XU Biweekly - Issue 113 - 6th September 2025

The Access Group further invests in supporting Australian Accountants with the acquisition of ATO SmartDocs

THE ACCESS GROUP, ONE OF THE LARGEST GLOBAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE PROVIDERS, TODAY ANNOUNCED THE ACQUISITION OF ATO SMARTDOCS, A LEADING CLOUDBASED SAAS PLATFORM SPECIALISING IN AUTOMATED AUSTRALIAN TAX OFFICE (ATO) DOCUMENT PROCESSING FOR ACCOUNTING FIRMS.

This strategic acquisition strengthens Access' commitment to the Asia Pacific accounting software sec-

tor, continuing our ongoing growth both organically and through strategic partnerships. This latest acquisition reinforces the company's dedication to empowering businesses through technology and advancing Australian accounting practices through innovative, integrated software solutions.

The move addresses growing demand from accounting practices seeking efficient solutions to manage Australian Tax Office compliance obligations while maintaining accuracy

and security standards, and unlocks significant potential for customers of both organisations via a comprehensive suite of connected accounting tools spanning practice management through to automated ATO compliance and communication support.

Founded in 2015, ATO SmartDocs changed how Australian accounting firms handle ATO document processing, offering automated processing capabilities

Find out more

Dext appoints Joanne Modugno as General Manager of North America to accelerate growth and strengthen partner ecosystem

DEXT, THE LEADING PROVIDER OF AI-POWERED BOOKKEEPING AUTOMATION SOLUTIONS, TODAY ANNOUNCES THE APPOINTMENT OF JOANNE MODUGNO AS GENERAL MANAGER OF NORTH AMERICA. BASED IN DEXT’S TORONTO OFFICE, JOANNE WILL LEAD THE COMPANY’S EXPANDING NORTH AMERICAN OPERATIONS, DRIVING GROWTH ACROSS SALES, MARKETING, OPERATIONS, AND PARTNERSHIPS.

With a proven track record in financial services, payments, and expense management, Joanne brings a wealth of experience to her new role. She has held leadership positions at one of Canada’s largest banks, CIBC, and Visa Inc., where she was instrumental in launching a multinational commercial card program, and executing numerous B2B small business initiatives within the business

credit card portfolio.

Joanne has led her own business ventures and consulting projects, supporting financial institutions in bringing innovative credit and payment products to market. In her most recent roles, she has focused on go to market initiatives with SaaS technology and spend management together with embedded payments.

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Grow revenue, not admin with Ignition.

Xerocon Brisbane: Xero announces new features to drive greater growth and impact for accountants and bookkeepers

XERO, THE GLOBAL SMALL BUSINESS PLATFORM, TODAY ANNOUNCED THE NEXT EVOLUTION OF ITS AI FINANCIAL SUPERAGENT JAX (‘JUST ASK XERO’) AND OTHER GROWTH-DRIVING PRODUCT UPDATES. THESE NEW FEATURES ARE DESIGNED TO GIVE ACCOUNTANTS AND BOOKKEEPERS MORE EFFICIENT AND ACCURATE WORKFLOWS AS WELL AS IN-DEPTH INSIGHTS THAT ENABLE THEM TO MORE CONFIDENTLY RUN THEIR PRACTICE AND ADVISE THEIR SMALL BUSINESS CLIENTS.

Along with its AI superagent, the product updates announced at Xerocon Brisbane include a new Xero Partner Hub, a time-saving

workpapers solution, and deep analytics powered by Syft. These enhancements provide a simpler and more unified experience that will help Xero partners streamline compliance and operate more efficiently so they can spend more time on strategic areas of their practice.

“We know the daily realities accountants and bookkeepers face – talent shortages, economic uncertainty, increasing regulatory complexity and compliance pressure – alongside day-today manual tasks, can keep them from high-value strategic work,” said Diya Jolly, Xero's Chief Product and Technology Officer. “Xero’s new features are designed to automate the heavy lifting, freeing up our partners to focus on more meaning-

ful and impactful work like strengthening client relationships and providing personalised advice.”

Practical solutions to help accountants, bookkeepers and their clients thrive

Here are the key product announcements out of Xerocon this year:

• Xero announced the next evolution of its AI financial superagent JAX (Just Ask Xero) – built on Xero’s agentic platform. JAX delivers a reimagined experience by learning how your business runs, automating routine tasks and workflows, and delivering actionable insights

Find out more

Xero’s AI Financial Superagent ‘JAX’ Launches Powerful New Features to Drive the Future of Small Business Accounting

XERO, THE GLOBAL SMALL BUSINESS PLATFORM, TODAY ANNOUNCED THE NEXT EVOLUTION OF ITS AI FINANCIAL SUPERAGENT

JAX (JUST ASK XERO)— BUILT ON XERO’S AGENTIC PLATFORM. JAX DELIVERS A REIMAGINED EXPERIENCE BY LEARNING HOW YOUR BUSINESS RUNS, AUTOMATING ROUTINE TASKS AND WORKFLOWS, AND DELIVERING ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS—ORCHESTRATING MULTIPLE AI AGENTS BEHIND THE SCENES TO

XU BIWEEKLY - No. 113

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CUT BUSYWORK AND HELP YOU MAKE SMARTER DECISIONS. ALL OF THIS IS DELIVERED BY A TRUSTED PARTNER BUILT FOR YOU, WITH YOU.

