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BlackRock invests in Avaloq
Blackrock and Avaloq announce strategic partnership to deliver integrated technology solutions that meet the evolving needs of asset managers
This partnership will enable private bank and wealth managers to improve their operations throughout the customer journey, including referrals, portfolio building, client reporting and management. risk management. By combining Avaloq’s core banking, CRM and mobile banking services with the robust risk analysis and portfolio management capabilities of the Aladdin Wealth platform, the two companies aim to deliver one of the most technologically advanced services available to the property management industry.
“Avaloq is excited to enter into this strategic partnership with BlackRock. Through our relationship with BlackRock and the integration of their Aladdin Wealth capabilities, Avaloq is further solidifying our commitment to providing innovative investment technology solutions for the wealth management industry,”
“This partnership will help us empower our clients to streamline processes, enhance risk analytics, and make more informed portfolio decisions, ultimately delivering greater value to their clients.”
Martin Greweldinger, Co-CEO of Avaloq.
“BlackRock and Avaloq joining forces will help clients reduce the complexity and friction inherent in many of today’s digital transformations. Our combined offering will make it extremely convenient for clients to implement and adopt Aladdin Wealth’s industry leading capabilities as it will be deeply integrated with Avaloq’s core banking solutions,”
Venu Krishnamurthy, Global Head of Aladdin Wealth Tech.
Asset management clients in Europe and Asia will benefit from access to an integrated wealth management technology platform that unleashes the entire value chain, including:
Digital portal improves customer experience Comprehensive client reporting, powerful referral tools and risk profiling Extensive portfolio building capabilities and advanced portfolio analysis technology
Unified data model provides consistency throughout the customer journey
Avaloq is a leading provider of wealth management technology, providing best-in-class software and support services to financial institutions worldwide. Its powerful systems currently manage approximately $4 trillion in customer assets. BlackRock’s Aladdin Wealth platform provides sophisticated risk analysis and portfolio management capabilities that help asset management clients scale their businesses, manage risk, and build strong portfolios. and enrich the dialogue with clients about their investments.
“We are delighted to have BlackRock’s investment in Avaloq as it demonstrates their recognition of the value and potential of Avaloq’s wealth management technology solutions,”
“This collaboration will not only fortify NEC’s strengthened position in the realm of digital finance but also reinforce its unwavering commitment to orchestrating a brighter world. NEC looks forward to working with BlackRock to grow the Avaloq business.”
Tomoki Kubo, Chairman at Avaloq, as well as Corporate SVP and Head of the Digital Finance Global Business Unit.
Toast picks FreedomPay as preferred payments gateway partner
FreedomPay, the world’s first standalone commerce platform, and Toast, an all-in-one digital platform designed for the entire restaurant community, have signed a partnership agreement for FreedomPay to become a gateway partner FreedomPay Toast’s preferred payment for certain corporate brands.
Toast will be able to offer its cloud-based digital restaurant platform to leading corporate merchants in the US and Canada who are using the award-winning FreedomPay commerce platform.
“As the restaurant industry rapidly adapts to new service models, Toast continues to deliver the industry’s trusted digital platform to help restaurants of all sizes and types—including franchisees—drive profitability, create the streamlined dining experiences guests expect, and make managing food service operations across properties easier than ever. We look forward to partnering with FreedomPay as we drive our enterprise expansion.”
Kelly Esten, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Enterprise at Toast.
“This exciting collaboration between FreedomPay and Toast delivers advanced capabilities to large merchants. We are quite simply ‘unleashing the power of pay’ to thousands more businesses to help support Toast’s growth across enterprise level merchant solutions.”
FreedomPay Senior Vice President, Sales & Digital Development Nate Ware.
UBS completes Credit Suisse acquisition
UBS has completed the acquisition of Credit Suisse today, crossing an important milestone. Credit Suisse Group AG has been merged into UBS Group AG and the combined entity will operate as a consolidated banking group.
Ad hoc announcement pursuant to Article 53 of the SIX Exchange Regulation Listing Rules
- Combined entity now operates as consolidated banking group
- Today marks last trading day of Credit Suisse shares on SIX Swiss Exchange
- Shareholders to receive 1 UBS share for every 22.48 Credit Suisse shares
- Board of Directors nominations announced for certain Credit Suisse entities, including Credit Suisse AG
- UBS expects its CET1 capital ratio throughout 2023 to be around 14%
Today marks the last trading day of Credit Suisse Group AG shares on the SIX Swiss Exchange. Credit Suisse Group AG ADS will no longer be traded on the New York Stock Exchange. As announced on 19 March 2023, Credit Suisse shareholders will receive 1 UBS share for every 22.48 Credit Suisse shares held.
