Colm Lyon, Fire founder & CEO honoured at the National Fintech Awards

WE ARE THRILLED TO ANNOUNCE THAT OUR FOUNDER & CEO, COLM LYON, HAS BEEN GIVEN THE OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD FOR HIS GREAT CONTRIBUTION TO THE FINTECH ECOSYSTEM IN IRELAND.

London, Dublin – 15^th September 2023

Colm Lyon, CEO & founder of fire.com, is one of Europe’s leading payments and fintech entrepreneurs. With a career spanning more than 30 years, Colm has built payment businesses, led change across the industry and supported the wider business community. Previously Colm was the founder and CEO of Realex Payments, one of Europe’s largest and most successful online payments businesses, which was acquired by Global Payments in March 2015.

Colm is a member of the UK Finance Payments Products and Services Board, Chair of the Digital PSP Group, a member of the Strategic Participant Group for the New Payments Architecture and a member of the JROC Open Banking Future Entity Working Group in the UK.

Via his family office, Colm has invested in numerous Irish and UK startups and venture funds. He has received many awards and held several industry leadership positions, including chairman of the Irish Internet Association, founder of Payments Ireland and co-founder & chairman of the Fintech and Payments Association of Ireland. Colm was an adjunct professor for University College Cork and remains a member of the International Advisory Board of the Innovation Academy in University College Dublin.

Colm Lyon Honoured with Outstanding Achievement Award at the National Fintech Awards

Colm Lyon, a seasoned expert with over three decades of experience in the financial services and technology sectors, has been a driving force in shaping the landscape of fintech in Ireland and the UK. His visionary approach and commitment to innovation have not only propelled his own businesses but have also played a crucial role in the broader fintech ecosystem in Ireland and abroad. The National Fintech Awards, recognises and celebrates his exceptional contributions and innovations to building a better financial system in Ireland.

Colm noted “I am so thrilled and genuinely honoured to receive this award. It’s a very special award and one that I feel incredibly proud of. It’s a huge credit to the organisers to create these awards as it brings the industry together to celebrate our collective achievements. I want to thank everyone associated with these awards for this accolade. I also wish to thank the team at Fire for inspiring me with their commitment, passion and determination to build the best digital payments business.”

About Fire – Digital Payments & Open Banking.

Fire helps businesses get paid, pay out and go digital with their payment processes.  

With a range of payment services, smart technology and regulatory licences, Fire provides access to open banking payments, sterling & euro accounts, bank transfers, debit cards, FX, and international payments. Regulated in the EU (2010) and UK (2018), Fire is a member of numerous payment schemes and networks. Fire is a principal issuer of Mastercard® debit cards and a provider of Faster Payments, Bacs, Direct Debits, SEPA and Open Banking Payments.  

info@fire.com

www.fire.com

@fireaccount

Read more about the event, and Colm’s recognition in the Business Post and at Silicon Republic.

FIRE – A LEADING PROVIDER OF DIGITAL ACCOUNTS AND OPEN BANKING SOLUTIONS – ANNOUNCES THE APPOINTMENT OF CHRIS DAVIES, FORMER PRESIDENT, EUROPE AT GLOBAL PAYMENTS, AS NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TO ITS UK BOARD

London, Dublin – 24^th January 2023

Chris Davies, who recently retired as President, Europe of Global Payments, has joined the Board of Fire.

As a payments industry veteran, Chris joins Mike Smith and Lucy McClements on the Fire UK Board of Directors, while working alongside Joe Caulfield and Enda Murphy on the Fire EU Board creating a highly experienced team of payments industry professionals.

Chris’s appointment comes at an exciting time as Fire scales its business and operations across the UK and Ireland. Over the last two years Fire has seen its customer base grow significantly. Its digital account, debit card and payment services are now used by thousands of businesses. In addition, Fire has become a major player in open banking payments, providing services to both merchants and financial institutions (card acquirers).

