London FinTech Bound has appointed Marita Cavalcanti as its first Chief Financial Officer.
Cavalcanti was previously CFO at the property technology firm Proportunity, where she will remain a board adviser.
She has more than 20 years’ experience in the banking and FinTech sectors, gained in senior roles at OakNorth, Ebury and investment banks such as the Japanese financial services giant Nomura.
Cavalcanti said: “I’m excited to join Bound and its mission to deliver hedging without the head scratching, making it accessible and transparent for any business that trades across borders.
“For too long, thousands of SMEs have been left at the mercy of currency risk because they were put off hedging by an FX industry that made the process opaque and overcomplicated.
“Fortunately those days are ending thanks to Bound. Bound’s seamless, intuitive digital platform gives users an easy, transparent experience and allows them to protect themselves from increasingly volatile exchange rates.”
Bound saw trading volumes soar by 339% in the first quarter of the year, having previously posted a 200% quarter-on-quarter jump in Q4 2021.
Bound’s boom in demand comes as increasingly volatile exchange rates prompt thousands of small and medium-sized businesses to explore how hedging can protect their bottom line from sudden currency movements.
The start-up, which launched last year, was created to make currency hedging easier and quicker for businesses of all sizes.
Echoing the way challenger banks have outshone their conventional rivals on apps and customer service, Bound has a modern, user-friendly digital interface that takes the complexity out of the hedging process, giving customers off-the-shelf strategies they can use in minutes.
Bound CEO Seth Phillips said: “Bringing in a leader of Marita’s stature as CFO is a huge win for Bound and I am delighted to welcome her aboard. Her depth of experience, not to mention her stellar background in FX advisory roles, makes her a perfect fit for our ambitious business and our fast-growing team.”