The Fintech Times Bi-Weekly News Roundup on Tuesday 9 August 2022 brings you the latest job moves and partnership updates.
Appointments
Fintech SaaS provider Toqio has unveiled a new partnerships team as part of its growth plans for 2022. Christian Ball is named head of partnerships for the UK and Europe. While Henry Turpie is partner account manager for the UK, and Julián Martín is named partner account manager for Europe.
Luno, the global cryptocurrency app, names Thomas Tudehope as its global head of public policy. The former head of public affairs at Revolut is tasked with bolstering Luno’s policy and regulation team, deepening the company’s relationships with industry regulators as governments look to enhance its regulatory frameworks.
Meanwhile, boutique investment bank DAI Magister has appointed two senior advisors. Claude Sassoulas will focus on international telecom and cloud infrastructure and services, while Sudhir Ispahani will look after international communication infrastructures and global disruptive technologies in climate tech.
SunTec Business Solutions has hired Pramod Perumparambil as chief strategy and transformation officer. He will drive company-wide strategy for accelerated business growth that will create long-term value for clients. Pramod will also collaborate with business functions within SunTec to constantly evaluate market conditions.
Meanwhile, Serrala, a B2B payments firm, has appointed Hartmut Wagner as its new CEO. Wagner, previously CEO at Collenda, has also held senior leadership positions at Micro Focus, Hewlett Packard and Exact.
Micro-investing platform Wombat has appointed Fazal Yameen to its advisory board. He joins others advisers including David Davies, Iqbal Gandham and Chad West. Together they will assist the team at Wombat as it prepares to launch into Europe and other international markets, while also rolling out new products and platform enhancements over the next 12 months.
Partnerships
Thames Technology, the financial card manufacturer, has been chosen by DND Finance, a multinational commercial equipment finance provider, to produce the Score Mastercard. Score Mastercard a credit card available to all, regardless of credit history.
Amey Consulting has entered into a partnership with Finboot to develop a blockchain solution using its MARCO platform to cut conflict-associated costs in the rail industry. Conflicts cost the rail industry billions of pounds each year.
iDenfy, the remote identity verification and fraud prevention firm, has teamed up with cryptocurrency investment platform Peccala. Peccala’s customers will now be securely onboarded through iDenfy’s full-stack 4-step ID verification procedure.
Lux Island Resorts Ltd has chosen Planet as its payments and software partner. Planet is tasked with creating a ‘more enjoyable booking and payments experience’. It will streamline payment processes and increase integration with LIR’s online booking platform for eight properties across Mauritius, the Maldives and Réunion.
Insight
Almost half of women are losing sleep over financial concerns, according to new research from Mintago. The financial wellbeing platform surveyed 1,024 UK adults in full-time employment. It found that over two thirds (67 per cent) of women have seen their financial situation deteriorate since the beginning of 2022, compared to 58 per cent of men. Over half of women have seen their monthly outgoings at least double since the beginning of 2022. Fewer men have experienced this.
Company updates
Revolut, the financial superapp, has released 22 new crypto tokens. Its crypto offering now reaches 80+ cryptocurrencies supported in the app. Revolut is also exploring ways to introduce crypto withdrawals in Europe to allow customers to send out their tokens to external wallets and exchanges.
Verto, the B2B cross-border payments and foreign exchange enabler, has launched a new API solution. It empowers businesses to automate currency conversion, global pay-outs and beneficiary management. Verto is in the middle of rapid growth and expansion following a $10million Series A funding last year.
Funding and investments
Airswift, a fintech startup pioneering Web 3.0 native payment solutions, has raised $2million in a pre-seed funding led by CE Innovation Capital (CEiC). Airswift, co-founded by CEO Dr. Yan Zhang, plans to launch its initial product by September 2022.
Grizzly.fi, the crypto platform, has collected $26million in its ‘Community Fair Launch’. After going live, the Grizzly.fi team will continue to build out its ecosystem to accelerate the mass adoption of DeFi as well as improve its product offering.
Finally, Clara, the Latin American tech startup, has approved financing from Goldman Sachs for an initial $50million with the option to upsize to $150million. The facility will allow Clara to continue the growth of its corporate card, accounts payables, and short-term financing solutions for businesses in Latin America.
Image and article originally from thefintechtimes.com. Read the original article here.