Category Archives: News

Kickstarter Taps Leaders Behind Collina Strada, Luar, Brandon Blackwood, The Cutting Room Floor and Milton Dixon III for Fashion Advisory Board

Hillary Taymour, Raul Lopez, Brandon Blackwood, Recho Omondi and Milton Dixon III join the Kickstarter Fashion Advisory Board to champion independent fashion creators, building on the Kickstarter Culture Fund and bringing its Power of Belief campaign to life

NEW YORK, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Kickstarter today announced the Kickstarter Fashion Advisory Board, bringing together influential designers and fashion voices to help independent creators find the guidance, community, and connections they need to bring original ideas to life.

An extension of the Kickstarter Culture Fund and the company’s Power of Belief brand campaign, the board expands Kickstarter’s commitment to creative independence by connecting fashion creators with industry experience and perspectives that can help them fund and launch work on their own terms.

The five-advisor board members include Hillary Taymour of Collina Strada, Raul Lopez of Luar, Brandon Blackwood, Recho Omondi of The Cutting Room Floor, and Milton Dixon III, Stylist, Creative Consultant & Fashion Ambassador at Kickstarter. Together, they bring perspectives across independent design, brand building, fashion media, and storytelling.

“Independent designers are shaping culture, but often face challenges finding the resources and support to bring their ideas to life and build sustainable businesses,” said Everette Taylor, Chief Executive Officer at Kickstarter. “The Kickstarter Fashion Advisory Board builds on our commitment through the Culture Fund by bringing experienced voices and meaningful connections into that journey. We want more original ideas to have the opportunity to break through, and more designers to have the support they need to build lasting businesses while retaining ownership.”

Through the end of 2026, advisors will support the initiative through creator guidance, media engagement, and shared content. Their involvement will help raise visibility for independent fashion creators, connect them with industry networks and perspectives, and help them discover opportunities to apply for support through the Kickstarter Culture Fund.

Launched in August 2026, the Kickstarter Culture Fund is a $1 million fund supporting independent creators working across Art, Fashion, Film, and Music. Financed entirely by Kickstarter and open to creators around the world, the fund provides direct financial contributions to live Kickstarter campaigns, helping creators build momentum as they rally support for their ideas.

The fund is a key expression of the Power of Belief, Kickstarter’s brand campaign centered on the idea that belief sparks new ideas and those ideas come to life when people believe in each other. The Kickstarter Fashion Advisory Board extends that commitment into the fashion community through relationships, expertise, and advocacy for independent creative work.

“The Fashion Advisory Board brings our Power of Belief campaign to life through voices who understand what it takes to build independent fashion,” said Courtney Brown Warren, Kickstarter’s Chief Marketing Officer. “Power of Belief is rooted in the idea that creativity moves forward when people believe in each other. Building on the Culture Fund, these advisors bring guidance, perspective, and connections to help more designers find their community and bring their original visions to life.”

Kickstarter’s community-backed funding model gives fashion creators a path to fund and launch original projects while maintaining creative control and ownership. The board reinforces that approach by helping build the relationships and visibility that can support creators alongside funding.

Creators working within the Culture Fund’s four core categories can apply when their Kickstarter campaign is live or when they have a project page in draft. Financial contributions are made to selected live campaigns.

Learn more about eligibility and apply at landing.kickstarter.com/culture-fund.

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Centalion and Komgo Bring Agentic AI into Live Treasury Operations

AI Treasury Agent built by Centalion on Komgo’s Konsole via MCP connector cuts trade finance instruments processing times while keeping governance and human approval fully in place

GENEVA, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Centalion Group, one of the world’s largest independent commodity trading companies, and Komgo, a leading digital trade finance platform provider, announced that Centalion has deployed an AI Treasury Agent that lets treasury professionals run facility and trade finance instrument workflows through natural language, while keeping every control and approval step in place.

Centalion has relied on Komgo’s Konsole for over five years as the central platform for managing its off-balance sheet instruments across its banking counterparties. Even with digital platforms in place, the treasury team still had to move between systems to retrieve data, validate information and chase status updates.

Centalion’s response was to build and govern an AI Treasury Agent within its own cloud environment, combining a large language model with structured treasury workflows and facility-specific business rules.

The connection to Konsole runs through Komgo’s MCP (Model Context Protocol) connector, allowing Centalion to retain control of its AI and orchestration logic while securely interacting with Komgo’s trade finance infrastructure, with no point-to-point integration project required.