“This evolution of Xero’s platform is a foundation for the next era of small business accounting,” said Diya Jolly, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Xero.

“JAX doesn’t just support today’s workflows; it continuously learns, adapts and acts to meet the evolving needs of business owners.

By handling repetitive tasks and empowering our customers to focus on growth, relationships, and high value decisions, we’re seeing what’s possible for the future of work in the accounting industry, and we’re excited to keep expanding our AI offering.”

Orchestrating multiple agents on Xero’s platform, Xero’s AI Superagent JAX is designed to deliver:

A reimagined experience to replace scattered tools:

and accountants

Through one intelligent interface, JAX will unify the Xero experience and learn a business’s rhythms, automatically adapting to how that business operates.

Automated actions and workflows — ‘Just Done with your control’: JAX will automate routine tasks and workflows, like bank reconciliations, data entry, and getting paid–which saves customers valuable time and helps them stay compliant.

Keep reading

Joiin Unwrapped #3: Report Packs, Eliminations, Dashboards & More

IN THE LATEST EPISODE OF JOIIN UNWRAPPED, CEO AND CO-FOUNDER LUCIEN WYNN AND HEAD OF CUSTOMER SUCCESS HARRY SYMONS SAT DOWN TO WALK US THROUGH THE NEWEST FEATURES LANDING IN JOIIN, AND SHARE WHAT’S COMING NEXT.

Report Packs: Out Now

After some really positive feedback from our alpha and beta testers (thank you), our new report packs are now live for all customers. They’ve been designed with multi-entity in mind, but have also been a hit with single-entity reporting too. With polished, flexible layouts and automated sched-

uling, it’s our biggest reporting upgrade yet.

New Eliminations: One-toMany Structures

You can now set up more complex elimination structures – for example, one parent company paying for a subscription and distributing costs across multiple entities. This new structure makes handling eliminations easier and more powerful for larger groups.

Column Order Settings

By popular demand, you can now reverse the order of your reporting columns. Whether you want to show your most recent data first or run reports in a different

order, it’s all under your control in settings.

Custom KPIs and Non-Financial Data

It’s now possible to bring in non-financial data, like revenue per sales rep. You can upload KPIs or key them in manually, with plans to support APIs on the way. These custom metrics can be used in dashboards or across reports.

Customer Questions Answered

Lucien and Harry also responded to customer questions

Find out more

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Less admin. More time for your bigger thing.

Got receipts or invoices with multiple line items? Dext’s Line Item Extraction just got smarter:

• AI-powered extraction – predicts categories & tax rates, saving time and reducing manual entry.

• Line Item Grouping – review invoices faster by grouping lines by category or tax amount.

• One-click extraction – extract line items from one-off invoices instantly.

Included in every Dext plan with free monthly credits. Ready to try the beta? Reach out to your account manager or our support team today.

WE ARE PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE A NEW INTEGRATION BETWEEN RECEIPT BOT AND ACXITE ACCOUNTING SOFTWARE. THIS INTEGRATION IS DESIGNED FOR UK ACCOUNTING FIRMS TO PROVIDE AN END-TO-END SOLUTION FOR MAKING TAX DIGITAL (MTD) VAT AND INCOME TAX SELF-ASSESSMENT (ITSA) FILING.

New Features

Prepare Income Tax Returns with Acxite using Receipt Bot

With this integration, accounting firms can now offer their clients a complete compliance journey:

This integration transforms Receipt Bot into a streamlined, end-to-end digital solution, helping firms save time, reduce manual er-

rors, and deliver added value to their clients.

What’s Next?

• Soon, firms will also be able to connect directly with HMRC, select reporting periods, and file IT returns electronically from within Acxite.

• Upload bills, receipts, invoices, and bank statements into Receipt Bot, where data is automatically extracted and sent to Acxite.

• Any missing transactions can be added manually in Acxite, ensuring client records are always complete.

• Acxite’s Tax Summary page consolidates all data into a clear view, enabling firms to review Income Tax returns before filing.

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Vault is now in your pocket!

Dext’s AI-powered storage solution, Vault, is now available on mobile. Securely store, manage, and access important business documents anytime, anywhere.

With Vault on mobile you can:

• Instantly upload and organise files with AI

• Search and retrieve documents on the go

• Keep everything safe with trusted Dext protection

• Access key documents like loan agreements & insurance papers wherever you are

Update your Dext app today in the App Store to get Vault in your pocket.