As previously announced, UBS will operate the following governance model pending further integration:
• UBS Group AG will manage two separate parent banks – UBS AG and Credit Suisse AG. Each institution will continue to have its own subsidiaries and branches, serve its clients and deal with counterparties.
• The Board of Directors and Group Executive Board of UBS Group AG will hold overall responsibility for the consolidated group.
Upon completion of the acquisition, UBS announced appointments to the boards of directors of several Credit Suisse entities. Subject to regulatory approval, Credit Suisse AG’s Board of Directors will include Lukas Gähwiler (Chairman), Jeremy Anderson (Vice President), Christian Gellerstad (Vice President), Michelle Bereaux, Mirko Bianchi (until 30th). June 2023), Clare Brady, Mark Hughes, Amanda Norton and Stefan Seiler.
“I‘m pleased that we’ve successfully closed this crucial transaction in less than three months, bringing together two global systemically important banks for the first time. We are now one Swiss global firm and, together, we are stronger. As we start to operate the consolidated banking group, we’ll continue to be guided by the best interests of all our stakeholders, including investors. Our top priority remains the same: to serve our clients with excellence.”
Colm Kelleher, UBS Group AG Chairman.
“Today we welcome our new colleagues from Credit Suisse to UBS. Instead of competing, we’ll now unite as we embark on the next chapter of our joint journey. Together, we’ll present our clients an enhanced global offering, broader geographic reach and access to even greater expertise. We’ll create a bank that our clients, employees, investors and Switzerland can be proud of.”
Sergio P. Ermotti, CEO of UBS Group AG.
UBS expects its CET1 capital ratio to be around 14% in Q2 2023 and to stay around this level through 2023. UBS expects Credit’s significant restructuring and operating losses Suisse will be offset by a reduction in RWA.
In the future, UBS will present the consolidated financial results of the combined group under IFRS in USD. Results for Q2 2023 will be announced on August 31, 2023.
The summary presentation of the pro forma financial information contained in the F-4 registration statement has been updated to reflect the most recent and definitive revision to the registration statement.
Westpac to issue accessible cards for visually impaired
Westpac is launching a new set of card designs to make payments more accessible to customers who are blind or visually impaired.
Credit, debit and prepaid cards will incorporate new accessibility features, including different notches along the short edge to allow customers to distinguish their payment cards from each other with a single touch. .
Thanks to Mastercard’s Touch Card feature, the notches – squares for credit cards, circles for debit cards and triangles for prepaid cards – help customers identify the card and orient it correctly when using it, such as such as to make payments or to use an ATM.
The cards will also include a braille marker, providing another tactile feature to help blind or visually impaired customers distinguish between credit, debit and prepaid cards.
“The features of the new cards are a simple but innovative step forward that will make a big difference in the day-to-day lives of many blind or low vision Australians.
“Our strategy is to continue to develop products and services that are accessible to all customers. This builds on a range of initiatives we already have in place such as accessibility mode on all our EFTPOS Now terminals, online applications that meet accessibility requirements and accessible digital card functionality when customers use voice-over and talk back.”
Westpac chief brand and marketing officer, Annabel Fribence.
Madison Dearborn Partners Completes Acquisition of MoneyGram
MoneyGram International, Inc., a leading global financial technology company connecting communities around the world, and Madison Dearborn Partners (“MDP”), a leading private equity investment firm headquartered in Chicago, announced today that MDP-linked funds have completed their all-cash transaction. acquired MoneyGram for $11.00 per share. MoneyGram’s common stock has ceased trading and will be delisted from the Nasdaq stock exchange.
“Completing the transaction with MDP marks the beginning of a transformative new chapter for the organization,”
“With MDP’s support, MoneyGram is uniquely positioned to accelerate our growth strategy, expand our network to reach more consumers worldwide, and advance our position as the leader in cross-border payment technology.”
“We are incredibly appreciative of our employees, agents and partners, who have placed their trust in us and continued to provide innovative solutions to our customers throughout this process. We’re excited to work alongside them and our new investment partners at MDP as MoneyGram builds on its commitment to deliver exceptional products and value to our customers.”