The first deployment covers Centalion’s off-balance sheet instrument syndicated facility and the early results are already tangible at the transaction level: issuance processing time has been cut by around 55%, and amendment processing time by around 80%. Once extended across Centalion’s full trade finance activity, this is projected to free more than 60 working days of treasury capacity each year, time that can be redirected toward risk oversight, facility optimization and financing strategy.

“We didn’t want to just build another chatbot. We wanted to change the way our Treasury team interacts with technical infrastructure. The agent can understand an instruction, apply our rules, and prepare a transaction in seconds while the decision remains with the people in the Treasury team. For us, this deployment demonstrates the real potential of agentic AI in a commodity trader’s Treasury department: removing friction without removing accountability”, commented Olivier Thevenon, Treasury Manager at Centalion.

“Centalion and Komgo are demonstrating how corporate treasury teams can build and govern their own AI capabilities on top of trusted, structured trade finance infrastructure, rather than replacing it,” said Baptiste Audren, Chief Revenue Officer at Komgo.

More about Centalion: https://centalion.com

More about Komgo: https://komgo.io

Press contact: 

anne-sophie.pinson@komgo.io

Visit the Komgo Newswroom: https://www.komgo.io/newsroom

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Huawei’s NG WAN Solution Enters Large-Scale Commercial Use to Drive Carrier Growth

VIENNA, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — On October 13, at the Net5.5G Intelligent IP Network Summit during UBBF 2026, John Cai, Vice President of Huawei’s Data Communication Product Line, delivered a keynote speech, highlighting AI as a definitive opportunity in an uncertain future. He noted that the widespread deployment of the NG WAN Solution marks the full-scale commercialization of NG WAN. He stated that Huawei hopes to collaborate with industry stakeholders to continuously fortify a secure, resilient foundation and drive shared growth in the AI era.

Security & Resilience: Multi-Layered Defense

Huawei’s NG WAN Solution builds a multi-layered security system spanning device, link, and service layers. At the device layer, Huawei’s innovative RDR solution—powered by independent Threat Protection Units (TPUs) and a multimodal behavior expert algorithm—runs isolated from the router OS to detect over 95% of threats and trace APTs within minutes. On the data plane, Huawei’s proprietary NP and intelligent flow identification algorithm achieve 1:1 traffic inspection, detecting attacks in seconds and reducing DDoS risks by 90%. During over three months of use with a leading Chinese carrier, TPUs have thwarted 324 attacks from eight countries.

At the link layer, the PQC algorithm is supported on all Huawei devices in all scenarios, boosting encryption performance by 40%. The industry’s first built-in QKD solution enables three-channel integration, slashing network construction costs by 60% and breaking the 80 km transmission distance limit. Recently, Huawei and a carrier in Macao unveiled the world’s first quantum-secured target network, driving a 50% surge in private line revenue.

At the service layer, “1+4” defense-in-depth reduces border DDoS attack response from 1 minute to under 5 seconds. It improves unknown threat detection by 15%, achieves a 100% ransomware detection rate, and shortens threat handling to under 30 minutes via the CT-SOC.

Lossless Computing Efficiency: Unleashing Token Productivity

As AI increasingly advances into core business, intelligent computing is hyper-sensitive to packet loss—a mere 0.1% loss can slash computing efficiency by up to 55%. Huawei’s NG WAN Solution leverages AI Fabric to strengthen compute through network enhancements: The simplified two-layer multi-plane architecture expands network scale fourfold while reducing hardware usage by 30%. Network-wide NPLB achieves 98% link utilization and lifts training and inference performance by over 7%. For computing-network synergy, the Starnet lossless algorithm achieves zero packet loss for transmission over 1,000 km with more than 96% remote computing efficiency. This enables carriers to deliver a local-like experience, accelerating ToB monetization. The solution was deployed by a Chinese carrier to support a healthcare project, slashing hospital computing costs by 30% while driving a fivefold surge in private line ARPU.

Network Autonomy: AN L4 in Four Scenarios

Huawei’s “One Map, One Brain” autonomous network architecture achieves AN L4 across fault handling, network changes, network optimization, and security protection. Closed-loop automation is achieved for network changes spanning configuration verification, simulation, and comparison. Security protection enables intrusion detection, attack tracing, and one-click blocking within minutes.