Xero Global App Awards are HERE: Showcase Your Innovation, Win Global Recognition!

SHOWCASE YOUR INNOVATION, WIN GLOBAL RECOGNITION!

The Xero Global App Awards 2025 are here!

This year, for the first time, we’re bringing our App Awards to a single global stage, offering an unprecedented opportuni-

ty for recognition. You’ve built an app that solves real problems, now it’s time to get celebrated by the entire Xero ecosystem.

The Xero Global App Awards 2025 celebrate the developers and teams behind the most impactful, innovative, and loved apps. Whether you’re helping small businesses run

smoother, empowering practices, or building with AI, there’s a category for you!

You can compete for both regional and global titles, with regional winners being recognised in Asia, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, the UK and Ireland, and the US.

Why Enter?

This award boosts your app’s visibility and growth!

• Global recognition: Put your app in front of Xero’s global community of small businesses, advisors, and partners

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TTall Emu Launches Crowdfunding Campaign on Birchal Workplace

ALL EMU, THE AUSTRALIAN-OWNED CRM PLATFORM BUILT FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESSES, HAS TODAY LAUNCHED ITS EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (EOI) CAMPAIGN ON LEADING EQUITY CROWDFUNDING PLATFORM BIRCHAL.

The campaign gives everyday investors the opportunity to join Tall Emu as shareholders and support the company’s next phase of growth.

Founded in 2002 and reacquired from MYOB in 2024, Tall Emu has rebuilt

momentum with a strong focus on customer service, practical product development, and growth in key industries such as manufacturing, wholesale, and distribution. The company now supports over 350 businesses and generates more than $1.5M in annual recurring revenue.

Tall Emu’s roadmap focuses on adding practical, business-ready AI and key operational upgrades including freight management, shopping cart integrations, email marketing, telephony, and meeting management. These tools are designed

to help small and medium-sized businesses cut manual work, sell more, and run more efficiently.

“We’ve always believed that Australian businesses deserve world-class tools without world-class price tags,” said Mike Nash, Founder of Tall Emu. “AI is changing how companies operate – but for us, it’s not about hype. It’s about giving small businesses the same kind of smarts usually reserved for large enterprises, in a way that’s affordable and easy to use.”

Find out more

DEPUTY, THE GLOBAL PEOPLE PLATFORM FOR SHIFTBASED BUSINESSES, HAS TODAY LAUNCHED DEPUTY MESSAGING, A FULLY INTEGRATED, REAL-TIME COMMUNICATION TOOL DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR THE FAST-PACED, HIGHLY MOBILE WORLD OF HOURLY WORK.

Built directly into the Deputy platform and mobile app, Deputy Messaging allows teams to connect to one another the moment a shift is scheduled without switching between apps, relying on personal phone numbers, or losing visibility in fragmented WhatsApp threads. Whether notifying someone of a change, coordinating coverage, or

sending an urgent update, Deputy Messaging ensures shift-based teams can communicate where work is already happening.

“Communication inside shift-based workplaces is fundamentally different from office-based organisations,” said Silvija Martincevic, CEO of Deputy. “The workforces we serve are on their feet and operate on the move across multiple locations. They need fast, clear, actionable, mobile communication to do their jobs well, and with Deputy Messaging, we’ve built a solution that reflects that reality. It’s not a chat feature, it’s an operational tool designed to keep teams connected and businesses running smoothly.”

Because Deputy Messaging is fully embedded in the Deputy platform, businesses can manage team communication with the same structure and control they apply to scheduling. Leaders can set permissions, create visibility by role, and ensure critical updates reach the right people, all without relying on third-party tools or informal side channels.

Deputy will release a premium version of the new communication tool for organisations seeking a smarter and richer messaging experience with advanced controls and deeper Deputy integration in October.

Find out more

WEBINAR

Stop guessing. Start getting.

Take control of your receivables

Which invoices are at risk?

Will this reminder get a response?

How much cash will actually come in this month?

Join the webinar to learn practical steps to move from uncertainty to confidence and start getting paid on time.

Receivables should not be guesswork. They should be predictable, trackable, and under control.

BGL ranked #6 by Great Place to Work®

BGL CORPORATE SOLUTIONS (BGL), AUSTRALIA'S LEADING PROVIDER OF COMPANY COMPLIANCE, SELF-MANAGED SUPERANNUATION FUND (SMSF), INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT, IDENTITY VERIFICATION, AND AI-POWERED PAPER-TO-DATA SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS, IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE IT HAS BEEN RANKED #6 BEST WORKPLACE IN AUSTRALIA IN THE MEDIUM BUSINESS CATEGORY (100–999 EMPLOYEES) BY GREAT PLACE TO WORK®..

