The Fintech Times Bi-Weekly News Roundup on Thursday 20 July 2023 brings news of funding success for Salmon and a new partnership for Mondu.
Appointments
Caroline Gorski is joining startup support organisation Capital Enterprise, from 1 September. The nonprofit, with bases in London and South Yorkshire, has delivered scores of entrepreneurship programmes around the country. Gorski is known for her leadership of R² Data Labs, Rolls-Royce‘s data analytics and artificial intelligence division, and as the former CEO of the R² Factory.
Financial software company NeoXam has bolstered its involvement in Australia with the appointment of Daniel Joseph as country head for Australia. His main responsibilities are in running a new Australian office and will include growing the team, managing client accounts, increasing new client partnerships, and growing the NeoXam brand and reputation.
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the post-trade market infrastructure for the global financial services industry, has welcomed Yonesy Núñez as managing director and chief information security officer. He joins DTCC from Jack Henry & Associates where he served as CISO. Before that, he held positions in cyber and information security at Wells Fargo, Citi and Price Waterhouse Coopers.
Weavr.io names Mark Pettit as its new chief product officer. Before joining Weavr, he held the position of executive director for the New Ventures Group at Visa, overseeing venture, strategic partnerships, fintech and product growth opportunities in Europe. Weavr has also recently collaborated with Visa to speed up the adoption of embedded finance solutions among enterprises and B2B SaaS companies.
More appointments
Brite Payments has appointed Alexander Kassai as chief operating officer and Fredrik Strömqvist as chief financial officer. The appointment of two new senior leaders follows a period of strong growth for the
Stockholm-based fintech. Kassai most recently served as CIO at Aleris, while Strömqvist has taken on the role of CFO following a stint as interim CFO at FOREX.
Meanwhile, the MENA Fintech Association, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to serving fintech startups and established players across the Middle East and Africa, has established the Africa Committee. Yacine Faqir is appointed chair of the networking group, which aims to empower and support the fintech ecosystem throughout the African continent.
Sumsub, a full-cycle verification platform, has unveiled plans to make Singapore its APAC headquarters and wider business development goals in the region. Sumsub has appointed Penny Chai as its leading representative in Singapore, responsible for business development and operations in the APAC region.
Specialist lending firm Somo Bridging has expanded its team with a trio of appointments. James Brocklebank is named relationship director for the Midlands and East, while Salman Ali and Harvey Wood have joined as underwriters.
DIGITEC has opened a new office in Singapore with Christopher Johnson joining as head of Asia to lead new business in the region. He joined DIGITEC from BNY Mellon in Singapore where he was head of eFX and G10 Spot Trading for APAC. Previously, he also worked at LSEG/Refinitiv in Singapore and Switzerland.
Partnerships
Airwallex, a global payments and financial platform, has teamed up with Brex, a US-based fintech, to support its global expansion. The company is leveraging Airwallex’s suite of solutions, including local currency collections for its global corporate card as well as employee expense reimbursements. Brex is also leveraging Airwallex’s robust network of more than 50 global licences to accelerate its market expansion.
BitMEX and AC Milan have extended their partnership. The collaboration, established in 2021, sees BitMEX transition to a Premium Partner from an initial Sleeve Sponsorship. As the Official Cryptocurrency Trading Partner of the Rossoneri, this renewed partnership will bolster BitMEXʼs brand presence and drive further growth in various key markets.
Bank payment company GoCardless announces a partnership with embedded finance solution provider UNIPaaS. With GoCardless Embed, UNIPaaS offers payment methods including direct debit and open banking payments. Additionally, GoCardless Embed can help clients grow in existing markets as well as expand into new verticals and use cases where bank payments are preferred.
Native, the financial infrastructure layer, and Cypher Capital, a MENA Web3 venture capital fund, have forged a partnership and funding agreement. This strategic partnership provides Native with the necessary resources to advance its product development efforts, while placing a strong emphasis on flexibility, modularity and interoperability.
Axioma, Qontigo’s analytics business and a global provider of factor risk models, portfolio construction tools, and enterprise risk solutions, announces an expanded partnership with Equity Data Science (EDS), to deliver hedge funds and asset managers access to its Axioma Equity Factor Risk Model Suite.