Huawei has helped multiple carriers achieve AN L4, with a South African carrier becoming the world’s first to reach this level of autonomy on an IP network.

Over 60 carriers worldwide have deployed the NG WAN Solution. Through continuous innovation in lossless computing efficiency, multi-layered security, and network autonomy, the solution shifts carriers’ AI strategies from efficiency optimization to value creation, solidifying a secure, resilient network foundation for the AI era.

Looking ahead, Huawei will work with industry partners to expedite the global adoption of the NG WAN Solution, helping build secure, resilient, intelligent, and efficient next-generation bearer networks to drive carrier growth in the AI era.

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Uzbekistan Hospitality Group TEG Completes U.S. Business Combination

Historic milestone positions TEG to capitalize on Uzbekistan’s rapidly expanding tourism market and execute its growth pipeline

NEW YORK, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — TEG SPV LLC (“TEG”), a leading Uzbekistan-based, integrated hospitality, tourism and events business, today announced the successful completion of its business combination with StageWise Strategies Corp. (“STWI”), establishing the first U.S.-traded business from Uzbekistan.

The transaction was completed pursuant to a share exchange agreement under which TEG became the principal operating business of the combined public company. The company will operate as TEG Overseas, Inc. and its common stock will trade on the OTC Markets.

This milestone marks a significant step in TEG’s evolution and positions the company to capitalize on powerful secular trends shaping the region, including increasing international tourism visitation, expanding business travel, and continued investment in Uzbekistan’s economic and social development.

With established tourism industry expertise, TEG owns and operates a portfolio and ecosystem of premium hospitality and events assets in Uzbekistan, including Hilton Tashkent City, Wyndham Bukhara, and the Central Asian Expocenter (CAEx), one of Central Asia’s largest and most modern full-service convention centers for exhibitions and events. The portfolio generated $42.9 million in revenue and $14.4 million in net income in 2025, representing increases of 22% and 215%, respectively, from 2024.

“With a proven portfolio of high-quality assets, relationships with leading international hospitality brands, and a clear strategy for growth, TEG is well positioned for its next phase of development, which we expect will elevate TEG’s business aspirations and tangentially strengthen Uzbekistan’s national identity and competitiveness within the tourism sector,” said Anita Mendiratta, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of TEG. “TEG’s entry into the public markets comes at a pivotal moment for Uzbekistan’s greater visitor economy, as strong economic growth and an ambitious national development agenda are helping towards establishing the country as one of Central Asia’s most compelling and inviting tourism and business destinations.”

Positioned to Benefit from Uzbekistan’s Tourism Growth Trajectory

Uzbekistan welcomed approximately 11.7 million foreign tourists in 2025, an increase of nearly 47% from the prior year, and was ranked by UN Tourism among the world’s fastest-growing markets for international tourist arrivals in the first quarter of 2026. This momentum is underpinned by the country’s broader economic reform agenda and Uzbekistan 2030 strategy, which makes tourism a national priority supported by infrastructure development, expanded international connectivity, and private-sector growth.

Hospitality has been central to Uzbekistan’s culture for centuries, rooted in the country’s historic role as a crossroads of the Silk Road. Today, that heritage, together with the country’s ongoing modernization, investment in critical infrastructure linked to mobility and connectivity (including aviation and rail), and emergence as a regional investment hub, is helping establish Uzbekistan as an increasingly important destination for year-round, country-wide international tourism, business travel and events.

The AKFA Advantage

TEG is part of AKFA Group, one of Central Asia’s largest privately owned business groups, with 38,000 employees. Founded in Tashkent in 2001 by leading Uzbek entrepreneur Jakhongir Artikkhodjaev, AKFA operates businesses across seven strategic sectors: consumer electronics (Artel), aluminum profiles for doors and windows (AKFA), construction, healthcare, education, tourism and entertainment.

As part of the broader AKFA ecosystem, TEG benefits from:

• Global connectivity and trusted industry relationships
• Access to the largest and most experienced development and construction partners in the country
• Procurement efficiencies and operating scale advantages
• Faster execution and time-to-market for strategic initiatives

“Our longstanding relationship with AKFA has been integral to TEG’s development, providing access to the capabilities and relationships of a much broader business ecosystem,” said Irodakhon Abduvakhitova, Non-independent Director and Investor in TEG. “Combined with TEG’s proven sector expertise, these advantages enhance our ability to identify opportunities, execute efficiently, and scale our business across Uzbekistan and the broader region.”

