Experienced global and listed technology company executive to join 1 April 2025
XERO LIMITED (ASX: XRO)
ANNOUNCES THE APPOINTMENT OF CLAIRE BRAMLEY, AS XERO'S NEW CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER (CFO), EFFECTIVE 1 APRIL 2025.
Claire brings to Xero a strong track record as a finance leader with extensive global technology and software experience as a CFO. She will join Xero from Teradata, a NYSE-listed global cloud database and analytics software provider, where she has
been CFO since 2021. At Teradata, Claire was responsible for leading finance, information technology, security, strategy and transformation, enterprise risk, operations, investor relations and corporate development. Prior to Teradata, Claire held multiple leadership roles at HP Inc (HP) for more than 14 years, most recently as Global Controller which included leading the Mergers, Acquisition and Divestitures Organisation.
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Chaser launches integration with Sage 200 to reduce late payments and simplify credit management
HASER, THE GLOBAL LEADER IN DEBTOR MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE, HAS LAUNCHED AN INTEGRATION WITH SAGE 200, DELIVERING A SOLUTION FOR BUSINESSES TO SIMPLIFY ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE PROCESSES, REDUCE LATE PAYMENTS, AND SAFEGUARD REVENUE.
With late payments responsible for 10% of invoices being written off as bad debt (Sage), the integration equips businesses with the
tools needed to take control of their receivables and avoid the financial strain caused by overdue payments.
Late payments threaten business stability, with 40% of companies reporting significant adverse impacts, including reduced investment, payroll struggles, and cuts to staff bonuses (Sage). Businesses spend as much as 20 days a year chasing overdue invoices - time that could be better spent driving growth.
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New suite of pricing automation capabilities empowers customers to effortlessly increase prices in bulk to grow revenue and improve profitability
GNITION, THE LEADING REVENUE OPERATIONS PLATFORM FOR SERVICES-BASED BUSINESSES, TODAY INTRODUCED AUTOPRICING, A SUITE OF INDUSTRY-FIRST PRICING AUTOMATION CAPABILITIES HELPING PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BUSINESSES STREAMLINE PRICE INCREASES AT SCALE.
AutoPricing gives customers more immediate control over increasing their revenue, while increasing cash flow and profitability longterm.
Bulk price updates, the newest AutoPricing capabilities, allows businesses to automatically increase prices across many clients at once when editing or renewing proposals to instantly see additional revenue.
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nettTracker version
2 is now live
VERSION 2 OF NETTTRACKER HAS JUST BEEN RELEASED, SO YOU MAY FIND THINGS LOOK VERY DIFFERENT THE NEXT TIME YOU LOG-IN. A NEW SUITE OF VIDEO TUTORIALS HAVE BEEN CREATED, AND CAN BE ACCESSED FROM THE 'KNOWLEDGEBASE' FOUND WITHIN THE 'HELP' MENU.
To help you get familiar with some of the most used areas, links to three tutorials can be found below:
QUICK-START GUIDE: This is a 13 minute tutorial that takes you through the basics when setting up a fixed asset
XU BIWEEKLY - No. 99
Newsdesk:
If you have any news or updates that you would like us to consider for inclusion in the next edition of the XU Biweekly, please email us at: newsdesk@xumagazine.com
‘Xero’ is a trademark of Xero Limited (New Zealand). XU Biweekly and XU Magazine is collaboratively produced by an independent group of Xero users and is not affiliated in any way with Xero. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
If you submit unsolicited material to us, you automatically grant XU Magazine Ltd a licence to publish your submission in whole or in part in all/any editions, including in any physical or digital format, throughout the world. Any material you submit is sent at your risk and, although every care is taken, neither XU Magazine Ltd nor its employees, agents or subcontractors shall be liable for loss or damage. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily the views of XU Magazine Ltd, its editors or its contributors.
register in nettTracker.
DASHBOARD and MENUS: An 8 minute tutorial to help you get familiar with the new layout of the dashboard and menus.