Australia’s Best Workplaces™ 2025 award celebrates BGL’s strong workplace culture, commitment

to its people and values, which underscore its ongoing success. The annual Best Workplaces™ list, curated by global authority Great Place to Work®, highlights companies that foster excellent employee experiences and empower their teams to thrive.

“At BGL, our people are the heart of everything we do,” says BGL’s Chief Executive Officer, Daniel Tramontana. “Being recognised as one of Australia’s Best Workplaces is an incredible honour and a reflection of the trust, collaboration, and values that define our culture.

Find out more

August 2025 Expensify Travel

COORDINATING BUSINESS TRAVEL IS ONE OF THE LAST GREAT PAIN POINTS IN MODERN WORK, SO WE BUILT EXPENSIFY TRAVEL TO ELIMINATE THE HASSLE. FROM BOOKING FLIGHTS TO MANAGING EXPENSES, WE’VE AUTOMATED THE PROCESS FOR TRAVELERS, ADMINS, AND EVERYONE IN BETWEEN.

This month, Expensify Travel gets even better with three powerful updates.

Central billing is here

Travel budgets aren’t

one-size-fits-all. With centralized billing, your company decides how travel is paid for and who controls it.

Now you can:

• Choose which expenses go on the company card (flights, hotels, cars, etc.)

• Assign one card for the whole team or different cards for each department

• Auto-categorize, reconcile, and track receipts –no manual entry required

Find out more

Expandly Product Updates

WE’RE DEDICATED TO PROVIDING YOU WITH THE LATEST EXPANDLY FEATURE UPDATES INCLUDING NEW INTEGRATIONS AND PLATFORM DEVELOPMENTS; ALL UNDERTAKEN TO ENSURE YOU CAN REMAIN COMPETITIVE IN THE FAST-PACED WORLD OF ECOMMERCE FULFILLMENT AND CONTINUE BEING ABLE TO USE EXPANDLY FOR YOUR COMPLETE ORDER FULFILLMENT OPERATIONS.

Top 5 selling products / Notifications

On the Expandly dashboard we have updated the visual of these two sections, providing a more modern and user-friendly design.

Mintsoft Import products

We have added the ability to import all products via Mintsoft using the API. This will speed up the process of onboarding onto the Expandly system and no longer require CSVs.

Find out more

BGL REGTECH 2025 - It’s a wrap

BGL CORPORATE SOLUTIONS (BGL), AUSTRALIA'S LEADING PROVIDER OF COMPANY COMPLIANCE, SELF-MANAGED SUPERANNUATION FUND (SMSF), INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT, IDENTITY VERIFICATION, AND AI-POWERED PAPER-TO-DATA SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS, IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THE SUCCESSFUL CONCLUSION OF BGL REGTECH 2025, CELEBRATING A ROADSHOW THAT UNITED LEADERS, PARTNERS, AND CLIENTS ACROSS THE INDUSTRY.

The nationwide roadshow, themed “Shaping the Future: Courage, Trust and

Connection” visited seven major Australian cities and concluded at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on Thursday 21 August 2025. The event was also livestreamed globally.

“BGL REGTECH 2025 has been an incredible success, exceeding expectations” said BGL’s Chief Executive Officer, Daniel Tramontana. “The community engagement was fantastic and showed just how strongly the industry values opportunities to connect, collaborate and innovate.”

Find out more

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We were busy in August… and there’s a lot to share. From mobile upgrades to AI-powered bookkeeping, here’s everything new at Dext this month.

Swipe through to see the features helping you save time, stay compliant, and achieve your bigger things

September 2025 Update: Advanced segmental reports and partial consolidations

HOW YOU CAN LEVERAGE QUICK CONSOLS TO PREPARE SEGMENTAL REPORTS AND PARTIAL CONSOLIDATIONS ACROSS YOUR GROUP WITH OUR LATEST UPDATE.

Why we need segmental reports

In today's globalized and rapidly evolving business environment, transparency and accurate financial insights are paramount. Investors, analysts, and regulatory bodies demand precise and detailed financial statements to assess the performance and financial health of organizations.

Segmental reporting and partial consolidations are integral to meeting these demands, providing a granular view of a company's operations, especially for diverse groups that are trading across multiple industries and territories. As businesses embrace digital transformation, software solutions become invaluable in enhancing the preparation and accuracy of these reports.

Understanding Segmental Reporting

Segmental reporting involves breaking down a company's financial performance into distinct segments, such as product lines, geographical regions, or business units. This approach aligns with the diversified nature of modern corporations and caters to stakeholders' needs for deeper insights.

• Increased Transparency:

Segmental reporting offers a window into the specific areas of an organization, allowing stakeholders to see beyond the aggregate numbers. This transparency aids in understanding how different parts of the company contribute to overall performance.