Executing a Clear Growth Pipeline

As a public company, TEG intends to leverage access to the U.S. capital markets to support future acquisitions and expand its portfolio of hospitality and meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) assets. TEG plans to pursue acquisitions across its pipeline that expand its offerings and enable the company to serve a broader range of business and leisure travelers. TEG also intends to drive continued growth by leveraging its proven owner-operator model, deep knowledge of the Uzbek market, relationships with international hospitality brands and the development capabilities of the broader AKFA ecosystem.

Advisors

Kingswood ArcStone, a division of Kingswood Capital Partners, LLC, and Bluestone Investment Bank are serving as financial advisors to TEG. Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP and Dentons Uzbekistan are serving as legal counsel to TEG. Hunter Taubman Fischer & Li LLC is serving as legal counsel to StageWise.

About TEG

TEG is a leading, multi-dimensional tourism and hospitality business in Uzbekistan, building an integrated portfolio and ecosystem of hospitality, events and destination assets to serve the country’s fast-growing visitor economy. TEG’s portfolio includes Hilton Tashkent City, Wyndham Bukhara and the Central Asian Expocenter. As part of AKFA Group, one of Uzbekistan’s largest private groups of companies, TEG benefits from institutional scale, deep sector relationships and broader development capabilities. TEG’s growth strategy is focused on maximizing the potential of its existing portfolio while executing a pipeline of additional hospitality and tourism assets across Uzbekistan and the broader region. For more information, visit https://www.tegcompany.com/.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including statements related to TEG’s current views and expectations with respect to its future performance and operations, including revenues, earnings, cash flow and other financial and operating measures. Forward-looking statements are any statements other than statements of historical fact, including those that convey management’s expectations as to the future based on plans, estimates and projections at the time TEG makes the statements and may be identified by words such as “will,” “expect,” “believe,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “predict,” “intend,” “goal,” “future,” “forward,” “remain,” “confident,” “outlook,” “guidance,” “target,” “objective,” “estimate,” “projection” and similar words or expressions, including the negative version of such words and expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of TEG to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.

Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include, without limitation, general economic conditions, including inflation, higher interest rates and potential recessionary pressures, which may impact decisions by consumers and businesses to use travel accommodations; global trade disputes, including with China; the performance of the financial and credit markets; the economic environment for the hospitality industry; operating risks in the hospitality business; TEG’s relationships with hotels, conference centers and other properties; the impact of war, terrorist activity, political instability or political strife; global or regional health crises or pandemics including the resulting impact on TEG’s business, operations, financial results, cash flows and liquidity, as well as the impact on guests and team members, the hospitality industry and overall demand for and restrictions on travel; TEG’s ability to satisfy obligations and agreements under its outstanding indebtedness, including the payment of principal and interest and compliance with the covenants thereunder; risks related to TEG’s ability to obtain financing and the terms of such financing, including access to liquidity and capital, as well as any risks reported in the reports filed by TEG with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These risks and uncertainties are not the only ones TEG may face and additional risks may arise or become material in the future. TEG undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, subsequent events or otherwise, except as required by law.

pr@tegcompany.com

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Affibody Highlights Progress Across Radiopharmaceutical Pipeline at EANM 2026

View the EANM abstracts here: https://eanm26.eanm.org/abstracts-book/

Continuity Biosciences Awarded $9.6 Million Grant to Advance Ultra-Long-Acting Implant for HIV Prevention

Funding supports development of a subcutaneous implant designed to deliver HIV prevention medicine for multiple years from a single placement, advancing toward an IND submission and initiation of a first-in-human Phase 1 study

BRADENTON, Fla. and SEATTLE, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Continuity Biosciences, LLC, a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing precision drug delivery platforms, today announced it has been awarded an up to $9.6 million grant from the Gates Foundation to advance a subcutaneous, ultra-long-acting antiretroviral (ARV) implant for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

The implant is designed to deliver HIV prevention medicine continuously for multiple years after a single insertion under the skin. It is intended as an alternative to daily oral pills and to periodic injections, giving people at risk of HIV a prevention option that requires fewer dosing decisions and clinic visits.

The grant will support development of Continuity’s ultra-long-acting ARV implant through Investigational New Drug (IND)-enabling studies, submission of an IND application, and initiation of a Phase 1 first-in-human clinical study.