ASSET REGISTER: Within this 6 minute tutorial, we walk you around the asset register, and the functionality found within.
The help menus within nettTracker have also been updated. If for any reason these appear to be unresponsive, you may need to clear the 'cache' within your internet browser.
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Arlo: Save time and get paid faster with Payment Reminders
CHASING OVERDUE PAYMENTS IS A THING OF THE PAST. WE’RE EXCITED TO LAUNCH OUR LATEST HIGHLY REQUESTED FEATURE – PAYMENT REMINDERS!
No more digging through your orders, searching for customers, or crafting reminder messages from scratch.
Arlo now allows you to send upcoming and overdue payment reminders with a single click – saving you time and helping to improve your cash flow.
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ACSISS releases comprehensive guide to Open Banking for Accountants & Bookkeepers
ACSISS, BY SISS DATA SERVICES, HAS TODAY PUBLISHED
“OPEN BANKING FOR ACCOUNTANTS & BOOKKEEPERS: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW”. THIS COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE WILL HELP ACCOUNTANTS & BOOKKEEPERS UNDERSTAND OPEN BANKING AND THE CONSUMER DATA RIGHT (CDR).
“The CDR will change how every accountant or bookkeeper in Australia receives bank transaction data from their clients” says Grant Augustin, CEO of SISS Data Services, Australia’s leading
How does it work?
On each order that has had an invoice issued, you’ll now see a ‘Send Payment Reminder’ button.
With one click, Arlo will automatically determine whether to send an upcoming payment reminder (if payment is not yet due) or an overdue payment notice (if the order is overdue).
It’s smart, seamless, and efficient. Customers can even pay directly from the reminder if you are using
Arlo’s PDF invoicing feature with credit card payments enabled!
For full step-by-step instructions to set up Payment Reminders, visit our help center.
What’s next?
We’re working to further enhance this feature with some exciting automation!
You’ll be able to set rules to automatically schedule both payment and overdue reminders, ensuring they’re sent exactly when needed.
You’ll also be able to tailor reminders by payment method, allowing for even more customization.
Get started
Log in to your Arlo platform, head to your overdue order list, and start sending payments reminders today.
Stay tuned for our next update as we continue to make managing payments even easier for you and your customers.
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What’s new in Xero
– February 2025
Wprovider of secure bank data for accountants, bookkeepers and the systems they use.
“The days of screen-scraping and password-sharing are coming to an end. "
"For years, accountants and bookkeepers have been asking their clients to input their banking details into third-party systems which then log in to their bank to retrieve bank data."
"This must stop, and now with Open Banking, it can”.
Find out more
E’RE KICKING OFF THE NEW YEAR WITH SOME EXCITING XERO UPDATES DESIGNED TO ADDRESS SOME OF THE ENHANCEMENTS YOU’VE BEEN ASKING FOR, AND MAKE THINGS MORE AUTOMATED TO SAVE YOU TIME. KEEP READING TO LEARN HOW THESE ENHANCEMENTS WILL BENEFIT YOU AND YOUR BUSINESS.
Global: Enhancements to new invoicing
You’ll love the time-saving enhancements we have made to new invoicing this month. You can now:
• use keyboard shortcuts to speed up your work
• attach files easily by dragging and dropping them onto the page
• use handy new features in
the date picker
• view the stock on hand right from the invoice so you’re across your inventory levels
• set an exchange rate for an invoice when needed by choosing between the XE.com rate, your organisation’s rate, or set a oneoff rate just for that invoice
• add tracking categories to your invoices to help you track sales by different criteria, such as region, product, or campaign
Global: Automated bill entry
Data entry becomes less of a chore when you upload bills directly to Xero. Effortlessly create multiple bills at once by selecting the files or simply drag and drop. Xero automatically creates draft bills with key details, with the original document attached ready for approval.