Alex Holmes, MoneyGram Chairman and CEO.
“We see tremendous opportunity for MoneyGram’s leading financial technology solutions, particularly in light of the continued, rapid digitization of the global economy,”
“MDP looks forward to providing the platform and resources for the MoneyGram team to capitalize on the numerous opportunities ahead and further enhance its market-leading cross-border capabilities.”
Brendan Barrett, a Managing Director on MDP’s Financial and Transaction Services team.
Allica Bank enlists ClearBank to boost business banking for UK SMEs
ClearBank, a company that provides integrated banking services and real-time clearing for financial institutions, today announced a partnership with Allica Bank, a fintech bank dedicated to supporting small businesses. Small and medium enterprises based in the UK.
Allica Bank was established to serve established UK SMEs (companies with 10-250 employees) and to provide them with on-demand, human support. powered by the latest banking technology, which has left SMEs struggling to get from the big banks. It offers business-appropriate checking and lending products, powered by state-of-the-art lending technology, such as instant, automated decision-making for business mortgages. business. It aims to be the right bank for established businesses over the next decade and after significant growth in 2022, including revenue growth of 534%, reaching £1.35 billion in loans and With a staff growth of 76%, it is well positioned to meet this ambition.
ClearBank is a key driver of Allica’s ambitious growth. ClearBank provides Allica Bank with customer accounts and access to UK payment systems, including Faster Payments (FPS), CHAPS and Bacs, powered by cloud-native API technology .
Allica launched a business checking account for established businesses late last year, offering cashback, no monthly fees, and relationship manager support, as well as an access savings market leading integrated instant 3R. It can also provide fast and secure transactions using FPS, Bacs and CHAPS. Allica believes it is important to partner with a supplier that closely aligns with its values and growth goals to help the company scale rapidly.
ClearBank works with 15 of the UK’s newest banks. Instead of competing with its own customers, it is a stable and profitable “bank for banks”.
“By offering a relationship-backed service, powered by modern technology, Allica is building the future of banking for established businesses. It is vital that we work with industry-leading partners that can grow with us as we scale. ClearBank is a leader in its field and is an obvious partner for us—we are on the same path both in growth trajectory, and in our values.”
Keith Middlemass, Chief Operating Officer, Allica Bank.
“With its focus on SMEs, Allica Bank is supporting the backbone of our economy—and we’re committed to helping them boost business banking in the UK. We’re providing the speed, flexibility, and security Allica Bank needs to provide the very best services to UK SMEs.”
Charles McManus, Chief Executive Officer, ClearBank.
The two banks have been working together since July 2021. Around this time both announced that they were profitable – Allica was one of the UK’s fintech companies to hit the mark. the fastest profits – amid a slowing overall fintech sector.
BNP Paribas and NatWest Go Live with CobaltFX’s ‘Dynamic Credit’ for FX Credit Management
BNP Paribas and NatWest have partnered with fintech CobaltFX to simplify and streamline the allocation of credit for foreign exchange (FX) trades between banks.
The implementation of CobaltFX’s ‘Dynamic Credit’ solution marks a step forward in enhancing market access and control while optimizing credit disbursement.
CobaltFX, part of United Fintech, has been a longstanding partner of BNP Paribas and NatWest. This latest collaboration aims to manage credit exposures, addressing manual processes as well as improving market access and control.
Joe Nash, digital COO for foreign exchange, rates, and commodities at BNP Paribas, emphasized the industry-wide trend of adopting innovative techniques to manage credit exposures and maintain market stability through digitalization.
“By providing a standardized and digitized approach, and aggregating IT infrastructure across multiple venues, ‘Dynamic Credit’ gives banks unprecedented control to navigate fast-moving FX markets and proactively manage credit exposure,”
“This is a very important step in delivering a solution for credit providers, taking full advantage of new technical advancements.”
Joe Nash, digital COO for foreign exchange, rates, and commodities at BNP Paribas.
Since its acquisition by United Fintech in late 2022 and subsequent relaunch in early 2023, CobaltFX has gained notable traction.
“It as a prime example of United Fintech and partner companies collaborating to drive innovation in big banks’ digital transition. This aligns with the growing trend of banks and financial institutions seeking engagements with broader technology vendors to address compliance and security concerns effectively.”
Marc Levin, CEO of CobaltFX.
