The Green Sheet Online Edition
June 9, 2025 • 25:06:01
Industry Update
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Alkami, MANTL among 'Best Places to Work in Fintech"
Alkami Technology and its newly acquired subsidiary, MANTL, were named to American Banker's 2025 Best Places to Work in Fintech list. This recognition, Alkami stated, highlights their shared commitment to innovation, collaboration and employee growth.
The award celebrates top fintech employers across sectors like banking, payments and insurance.
Alkami's acquisition of MANTL united two culturally aligned, mission-driven companies, enhancing their ability to help financial institutions onboard and grow customer relationships through a comprehensive digital platform, Alkami noted. Leaders from both companies emphasized their people-first cultures and shared vision to build a transformative workplace and deliver industry-leading solutions.
Bluefin wins 2025 Fortress Cybersecurity Award
Bluefin, a provider of payment and data security, won a 2025 Fortress Cybersecurity Award from the Business Intelligence Group for its ShieldConex Orchestration platform.
Honored in the Leading Cybersecurity Products and Services category, ShieldConex enables enterprises to securely manage payment and sensitive data across platforms without vendor lock-in.
The processor-agnostic solution features vaultless, real-time tokenization and point-to-point encryption, supporting both card-present and card-not-present transactions.
The awards recognize innovation and leadership in cybersecurity. Bluefin CEO John M. Perry said the honor reflects the company's commitment to giving organizations control, flexibility and resilience amid rising cybersecurity threats.
Embracing AI officially launches
Embracing AI, a new alliance of tech leaders including Tintri, Silicon Sky, Accure and Pix Force, launched to help organizations accelerate and simplify AI adoption. The group offers a full-stack, production-ready solution that unifies infrastructure, automation, AI models and expertise—addressing common barriers to operationalizing AI, the alliance stated.
With a focus on security, scalability and real-time insights, Embracing AI aims to turn enterprise data into actionable intelligence.
Highlighting its values of precision and performance, the alliance was the title sponsor in the recent Champ Car "Double Down at The Glen" race symbolizing AI's transformative speed and impact.
OatFi raises $24M to build modern B2B credit network
OatFi, a fintech focused on modernizing B2B payment financing, raised $24 million in Series A funding led by White Star Capital, with continued support from Portage and QED.
OatFi embeds underwriting, origination and funding capabilities into B2B payment platforms through deep API integrations, enabling seamless financing within accounts payable, accounts receivable, and commercial card workflows, the company stated, adding that its solution addresses the long-standing tension between buyers' and suppliers' cash flow needs by providing real-time, behind-the-scenes credit infrastructure.
With over 25 platform integrations and partners, OatFi plans to expand its modern credit network supporting the $35 trillion U.S. B2B payments market.
Restive opens applications for 9th Fintech Founder cohort
Restive Ventures is now accepting applications for its ninth cohort, targeting early-stage fintech founders, especially those leveraging AI to transform financial services.
Open through July 15, 2025, the program offers at least $500,000 in funding, plus tailored support from top fintech operators, regulators and investors.
Since 2018, Restive-backed startups have raised over $800 million in follow-on capital and generated $5 billion in enterprise value, the firm stated, noting that it seeks technical, engineering-led teams rethinking legacy financial workflows across payments, infrastructure, compliance and more.
Previous cohorts drew global applicants, with over 70 percent being AI-native companies, Restive added.
Vanguard releases book on future global economy
Vanguard recently released Coming Into View, a new book by Joseph H. Davis Ph.D., the firm's global chief economist.
The book introduces a data-driven approach to evaluating how megatrends like AI, fiscal deficits and demographic shifts will reshape the global economy.
Davis challenges conventional economic assumptions and explores how AI-driven productivity may counteract challenges like declining population growth and rising debt. Backed by decades of Vanguard research, Coming Into View provides insights into navigating uncertainty and preparing for a future that will likely diverge sharply from the past.
RESEARCH
ABI finds cyberattacks spur rapid adoption of tokenization
Payment tokenization is gaining momentum as a vital security solution in digital transactions, with ABI Research projecting token service provider revenue to surpass $1 billion by 2031.
Fueled by rising cybersecurity threats, data protection concerns and new PCI-DSS 4.0 requirements, tokenization is evolving with innovations like vaultless tokenization, web-based provisioning and biometric integration.
While North America leads, strong growth is also expected in Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific. Widespread adoption depends on raising awareness and easing migration for merchants. Success hinges on demonstrating how tokenization enhances compliance, security and efficiency across the payments ecosystem, ABI noted.
AU10TIX Q1 2025 report reveals new attack mode
AU10TIX's Q1 2025 Global Identity Fraud Report noted a surge in repeaters, a new AI-fueled fraud tactic that uses minor variations of synthetic identities to probe and bypass KYC defenses before launching mass attacks.