Malaysia: Enhancements to e-Invoicing
Great news! We’ve updated Xero’s e-Invoicing functionality to meet the latest Malaysian government requirements.
You can send consolidated e-Invoice statements directly from Xero to IRBM.
Relax and enjoy seamless compliance with the new regulations. You can learn more about these enhancements in this webinar.
UK: Streamlined tax workflow and compliance
We’ve made Xero even better with some UK tax enhancements designed to save you time and reduce errors.
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Dext in 2025: A round-up from the Global Partner Update
IN THE EVER-EVOLVING WORLD OF BOOKKEEPING, STAYING AHEAD OF THE CURVE IS ESSENTIAL.
That’s why we’re constantly innovating and improving our platform to help you manage your finances with ease and efficiency.
At our recent Global Partner Update, we unveiled a host of exciting new features and improvements that are designed to enhance your Dext experience, automate tasks, and make bookkeeping effortless.
Here’s a look at the key takeaways from the webinar and what they mean for you.
Your enhanced Dext experience
Last year we launched the first phase of the evolution of the Dext platform, which will bring together Dext Prepare, Dext Precision and Dext Commerce into one unified experience. If you haven’t already, we really encourage you to switch to the new experience today - you can do so by clicking the banner at the top of your screen when you log in to Dext.
The next phase is coming soon - with Commerce Lite and Data Health and Insights features added, and exciting enhancements to Practice Advanced, including powerful workflow tools to streamline processes like
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client onboarding and yearend tasks. Keep a look out for more information on this very soon!
Features for your practice
• Feature Access Customisation:
Our feature customisation allows you to tailor Dext to better meet your client’s needs by hiding unnecessary features, simplifying their experience. It enables separate views for practice staff, ensuring they have broader access when required, while also providing presets for effortless customisation across multiple clients. Additionally, you can preview Dext from your cli-
ent’s perspective, ensuring a seamless user experience.
• Automation Rules:
Automation Rules introduce smarter, more flexible ways to automate categorisation and aggregation. You can automate your workflow with flexible rules however you want. e.g. ‘Flag’ all ‘New Suppliers’ in Cost Inbox.
Aggregate line Items using if and then conditions (e.g. if Description contains Food then Category : Food Tax Rate : 20% VAT. Practice-level rules allow management at scale across multiple clients, enhancing efficiency)
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Deputy Welcomes Customer Success Veteran Dennis Reno to Lead Global Strategy
DEPUTY, THE WORLD’S LEADING WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT PLATFORM FOR HOURLY WORK, TODAY ANNOUNCED THE APPOINTMENT OF DENNIS RENO AS ITS NEW SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.
In this role, Reno will lead the company’s customer strategy, scaling customer success and post-sale services and support while deepening customer engagement, and driving best-in-class workforce management solutions for businesses worldwide.
Reno has built and led customer success teams across industries including telecommunications, com-
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mercial aviation, and technology giants like Microsoft, Oracle, and OneLogin. He has a proven track record of transforming customer operations, improving retention, and delivering seamless service experiences globally.
“I am very excited to join the Deputy team and bring my experience leading dynamic customer-facing teams and delivering worldclass customer experiences,” said Reno.
“Deputy is revolutionizing how businesses support their hourly workers, ensuring they have the tools and flexibility they need to succeed."
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Journey Partners with Effective Pricing to Help Accounting Firms Master
Value-Based Pricing and Boost Profitability
JOURNEY, A LEADING GO-TO-MARKET AGENCY FOR ACCOUNTING TECHNOLOGY, HAS PARTNERED WITH EFFECTIVE PRICING, THE TOP VALUE PRICING PLATFORM FOR ACCOUNTANTS AND BOOKKEEPERS.
This partnership aims to help firms transition from hourly billing to value-based pricing, boosting profitability and improving client outcomes.
Founded by Mark Wickersham FCA, Effective Pricing provides software that combines price psychology with practical tools, allowing firms to create fixed-price proposals that reflect real value and
Tax
Torch:
maximise profit margins.