“Leading financial institutions are aiming to decrease the number of third-party vendors and work with broader technology vendors to challenge legacy providers.”
“Our prediction is that we will see many more banks and fintechs follow suit and join each other’s journeys on our digital platform.”
Christian Frahm, founder and CEO of United Fintech.
Fiserv and Central Payments Deliver Modern Issuing Capabilities to Fintechs and Financial Institutions
Fiserv, Inc., a leading global provider of payment and financial services technology solutions, and Central Payments L.L.C., a banking as a service (BaaS) provider, enabling fintechs, businesses Businesses and payment facilitators bring financial products and services to market with greater speed and growth potential.
The combination of the Fiserv technology stack, including real-time core, card processing and issuance, with Central Payments’ award-winning Open*CP Fintech API Marketplace®, including program management and compliance, enabling fintech and almost any other business to create valuable products and services that more comprehensively meet the growing expectations of consumers and small businesses. For those with an established card program, this provides more comprehensive and regulated access to basic banking and payment services.
As fintech services grow stronger, so does the need for consumers to access their money through digital experiences outside of traditional banking channels. In many cases, this means allowing unlicensed fintechs and other businesses to provide financial services, such as debit cards, secured credit, stored value cards. , unsecured credit, etc. Fiserv and Central Payments bring together a BaaS platform, products and services, and access to a network of funding banks to support a wide range of innovative retail and business use cases.
“As fintech and financial institutions work together to create compelling financial offerings, speed to market, a robust and flexible tech stack and streamlined operations are essential,”
“Together, Fiserv and Central Payments can deliver these requirements without compromising compliance and risk controls needed to safeguard all parties.”
Sunil Sachdev, head of Fintech and Growth at Fiserv.
Fiserv and Central Payments provide everything a fintech or other business needs to connect with a funding bank, launch and manage unique payment products and services. Customers of Fiserv financial institutions pursuing fintech partnerships can also engage with Fiserv and Central Payments for assistance in administering the go-to-market program.
“This combination of technology, services, program management and bank partners will help any business become a fintech without the need to add the staff or expertise to manage the program in-house,”
“Those that may want to manage their program in-house eventually can also use our services as a lower risk model to get to market quickly with a proof-of-concept.”
Eric Cotton, Executive Vice President and General Manager at Central Payments.
Marqeta announces expansion into Brazil with Fitbank partnership
Marqueta, a global card issuance platform, has announced an expansion into Brazil. The company cooperates with Latin American banking platform Fitbank and certifies the network with Visa
As part of Marqeta’s partnership with Fitbank, the company will be a Marqeta customer, use it as a payment processor, and will act as a BIN sponsor for Marqeta customers who want to get started in the area.
“We have followed Marqeta’s growth and global expansion for some time now, and given we are also expanding globally, there couldn’t be a more natural card issuing partner for Fitbank in Brazil,”
“Through our partnership, I believe we can enable global companies and local innovators to bring amazing payment products to market, amplifying the strengths of each of our companies.”
Otávio Farah, co-founder and CEO at Fitbank.
Fitbank provides a complete and personalized cloud banking and credit infrastructure to thousands of customers, and is one of the state-of-the-art platforms licensed and integrated by the Central Bank. Direct integration with PIX, Brazil’s real-time payment system.
They are currently a key member of Visa with plans to expand the network. Marqeta will serve as Fitbank’s technology platform to support payment processing and local card issuance in Brazil. It will also use Marqeta’s real-time decision engine to enhance its fraud management capabilities. Fitbank will also act as the local BIN sponsor and banking service provider of Marqeta.
“We are thrilled to be announcing our launch in Brazil to bring the Marqeta platform to one of the most exciting FinTech markets in the world,”
“Our new partnership with Fitbank puts us on a great footing in Brazil. The two companies have great DNA fit. Fitbank is a tech-forward platform interested in building innovative payment solutions.”
Todd Pollak, Chief Revenue Officer at Marqeta.
Citi Commercial Bank launches new digital client platform, CitiDirect Commercial Banking
Citi has announced the launch of a new platform, CitiDirect® Commercial Banking, specifically to address the needs of Citi Commercial Bank (CCB) clients. This is part of Citi’s significant strategic investment plan to meet the growing global needs of these clients by delivering a single-entry point digital platform.
