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Date – 16-Aug-2024 Flexa Unveils Flexa Components: A New SDK for Seamless In-App Digital Asset Payments Flexa, the leading platform for merchant digital payments, has introduced Flexa Components, a new suite of mobile-first solutions designed to streamline direct wallet payments with digital assets for in-person transactions. This groundbreaking feature offers the first asset-agnostic, embeddable interface that integrates with merchant point-of-sale systems, allowing payments directly from digital wallet apps using Base, Bitcoin, Ethereum, Lightning, Litecoin, Polygon, Solana, and Zcash. Key supporters of Flexa Components include Base, the Electric Coin Company, Lightspark, the Litecoin Foundation, and the Solana Foundation, among others. These collaborations bring Flexa Components to prominent merchants such as Chipotle, I-Shoppes, Mikimoto, Regal Cinemas, and 99 Ranch Market. Current digital payment systems are often confined to closed networks or specific blockchains, creating a fragmented acceptance landscape that limits the potential of digital currencies. Flexa Components aims to overcome this by simplifying integration for developers and enhancing functionality like scanning. For merchants, this means faster, smoother payment processing, while consumers benefit from a more efficient way to use their digital assets without the high transaction fees usually associated with crypto credit/debit card payments. “We believe digital currencies should be as easy to use as any other payment method,” said Daniel McCabe, CEO and co-founder of Flexa. “Flexa Components helps achieve that goal, providing a lower-fee payment gateway for merchants and a more seamless experience for users. It’s a win-win for everyone involved.” Available through the new Flexa SDK for iOS, Android, and React Native, Flexa Components combines cutting-edge design and technology to offer a superior payments experience. Key features include: This launch aligns with Flexa’s mission to integrate digital currencies into mainstream usage, offering universal utility for global merchants, developers, wallets, consumers, and blockchain networks. “Flexa Components embodies our ongoing commitment to bridge innovative financial technologies with traditional payment systems,” said Trevor Filter, co-founder of Flexa. “We’re excited to introduce this solution to tackle today’s challenges and enhance the payment experience for both merchants and consumers.”

Date – 16-Aug-2024 A growing number of employers express optimism about their organization’s performance and satisfaction with their insurance broker. Zywave’s 2024 Broker Services Survey Highlights Positive Trends in Employer Sentiment and Broker Satisfaction Zywave, a leading insurtech provider, has published its 2024 Broker Services Survey, offering valuable insights into U.S. employers’ perspectives on their top business challenges and their expectations from insurance brokers. The survey reveals a positive outlook among employers, with nearly 92% reporting that their performance outlook for 2024 is either stable or improved compared to the previous year. Additionally, nearly 86% of respondents expressed satisfaction or high satisfaction with their insurance broker’s services. “Consumers today are demanding, and insurance buyers are no exception,” said Patrick Noonan, Vice President of Content Development at Zywave. “The positive feedback indicates that many brokers are meeting these high expectations. However, it’s crucial for brokers to stay attuned to their clients’ evolving needs to maintain strong relationships and retention.” The 2024 survey results align closely with previous years, emphasizing that employee attraction and retention, compliance, and technology remain key areas of focus. Most employers continue to seek regular updates from their brokers, with nearly 83% wanting communication on insurance topics weekly or monthly and expecting prompt, effective service. Top Broker Services Valued in 2024 Employers placed high value on client service and broker expertise. The most important criteria when selecting a broker were prompt and effective service (57%) and being trusted advisors rather than salespeople (53%). Other valued criteria included the ability to negotiate renewals (48%) and offering compliance resources (33%). Key Business Challenges for Clients The survey identified financial considerations and policy coverage as top challenges in the current hard market. For employee benefits, the top three challenges were: For commercial insurance, the top challenges were: “The survey results show that while the core challenges for employers remain consistent, the evolving insurance market is increasing the demand for brokers to bring deeper industry knowledge and expertise to their clients,” Noonan added. Zywave has been conducting its Broker Services Survey for over a decade to help brokers align their services with client priorities and address key business challenges. For more detailed insights, download the full 2024 Broker Services Survey.

