People moves: Paysafe, Coinbase, Yoyo and more

Paysafe Group appoints Philip McHugh as CEO

London-headquartered end-to-end payment solutions provider Paysafe Group has appointed Philip McHugh as its new chief executive officer, with effect June 24. McHugh succeeds Joel Leonoff who will serve as vice chairman of the company’s board of directors. Prior to this McHugh worked with TSYS as merchant solutions head, Barclays as global CFO and CEO of Barclaycard Business Solutions.

“I am confident that under his leadership Paysafe will continue to prosper long into the future. It has been an incredible honour to lead Paysafe and I am very grateful for the commitment and hard work of our people and their passion for creating a truly pioneering payments company,” said Leonoff.

Ferratum Oyj appoints new group CFO

Finland-headquartered mobile financial services Ferratum Oyj has recruited Bernd Egger as chief financial officer, with effect from August 1. Egger will replace Dr Clemens Krause, who will focus on his chief risk officer position. Egger will also be a member of the company’s leadership team. He brings over 20 years of international banking, finance and corporate development expertise, having served as a board member and in a number of chief financial officer positions.

“Bernd has a strong Fintech background, a proven entrepreneurial spirit and solid track record in Finance. He joins Ferratum at an exciting time in our evolution and his prior expertise in managing the complexities of international expansion will be invaluable as Ferratum continues to grow. Clemens has done an amazing job and played a key role in the evolution and growth path of Ferratum, our listing and evolving the Group’s funding as a public company. He will continue to play a key role in maintaining the financial stability of Ferratum as chief risk officer,” said Ferratum Group founder and CEO Jorma Jokela in a press release.

Coinbase loses another c-suite exec

On May 31, US-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase announced its president and chief operating officer Asiff Hirji is stepping down after serving for less than two years in the roles.

Brian Armstrong, Coinbase’s co-founder and CEO said to CNN: “We’re incredibly grateful for Asiff’s contributions over the past 18 months. His experience and mentorship helped guide Coinbase through an important chapter in its history. He joined at a critical time when both the company and crypto space were going through rapid growth, bringing his extensive experience to bear when it was most necessary.”

Paysign names Matt Lanford chief product officer

US-headquartered payment solutions provider Paysign announced the appointment of Matt Lanford as chief product officer. Lanford brings over 30 years of payments industry experience to Paysign. Prior to this, he was SVP and general manager of the financial services division of InComm.

CEO of Paysign, Mark Newcomer said in a press release: “Matt is a proven industry leader whose expertise will be invaluable as we expand our products digitally and add mobile wallet capabilities. We are especially pleased to have Matt on board as Paysign continues to focus on implementing strategic priorities; delivering new, innovative solutions and providing the highest level of service to our clients and cardholders.”

Blockchain firm AlphaPoint appoints Telyatnikov as CEO

New York-headquartered blockchain firm AlphaPoint has appointed Igor Telyatnikov as chief executive officer, the company announced on June 3. Former CEO Salil Donde will serve as strategic advisor at the company. Telyatnikov has previously held various roles in AlphaPoint and is also a founding member of the company. In addition, CTO Joe Ventura will take over as the company’s chief information officer. AlphaPoint’s global head of trading Kapil Rathi will become the chief operating officer. Both the appointees will report to the new CEO.

Commenting on the restructure, Telyatnikov said in a press release: “I am honored to take on the role of chief executive officer. This is an incredibly exciting time for AlphaPoint given the growth we’ve experienced this past year. The role of CIO is a natural progression for Joe and the company, given his track record of success and the importance we place on developing leading-edge technology and relentless execution. Kapil has made significant contribution to AlphaPoint’s business since joining us in 2018. His deep expertise of the securities exchange industry and regulated markets has been very conducive for AlphaPoint to serve its customers. Kapil and I will focus on defining business strategy and vision for our company and helping our customers succeed.”

Yoyo appoints former Mastercard exec as new chairman

Europe-based technology platform Yoyo appointed David Yates as its new chairman, the company’s board of directors announced on June 3. Yates will take over the role from the co-founder of Yoyo, Alain Falys. He was the president of new payments platforms as Mastercard and now serves as a senior advisor to Mastercard. He was also the executive chairman of payments company Vocalink.

“It’s a testament to Yoyo’s growth and success that someone of David Yates’ caliber has taken on the reins of chairman at Yoyo. His experience and expertise in the international payments industry is unparalleled and will be especially invaluable as Yoyo continues to strengthen its position as the definitive digital solution for both physical and online retailers that want to deliver the most holistic, personalized and rewarding payment experience to their customers. Alain’s roles as co-founder, CEO and chairman has been crucial to developing and growing this unique and powerful proposition. It’s been an absolute pleasure to work alongside Alain and see Yoyo become one of the UK’s most successful fintech companies under his stewardship. I look forward to continuing to work with him as we take Yoyo to a new level of growth,” said Yoyo’s CEO and co-founder Michael Rolph to Finextra.

By Jenita Gandhi

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