• Performance Evaluation: By isolating financial results by segment, management can evaluate and compare performance across different areas. This comparative analysis is crucial for identifying strengths and weaknesses, enabling informed strategic decisions and resource allocation.

• Strategic Decision-Mak-

What’s New in Ocerra: ABN

Lookup, Microsft 365 SSO and More

AT OCERRA, WE’RE COMMITTED TO CONTINUALLY IMPROVING THE WAY FINANCE TEAMS MANAGE ACCOUNTS PAYABLE. EVERY UPDATE WE RELEASE IS FOCUSED ON MAKING DAILY TASKS MORE EFFICIENT, MORE ACCURATE, AND EASIER TO MANAGE - SO YOUR TEAM CAN SPEND LESS TIME ON MANUAL PROCESSES AND MORE TIME ON WHAT MATTERS MOST.

Our latest release introduces several enhancements that strengthen security, streamline document handling, and improve compliance visibility. From seamless login with SSO, to smarter document sorting with Auto-Classification, and now live ABN lookups

refreshed daily - each feature is built to save time, reduce risk, and give finance teams greater confidence in their workflows.

Here’s a closer look at what’s new in Ocerra:

Single Sign-On with Microsoft Office 365

Single sign-on (SSO) is now live. You’ll see the option when you access Ocerra and can log in using your Microsoft Office 365 account. This makes access simpler and more secure. If you’d like a refresher on the benefits of SSO, you can read our blog post here.

ABN Lookup in Ocerra

We’ve added an ABN Lookup service in Ocerra.

This can be enabled under General Settings. When enabled, a magnifying glass icon appears next to a supplier’s tax number in Ocerra:

Clicking the icon opens a pop-up with live ABN details retrieved directly from the Australian Business Register (ABR), refreshed every 24 hours.

The pop-up shows:

• Entity name (e.g. Bunnings Group Limited)

• ABN status (Active/Inactive)

• Entity type

• GST registration (Registered/Not Registered)

• Main business location

The end of hourly billing: Ignition’s

2025 benchmark signals pricing shift for firms

Latest 2025 report shows gradual rise of upfront billing, with 80% of firms set to raise fees in 2026 as business costs climb

Iing: Insights gained from segmental reporting allow leaders to spot trends, capitalize on successful segments, and address underperforming areas. Such data-driven decisions are crucial for sustainable growth and competitive advantage.

The Role of Partial Consolidations

Partial consolidations are employed when a company holds partial control or significant influence over another entity, such as in joint ventures or affiliates. This method ensures that financial statements reflect the company's actual economic exposure and influence.

• Accurate Representation of Ownership Interests: Partial consolidations accurately depict the financial relationships between parent companies and their affiliates or joint ventures. This clarity is essential for understanding the true value and risks associated with these investments.

GNITION, THE RECURRING REVENUE AND BILLING AUTOMATION PLATFORM FOR FIRMS AND AGENCIES, TODAY RELEASED THE 2025 U.S. ACCOUNTING AND TAX PRICING BENCHMARK REPORT, REVEALING A DECISIVE SHIFT AWAY FROM HOURLY BILLING TOWARD STRATEGIC, VALUE-DRIVEN PRICING MODELS. NOW IN ITS SECOND YEAR, THE REPORT BENCHMARKS FEES AND PRICING TRENDS TO PROVIDE ACCOUNTING FIRM OWNERS WITH INSIGHTS TO PRICE FOR PROFITABILITY.

“This year’s benchmark reveals more than just an-

other round of price hikes - it’s a shake-up in how accounting firms think about and manage pricing,” said Greg Strickland, CEO of Ignition. “The era of hourly billing is fading fast. More firms are seizing the opportunity to price based on the real value they deliver to drive more sustainable profitability.”

The demise of hourly billing

Steady shift to upfront collections

To secure cash flow predictability, more firms are embracing upfront billing for tax preparation services. 31% collected a deposit upfront (vs. 26% in 2024)

With the exception of tax planning and advisory services, 10% or fewer firms report charging hourly for services benchmarked in the survey. Only 3% charge hourly for tax prep services. Hourly billing for CFO/Controller services fell dramatically from more than 20% to 10%. Tax planning and advisory services have more diverse pricing, which reflects the bespoke nature of the work. Still, only 17% of firms charge hourly for these advisory services, down from 21% last year.

Find out more

Updates & News

August at Apron: Smoother payments, better duplicate handling Analytics powered

IF YOU’RE JUST GETTING BACK FROM YOUR SUMMER HOLIDAYS AND ARE WONDERING WHAT’S NEW WITH APRON, WE’VE GOT GOOD NEWS.

This month is a stunning one-two combo of improved security and efficiency. Let’s take a look.

Global payee checks: Keep payments flowing smoothly

Paying international vendors or clients can sometimes involve more complexity and potential for errors. That’s why we’ve rolled out Global payee checks, a feature that automatically validates the bank details of non-UK recipients as you enter them.