Date – 16-Aug-2024 Chaos Labs Raises $55M in Series A Funding Led by Haun Ventures to Expand Onchain Economic Security Chaos Labs, a leader in onchain risk management, has announced a $55 million Series A funding round led by Haun Ventures. The funding will be used to scale onchain economic security and accelerate the development of Chaos Labs’ innovative risk management platform. This round attracted notable new investors including F-Prime Capital, Slow Ventures, Spartan Capital, and others, joining existing backers such as Lightspeed Venture Partners, Galaxy Ventures, Wintermute Ventures, PayPal Ventures, General Catalyst, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Coinbase Ventures. Strategic angel investors involved in the round include Kevin Weil (OpenAI CPO), Michael Shaulov (Fireblocks CEO), Anatoly Yakovenko (Solana CEO), Francesco Agosti (Phantom CTO), and Anton Katz (Talos CEO). With this investment, Chaos Labs plans to enhance its platform, which features advanced observability tools, innovative risk oracles, and real-time parameter recommendations. The funding marks the first Series A investment led by Diogo Mónica, General Partner at Haun Ventures. Mónica praised Chaos Labs for its rapid growth and the quality of its products, noting the increasing need for top-tier risk management tools designed specifically for blockchain technology. “We are excited to partner with Chaos Labs as they continue to advance the industry’s risk management capabilities,” Mónica said. “Their focus and vision have reinforced our confidence in their ability to support and grow the blockchain space.” Over the past year, Chaos Labs has tripled its customer base, with over 20 protocols, including Aave, GMX, and Jupiter, relying on its technology. Chaos Labs has secured $860 billion in cumulative trading volume, $25 billion in loans, and $35 million in incentives. “Partnering with Haun Ventures and our existing investors is a significant step forward for Chaos Labs,” said Omer Goldberg, Founder and CEO of Chaos Labs. “Our goal has always been to provide high-quality data to inform risk management. With the volatility of crypto assets, DeFi applications need dynamic data infrastructure to remain competitive.” Chaos Labs’ technology is increasingly sought after by industry giants such as Chainlink and LayerZero for research and risk management, validating the team’s belief in the need for sophisticated and integrated data solutions. “By merging offchain market data with dynamic risk parameter adjustments, we aim to provide a more responsive and accurate risk management solution,” Goldberg added. “This new technology will enhance our platform and offer real-time updates reflecting current market conditions.” As decentralized finance applications currently rely on manual risk management and static data, Chaos Labs is positioning itself to close the gap with centralized finance counterparts, where risk engines are built on top of live market data feeds. “We are advancing to match our CeFi counterparts, and this is the direction the industry is heading,” Goldberg concluded.

Date – 16-Aug-2024 SoftLedger Launches Enhanced Reporting Module for Advanced Financial Insights Cloud accounting software provider SoftLedger has announced the release of its Enhanced Reporting module, a significant update that broadens the platform’s financial reporting capabilities. This upgrade is especially beneficial for multinational companies with operations across various regions and allows for seamless integration of data from external ERP systems. “This reporting update is the most significant product release we’ve had in over a year,” said Ben Taylor, CEO and co-founder of SoftLedger. “We’ve made notable improvements to our consolidation functionality, particularly for companies dealing with multiple currencies and those integrating data from external ERPs.” The new module also offers enhanced features designed to ease the transition for small businesses moving from traditional bookkeeping software. These updates are part of SoftLedger’s ongoing commitment to simplifying implementation for small finance and accounting teams. “Furthermore, we’ve introduced additional upgrades to our financial reporting module,” Taylor added. “These include default financial statements and other features to support small businesses in making a smooth switch from their existing accounting software.”

Date – 16-Aug-2024 FIS Partners with Neural Payments to Enhance Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Payment Experience FIS has announced a strategic partnership with Neural Payments to leverage its NYCE debit network and extensive scale, simplifying the peer-to-peer (P2P) payment process. This collaboration integrates Neural Payments’ technology directly into financial institutions’ mobile banking apps, allowing users to send and receive P2P payments seamlessly without needing to use a separate application. Neural Payments’ platform enables users to transfer funds to anyone, regardless of whether the recipient’s financial institution supports Neural Payments. Recipients can choose their preferred provider to receive payments, which can be settled via popular mobile wallets and debit cards, including FedNow and The Clearing House RTP. Payments are processed instantly, with recipients able to access their funds within seconds. “A recent FIS UK survey reveals that mobile banking capabilities are a major driver of customer loyalty across all generations,” said Chris Como, Head of Cards and Money Movement at FIS. “By combining our industry-leading reach and NYCE debit network with Neural Payments’ innovative technology, we are enhancing the efficiency of money movement for today’s digital consumers. This partnership underscores our commitment to advancing financial technology and expanding these capabilities to our client institutions.” The global P2P payment market, valued at $2.21 trillion in 2022, is projected to grow to approximately $11.62 trillion by 2032, according to Precedence Research. P2P services are widely adopted, with over 80% of consumers using such services regularly. FIS will integrate Neural Payments’ white-label solution into its clients’ mobile banking apps, eliminating the need for users to visit third-party platforms. For traditional closed-loop payments, linked debit accounts will be settled in real-time within FIS clients’ existing systems. Mick Oppy, Co-Founder and CEO of Neural Payments, commented, “Partnering with FIS to deliver our white-label P2P solution to financial institutions represents a significant step forward in our ongoing relationship. Our open-loop system is transforming the P2P landscape by extending beyond traditional banking boundaries. With FIS’s global presence, we can now offer a payment service that fulfills the true promise of P2P transactions—safe, cost-effective, and accessible through a wide range of networks.” Neural Payments, an alumnus of the FIS Fintech Accelerator and winner of the 2022 Demo Day Award, continues to innovate in the financial technology space.