Commenting on his appointment Chris said “I am really delighted to be joining the Fire UK Board of Directors at this incredibly exciting time for the business. The Fire digital account platform brings integrated and embedded payments to reality in a way that delivers real business benefit. In particular, the way Fire has helped card acquirers go to market with new open banking and funding solutions is very impressive.”

Colm Lyon, the CEO of Fire added “We at Fire are very pleased to have Chris join our Board. Chris’s expertise and experience in the payments industry is legendary and we are looking forward to working with Chris and the other Directors as we execute our plans to scale Fire.”

About Fire – Your Payments. Without the Friction.

Fire helps businesses of all sizes with their accounts, debit cards and payments. With a great range of payment services, smart technology and regulatory licences, we deliver solutions that make managing accounts, debit cards and payments better. Regulated in the EU and UK and licenced to provide payments services for more than ten years, Fire is a member of numerous payment schemes and networks. The team has decades of payment expertise and experience and some of the largest financial institutions in the world work with Fire. Fire is a principal issuer of Mastercard® debit cards and an approved provider of Faster Payments, Bacs, Direct Debits, SEPA and Open Banking.

info@fire.com

www.fire.com

@fireaccount

Thousands of Irish customers are scrambling to open new current accounts as KBC and Ulster Bank leave the country – with more than 400,000 people thought to be switching over. But those searching for an alternative bank will hardly be spoilt for choice.

Only three bricks-and-mortar banks based in Ireland will remain once the two banks close their Irish businesses, far fewer than even the smallest EU nations.

Read More

With KBC and Ulster Bank leaving the Irish market, their customers are in the process of switching accounts to other banks which are advertising for their business. But plenty of pitfalls lie in wait for the unwary.

Read more…

Annual Mizen to Malin Cycle takes place from 28 May – 3^rd June

Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind has today announced that it has teamed up with Fire to encourage donations for the annual Mizen to Malin Charity Cycle via the use of QR codes.

Fire, a digital account provider, will be helping Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind’s fundraising effort by enabling people to scan QR codes and donate directly from their mobiles in the upcoming cycle which takes place from Saturday May 28^th to Friday June 3^rd.

Fire’s solution will make the donation process seamless and convenient. The use of QR codes means donors can scan and approve the payment with their mobile. There’s no need to enter card details as the donors pay directly from their mobile banking apps. The ambition is to exceed the fundraising target of 120,000 euro.

Liam Linnane, Operations Team Lead & Product Analyst at Fire, is taking part in the fundraising event which was established by his father Eamonn 20 years ago in memory of his own father who was vision impaired. Liam said; “The Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind were a massive help to my grandad and our family after he lost his sight. The dogs that the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind gave to my grandad over the years gave him the independence that would have been impossible without them.”

To help with the fundraising effort, and enabled by Fire’s payment solution, Liam’s jersey will have a QR code on the back allowing supporters to easily donate directly from their bank accounts, along the 657km route.

“I’m very proud of my father for all the work he’s done for the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, over the last 20 years raising more than €1.2m and I’m also proud to be part of Fire whose QR code payment technology which can make a real difference to the amount of money raised.”

Tim O’Mahony, Chief Executive Officer with Irish Guide Dogs for Blind said “We’re extremely grateful to Eamon, Liam and the entire Linnane family for the support over the last 20 years. What they have achieved is phenomenal with the event growing every year. The use of the QR codes is an exciting fundraising avenue for us and hopefully it means donating can be made easier and ultimately, we can change more lives as a result.”

To donate Scan the QR code or visit https://payments.fire.com/j4vv5xkf

Photo from L to R: Mizen to Malin Cycle 2022 in aid of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind. From L to R: Ambassador Dog Belle – Pat Harney, Chair of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind’s Malahide/Portmarnock Branch – Assistance Dog Owner Charlotte Gregg with Assistance Dog Ambrose – Liam Linnane, M2M cyclist and Operations Team Lead & Product Analyst at Fire – Eamonn Linnane M2M Founder – Jennifer Nora Hurley, Regional Development Officer, Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind – Constanze O’Toole, Puppy Raiser with Puppy in Training Olan.