The Fintech Times Bi-Weekly News Roundup takes a look at the latest fintech stories from around the world on Thursday 3 July 2025.
Appointments
Jeeves, a global financial platform for cross-border business spend, has appointed former Brex and SAP executive Jordan Bulkoski as chief revenue officer. Bulkoski will lead global revenue functions as the company expands internationally and rolls out new features, including advanced card controls and invoice automation tools across Latin America.
Rostro Group, a fintech and financial services firm, has named Constantina Georgiadou as head of public relations and communications. Based in Limassol, she brings nearly 15 years of FX and CFD industry experience. Her appointment supports Rostro’s global growth as it expands its brokerage, payments and banking offerings.
Stacks AI, a startup focused on automating the financial close process, appoints former Plaid and McKinsey executive Farid Sedjelmaci as COO. Based in London, he will lead UK expansion – described by the company as its fastest-growing market. Since launching in February 2025, Stacks says it has reduced manual finance work by 97 per cent and is seeing growing adoption across sectors.
Azentio Software has appointed Harikrishnan Venkataramanan as president of its ERP division. With over 25 years in enterprise tech, including leadership at Ramco Systems, he will oversee Azentio’s ERP strategy across product, engineering and go-to-market. The company says his role is key to expanding into new sectors and scaling innovation across high-growth markets.
InvestiFi, a platform for embedded digital investing, has welcomed fintech law expert Ethan Silver as a strategic advisor. Silver, chair of fintech at Lowenstein Sandler LLP, will guide regulatory and product strategy as InvestiFi scales nationwide. The company says his expertise will support the growth of its signature feature, Investing from Checking, across financial institutions.
More hires
Saturn, the AI and data platform supporting over 6,500 UK financial advisers, has appointed Re:LoA founder Gary Abela as enterprise partnerships lead. The hire follows Saturn’s acquisition of compliance firm Ateb Insights and signals its shift toward large-scale enterprise adoption. The company says Abela’s fintech and AI expertise will help advance its mission to streamline advisory workflows and close the advice gap.
Premialab, a global data and analytics platform for quantitative and multi-asset strategies, has added Bogdan Levchenko, CFA, as senior product specialist to support its EMEA expansion. Formerly head of portfolio modeling at Man Group, Levchenko brings over 20 years of experience in quantitative investing and will help institutional clients maximise value from Premialab’s analytics platform.
Napier AI, a UK-based regtech focused on AI-powered financial crime compliance, has appointed Kenneth Paqvalén as chief financial officer. A former CFO at Matillion, Paqvalén brings over 20 years of experience in scaling high-growth tech firms. His appointment comes as Napier expands globally following its recent acquisition by Marlin Equity Partners.
Queen Máxima of the Netherlands is named chair of the international advisory board at the Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN). Joining her are Agustín Carstens and Sanjiv Bajaj. GFTN, a Singapore-based non-profit, says the appointments will support its aim to foster inclusive, tech-driven financial systems worldwide.
Biometric identity verification firm iProov has appointed Alex Pearson as chief revenue officer. With over 25 years in enterprise tech and cybersecurity, Pearson will lead global sales and customer success as the company scales. iProov says his international experience will support its next phase of growth across key markets.
Partnerships and collaborations
Orbital, a cross-border payment platform bridging stablecoins and fiat, has partnered with ClearBank Europe to enable real-time euro transactions via SEPA. The integration gives Orbital’s enterprise clients faster, lower-cost payments with full compliance. The move supports growing demand for streamlined treasury solutions that combine digital assets with traditional payment infrastructure.
Identity verification platform IDnow has partnered with biometric authentication provider Keyless to enable ongoing user authentication beyond onboarding. The integration lets users be silently enrolled into Keyless during IDnow’s verification process, enabling biometrics to be reused for future high-risk actions. The firms say the approach supports ‘continuous trust’ and helps detect deepfakes and AI-driven fraud without storing biometric data.
Digital wallet provider Curve has deepened its partnership with global tech firm Thales to support the rollout of Curve Pay on iOS, enabling NFC payments directly through the Curve app. The collaboration leverages Thales’ cloud-based D1 platform to deliver real-time, secure payment capabilities across iOS and Android in Europe. Already available to Curve’s 6 million customers, Curve Pay aims to simplify spending by consolidating cards and reducing fees.
Banqup Group has partnered with global payee verification provider iPiD to enhance payment security and combat invoice fraud across its digital platform. The collaboration integrates iPiD’s real-time know your payee (KYP) technology into Banqup, helping businesses verify recipient details before payments are made, reducing fraud risk and supporting compliance with Europe’s growing verification of payee regulations.