CitiDirect® Commercial Banking brings together Citi’s global products and services into a single digital platform, providing clients with a 360° consolidated view of their Citi banking relationship across Cash, Loans, Trade, FX, Servicing and Onboarding.
The platform is currently live in the U.S., with over two thirds of our U.S. client base actively using the platform, and CCB plans to pilot it in the second half of 2023 across Hong Kong, India, Singapore, and the U.K.
The CitiDirect® Commercial Banking platform has been created in close collaboration with CCB clients, and as a result offers an intuitive and seamless digital experience. Key features include access to data driven insights necessary to help inform decision making, efficient management of day-to-day banking interactions with Citi in one place. Clients can also digitally open accounts and request new products and services, extending our self-service features, which significantly enhances the experience for clients as they grow, and their needs evolve.
“This is an important milestone in delivering on our commitments set out during Citi’s 2022 Investor Day. At the time, we spoke about our intention to deliver on a differentiated client experience through a single digital platform, that will empower clients and save them time, while offering them complete visibility and control. We anticipate that CitiDirect® Commercial Banking will continue to evolve to support our clients as they grow their businesses globally.”
Tasnim Ghiawadwala, Global Head of CCB.
“Our new banking platform has been designed and built with a client-centric focus. The outcome is an innovative platform that responds to our clients’ complex needs and their expectations of a simple and intuitive digital banking experience. We are delighted with the response from clients and continue to invest whilst targeting key market roll outs throughout 2023 and beyond.”
Mark Sugden, Head of CitiDirect Commercial Banking & Digital Transformation.
“The launch of CitiDirect Commercial Banking demonstrates how our Institutional Clients Group ecosystem works together to deliver excellence for our clients. We are very pleased that our partnership with our colleagues in Commercial Banking has resulted in this new and differentiated service.”
Shahmir Khaliq, Global Head of Treasury and Trade Solutions.
Francisco Partners Acquires Macrobond from Nordic Capital; Focuses on Growing its Global Presence
Francisco Partners, a leading global investment firm specializing in partnerships with technology companies, today announced the acquisition of Macrobond, a leading financial data and technology innovation company, from Nordic Capital, one of Europe’s leading private equity investors. Macrobond founder Tomas Liljeborg will continue as chief executive officer and remain an important shareholder of the company.
Since 2008, Macrobond has transformed the workflow of economists, analysts and strategists worldwide, increasing productivity, fostering deeper collaboration, and enabling them to analyze and forecast financial and macroeconomic data more efficiently. Macrobond partnered with Nordic Capital in 2018 and has experienced significant growth since then, with 230 employees operating from offices in Europe, Asia and the US.
Today, Macrobond provides the world’s largest macroeconomic and financial database, providing nearly 300 million time series, as well as tools and technologies to rapidly analyze, visualize, and analyze Share information from an intuitive integrated workflow platform. Macrobond serves more than 800 institutions worldwide, including some of the world’s largest banks and asset managers, as well as hedge funds, central banks and research firms.
“When I founded Macrobond in 2008, our goal was to deliver the world’s most comprehensive source of economic and financial intelligence for financial professionals that helps them quickly comprehend relevant data. Now in 2023, we are focused on further expanding our presence and customer personas across the globe, as well as accelerating technological innovation and growth across new datasets,”
“Partnering with Francisco Partners will help Macrobond increase our growth and innovation across our market-leading product suite.”
Tomas Liljeborg, Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Macrobond.
“Customers attest that the Macrobond platform, through its highly reliable, current and comprehensive data as well as its easy-to-use search, visualization, and analytics engine, helps them do their jobs better. Tomas and the team have grown the business by continuously improving the value they deliver to these customers, and we are delighted to back Macrobond to further improve its growth and impact,”
Mario Razzini and Ashley Evans, Partners at Francisco Partners, and Quentin Lathuille, Principal at Francisco Partners.
“We’re delighted to have been on this journey with Macrobond and are proud of their tireless devotion during this period. Together with Tomas and the rest of the management team, Nordic Capital has focused on expanding the company’s offering to support its focus on becoming the platform of choice for people working in financial and economic research worldwide. We are proud of Macrobond’s achievements and remain convinced that they will continue to deliver outstanding services to customers around the world and see this transaction as a start of an exciting next phase for Macrobond,”
Emil Anderson, Partner, Nordic Capital Advisors. The investment is subject to customary closing conditions.
