This week in Fintech: TFT Bi-Weekly News Roundup 23/05

Fintech Times The Bi-Weekly News Roundup on Tuesday 23 May brings you the latest deals, partnerships and funding updates.

Fintech is hiring

Finessethe digital ecosystem for trade and supply chain finance, appoints Lina Brooks as head of customer success. Brooks will drive product adoption of Finverity’s growing customer and partner base. She will also manage customer onboarding and training programs and collaborate with the product team on customer requirements and initiatives.

Lumon Pay, the foreign payments and currency exchange platform, hires Vic Darvey as CEO. He has most recently held senior roles Purple brick and MoneySuperMarket.comwhile his early career included positions at CMC Markets and lastminute.com.

FinTech Wales, the independent member association, has the office Ollie Vincent as office and community manager. Vincent joins from DESG, where he spent over two years as operations manager. The not-for-profit organization has also moved to its first office in Cardiff city centre. It offers event spaces available to members and advocates of the Welsh fintech ecosystem.

Crypto app Tap Global group appoints David Hunter as non-executive chairman. He takes over the role from John Taylor who will also remain on the company’s board as a non-executive director. Hunter has also served almost 10 years on the board of The Payments Association, most recently as chairman.

checkout.com, the global payment solutions provider, has appointed Patrick Starkman, as the new general manager. The appointment coincides with the opening of the new, larger office for its 150 employees in Paris, France. The expansion marks Checkout.com’s continued commitment and investment in the French market, as it also strengthens its business across Europe.

More deals

Reliable hires Anna Bjurefeldt as head of internal audit and Mia Bjurkell as director of risk and compliance. The recruitments reinforce the company’s ambition to strengthen competence for compliance and risk management as it continues its sustainable growth journey.

AI supplier Axyon AI have named Andrea Gentilini as its last member of the advisory committee. Gentilini will support fintech with its growth and development. He is also head of Vescore, Vontobel’s asset management shop.

African digital payment company DPO Pay has employed Isabella Marira as CEO for operations, while Daisy Shipwoni takes over as marketing manager. DPO Pay said its extensive knowledge and experience of working across Africa’s digital payments ecosystem “will be critical in advancing DPO’s vision to drive economic growth across the continent”.

Company updates

Global video game trading company Xsolla has unveiled a new tool to extend its existing Xsolla Partner Network solution, called Xsolla Drops. Xsolla Drops provide an additional layer of marketing support for game developers to increase user acquisition and incremental sales by streamlining the ability to market their digital goods, including virtual currencies, skins and NFTs.

Vernost Group, the provider of technology solutions, has launched a white-label solution, VePay. It harnesses the power of advanced AI routing, blockchain, analytics and cloud computing and is designed specifically for banks, payment platforms, fintechs, as well as e-commerce companies to not only significantly increase business margins, but also ensure uninterrupted operations for improved business continuity.

Insly, the no-code software provider has launched BrokerFlow, a tool that enables brokers to digitize their sales workflow. It also marks the first time Insly has brought the technology to the global brokerage market. BrokerFlow will enable brokers to streamline their sales funnel as well as help clients make better insurance decisions.

11 Onze, a community fintech in Europe, is entering the UK litigation funding arena with 11Onze Recomana. Recomma promises to protect investments that are devalued by inflation in the current account. Explains the rationale behind the launch, James Sene, chairman, said: “Our litigation is mainly focused on lawsuits against banks. This not only helps to fight for justice; it also gives a great return on your savings above inflation thanks to the compensation the banks have to pay.”

GitLab Inc, enterprise DevSecOps platform, has unveiled GitLab 16, the latest major release aimed at empowering software development teams. The release of GitLab 16 introduces new cross-platform features for DevSecOps, with further updates planned throughout the year.

Financing and investments

Digital banking group Thyme has raised $77.8 million from Norrsken22 and Blue Earth Capital as part of its pre-Series C capital raising. Tencent has also increased its stake to become Tyme’s third largest shareholder. The funds will help further operations in South Africa and the Philippines as well as for future expansion in Southeast Asia. The group’s TymeBank also recently celebrated a milestone of seven million customers.

Partnership

AXA Insurance PCL and CoverGo, the no-code insurance SaaS core platform for health, collaborates to improve AXA’s health insurance ecosystem in Thailand. The partnership leverages advanced technology to improve and expand the utilization of technology within the health insurance system and related products, resulting in optimal efficiency.

Fintech Broadridge Financial Solutions has revealed DRW, Societe Generale and another global tier 1 bank have successfully executed intraday repo transactions on Broadridge’s Distributed Ledger Repo (DLR) platform. The platform offers a tool where market participants can agree, execute and settle repo transactions, and provides flexible settlement cycles based on the counterparties’ needs.

Sapiens, a provider of software solutions for the insurance industry, will integrate the Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service. With the integration, it can offer generative AI solutions for insurers, allowing customers to navigate complex documents, including policies, terms and conditions and more, using natural large-scale AI models.

OTP Bank, the largest bank in Hungary, chooses IntellectIntellect Digital Core (IDC) Banking platform to provide a contextual banking experience for its customers. The cloud-based solution built on API-first microservices architecture will enable the bank to launch financial signature products quickly in the market with a comprehensive digital suite.

The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) has collaborated with Nomura Research Institute (NRI) to provide automated central matching functions for cash securities transactions in Japan. Regional firms in Japan will be able to utilize CTM, DTCC’s platform for central matching of securities transactions.

Hokodoa provider of digital trade credit, has teamed up with Mango Pay, the payment infrastructure provider. This collaboration will allow B2B marketplaces to promote their growth and scale their payment capabilities.