Date – 16-Aug-2024 New integration streamlines year-end compliance for Canadian accountants and bookkeepers. Xero Announces Strategic Integration Partnership with Caseware to Streamline Year-End Compliance for Canadian Accountants and Bookkeepers Xero, the global platform for small businesses, has unveiled a new integration partnership with Caseware, a leading provider of cloud-enabled audit, financial reporting, and data analytics solutions for accounting firms, corporations, and government organizations. This partnership, announced at Xerocon Nashville—Xero’s flagship partner event on August 14-15—introduces a seamless solution for Xero and Caseware’s shared customers. Accountants and bookkeepers can now import trial balances and general ledger data directly from Xero into Caseware Working Papers, expanding on the existing integration with Caseware’s cloud apps. This enhanced integration eliminates the need for manual file exports and imports between systems, saving time and reducing the risk of manual data entry errors. The new integration, set to be available later this year for accountants and bookkeepers in Canada and additional regions, aims to accelerate the completion of year-end compliance tasks. This marks a significant step in Xero’s ongoing commitment to streamlining year-end workflows in Canada. “Year-end compliance can create a significant workload for accountants and bookkeepers,” said Ben Richmond, Managing Director of North America at Xero. “By partnering with robust solutions like Caseware, we can help practices connect their tools and alleviate the year-end burden. Ultimately, this partnership frees up time for advisors to better serve small business clients and grow their firms.” The partnership also paves the way for Xero and Caseware to explore further integration opportunities, enhancing efficiency for their customers. Scott Epstein, Chief Product Officer at Caseware, expressed confidence in the value this partnership brings: “Xero’s efficiency tools for trial balance preparation, combined with Caseware’s year-end assurance and reporting capabilities, will continue to save time and improve quality for accountants and bookkeepers. As the industry evolves, we remain committed to empowering accountants and bookkeepers to excel in their work.” Xero, with 4.2 million subscribers worldwide, offers a comprehensive platform that helps small businesses and their advisors manage core accounting functions such as tax and bank reconciliation, payroll, and payments. Xero’s extensive ecosystem of connected apps and financial institution integrations provides small businesses with the tools they need to efficiently manage their finances. Caseware, a global leader in audit, assurance, financial reporting, and data analytics solutions, serves over half a million customers in 130 countries. Caseware’s innovative platforms help professionals work smarter, gain deeper insights, and turn data into actionable impact.

Date – 16-Aug-2024 U.S. merchants using Stripe can now seamlessly integrate Zip’s payment method at checkout across the United States. Zip Expands Strategic Partnership with Stripe to Offer Seamless Payment Integration for U.S. Merchants Zip, a leading digital financial services company known for its innovative, customer-centric products, has announced the integration of its payment method for U.S. merchants using Stripe. This new integration allows eligible merchants to easily enable Zip as a payment option with just one click, potentially attracting new customers and boosting both conversion rates and average transaction sizes. This partnership builds on the successful collaboration between Zip and Stripe in Australia and now extends it to the U.S. market. “Our strategic partnership with Stripe has yielded excellent results for merchants and customers in Australia, and we’re excited to replicate that success in the United States,” said George Eliopoulos, Chief Commercial Officer at Zip. Zip continues to champion financial inclusion, with 6.0 million active customers and over 79,000 merchants across the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. The company’s approach to Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) is reshaping the retail economy by providing accessible credit options to a broader demographic, including those traditionally underserved by conventional financial institutions. This not only introduces new customers to brands but also addresses critical needs in the marketplace. “Our goal at Zip is to offer customers transparent and flexible credit solutions that enhance their financial autonomy, while providing merchants with access to a motivated new customer base,” added Eliopoulos. For merchants utilizing Stripe’s optimized checkout interfaces, such as the Payment Element and Checkout, enabling Zip requires no additional coding and can be activated directly from the Stripe Dashboard. While Zip is already available to merchants in Australia, it is expected to become generally available to U.S. merchants later this year. Zip Co Limited (ASX: ZIP), listed on the Australian Stock Exchange, operates in two core markets—the United States and Australia/New Zealand. Founded in 2013 in Australia, Zip offers fair, flexible, and transparent payment solutions, helping customers manage their financial futures while supporting merchants in growing their businesses. In the U.S., loans offered through the Zip app and Zip Checkout are originated by WebBank and are subject to credit approval.