Bitcoin-first private bank Xapo has become an official partner of Aston Villa Football Club, expanding its UK presence and global reach through the Premier League side’s 358 million-strong fan base. Founded in 2013, Gibraltar-headquartered Xapo is a licensed private bank offering interest-bearing Bitcoin accounts and secure digital wealth services. The deal includes sponsorship of Villa’s 2025 US pre-season tour and in-stadium branding throughout the 2025/26 season.
Funding and investments
Propel Finance, a UK-based asset finance lender focused on SMEs, has secured £1.5billion in new funding to expand its support for business-critical equipment and vehicle purchases. Backed by major institutions including Barclays, Bank of America, Citi and the British Business Bank, Propel plans to more than double new lending over the next three years.
Brisbane-based crypto exchange Coinstash has bagged AU$4.7million in Series A funding to support platform development, team growth and user acquisition. The company, which offers access to over 1,000 digital assets, says the funding will help scale operations as Australian demand for secure, compliant crypto investing continues to grow.
The UK tech sector secured $7.8billion in funding in H1 2025, ranking second globally behind the US, according to Tracxn. London accounted for 77 per cent of the total, with enterprise applications, fintech and media & entertainment driving investment. Late-stage funding rose sharply, while early-stage activity declined. Worldpay’s $24.3billion acquisition led deal activity.
London-based Arāya Ventures has closed its debut fund at $26.3million to invest in up to 60 early-stage startups across Health, FinTech, Commerce, and the Future of Work. Led by investor Rupa Popat, the fund includes backing from British Business Investments and has already supported 16 AI-focused companies, with offices now in London and Dubai.
More funding updates
Sydney-based AI insights provider MOGOPLUS raisesAU$1.5million from London’s New Model Venture Capital to expand its agentic AI credit decisioning platform. Specialising in lending and financial services, MOGOPLUS plans to grow into new markets and sectors including telecoms, insurance and wealth, as demand for vertical AI solutions accelerates.
Savvy Wealth, a New York-based digital platform for financial advisors, has raised $72million in Series B funding led by Industry Ventures, bringing total funding to over $100million. The company says the capital will accelerate AI development and advisor recruitment, with former LPL Financial CEO Mark Casady joining its board as part of the round.
London-based fintech Yaspa has secured $12million in a funding round led by Discerning Capital to support its US expansion. The company, which provides real-time payments and identity services using open banking and AI, has established a US entity in Atlanta and is targeting the regulated gambling sector with its account-to-account payment solution.
PetroApp, a Saudi-based platform for digital fuel payments and fleet management, has bagged $50million in a funding round led by Jadwa Investment and Bunat Ventures. The company plans to use the capital to expand internationally, grow its AI-driven services, and prepare for an IPO on the Saudi Exchange. PetroApp currently serves over 500,000 vehicles across four countries.
Company milestones
Triodos Bank UK has marked its 30th anniversary by announcing £2.5billion in total lending to projects with social and environmental impact. Since 1995, the bank has supported sectors including renewable energy, organic farming, social housing and community initiatives, with a focus on aligning finance with long-term societal and environmental goals.
Temenos has been ranked the world’s fourth most sustainable company by TIME and Statista, and the top-ranked Swiss firm on the list. The banking technology provider is the only core banking software company in the top 40, recognised for its ESG performance, climate commitments and sustainable innovation in financial services.
Guavapay joined the Lord Mayor of London’s delegation to the Gulf Region, visiting Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE to promote UK-Gulf fintech collaboration. Highlighted as a standout UK fintech by Lord Mayor Alastair King, Guavapay explored co-investment opportunities and strategic partnerships supporting its global growth ambitions and the Gulf’s economic diversification goals.
MetaWealth, a tokenised real estate investment platform, has distributed over $1million in rental income to its global investor base, making it the first RWA platform to reach this milestone. The company says the payouts reflect the performance of its income-generating assets, with most of its $50million in tokenized real estate still under development across Europe.
PancakeSwap recorded $325billion in trading volume for June 2025, a new monthly high, bringing its Q2 total to $529billion, more than double Q1’s volume. The decentralised exchange has now surpassed $1.8trillion in cumulative volume, driven by recent upgrades like crosschain swaps and its PancakeSwap Infinity launch, alongside growing traction across BNB Chain, Ethereum and Arbitrum.
