Wero has expanded its payment solution to physical cash registers in Belgium, allowing consumers to pay with NFC or QR codes via Payworld. The rollout marks a step toward European payment sovereignty, bypassing US card processors, and follows a rapid adoption across several European countries.
Playtomic announced the acquisition of TIMP, a Valencia‑based SaaS provider that helps gyms and sports facilities manage bookings, memberships and operations across Spain and Italy, strengthening Playtomic’s offering for sports venue management.
ESA chose the ARISE consortium, headed by Finnish startup ICEYE, to develop a concept for a European sovereign Earth observation system for government use.
Swedish fintech Trustly announced it will lay off about 200 employees, roughly 25% of its staff, as part of a restructuring aimed at sharpening its focus on the fast‑growing open‑banking market. The cuts mainly affect teams in Brazil, while the company, which has raised $438 million from investors such as BlackRock and Nordic Capital, continues to serve thousands of merchants globally.
Bitpanda, the Austrian fintech platform, announced that its CEO is leaving the company again.
Aleph Alpha, once seen as Germany’s AI hope, and Canada’s Cohere have completed their merger, creating a joint AI venture with new leadership and a new headquarters, in a deal valued at around €500 million.
Zopa, the UK digital bank, rolled out its AI-powered voice assistant to all current‑account customers, enabling voice‑driven payments, transfers and financial planning, marking the bank’s entry into conversational banking.
Swedish autonomous‑vehicle startup Einride is testing its electric driver‑less truck with Lidl in Germany, marking the first public‑road use of such a vehicle in German grocery retail and a potential reference case for wider adoption.
Maestro, a Romanian pizza chain founded by Denisa and Nick Tache, lost about £1.2 million in a failed London expansion and later realized that high foot traffic at Bucharest’s Unirii square did not guarantee commercial success. The experience taught them to adapt to local cultures and to recognize when to cut losses.
Open Cosmos, a European satellite company, raised €300 million to boost its satellite production and roll out its connectivity and Earth‑observation platforms, planning to hire more staff and broaden its operations across several EU countries.