

Moneyhub CEO Samantha Seaton Joins FDATA Global Board as a Non-Executive Director

Moneyhub CEO Samantha Seaton has joined the Financial Data and Technology Association’s (FDATA’s) Global Board as a Non-Executive Director (NED). As FDATA continues to expand its international reach, the global organisation is completing an initiative to modernise its governance framework; the appointment of four new NEDs is part of this process. Each jurisdiction of operation has appointed a NED from amongst its membership, proposed and selected by the Regional Members Council and Region Director.