Socure, a provider of digital identity verification and fraud solutions, has partnered with MeridianLink Inc, a provider of modern software platforms. By leveraging Socure’s ID verification and fraud prediction platform, SocureID+ – MeridianLink customers can securely verify and onboard more consumers accurately in real-time.
More collaborations
Dimitra, a blockchain-based operating system for agtech, has teamed up with One Million Avocados (OMA), a sustainability-focused technology organisation based in Kenya. They currently say that Avocado farmers can double crop performance as well as farm productivity through using Dimitra and OMA’s tech platforms.
VikingCloud, a global provider of cybersecurity and compliance solutions has announced a new client partnership for its Web Risk Monitoring solution with PAYSTRAX, a European payment processor and principal member of Visa and Mastercard.
B2B payments company Mondu has partnered with payments firm Acquired.com. The new partnership will see Mondu’s suite of B2B payment services offered to more customers in the UK and Europe through Acquired.com’s network. Acquired.com and Mondu will also introduce each other to relevant businesses looking to improve the payment experience for their customers.
Finastra, a global provider of financial software applications and marketplaces, is working with Salve FH, a European payments processing startup based in San Marino. Salve FH is using Finastra Essence to reduce payment delays resulting from overcompliance. The company will also leverage Finastra’s APIs to build and maintain integrations with custodian and central banks.
There’s also a partnership for Primer and Volt. The technical integration with Volt, which began in May, enables merchants to accept real-time account-based payments via Primer’s platform. The partnership also aims to alleviate pain points for merchants by improving online check-out and in-store payments experiences for both consumers and merchants.
Company updates
Search Chain Partners, a fintech executive search and permanent recruitment firm, has launched. With a focus on the AI, machine learning, ESG, and data and analytics sectors, Search Chain Partners aims to provide top-notch talent solutions tailored to the fintech market. It is founded by George Fierstone of EC1 Partners, and also joined by Nicholas Barton, CEO of The Barton Partnership, as an investor and NED.
Nexpay, a Lithuanian electronic money institution providing business banking solutions for digital companies, has announced its enhanced service offering by adding SWIFT payments in 23 currencies. This strategic move caters to the evolving needs of digital businesses worldwide and also advances Nexpay’s ambition to bring innovative and secure financial solutions to the forefront.
Fluent Finance, a US-based blockchain company, announces its strategic expansion into the MEA region by establishing operations in Abu Dhabi. The initiative, with the support of the UAE Ministry of Economy, exemplifies Fluent’s dedication to transforming the landscape of trade finance and cross-border payments and complements the UAE’s vision to become a global hub of digital innovation.
eDreams ODIGEO, an online travel companies,has revealed a set of proactive measures implemented across the company to protect consumers. As a result, eDreams ODIGEO has decided to discontinue the sale of tickets for 15 airlines that have consistently breached their refund obligations to consumers.
Investments and fundings
TP24 UK, a fintech provider of flexible revolving business credit, has raised £345million in debt funding from Barclays Bank and M&G Investments. The amount of £240million will be used for lending to SMEs in the UK and the Netherlands. Barclays is providing up to £200milliom in warehouse financing, while M&G is providing up to £40million in mezzanine funding.
CoinFund, a cryptonative investment firm, announces the close of $158million backing from a combination of institutional investors, family offices and high net worth individuals. CoinFund Seed IV LP exceeded its initial target fundraising goal of $125million. The Fund will support pre-seed and seed stage investments in new and ambitious founding teams across the Web3 ecosystem.
Wing, the company behind the open-source Wing Programming Language, has launched out of stealth with $20million in seed funding led by Battery Ventures, Grove Ventures and StageOne Ventures. There was also participation from Secret Chord Ventures, Cerca Partners and Operator Partners. Wing Cloud aims to tame cloud complexity with software solutions that empower developers and DevOps teams.
Consumer fintech Salmon has secured a $20million debt facility from US emerging-markets specialist investment firm Argentem Creek Partners. The funds will help Salmon to further scale its lending operations across the Philippines. Salmon will expand its loan book, leveraging its existing point-of-sale and cash loan lending, and will also launch new disruptive products in the second half of 2023.
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