“For many people, the challenge in HIV prevention is not the availability of effective medicines, but the burden of staying protected consistently over time,” said Ramakrishna “Krishna” Venugopalan, PhD, MBA, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Continuity Biosciences. “A prevention option designed to provide protection for years could fundamentally change what is possible, particularly in communities where access to healthcare is limited.

Despite major advances in prevention, there were 1.2 million new HIV infections in 2025, according to UNAIDS. Daily oral PrEP is highly effective when taken as prescribed, but sustaining adherence remains difficult for many people. Long-acting injectables have extended dosing intervals, yet still require regular clinic visits bi-monthly or bi-yearly currently, and a dependable supply chain. These challenges are even greater in low- and middle-income countries.

Continuity’s implant builds on the company’s nanofluidic drug delivery technology, which uses precisely engineered channels to control drug release at a steady rate over an extended period. The approach is designed to sustain protective drug exposure over time while reducing the need for repeat dosing.

“Our nanofluidic implant was engineered around a simple idea: HIV prevention shouldn’t depend on remembering a daily pill or the next appointment,” said Alessandro Grattoni, PhD, Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Advisor of Continuity Biosciences. “By controlling drug release at the device level, we aim to sustain constant ARV delivery for multiple years from a single implant. This support allows us to move that science from the laboratory toward a first-in-human evaluation.”

As part of the grant, Continuity has made Global Access commitments to the Gates Foundation, including making the resulting technology available at an affordable price to people most in need in low- and middle-income countries and broadly sharing knowledge gained from the program.

Beyond HIV prevention, Continuity is applying its precision delivery platforms across type 1 diabetes, endocrinology, and oncology, including an ongoing first-in-human study of its iontophoretic oncology platform in pancreatic cancer.

About Continuity Biosciences

Continuity Biosciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing precision drug delivery platforms for the controlled, sustained administration of therapeutics. Its technologies include intratumoral delivery systems for solid tumors, nanofluidic and subcutaneous long-acting implants, implantable devices for cell therapy, and microneedle systems for intradermal delivery. The company’s programs span oncology, type 1 diabetes, endocrinology, HIV prevention, and medical aesthetics. For more information, visit www.continuitybiosciences.com.

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IBM and Siemens Collaborate on Research to Advance Nanostack Architecture

Collaboration aims to accelerate development of the manufacturing and design capabilities needed for future nanostack generations

ALBANY, N.Y., Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Today, IBM (NYSE: IBM), in collaboration with Siemens, announced new research aimed at advancing IBM’s nanostack architecture, a new transistor architecture unveiled by IBM earlier this year. The collaboration will bring together IBM’s leadership in semiconductor device innovation and Siemens’ expertise in electronic design automation (EDA), process simulation, lithography optimization, and advanced manufacturing software to accelerate the development of nanostack.

Nanostack is the industry’s first known three-dimensional, nanosheet-based design, vertically stacking and staggering transistors to pack more transistors onto a chip, with nearly 100 billion transistors in a space the size of a fingernail at its current 7 angstrom node. The design also unlocks the use of different material combinations within each stacked layer to optimize performance and power efficiency of each transistor independent of the other. These innovations power substantial leaps in energy efficiency, performance, and SRAM scaling.

Earlier this year, IBM demonstrated the viability of the nanostack architecture. Now, additional advances are needed to prepare the technology for manufacturing and production at scale.

Through this collaboration, IBM and Siemens will work to advance the design, simulation, and lithography techniques needed for this and future nanostack generations beyond the current 7 angstrom node. The collaboration includes developing advanced virtual models of nanostack in order to model performance, optimize designs, and address fabrication challenges before chips are built.

“Nanostack is a scalable transistor platform designed to shift device scaling from 2D to 3D, representing a new paradigm for the semiconductor industry and a path forward for the logic scaling needed to support AI and other emerging technologies over the coming decade,” said Huiming Bu, Vice President of Silicon Technology R&D, IBM. “We are thrilled to work with Siemens as we continue to advance this technology and explore new approaches to extend angstrom-level scaling with nanostack.”

“Scaling semiconductors into the angstrom era demands tightly coupled co-optimization between device physics, EDA design and manufacturing software, and manufacturing. As physical AI places extraordinary demands on silicon architecture, IBM’s 3D nanostack design represents a pivotal leap forward,” said Ankur Gupta, Executive Vice President, EDA IC Portfolio, Siemens. “Siemens’ collaboration with IBM to advance virtual modeling, simulation, lithography, and design software optimizations needed to address physical limitations early and accelerate the development of these complex architectures is truly pioneering.”