Moelis & Company served as financial advisor and Paul Hastings served as legal counsel for Francisco Partners. Arma Partners, PWC and White & Case act as advisors to Nordic Capital and Macrobond.
Alfii secures $2.5m pre-seed funding to launch FinTech-powered HR Platform
Dubai-based technology startup Alfii has announced an upfront funding of $2.5 million to expand its team and further expand its FinTech-based HR automation platform.
The round was led by Preface Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on US-based infrastructure companies. Kayan Ventures, UAE-based Aditum Ventures and Wayfinders, and a number of local and regional angel investors participated in the round.
Alfii will use this funding to further develop and enhance its FinTech-based software platform. In the short term, a revolutionary payroll that gives customers a smarter and faster way to manage payroll and payroll, greatly simplifying what would otherwise be a tedious and time-consuming process for HR leaders. We will continue to focus on building out our feature suite.
“We are looking to build the next generation of this product class, and we are building it entirely in-house, which means we need to bring on world-class talent to grow our business and better serve our customers,”
Yousef Albarqawi, alfii’s CEO and Co-founder.
Alfii’s advances are part of a larger trend in the SaaS world, adapting tools originally offered to the enterprise, making them accessible and suitable for small businesses and start-ups. However, especially when it comes to HR software, there are many weaknesses to be overcome by existing solutions in the MENA region.
“Data interoperability is an industry-wide challenge in the HR stack, but in developing regions like MENA, those challenges are further exacerbated by local and regulatory infrastructure,”
“With alfii’s all-in-one software suite, companies will be able to understand better and manage their human capital resources while improving the user experience for employees with features like digital-to-cash remittances, benefits selection, and more.”
Farooq Abbasi, General Partner of Preface Ventures.
Resistant AI extends Series A to $27.6m with new funding
Resistant AI, a RiskTech company specializing in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, has expanded its Series A funding to $27.6 million, after raising an additional $11 million in investment la from Notion Capital. This is in addition to existing funding from investors such as GV, Index Ventures, Credo Ventures and Seedcamp.
The new investment builds on Resistant AI’s product expansion, team, and geographic presence to help financial institutions protect their trading and referral systems from malicious attacks.
Resilient AI machine learning techniques protect financial services firms against growing threats, deter criminals from using AI, and adapt as their methods evolve. The company’s solutions scan for anomalies in documents, transactions, and behavior to provide a 360-degree view of every customer, which can double the number of threats detected. The company’s solutions have protected a number of banks and fintech companies throughout the customer lifecycle. Clients include Dun & Bradstreet, Payoneer, Habito, Planet42 and ComplyAdvantage; and Resistant AI currently have more than 80 team members working in offices in Prague, London, Brussels and New York.
“With this investment from Notion Capital we are able to bring our solution to more institutions in the face of these increasingly pernicious threats. We are excited to be working with Notion Capital, particularly because of their expertise and track record in successfully growing computer security companies.”
Martin Rehak, CEO and Founder of Resistant AI.
“Security and FinTech are two of the largest areas of focus for Notion and we love how the Resistant AI proposition ties them together. Synthetic identity fraud has been named the fastest-growing financial crime in the US, with $6 billion in total losses to the banking sector in 2021 alone, and the Resistant AI product is the only comprehensive solution out there that moves as fast as the fraudsters do. We’re excited to be working with them so they can meet the growing demand for their solution.”
Kamil Mieczakowski, Principal at Notion Capital.
mBank and KUKE will jointly finance domestic investments of Polish exporters
mBank signed an agreement with KUKE, thanks to which the bank’s offer will be enriched with loans for exporters to strengthen their production potential and using payment insurance guarantees. They secure the bank up to 80 percent. financing granted for the investment carried out in Poland.
– Cooperation with KUKE allows our customers to develop. Guarantees allow us to reduce the risk, thanks to which we can grant more loans –
– Thanks to this, customers will be able to increase investments and expand the base of foreign contractors. This is crucial during a slowdown in the economy and global trade. Historical experience shows that Polish entrepreneurs find themselves very well in difficult times.
Adam Pers, vice-president of mBank.
Investment financing repayment guarantees for exporters are an important element of KUKE’s comprehensive export support system consisting of innovative instruments offered only by a few export credit agencies in the world. Some solutions, such as guarantees for investment or working capital financing, support exporters through bank credit instruments. Other tools most often used by exporters include guarantees of repayment of liabilities to suppliers, which are useful in looking for new sources of supply, as well as guarantees of financing the supply chain, helping, among others, obtain additional liquidity from banks and factoring companies.