Date – 16-Aug-2024 This collaborative solution delivers interactive digital advice experiences, boosts efficiency, and empowers financial advisors to achieve better client outcomes. SigFig Introduces Advanced AI Capabilities to Enhance Engage Platform for Financial Advisors SigFig, a leading provider of digital wealth management solutions and technology for financial institutions and their advisors, has announced the addition of new AI-powered features to its financial advisor collaboration platform, Engage. Engage is designed to power collaborative digital experiences at the core of financial advisor-client relationships. It seamlessly blends human expertise with advanced technology, offering a comprehensive set of capabilities that include AI-driven assistance to enhance advisor effectiveness, integration with industry-leading systems to streamline processes, and collaborative tools that deepen client engagement. New AI Capabilities The newly introduced AI features include: “AI has the potential to significantly enhance the productivity and effectiveness of financial advisors,” said Mike Sha, founder and CEO of SigFig. “Advisors need to focus on building meaningful client relationships and understanding their clients’ unique goals and challenges. Engage serves as a central hub to facilitate more personalized client experiences, while efficiently managing essential but time-consuming administrative tasks.” Enhanced Integrations Engage further enhances the advisor experience by offering seamless integration with widely-used systems such as Salesforce, Docusign, Microsoft, and Google. The CRM integration allows for bi-directional data synchronization, enabling advisors to view client information within the Engage platform while syncing meeting notes, updated client details, follow-up tasks, and more into Salesforce—ultimately accelerating the sales process and improving client conversions. Engage’s open-architecture design also allows for flexible connections with proprietary systems. Collaborative Digital Experiences Engage fosters a more interactive collaboration between advisors and clients, encouraging clients to actively participate in the financial advice process. This approach enables advisors to better support their clients’ financial wellness and gain a deeper understanding of their unique financial situations. SigFig has developed a suite of customizable modules covering various financial services topics, including client prospecting, needs discovery, retirement planning, account opening, and annual client reviews. Engage is the latest addition to SigFig’s digital wealth management ecosystem, complementing other offerings such as Digital Advice Pro, a modern managed account platform designed to serve both prospective and existing clients more efficiently, and Digital Advice, a fully automated, personalized investment portfolio tool for clients who prefer self-service or are not currently working with an advisor.

Date – 15-Aug-2024 Keabank, an emerging neobank, has secured a fresh investment, establishing its initial valuation at €10.5 million. The funding round was led by Mark Carnegie, a veteran investor with over 30 years of experience in investment and corporate advisory. Carnegie’s extensive background, particularly in digital assets and cryptocurrency ventures, is expected to give Keabank a strategic advantage as it expands its innovative payment solutions across fiat and cryptocurrency platforms. Keabank is committed to transforming financial services for underserved clients by offering a comprehensive range of banking solutions. These include SWIFT and SEPA payments, dedicated IBANs, crypto exchange and custody, and foreign exchange services. The neobank serves both corporate and individual clients, focusing on seamless cross-border transactions involving both fiat and cryptocurrencies. Notable for its swift onboarding, 24/7 support, and multilingual customer service, Keabank is well-suited to industries such as travel, retail, and crypto. The neobank prioritizes innovation and regulatory compliance, aiming to be a global one-stop solution with multi-currency capabilities and global payouts. Mark Berkovich, CEO of Keabank, expressed enthusiasm about the investment, stating, “We are excited to welcome Mark Carnegie as an investor and founding partner. His confidence in our vision and deep industry expertise will be crucial in accelerating our growth and enhancing our offerings. This investment highlights our dedication to revolutionizing financial services for underserved markets.” The investment followed nearly a year of rigorous due diligence, reflecting a strong belief in Keabank’s business model, technology, and team, and positioning the neobank to achieve its ambitious objectives.

Date – 15-Aug-2024 Sling Money, a cutting-edge payments platform, has announced a significant $15 million boost from its Series A funding round. The investment, led by Union Square Ventures with contributions from Ribbit Capital and Slow Ventures, follows an earlier $5 million seed round backed by Ribbit Capital and Slow Ventures. Sling Money is revolutionizing global money transfers by integrating stablecoin technology with a user-friendly interface. This approach enables instant, low-cost transactions worldwide, a marked improvement over traditional methods that often incur high fees and slow processing times. The new funding will support the expansion of Sling Money’s technology and market presence. The platform aims to simplify global financial interactions, making them as seamless as online chatting. Sling Money currently supports transfers across over 50 countries in Europe and Africa and offers a unique feature called Sling Link, allowing users to send money instantly to both Sling users and non-users with minimal to no cost. Rebecca Kaden, Partner at Union Square Ventures, commented, “Sling Money signifies a major advancement in the global payments landscape. Their innovative use of blockchain technology to create seamless, instant transactions aligns with our vision of expanding access, reducing costs, and unlocking new opportunities for users. We are excited to support Sling Money in this transformative journey.”