By combining IBM’s semiconductor leadership with Siemens’ advanced EDA software and simulation technologies, the companies aim to accelerate technology development cycles and advance the manufacturing foundation necessary for bringing nanostack toward production.

About IBM

IBM is a leading provider of global hybrid cloud and AI, and consulting expertise. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Thousands of governments and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM’s breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and consulting deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM’s long-standing commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service. Visit www.ibm.com for more information.

Media contact:

Willa Hahn

IBM Communications

willa.hahn@ibm.com 

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Spinnaker Support Names Mark Fetches Global Chief Technology Officer

Expanded Role Unites Regional CTOs, Solution Consulting and Technical Account Management in One Global Organization

DENVER, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Spinnaker Support, the third-party software support leader entrusted by 1,300+ global clients, today announced the promotion of Mark Fetches to Global Chief Technology Officer (CTO). In the expanded role, Fetches brings the company’s regional CTOs, solution consulting team and technical account managers (TAMs) together into a single global organization. He will report to Chief Revenue Officer Pete Castello and join Spinnaker’s Go-to-Market Leadership Team, strengthening the connection between customer business priorities and Spinnaker’s technical sales and advisory capabilities.

“Customers choose Spinnaker for the expertise of our people,” said Matt Stava, CEO of Spinnaker Support. “Mark showed in EMEA how much customers value close technical engagement from the start. With him leading these teams globally, we can bring that same level of guidance to every region, helping customers solve immediate challenges and plan for what comes next.”

The new structure connects the technical guidance customers receive during evaluation with the expertise they rely on throughout their relationship with Spinnaker. Solution consultants who assess Oracle, SAP, VMware or PostgreSQL environments will now work alongside the TAMs and regional technology leaders who guide customers after the engagement begins. Iain Saunderson, chief technology officer for the Americas, will report to Fetches. Phil Wilkins, technical account manager and enterprise technical architect, and Sree Sakamuri, director of solution consulting, will also join Fetches’ organization.

Fetches previously served as Spinnaker’s CTO for EMEA, where he strengthened technical engagement with clients and connected their business priorities with Spinnaker’s capabilities. He brings more than 30 years of technology consulting and leadership experience from Accenture, Deloitte, and PwC. In those roles, he led customer-facing technical teams and advised C-suite executives and boards on digital, cloud, AI and enterprise transformation programs. Fetches is based in the UK and holds TOGAF and ITIL certifications.

“The best time to talk about modernization is before an upgrade or renewal forces the issue,” said Fetches. “That’s when customers have the greatest freedom to evaluate their options and move forward on their own terms. By bringing together our regional CTOs, solution consultants and technical account managers, we give customers access to the right expertise from the first conversation through execution.”

The promotion comes amid double-digit growth for Spinnaker, as more enterprises turn to independent support for greater control and flexibility. It follows several leadership appointments in 2026, including Rex Young as chief information officer in August and Vivek Pruthi as managing director for APAC. Spinnaker also promoted Martin Biggs to vice president and general manager of its PostgreSQL practice alongside the September launch of new PostgreSQL offerings to help enterprises reduce Oracle database dependency.

Resources:

• When AI Doesn’t Understand Your ERP
• How Madrilena Gas Ensured Stability and Savings with Spinnaker
• How Telkom Turned Oracle Support Savings into Digital Investment
• How a National Telecommunications Provider Stabilized Critical Systems and Reset Its IT Strategy

About Spinnaker Support

Spinnaker Support delivers independent third-party support and expert services for Oracle, SAP, VMware, and PostgreSQL environments. Its support, maintenance and modernization services help organizations run, optimize and transform their enterprise technology environments. It empowers customers to reduce vendor dependency and align technology strategies with business objectives. Spinnaker Support is trusted worldwide, including in highly regulated industries, giving organizations greater choice, control, and flexibility to unlock long-term value and transformation. For more information: www.spinnakersupport.com. Follow Spinnaker on LinkedIn.

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Nuvei secures license to offer local payment acceptance in South Africa

MONTREAL, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Nuvei, the global fintech building the infrastructure for every payment, everywhere, today announced that it has secured authorization from the Payments Association of South Africa (PASA) to offer local merchant payment services in South Africa, expanding its ability to support global brands and local businesses through its global payments platform.