This new tool catches common errors — like

mistyped account numbers or incorrect sort codes — before you make a payment, ensuring your transactions go through without a hitch.

Say goodbye to payment delays and failures, and hello to smooth, hassle-free transfers!

Bank statements beta: No bank feed? No problem!

We’re rolling out bank statements extraction to all customers in beta at no cost.

This means you can upload and extract your bank statement data directly into Apron without the need for a bank feed integration. It’s a huge time-saver, especially for those clients who haven’t yet connected their bank accounts to Xero or

No more manual data entry, just seamless uploads and easy reconciliation.

Improved duplicate handling: Let us handle the repetitions

This month, we’ve made significant improvements to how Apron handles duplicates. We will now automatically archive identical documents, making sure you don’t waste time reviewing the same files over and over.

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MAKING CONFIDENT BUSINESS DECISIONS IS TIED TO THE QUALITY OF INFORMATION USED TO MAKE THOSE DECISIONS. TO TRULY PLAN FOR THE FUTURE, YOU NEED TOOLS THAT OFFER FORESIGHT AND CLARITY. SO WE’RE THRILLED TO INTRODUCE TWO MAJOR ENHANCEMENTS TO ANALYTICS IN XERO: CASH FLOW MANAGER AND AI INSIGHTS.

These powerful new features are designed to help you stay in control, enabling you to anticipate your cash flow needs and uncover trends. You’ll be able to collaborate more efficiently with your accountant or bookkeeper to turn these

insights into decisive action.

I’m also excited to share that Analytics (powered by Syft) is now available in early access to customers in the United Kingdom, after rolling out to all small business users in Australia and the United States.

Get a clear view of your future cash flow (available now)

Cash flow manager gives you a detailed, easy-to-use overview of your cash position today and in the future. It’s now available to all business plan customers with early access in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom. This tool moves beyond simple re-

porting, enabling you to:

View your cash flow multiple ways: Get a quick understanding of your cash movements and current position by choosing the view that works best for your business.

Forecast with confidence: Plan proactively for what’s around the corner. The cash flow manager tool analyses historical payment patterns to predict recurring transactions. It also suggests an expected payment date based on a customer’s previous behaviour, and enables you to view your expected cash position up to 180 days out.

Find out more

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feature alert: You can now automatically create new clients or update existing ones the moment a request is completed.

more double-handling. No more manual updates. Just clean, accurate data flowing straight into XPM.

FIS Celebrated With Two Major Honors at 2025 Global Finance Treasury & Cash Management Awards

The awards recognize FIS for its industry-leading innovation and excellence in treasury and cash management solutions.

FIS® (NYSE:FIS), A GLOBAL LEADER IN FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY, WAS RECOGNIZED WITH TWO MAJOR ACCOLADES AT THE 2025 GLOBAL FINANCE TREASURY AND CASH MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND SERVICES AWARDS. FIS TREASURY AND RISK MANAGER - INTEGRITY

EDITION RECEIVED THE TITLE OF "MOST INNOVATIVE TREASURY SOLUTION," WHILE FIS TREASURY AND RISK MANAGER - QUANTUM CLOUD EDITION WAS NAMED "BEST TREASURY MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE."

These awards highlight FIS' commitment to unlocking leading-edge solutions for businesses navigating today's increasingly complex money lifecycle. FIS Treasury and Risk Manager: Integrity Edition was recognized for providing treasurers with new, innovative and AI-based solutions such as Treasury GPT; and Treasury and Risk Manager: Quantum Cloud Edition, launched in April 2025, is a groundbreaking platform that empowers treasurers with cloud-native technology to make better risk management decisions for their money in motion.

Combined with FIS’ recent recognition at the 2025 Treasury Management International Awards for Innovation & Excellence, these awards further affirm the company’s established record of technology leadership in the treasury industry.

"The role of the treasurer has never been more vital," said JP James, head of Treasury and Risk Management at FIS.

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Cashflows teams up with GoCardless to transform business payouts

New partnership delivers secure, efficient bank-to-bank payments for merchants

BANK PAYMENT COMPANY GOCARDLESS HAS PARTNERED WITH CASHFLOWS, THE PLATFORM THAT HELPS BUSINESSES EASILY ACCEPT PAYMENTS, TO POWER CASHFLOWS PAYOUTS, A STREAMLINED NEW SOLUTION THAT ENABLES BUSINESSES TO SEND REAL-TIME PAYMENTS USING ACCOUNT-TO-ACCOUNT PAYMENT TECHNOLOGY.

Cashflows Payouts changes how businesses handle disbursements. This new offering transforms traditional processes by enabling instant, branded, and fully secure payouts through an

intuitive self-service portal. Whether issuing refunds, winnings from competition games, insurance claims, or other payouts, merchants can now offer their customers immediate access to funds 24/7 -- including evenings, weekends, and bank holidays.