These attacks, often enabled by fraud-as-a-service toolkits, rose 33 percent year-over-year. Repeaters mimic real identities to evade detection and are nearly indistinguishable when viewed individually. AU10TIX recommends using the consortium validation approach through which organizations cross-check identity data to expose repeat use.
The report also urges companies to adopt behavioral tracking, integrate consortium signals, and audit for synthetic ID risks to defend against these fast-evolving, industrial-scale threats.
Americans plan more travel, shorter trips this summer
According to Deloitte's 2025 Summer Travel Survey, 53 percent of Americans plan to travel and stay in paid lodging—up from 48 percent in 2024—despite economic pressures. Travelers are favoring more frequent, shorter trips and opting for cost-saving strategies like road trips, budget hotels and staying with friends.
Average budgets for the longest summer trip dipped slightly to $3,471. Use of generative AI for travel planning is rising, especially among Gen Z and millennials, while remote work continues to influence longer, more flexible trips. Sustainability is also top of mind for younger travelers, as the industry adapts to shifting preferences and pricing concerns.
Ransomware attacks decline, but threats remain high
Ransomware attacks dropped 31 percent in April to 416 cases—the second monthly decline in a row—yet threat actors remain active and highly targeted, NCC Group found.
Retail was in the spotlight after high-profile UK attacks on M&S, Co-op and Harrods, largely attributed to the group Scattered Spider. Akira led ransomware activity with 65 attacks, while Babuk2's activity sharply declined.
Industrial sectors were most targeted (32 percent), followed by consumer discretionary. North America remained the top regional target with 51 percent of attacks. A growing threat is weaponized PDFs, which exploit vulnerabilities through spear phishing, fueled by AI and ongoing remote work vulnerabilities.
PARTNERSHIPS
BlueStar signs two distribution agreement
BlueStar Inc., a global distributor of B2B technology solutions, recently announced strategic distribution agreements with NoviSign Digital Signage and VoCoVo, expanding its offerings in digital signage and in-store team communications.
Through the partnership with NoviSign, BlueStar's reseller network gains access to scalable, cloud-based signage software and hardware designed for industries such as retail, healthcare, education, and corporate environments.
NoviSign supports major operating systems and devices, offering features like drag-and-drop content creation, remote updates, and third-party integrations.
Meanwhile, the VoCoVo agreement brings BlueStar's 4,500+ North American resellers access to VoCoVo's market-leading retail communication tools.
BlueStar will provide custom configuration, marketing support, and technical assistance to accelerate VoCoVo's North American growth, supporting deployments in over 250 stores across multiple retail sectors.
"We aim to offer the most comprehensive solutions in the channel," said Dean Reverman, vice president of marketing at BlueStar.
"With NoviSign and VoCoVo, we're enabling our partners to meet the growing demand for integrated communication and signage solutions that enhance shopper experiences and operational efficiency." Both partnerships underscore BlueStar's value-added approach and commitment to innovation.
Cashflows, Cardstream tackle embedded payments
Cashflows and Cardstream Group partnered to accelerate embedded payment solutions for ISOs, ISVs, platforms and payfacs across the UK and Europe.
By combining Cashflows' acquiring expertise with Cardstream's payment facilitator-as-a-service (PFaaS ) infrastructure, the alliance aims to simplify complex regulatory, compliance and operational demands, allowing faster go-to-market for payment services.
The PFaaS model delivers an end-to-end solution—including onboarding, compliance, merchant activation, and transaction processing—empowering partners to monetize from day one, the partners stated. This collaboration, they added, enables flexible, scalable growth for payfacs, offering modular technology and compliance assurance without heavy infrastructure investment.
Emburse launches Emburse Partner Community
Emburse launched the Emburse Partner Community, bringing together 140 global partners to transform corporate travel and expense management through collaboration.
The initiative supports financial institutions, travel firms, SaaS providers, ERP systems and resellers with tools, resources and incentives to enhance AI-powered expense intelligence, Emburse stated. Marie Shepard, the company's CRO, emphasized that transformation stems from partnership, not silos.
The program offers a partner portal, real-time updates, training and a three-tiered structure tailored to partner needs.
Emburse noted that partners like CTM, Datanamic, OMNIA Partners and UKG celebrate the community's collaborative approach to smarter spend management, streamlined workflows and improved financial oversight for over 20,000 organizations.
FIS, Kipp team up to prevent card declines
FIS partnered with Letskipp Ltd. (Kipp) to launch a first-of-its-kind non-sufficient funds (NSF) authorization solution for debit clients.