The authorization advances Nuvei’s Every Payment Everywhere strategy, extending its presence within domestic payment ecosystems to help businesses optimize payment performance in every market they operate. By adding South Africa to its network, Nuvei is extending its local acquiring and payment acceptance infrastructure, transaction data, and operational controls to another major market, accessible through a single global platform.

Phil Fayer, Chair and CEO of Nuvei, said: “Commerce is global, but payment performance is local. Our expansion into South Africa is another step towards giving businesses access to locally optimized payment capabilities at global scale. South Africa is one of Africa’s most important digital commerce markets, and strengthening our presence here creates new opportunities for international businesses entering the region and South African companies expanding globally.”

A growing digital commerce market

South Africa’s B2C ecommerce market grew by an estimated 9.9% in 2025 to reach $8.48 billion, according to research published by PayNXT360. The market is forecast to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 8.3% through 2029, reaching approximately $11.66 billion. This continued growth is increasing the importance of locally optimized payment performance for businesses competing in the market.

Bringing global brands closer to the local market

Processing transactions domestically can improve authorization rates compared with cross-border acquiring, reduce processing costs, and give businesses more complete visibility into transaction performance. Direct access to local transaction data also supports more precise fraud management and enables businesses to identify and address sources of payment friction more effectively.

Global brands entering South Africa will be able to access these capabilities through the same Nuvei integration they use across other markets. Businesses already serving South African consumers cross-border will be able to establish a more locally optimized payments operation without adding a separate gateway, acquiring relationship, and reporting environment. That gives them room to adapt the checkout experience to local expectations while managing authorization, fraud prevention, reconciliation, and reporting through one platform.

About Nuvei

Nuvei is the global fintech building the infrastructure for every payment, everywhere. Its flexible platform supports the full transaction lifecycle, giving the world’s leading companies a single partner for local and cross-border commerce at scale, including the emerging wave of AI-driven agentic commerce. With reach in more than 190 markets, local acquiring in 50+ countries, 150 currencies, and over 720 alternative payment methods, Nuvei brings global infrastructure and local expertise to every market its customers serve.

Learn more at Nuvei.com

Contact:

Public Relations

alex.hammond@nuvei.com

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Oracle NetSuite Announces Launch of AI-first QuickStart: NYSE Content Update

NYSE issues a pre-market daily advisory direct from the trading floor.

NEW YORK, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) provides a daily pre-market update directly from the NYSE Trading Floor. Access today’s NYSE Pre-market update for market insights before trading begins. 

Kristen Scholer delivers the pre-market update on October 14th

• Oracle NetSuite announces the availability of AI-first financial platform NetSuite QuickStart. 
  • NetSuite QuickStart is designed for early-stage technology startups.
  • Business founders can engage with trusted data in QuickStart via the AI tools they already use, including Claude and ChatGPT.
  • Oracle NetSuite Co-founder + EVP Evan Goldberg will join NYSE Live to discuss how QuickStart can help founders elevate their businesses. 
• Reflect Orbital announces the purchase of two Skyroot Aerospace launches for future spacecraft.
  • By redirecting sunlight from orbit, Reflect aims to extend electricity generation at solar farms and provide light to help search-and-rescue teams find people at night and construction crews work more safely after dark.
  • Tune into NYSE Live to hear Co-Founder and CEO Ben Nowack share how it plans to fulfill its mission of delivering sunlight to precise locations on earth.
• BSR Real Estate Investment Trust officially begins trading on the New York Stock Exchange today.
  • The company’s portfolio is valued at approximately $1.4 billion, with roughly 90% of net operating income generated from the Texas Triangle markets of Austin, Houston, and Dallas.
  • To celebrate its NYSE listing, BSR REIT’s officers and Board of Trustees will ring the Opening Bell at the New York Stock Exchange. It will trade under the ticker BSRT.
• The AUSA Annual Meeting & Exposition concludes today in Washington, D.C.
  • More than 40,000 attendees from over 100 countries have come together as they look to shape the future of national security.
  • Participating companies include RTX, Boeing, General Dynamics, and Northrop Grumman.

Opening Bell

BSR REIT (NYSE: BSRT) celebrates its first day of trading on the NYSE

Closing Bell

Warburg Pincus celebrates its 60^th anniversary

For market insights, IPO activity, and today’s opening bell, download the NYSE TV App and check out the NYSE YouTube: TV.NYSE.com and YouTube.com/@NYSEofficial

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