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IndustryUpdate

structure and support broader distribution of USDC for increased the proposed price by more than 30%. The
cross-border transactions. Tazapay has worked with transaction requires regulatory and unaffiliated share-
Circle as a design partner since 2025. holder approvals and is expected to close in the first half
of 2027. Upon completion, Priority will become privately
OrderYOYO acquires Cashdesk held and its shares will no longer trade on Nasdaq.
OrderYOYO acquired Cashdesk, a Netherlands-based
provider of white-label software and payment solutions APPOINTMENTS
for restaurants. Cashdesk serves more than 700 restau-
rant partners with technology that includes ecommerce, Madilynn Castillo joins InvoiceCloud
POS software, online and offline payment processing
and self-service kiosks. Its customers generate more than InvoiceCloud appointed Madilynn Castillo chief mar-
2 million orders annually. OrderYOYO, which provides keting officer, responsible for brand and market posi-
embedded payments and software for European quick- tioning, demand generation, product marketing and
service restaurants, said the acquisition expands its pres- customer engagement. Castillo joins the company from
ence in the Netherlands and adds to its product capabili- manufacturing technology provider Tulip Interfaces,
ties across Europe. The transaction is OrderYOYO's sixth where she served as CMO during a nearly eight-year
acquisition since 2022. tenure. She built and led Tulip's global marketing orga-
nization and supported its growth from Series B through
PayNearMe acquires Marr Labs Series D, when the company reached a $1.3 billion
valuation. Castillo also helped establish Tulip's posi-
PayNearMe acquired the technology assets of AI com- tion in the manufacturing execution system market and
pany Marr Labs and hired its key employees, adding championed its AI Process Engineer initiative, designed
specialized agentic AI expertise to its payments plat- to train 1,000 manufacturing engineers to use artificial
form. Marr Labs, founded in 2023 and backed by Y intelligence in frontline operations.
Combinator, developed AI systems for regulated envi-
ronments, supporting millions of customer interactions Pagaya appoints Jason Gardner to Board
monthly. Its team includes experts involved in technol-
ogy that powered early Siri products. PayNearMe plans Pagaya Technologies appointed payments industry vet-
to integrate agentic AI capabilities into its PayXM plat- eran Jason Gardner to its board of directors follow-
form, applying automation across payment, customer ing his confirmation at the company's August annual
support and operational workflows. PayNearMe said it meeting. Gardner has more than 25 years of technol-
processes more than $50 billion in payments annually, ogy and payments experience and founded card-issu-
with more than 20,000 businesses using PayXM to man- ing platform Marqeta, serving as CEO from 2010 to
age customer payment experiences. 2023 and leading the company through its 2021 initial
public offering. He subsequently served as executive
PayTabs to acquire Amazon Payment Services' chair and remains a director and chair of Marqeta's
MENA operations Payments Innovation Committee. Gardner previously
founded payment platform PropertyBridge, acquired by
PayTabs agreed to acquire Amazon Payment Services' MoneyGram International in 2007, and IT management
Middle East and North Africa operations in a transaction company Vertical Think.
valued at more than $100 million. The acquisition would
combine Amazon Payment Services' regional operations Advanced Payments welcomes Khalid Noohani
with PayTabs' existing payment infrastructure, with
the combined business expected to process more than Advanced Payments Inc. appointed Khalid Noohani
$40 billion annually. Amazon Payment Services oper- president, a newly created role in which he will oversee
ates across nine markets and provides online payment corporate strategy, operations and execution of sales
processing to more than 3,500 businesses. Its services and marketing goals alongside founder and CEO Jason
include card processing, fraud management and alterna- A. Felts. Noohani brings 17 years of payments industry
tive payment methods, supporting global and domestic leadership experience and will hold an equity stake in
payment networks. the company. After earning a law degree specializing in
corporate and transactional law in 2009, he co-founded
Priority Technology to take company private South Florida-based ISO Centurion Merchant Services.
Noohani began working with Advanced Payments as an
Priority Technology Holdings entered into an agreement independent contractor in 2014. In 2025, he earned the
to be acquired by an investor group led by Chairman Electronic Transactions Association's Certified Payments
and CEO Thomas Priore. The group will acquire shares Professional designation.
it does not already own for $8.05 each in cash, valuing
the transaction at approximately $1.6 billion. A spe-
cial committee of independent directors unanimous-
ly recommended the deal following negotiations that

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