This solution is delivered through a custom interface built by GoCardless's partner Cocoon, recently acquired by Bumper. This interface streamlines payouts for merchants, enabling them to easily create payment requests, securely collect recipient bank details using Confirmation of Pay-

Kite Raises $18M in Series A Funding To Enforce Trust in the Agentic Web

Kee (CoP) for accuracy, and quickly authorise payouts. For added security, the platform also provides an optional feature to request ID verification from recipients, ensuring payouts go to the right individuals and reducing fraud risk.

This is particularly impactful for merchants in sectors like competitions and games of skill, where the current processes to verify and collect bank details are often manual and labour-intensive.

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ITE, A COMPANY BUILDING THE FOUNDATIONAL TRUST INFRASTRUCTURE FOR THE AGENTIC WEB, TODAY ANNOUNCED THAT IT HAS RAISED $18 MILLION IN SERIES A FUNDING, BRINGING TOTAL CUMULATIVE FUNDING TO $33 MILLION. THE ROUND WAS LED BY PAYPAL VENTURES AND GENERAL CATALYST. OTHER INVESTORS IN THE COMPANY INCLUDE 8VC, SAMSUNG NEXT, ALUMNI VENTURES, SBI US GATEWAY FUND, VERTEX VENTURES, DISPERSION CAPITAL, AVALANCHE FOUNDATION, GSR MARKETS, LAYERZERO, HASHED, HASHKEY CAPITAL, ANIMOCA BRANDS, ESSENCE VC, AND ALCHEMY.

Formerly known as Zettablock, Kite leverages years of experience in distributed infrastructure systems to bring forth a new architecture purpose-built for the agentic web. The team previously built large-scale, real-time data infrastructures serving decentralized networks like Sui, Polygon, Chainlink, and EigenLayer. Kite is built directly on that foundation to serve a new breed of users: agents.

The company recently launched Kite Agent Identity Resolution, or “Kite AIR” – a pioneering solution that

enables autonomous agents to authenticate, transact, and operate independently in real-world environments. The system delivers programmable identity, native stablecoin payment, and policy enforcement on a blockchain optimized for autonomous agents. Kite AIR includes two core components: Agent Passport, a verifiable identity with operational guardrails; and Agent App Store, where agents can discover and pay to access services such as APIs, data, and commerce tools. It is live today through open integrations with popular commerce platforms like Shopify and PayPal.

“From the beginning, we believed autonomous agents would be the dominant UI for the future digital economies. To function, they need structured and verifiable data, That was our first step,” said Chi Zhang, Co-Founder and CEO of Kite. “Next come identity, trust, and programmable payments. Today’s human-centric systems are too rigid and brittle for swarms of agents conducting micro-transactions at machine speed. Kite AIR solves that.”

Today, using publicly available APIs, any PayPal or Shopify merchant can opt in through the Kite Agent App Store and become discover-

able to AI shopping agents. Purchases are settled onchain with full traceability, using stablecoins and programmable permissions. Kite is also actively building additional integrations across commerce, finance, and data platforms.

“Kite is doing the foundational work we believe will define how agents operate tomorrow,” said Marc Bhargava, Managing Director at General Catalyst. “They are building the rails for the machine-to-machine economy.”

“Kite is the first real infrastructure that is purpose-built for the agentic economy,” said Alan Du, Partner at PayPal Ventures. “Payment has proven to be a challenging technical gap. Solutions like virtual cards provide only shortterm workarounds. Latency, fees, and chargebacks further complicate things. Kite bridges this critical gap by providing stablecoin-based, millisecond-level settlement with low transaction fees and no chargeback fraud risks. This enables new economic models such as agent-to-agent metered billing, micro-subscription, and high frequency trading.”

Corpay

Cross-Border Partners with SKsoft to Power Seamless Global Payments

CORPAY, INC.*, (NYSE: CPAY), A GLOBAL LEADER IN CORPORATE PAYMENTS, TODAY

ANNOUNCED A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN ITS CROSS-BORDER BUSINESS AND SKSOFT, A LEADING INDEPENDENT

SOFTWARE VENDOR (ISV) DELIVERING GLOBAL BANK CONNECTIVITY AND TREASURY AUTOMATION SOLUTIONS EMBEDDED WITHIN THE MICROSOFT DYNAMICS 365 ERP ECOSYSTEM.

This collaboration embeds

Corpay’s payment automation and global treasury capabilities directly into the SKsoft environment, enabling clients to process and manage their cross-border payments through a single, unified solution, enhancing operational efficiency, visibility, and control.

SKsoft’s bank connectivity engine allows for seamless integration into financial institutions across the globe. Now, with Corpay embedded, SKsoft clients gain access to process international payments in more than

145 currencies to over 200 countries, with additional access to currency risk management services, all through an end-to-end automated process.