This innovative offering allows issuers to approve transactions even when a customer's balance is insufficient—without charging overdraft fees—by enabling merchants to voluntarily pay a premium to authorize the transaction, FIS stated.
The solution aims to reduce declined transactions, recover lost revenue and improve customer experience. NSF declines are a leading cause of lost sales and customer frustration, the partners noted, adding that by streamlining financial operations and preserving POS interactions, the partnership helps issuers drive top-of-wallet status and unlock new revenue while enhancing loyalty and reducing operational friction.
Kayak, Affirm expand partnership into Canada
Kayak and Affirm expanded their exclusive partnership into Canada just in time for summer travel. Canadian users on ca.kayak.com can now choose Affirm at checkout to split travel costs, such as flights, hotels and car rentals, into monthly payments with no late or hidden fees.
Following a quick eligibility check, approved users can select a plan that suits their budget. The expansion builds on the companies' successful U.S. partnership and reflects growing demand for flexible travel payment options, the partners stated.
Affirm, now offered by over 350,000 merchants, said it continues to fuel merchant growth while helping consumers book dream trips with transparency and ease.
ACQUISITION
Alation acquires Numbers Station AI
Alation Inc., a provider of enterprise data intelligence, acquired Numbers Station AI, a startup specializing in AI agents for data workflows.
Founded by Stanford researchers, Numbers Station developed AI-native applications that integrate natural language interfaces with structured data, enabling automation of complex data tasks.
The acquisition aims to enhance Alation's capabilities in building AI-native analytics applications featuring agentic workflows that operate with enterprise-grade governance and context.
By combining Numbers Station's AI agents with Alation's rich metadata foundation, Alation seeks to empower organizations to build intelligent applications that reason over structured data, understand business context and automate real-time decision-making, all while maintaining rigorous governance and compliance standards.
APPOINTMENTS
Ebanx selects Marie-Elise Droga
Marie-Elise Droga, a payments industry veteran with two decades of experience, was named chief revenue officer at Ebanx.
Known for her leadership in cross-border payments and global growth, Droga has held senior roles at Visa, Western Union and Consumer Edge, where she led international teams and forged strategic fintech partnerships.
Her global perspective—shaped by living and working in seven countries—fuels her commitment to expanding financial inclusion in emerging markets.
At Ebanx, she will lead global commercial and partnership efforts, aiming to scale operations across Latin America, Africa and APAC. Droga brings purpose-driven leadership to her new role, Ebanx stated.
Donald Kossmann joins Chargebacks911
Chargebacks911 said it appointed Donald Kossmann as chief technology officer, bringing one of the world's leading experts in AI, data systems and fraud prevention to its executive team.
With over 30 years of experience, Kossmann previously held senior roles at Microsoft, including vice president of Business Copilot and general manager of Fraud Protection. He was instrumental in developing SQL Hyperscale and Copilot Studio, and also served as managing director of Microsoft Research's Redmond Lab.
A former professor at ETH Zurich and Stanford, Kossmann now aims to revolutionize digital transaction trust through AI-driven innovation, reinforcing his reputation as a visionary technologist and builder, Chargebacks911 added.
Pavilion Payments welcomes Brock Moorehouse, Sarah Perry
Pavilion Payments made two key leadership appointments to strengthen its commitment to customer satisfaction and operational excellence in the gaming industry.
Sarah Perry joined as vice president of gaming operations, bringing over 20 years of experience in strategic operations and program management for Fortune 100 and 500 clients.
Certified in PMP, Six Sigma, Agile and Change Management, Perry will lead project management and gaming operations, aligning initiatives, scaling delivery and driving performance across teams.
Joining her is Brock Moorehouse, the new vice president of customer success.
With 17 years of experience in casino operations and compliance, Moorehouse began his career at Downstream Casino Resort and later collaborated closely with Pavilion during the launch of VIP Mobility. His deep understanding of casino operations and Pavilion's products positions him to enhance client engagement and evolve the customer success team, the company stated, adding that these appointments underscore its focus on delivering impactful, scalable solutions that meet the evolving needs of the gaming industry.
Bobby Paul signs on with Treliant
Treliant appointed Bobbie Paul as managing director in its Financial Crimes and Fraud Solutions team, bringing more than 20 years of expertise in fraud prevention, identity strategy and regulatory compliance to the role.
Known for building high-performing fraud and identity programs across banking, fintech and digital payments, Paul previously led enterprise fraud strategy at MVB and headed Experian's Fraud and Identity Advisory Services.
Her work bridges strategy and implementation, helping institutions of all sizes design scalable, compliant solutions, Treliant stated. Passionate about aligning innovation with integrity, she aims to empower clients to manage fraud risk proactively while supporting sustainable growth. 
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