Through this collaboration, Journey will apply its go-to-market expertise to expand Effective Pricing’s reach and help more accounting firms adopt profitable pricing strategies.
"Partnering with Effective Pricing fits our mission to drive innovation in the accounting sector," said Trent McLaren, Founder of Journey. "Many firms struggle with pricing services effectively, and this partnership will give them the tools and strategies they need to price with confidence and grow their bottom line."
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A light at the end of the personal tax tunnel
TAX TORCH, A NEW CLOUD-BASED PERSONAL TAX PLANNING TOOL, IS HERE TO HELP ACCOUNTING FIRMS ELIMINATE THE STRESS AND INEFFICIENCY OF TRADITIONAL PERSONAL TAX PLANNING.
Developed by chartered accountant and founder Robert Davidson, Tax Torch solves common challenges like outdated spreadsheets, version control issues, and manual tax calculations— allowing firms to offer proactive, scalable personal tax services that deliver real value to clients.
Why personal tax planning is often overlooked
Personal tax planning frequently gets deprioritised due to its complexity and the lack of effective tools. Without the right systems in place, firms face common pain points such as:
• No easy way to capture
Xero appoints Jeff Ryan as Chief People Officer
Nicole Reid, current Chief People Officer, to depart Xero after six years
XERO, THE GLOBAL SMALL BUSINESS PLATFORM, TODAY ANNOUNCED IT HAS APPOINTED JEFF RYAN AS ITS CHIEF PEOPLE OFFICER, TO REPLACE NICOLE REID, WHO HAS DECIDED TO DEPART XERO AFTER SIX YEARS.
Commencing on 1 April 2025, Jeff will be responsible for leading Xero’s people experience function globally. Jeff is an established global technology and software human resources executive, multi-time Chief People Officer, board member and advisor with more than 25 years’ experience. He brings extensive global HR leadership capability to Xero and proven experience managing global expansion strategies.
Prior to Xero, Jeff was Chief People Officer at McAfee, Chief People Officer at Zynga and Chief People Officer at GoPro. He has also held senior HR leadership roles with CBS Interactive and Electronic Arts, and was previously a Board director for Magic Memories, a New Zealand-headquartered tourism and entertainment technology company.
Jeff is a Charter Member for C100, a non-for-profit that supports Canadian tech en-
trepreneurs to build and scale impactful businesses. He holds an MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management and a Bachelor of Sociology from UCLA. Jeff is a US-based executive, but will be spending much of his time in Xero's offices in Australia and New Zealand, and around the world.
Xero CEO Sukhinder Singh Cassidy said: “As we continue to execute our FY25-27 strategy and foster our purpose and performance-driven culture, I’m excited to appoint someone as credentialed as Jeff to Xero. Jeff’s deep global people leadership experience with listed technology and software, start-up and private equity-backed growth companies will bring immense value to Xero as we enable Xeros to move faster for our customers and do the best work of their lives, while preserving our unique culture.”
Jeff Ryan, incoming Xero Chief People Officer said: “I'm honoured to be joining Xero, a global and purpose-driven organisation with huge potential to improve the lives of people in small business, their advisors and communities."
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Caseware AiDA™ Achieves Positive Evaluation of AI Risk Assurance Safety Protocols from Holistic AI Governance Platform
Caseware confirms security of client confidential information and response reliability with independent assessment of its AI digital assistant
CASEWARE, A GLOBAL LEADER IN CLOUD-ENABLED AUDIT, FINANCIAL REPORTING AND DATA ANALYTICS SOLUTIONS, HAS TODAY ANNOUNCED THAT HOLISTIC AI, MAKERS OF THE LEADING AI GOVERNANCE PLATFORM FOR THE ENTERPRISE, HAS BEEN CHOSEN AS A STRATEGIC FOUNDATION OF CASEWARE’S AI STRATEGY TO PROVIDE ONGOING ASSURANCE AND VISIBILITY OF CASEWARE’S RIGOROUS SAFETY STANDARDS FOR ITS SOLUTIONS TO ITS CUSTOMERS.