“This partnership reflects Corpay’s continued investment and momentum within the Microsoft Dynamics space, strengthening our ERP strategy,” said Frank Mannarino, Vice President, Head of Channels & Alliances, Corpay Cross-Border Solutions.

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GoCardless launches industryleading AI tool for faster,

more

reliable same-day payments

BANK PAYMENT COMPANY GOCARDLESS HAS ANNOUNCED THE LAUNCH OF A GROUNDBREAKING NEW FEATURE TO REDEFINE SAME-DAY SETTLEMENT FOR DIRECT DEBIT. THE TOOL, SAME DAY SETTLEMENT+, LEVERAGES PROPRIETARY MACHINE LEARNING ALGORITHMS AND TRANSACTION DATA FROM OVER 38 MILLION ACCOUNTS TO SIGNIFICANTLY CUT PAYOUT TIMES AND REDUCE LATE PAYMENT FAILURES BY OVER 80%.

Thredd becomes first issuerprocessor to offer real time control over B2B travel payments through the Mastercard wholesale program.

First-to-market, real-time, flexible product codes now available for Thredd’s Online Travel Agency (OTA) customers.

THREDD, A LEADING NEXT-GENERATION GLOBAL ISSUER PROCESSOR, TODAY ANNOUNCED IT HAS BECOME THE FIRST TO OFFER ITS TRAVEL AGENCY CUSTOMERS REAL TIME PAYMENT CONTROL THROUGH NEW FLEXIBLE PRODUCT CODES MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH THE MASTERCARD WHOLESALE PROGRAM (MWP).

This new capability enables Thredd’s customers to better respond to supplier needs based on geography, product type, and volume, while optimizing

business-to-business travel payments through greater visibility, adaptability, and control.

The MWP was designed to better support the global nature of the travel industry, offering greater security and predictability of cross-border payments between travel buyers and suppliers. Based on industry feedback, the Program has now evolved to provide real-time payment control, allowing issuers to seamlessly transition between product codes on a real-time basis. These product codes allow travel organizations to adapt vir-

tual card technology in real time, based on supplier or product need. Thredd is the first Issuer-Processor to offer this enhanced feature to its customers.

“Mastercard is committed to curating and scaling payment technologies that meet the specific needs of the travel sector,” said Chiara Quaia, Senior Vice President, Travel at Mastercard. “We’re thrilled to see Thredd launch the flexible product codes now available through the Mastercard Wholesale Program, a solution we will continue to enhance and evolve based on industry feedback

to accelerate virtual card innovation and better support the needs of our travel partners.”

“In the travel space, speed and cost-efficiency are critical,” said Jim McCarthy, CEO, Thredd. “With the enhanced flexible product code feature, enabled through the Mastercard Wholesale Program, OTAs and other travel clients can unlock more agile and scalable payment flows, while keeping operational overhead to a minimum.

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Thanks to this enhanced predictive capability, more than 96%, on average, of successfully collected payments can now be paid out on the same day. This not only drastically cuts the typical two-day BACS settlement time, but it also solves a critical industry challenge by reducing the cost and frustration of late payment failures.

Over half (58%) of merchants say same-day settlement would be extremely beneficial to their business, enabling quicker access to

funds and greater clarity over their cash flow. Additionally, 85% of merchants believe that receiving their money sooner will strengthen their relationships with customers and suppliers.

The tool is currently available to a select group of GoCardless customers. This initial phase allows the system to train on diverse data, creating bespoke models.

Klarna launches debitfirst card across Europe for everyday spending

KLARNA, THE GLOBAL DIGITAL BANK AND PAYMENTS PROVIDER, IS EXPANDING ITS DEBIT-FIRST CARD ACROSS THE EU, FOLLOWING A SUCCESSFUL US LAUNCH IN JULY THIS YEAR. THE KLARNA CARD CHALLENGES TRADITIONAL CREDIT CARD PROVIDERS BY GIVING CONSUMERS THE POWER TO PAY UPFRONT OR FLEXIBLY, AND 685,000 AMERICANS HAVE ALREADY SIGNED UP FOR THE CARD SINCE JULY.

The Klarna Card, powered by Visa Flexible Credential, is debit by default, letting users pay instantly with their own money, while also offering flexible options. Within the Klarna app, consumers can choose: Pay in 3, Pay Later, or longer-term financing for larger purchases, subject to approval. It

enables consumers to cover everything from everyday essentials to bigger one-off purchases and is accepted at over 150 million Visa merchant locations worldwide, online and in-store. By combining upfront payments with flexible pay later options, the Klarna Card redefines what consumers expect from their everyday bank, putting control back in their hands.

“When I was a teenager working in retail, the checkout terminals gave consumers a simple choice: debit or credit. Over time, that choice was taken away and consumers had less control over when to use debit or credit. Our new Klarna Card brings that choice back, giving consumers control over their money again,”

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