KUKE instruments build greater financial capacity of the enterprise and have a positive impact on its relations with financing banks and contractors, which enables a significant increase in the scale of operations. KUKE’s offer has already been used by many companies from various sectors, from the automotive and steel industries, through the food and chemical industries, to the shipbuilding industry.
Allfunds Tech Solutions announces partnership with CCLA
Allfunds Tech Solutions, Allfunds’ digital solutions arm, has partnered with CCLA Investment Management (CCLA), a pioneer in sustainable investing to drive real-world change through active ownership pole.
The Allfunds Tech Solutions customer portal, a fully streamlined end-to-end solution, will be integrated with existing ACLC customer interfaces. By leveraging Allfunds’ technology expertise and data management capabilities, the partnership will enable ACLC to offer enhanced portfolio management tools to its professional clients who will benefit more from:
- A fully digitised web interface, layered with improved financial reporting tools that increase transparency and understanding of the investment performance.
- Access to a centralised system of reliable, trustworthy, and easily-leveraged operational data delivered via Allfunds’ Data Hub, optimising clients’ ability to access comprehensive information about their investments in CCLA’s strategies.
Allfunds will also become the latest platform for professional investors to access ACLC’s Better Global Funds, a great opportunity to access ACLC’s investment expertise that, until recently, only for ACLC’s not-for-profit clients and benefit from 60 years of leading UK ESG investment experience.
ACLC works with grantees to promote greater sustainability in the real world economy, evaluating companies against their environmental, social and governance criteria, and invest in a way that aligns with customer values.
“At Allfunds, we are always dedicated to solving problems and helping our clients in the financial services industry become more efficient, closer to their clients, and move their business forward. This partnership is a testament to our continuous efforts to innovate and collaborate with industry leaders, as we strive to revolutionise the financial services industry and deliver exceptional value to our clients.”
Juan de Palacios, Chief Strategy and Product Officer at Allfunds.
“Partnering with Allfunds for the delivery of the new client portal will significantly enhance how we can interact with our clients allowing them to access details of their holdings with us anytime, eliminating the constraints of traditional office hours and supporting CCLA in giving the best possible service to our clients.”
Elizabeth Sheldon, COO at CCLA.
Pleo taps Yapily to expand instant wallet top-up offering
DanishFinTech Pleo has extended its partnership with open banking platform Yapily, as it expands in Europe and adopts Variable Recurring Payments (VRP) to automatically fund accounts.
Pleo first partnered with Yapily in September 2022 to create a seamless and instant payment experience for financial teams when depositing funds into their Pleo wallets. Through open banking, Pleo eliminates the manual payment process that adds difficulty to users and creates unnecessary uncertainty on business cash flow.
Since its launch, there has been a steady growth in the number of customers using open banking as their preferred payment method to transfer funds to their Pleo accounts. Results show that 80% of loyal customers have used open banking as a payment option for repeat account top-ups, with €7.3 million paid to Pleo accounts in the UK, Netherlands and France using Yapily’s open banking infrastructure. Yapily’s broad banking reach and unique API integration have made it easy for Pleo to expand into new markets. For example, the launch in the Netherlands has seen 60% of customers use open banking to top up their Pleo wallet since its launch in November 2022. It plans to use the next approach. Similar approach to rolling out open banking to many major European markets later this year, including Germany.
Pleo is also currently taking advantage of new innovations in open banking by leveraging VRP to automatically transfer funds to their wallet when funds reach a set threshold. This will allow customers to automate deposit rules and further streamline their expense management processes through open banking.
“Partnering with Yapily has enabled us to offer our customers a frictionless user journey when loading their Pleo wallet. This means they can focus on what really matters; good cash management. Following the immediate, positive response from our customer base in the UK, France, and the Netherlands, we are expanding the offering into more of our core markets and seizing on innovations in open banking, such as Variable Recurring Payments, to deliver an even more seamless customer experience”.
Mette Gade, Chief Product Officer at Pleo.
“Payments innovation remains at the heart of the most successful FinTech user experience, and Pleo’s dedication to improving the ease and speed with which its customers can top-up their wallets through open banking has been a resounding success, proven by rapid adoption from its user base and continued geo-expansion”.
Stefano Vaccino, CEO and Founder of Yapily.