Recently, the companies completed an independent evaluation of the safety and security features within Caseware AiDA, the organization’s AI digital assistant, performed via the Holistic AI Governance Platform.
Launched in May 2024, AiDA is a state-of-the-art AI-powered digital assistant for the accounting, au-
dit and finance professions. AiDA is designed to enhance efficiency, ensure compliance and provide precise, context-aware responses to profession-specific inquiries enabling accounting, audit and finance experts to work more efficiently.
With AiDA, no user prompts are retained or fed back into the training model, maintaining the highest standards of data security and compliance that Caseware has always delivered for the profession.
The Holistic AI Governance Platform’s evaluation process, which assigned Caseware AiDA a low-risk rating, validated that sufficient steps have been taken to mitigate key risks often found in the areas of transparency, efficacy, robustness and privacy through significant qualitative and quantitative testing.
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and store clients' financial goals, which are critical for tailoring advice
• Over-reliance on manual spreadsheets, calculations, and data entry
• Outdated tax rates that require frequent manual updates
• Endless versioning of documents and inconsistent information
• Disconnected teams preparing compliance independently
• Annual December/January bottlenecks due to last-minute tax submissions
These challenges lead to missed opportunities, turning tax planning into a reactive process.
With the right approach, it can instead become a profitable service that strengthens client relationships and helps clients secure their financial future.
Keep reading
Dext expands into UAE, Cyprus, and Malta through partnership with Scope Solutions
Collaboration brings powerful automation and expense management solutions to support business growth and compliance
DEXT, THE LEADING PROVIDER OF BOOKKEEPING AUTOMATION AND PART OF THE IRIS SOFTWARE GROUP, IS TODAY ANNOUNCING ITS EXPANSION INTO THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, CYPRUS, AND MALTA, DRIVEN BY A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH SCOPE SOLUTIONS, A TRUSTED CLOUD ACCOUNTING AND TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS PROVIDER.
This collaboration follows the successful integration of Dext with Zoho Books,one of the most widely adopted solutions in the Middle East, with a strong global presence. Through both collaborations, Dext will bring unparalleled automation and financial
management capabilities to businesses, accountants and bookkeepers across the regions.
Scope Solutions, headquartered in Malta and a recognised Zoho Finance Partner, is the first Dext channel partner serving UAE, Cyprus, and Malta.
The partnership reflects the increasing demand for advanced bookkeeping solutions, particularly in the UAE, where tax regulations are evolving rapidly. Business activity in the region has also surged, with the UAE experiencing a doubling of new businesses being incorporated over the past five years.
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Spendesk Appoints Alfonso Marone as Executive Chairman to
Creation
PENDESK, THE LEADING SPEND MANAGEMENT AND PROCUREMENT PLATFORM FOR MID-MARKET COMPANIES, ANNOUNCES THE APPOINTMENT OF ALFONSO MARONE AS EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD. THIS STRATEGIC GOVERNANCE CHANGE UNDERSCORES SPENDESK’S COMMITMENT TO DRIVING INNOVATION FOR CUSTOMERS AND PROFITABLE GROWTH IN 2025.
Alfonso Marone brings nearly 30 years of global experience in strategic leadership, business innovation, and corporate development.
A former KPMG UK Equity Partner, Marone is the founder of London-based advisory firm Point79 and a graduate of INSEAD, holding
both an MBA and Corporate Governance qualifications. Over the course of his executive and advisory career, he has worked with Fortune 50 and FTSE 250 organisations, including Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC (now Delinian), NBCUniversal, and O2, as well as top-tier investment firms, focusing on B2B technology, data, analytics, and the information sector. Marone’s appointment comes at a pivotal time, as Spendesk invests heavily in procurement software solutions and prepares to launch a suite of new AI-enhanced capabilities. His appointment strengthens Spendesk’s leadership team by splitting the roles of Founder, Chair, and CEO among three complementary leaders.
