The Fintech Times Bi-Weekly News Roundup takes a look at the latest fintech stories from around the world on Tuesday 8 July 2025.
Funding and investments
Alibaba Cloud will invest $60million over the next year to support global partners and accelerate AI adoption. The funding will go toward marketing, incentives, and technical support. New partnerships include Dify, Squirro, PingCAP and Atos, aiming to expand access to cloud-based AI tools across Asia-Pacific and international markets.
Saudi-based software startup Rekaz has raised $5million in seed funding to expand its all-in-one operating system for service-based businesses. Led by COTU Ventures with participation from Impact46, Shorooq and Numrah Capital, the round will support Rekaz’s product development and regional growth. The platform is already used by over 7,000 businesses to manage bookings, payments and client operations.
Appointments
PPRO, a local payments platform, has appointed Michelle Eischeid as chief financial officer. In her role, Eischeid will spearhead PPRO’s global financial strategy, financial planning and operations and investor relations, as the company continues to scale its platform and expand its international reach. She most recently served as interim group CFO at Planet.
GoCardless, the bank payment company, has named Ian Boyd general manager for Australia and New Zealand as it seeks to expand its footprint in the region. Boyd joins from Xero, the global small business platform, where he served as general manager of partnerships. In his new role at GoCardless, he will be responsible for driving the company’s continued growth across the market.
TrafficGuard, a platform for digital ad verification and fraud prevention, appoints Miguel Lopes as chief product officer. Lopes will oversee the development of solutions that protect advertising spend, accelerate support for new channels and drive the launch of innovative products. He brings over 20 years of experience, with roles at Synacor, Syniverse, Dialogic, Cataleya and Visionable Global.
Currency.com hires Enrico Serafini as CEO US and Dave Ackerman as chief operating officer US to oversee the company’s expansion across the US as it seeks to ‘redefine the modern fintech platform’. The company recently secured its 31st money transmitter licence in Tennessee, part of its mission to achieve full licensure across all 50 states. Beyond the US, Currency.com has operations spanning over 100 countries.
Microsoft has appointed Amr Kamel as general manager for the UAE. With nearly 20 years at the company, Kamel will lead Microsoft’s efforts to support the UAE’s digital and AI priorities, deepen partnerships including with G42 and drive national innovation across sectors such as healthcare, education and energy.
Collaborations
France-based fintech Next Generation NGPES has selected global verification provider Sumsub to deliver fraud prevention, identity verification and AML compliance as it prepares to launch a new payment ecosystem anchored by a euro-backed stablecoin. The collaboration will support secure onboarding and regulatory alignment as NGPES integrates TradFi services with digital assets and near-instant IBAN wallet transactions.
Personal finance site Be Clever With Your Cash has launched a new mortgage hub in partnership with broker Tembo. The service offers free expert advice, tools, and live rate comparisons, waiving Tembo’s usual £499 fee. It aims to help buyers and homeowners make informed decisions when purchasing or remortgaging a property.
Paragon Bank, a specialist lender and savings provider, appoints performance marketing agency 26PMX to lead a high-impact, multi-channel digital/online campaign for the launch of Spring – a new savings app designed to help UK consumers unlock greater value from their everyday money.
DIMOCO has appointed Drei Österreich as an agent under its Austrian payment licence, enabling the mobile network operator to offer carrier billing for both digital and non-digital goods in full compliance with PSD2. The agreement removes payment limits and expands merchant access to Drei’s network, reinforcing DIMOCO’s position in the carrier billing ecosystem across Austria.
Firenze, the wealthtech firm broadening access to Lombard lending, has partnered with Söderberg & Partners Wealth Management in the UK. The deal enables advisers to offer clients flexible, asset-backed loans without selling investments. Backed by a £160million funding line and a recent £2.5million seed round, Firenze aims to deliver £1billion in lending over the next three years.
Company milestones
Fintech firm Finmo has secured authorisation from the UK Financial Conduct Authority to operate as an electronic money institution (EMI), allowing it to issue e-money, provide domestic and cross-border payments, and integrate with UK clearing systems. The licence supports Finmo’s UK expansion and enables the rollout of GBP accounts, Faster Payments access and embedded treasury tools for finance teams.
AI-powered lending platform Abound has reported a 151 per cent increase in revenue to £66.8million and a twenty-five-fold rise in net profit to £7.5million for the year ending February 2025. The growth reflects strong performance across its direct lending and B2B technology services, following a £250million lending facility from Deutsche Bank and new partnerships with high street banks.
Gatehouse Bank has reported its fifth consecutive year of profitability, posting a 20 per cent increase in post-tax profit to £3.8million for 2024. The Shariah-compliant bank expanded digital services, surpassed 50,000 trees planted via its Woodland Saver accounts, and refined its ESG strategy. Home finance originations reached £148million, while colleague volunteering and fundraising participation rose significantly.
MyBank has surpassed €60billion in total transaction volume since its 2013 launch, with 75 per cent of its 2024 volume driven by B2B payments. The pay-by-bank scheme, widely adopted in Italy and expanding across Europe, has also launched a new multilingual website to support further growth in markets including France, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands