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UPCOMING EVENTS
EVENTS
UPCOMING WEBINARS
UK WEBINARS
DIGITAL EVENTS
EVENTS
AU WEBINARS
From Tuatapere to Global Talent: How The Back Room Redefines Offshoring
By Wayne Findlay, The Back Room Offshoring Inc., CEO & Founder
FROM THE FARM TO THE FOREFRONT OF OFFSHORING INNOVATION.
Growing up in town of Tuatapere in the deep south of New Zealand, my brother Scott and I learned valuable lessons in independence and problem-solving. Surrounded by stunning landscapes and a supportive community, we cultivated resilience and a strong work ethic that helped us navigate rural challenges. Inspired by these experiences, we founded The Back Room to redefine accounting firms globally. You too can replicate this success by embracing challenges, building a supportive network, and focusing on efficiency and trust in your own endeavors.
The Offshoring Advantage
Offshoring shouldn't be confused with outsourcing. While outsourcing often means relinquishing control to a third party, offshoring with The Back Room allows you to maintain full oversight over your operations while benefitting from a global talent pool. This unique approach enables you to gain the advantages of skilled professionals who can contribute to your team without sacrificing quality or security—elements that are particularly critical in the accounting industry where precision and trust are paramount.
Here are a few key benefits of offshoring with us:
• Efficiency: By delegating routine accounting tasks such as bookkeeping and data entry to our offshore team, your onshore staff can concentrate on high-value services. This shift not only enhances client relationships but also drives significant business growth by allowing your team to focus on strategy and innovation.
• Talent Access: Offshoring opens the door to a diverse pool of skilled professionals from around the world. These individuals can grow alongside your business, bringing fresh perspectives, specialized expertise, and innovative ideas that can elevate your team to new heights. Having access to this talent means you can effectively respond to evolving market demands.
• Cultural Fit: Our rigorous recruitment process ensures that your offshore team aligns with your firm’s values and work culture. By selecting candidates who share your vision and approach, we foster an environment of collaboration and trust, which is crucial for seamless teamwork, especially when managing projects across different time zones and locations.
• Cost Savings: One of the most compelling reasons to consider offshoring is the potential for significant cost savings. By leveraging reduced labor costs and operational efficiencies, your firm can allocate resources to other critical areas, such as technology upgrades or employee training programs, ultimately driving further value and performance improvement.
How to Get Started with Offshoring
For those considering offshoring, it's crucial to conduct a thorough needs assessment to ensure a successful transition. This involves evaluating your current operations and identifying areas where offshoring could provide the most benefit. Here are the steps to kickstart your offshoring experience:
Identify your needs: Start by understanding which roles or functions can be ef-
5 powerful features of Spotlight Forecasting you aren't using (but should)
Lfectively offshored. This may include repetitive tasks that don’t require direct client interaction, freeing up your local team to focus on roles that add greater value to your firm.
Select the right partner: Look for a provider with proven expertise in your field. It's essential to ensure they have a track record of success and a deep understanding of your industry nuances. Evaluate potential partners based on their experience, technology solutions, and client testimonials to make an informed choice.
Integrate seamlessly: Use cloud-based tools and technologies to ensure seamless communication and integration between onshore and offshore teams. Establishing collaborative platforms can foster a unified work environment, making it easier to manage projects and share information in real-time.
Focus on training: Invest in onboarding and continuous development to maximize the potential of your offshore team. Providing comprehensive training and regular feedback ensures they are well-equipped to meet your firm’s standards and adapt to changing requirements over time.
Offshoring is about freeing your time so you can work smarter instead of harder. By embracing offshoring, firms can streamline their operations, harness global talent, and ultimately position themselves for sustained success in the marketplace.
Building a Community of Success
Beyond mere business transactions, fostering a supportive community is essential for all parties—clients and staff alike—to thrive.
Keep reading
ET’S SAY WE COULD SEE THE FUTURE FOR OUR CLIENT, THEY WANT TO RETIRE BUT NEED TO KNOW THEIR BUSINESS IS GOING TO GIVE THEM THE RETIREMENT THEY WANT. IN THIS CASE, IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE A CRYSTAL BALL, WOULDN’T IT?
That’s where Spotlight Forecasting comes in (not quite a crystal ball, but still), our all-in-one budget creator, three-way forecasting, and scenario builder can help your clients prepare and plan for the future.
Our product is extensively customisable, and as you peel the layers back you’ll unlock a whole new level of insight. So whether you’re looking to impress your clients with insightful data, or want to dive deeper into your forecasting experience, we’ve put together five features for you to explore, test, and use. A few of these features will change the way you work, and some, well we just want to show off…
1. Driver Based Forecasting
You can set up drivers to enter business inputs which drive your forecasts. For example, you might want to budget for a specific number of units sold at a particular price. With the Drivers option, you can create additional accounts to hold this information and then
use them in a dynamic rule to calculate the values for the account. By updating the underlying drivers, you can quickly see how changes – for example, a price increase next year – affect your forecast.
2. Cloning/Duplicating/ Copying Tasks
Once you've set up a forecast or budget, you can make a copy if needed. For example, you may want to take an existing forecast and amend it to show a different potential outcome for the business, such as increased revenue or costs, or a possible loan or asset purchase.
3. Optimise Loan Repayments
Does your client already have a business loan? What your clients might not know is that an existing loan they secured in the past could be relatively expensive in the present.
This is an opportunity for you to work through different loan scenarios to improve the impact on your client’s cash flow. In Spotlight Forecasting, you can use Scenarios and the Loan Amortisation Rule to easily show the impact of selecting different loan variables.
4. Forecast Bank Covenants
This is one of our lesser-known expert features:
KPIs and Covenants. You can quickly surface loan covenants in one place to help monitor metrics and assist with decision-making. So, how would you use this? Let’s look at an example:
Debt to Equity Ratio and Interest Coverage Ratio are two metrics that businesses need to monitor.
Using the drag-and-drop formula builder in Spotlight Forecasting, you can quickly create these ratios and produce a ready-to-share report for your client or Board.
A glance at the covenants will show all actual and forecasted values for the specified period. You’ll see how the business in question is tracking against these covenants, and the projected position based on forecast data.
5. Consolidated Forecasting
Consolidated Forecasting for up to 75 related entities.
Save time and effort, and give your stakeholders the power to make confident decisions across multiple entities.
Want to stay in the loop? Follow us on LinkedIn to be the first to know about new features when they’re released.
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By Matt Kekena, Product Experience Lead, Spotlight Reporting
Discover how The Back Room connects global talent with accounting firms.
Aspire launches Visa Corporate Card for Hong Kong Small Businesses
ASPIRE, A LEADING FINTECH HEADQUARTERED IN SINGAPORE, HAS ANNOUNCED THE LAUNCH OF ITS VISA CORPORATE CARD TAILORED SPECIFICALLY FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESSES IN HONG KONG. BY PROVIDING ACCESS TO POWERFUL, USER-FRIENDLY FINANCIAL TOOLS, ASPIRE AND VISA ARE SETTING THE STAGE FOR A NEW ERA OF GROWTH AND EFFICIENCY IN HONG KONG'S BUSINESS LANDSCAPE.
Hong Kong’s SMBs, the
backbone of its economy, often struggle with limited access to financial tools like corporate cards. Many Hong Kong business owners rely on personal accounts due to low limits, high fees, and poor expense visibility. Aspire’s new Visa card solves this by providing a user-friendly, cost-effective solution.
As growth remains the top priority for SMBs, nearly 79% are focused on expanding through cross-border transactions. Aspire’s Visa card empowers Hong Kong SMBs to thrive in the modern global economy by offering access
to multi-currency and seamless cross-border payments. By combining Aspire’s innovative technology with Visa’s global network, businesses can manage their funds with one account, ensuring reliable, secure, and fast transactions that are widely accepted worldwide.
"Our partnership with Visa represents a significant leap forward in our mission to empower entrepreneurs and SMBs across the world,” said Andrea Baronchelli, Co-founder and CEO of Aspire.
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Cruise into Convenience:
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings expands strategic collaboration with PayPal
AYPAL HOLDINGS INC. (NASDAQ: PYPL) TODAY ANNOUNCED THE ADDITION OF PAYPAL AS A CHECKOUT OPTION FOR ALL U.S.-BASED CRUISE RESERVATIONS OPERATED BY NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE HOLDINGS LTD (NYSE: NCLH).
Now, travelers looking to cruise with Norwegian Cruise Line®, Oceania Cruises® and Regent Seven Seas Cruises®, can benefit from the ease, simplicity and security of paying with PayPal when booking their next travel experience.
In addition to offering travelers the ability to checkout with PayPal, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings will
continue to leverage PayPal Braintree for credit-card processing for both reservations and all shipboard payments.
"At PayPal, we're making travel more seamless for consumers by deepening our relationship with wellloved global travel brands," said Suzan Kereere, President, Global Markets, PayPal. "With Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, we're offering people a convenient way to book their dream cruises all the way from reservations to experiences on high seas."
Customers who pay with PayPal enjoy a 43% faster checkout than those using traditional checkout. In addition, PayPal has shown to help in-
crease conversion by an average of 84% among customers who pay online for travel.
"The implementation of PayPal marks a major milestone in our payments acceptance journey. At Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, we are committed to providing guests with more variety and more value through elevated offerings," said Harry Sommer, President and CEO at Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. "The addition of PayPal as an easy and secure option to pay for their cruise is a key contributor to providing our guests with the best vacation and experience possible."
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GoCardless selects Form3 for Bacs payment connectivity to support scale up of UK operations
Form3 provides scalability and operational resilience as GoCardless’ volume of UK payment transactions continues to grow
GOCARDLESS, THE BANK PAYMENT COMPANY, TODAY ANNOUNCES THAT IT HAS SELECTED FORM3, THE CLOUD-NATIVE ACCOUNT-TO-ACCOUNT PLATFORM, TO PROVIDE THEM WITH BACS PAYMENT CONNECTIVITY TO SUPPORT THE SCALE UP OF UK OPERATIONS.
Form3’s unique technology solution provides GoCardless with improved operational and technical resilience to ensure that service continuity is maintained as its UK business grows. As a leading bank payment provider in the UK, GoCardless processes over 4% of the UK’s Direct Debit volume (based on data from PayUK). With over 250 million payments now going via
Grow revenue, not admin with Ignition.
Bacs annually, implementing a solution with bank-grade payment submission channels has been a core part of GoCardless’ growth strategy.
Neil Turner, Chief Technology Officer, GoCardless says: “Tens of thousands of customers in the UK trust GoCardless to collect their payments and keep cash flowing within their businesses. Having the right systems in place to process these payments, and the ability to potentially handle millions more transactions each month is fundamental to our business. Form3 has the reputation of offering fast and resilient payment processing that can match our ambitious growth. We look forward to working with them.”
Mike Walters, Form3’s CEO, says: “Form3 has the payment technology that GoCardless can rely on for operational resiliency, speed, and the ability to scale, to support its UK business growth. Today’s announcement further demonstrates how we help the biggest and most ambitious fintechs with their next phase of expansion. We’re proud to work with GoCardless.”
Form3’s account-to-account platform gives GoCardless the flexibility to connect to other payment schemes across the UK and Europe in the future. This can further support scale up activity, as and when it is required.
