Icon Solutions names Anders Olofsson as EMEA Sales Director

Icon Solutions has appointed Anders Olofsson as EMEA Sales Director to help expand use of its Icon Payments Framework across Asia and EMEA.

Olofsson joins the UK payments software firm with more than 30 years of experience in the global payments industry. He was previously Head of Payments at Finastra, where he led global sales and strategy for the company's payments business, and Vice President of Real-Time Payments for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Visa.

The appointment comes as banks face pressure to modernise payments infrastructure while meeting regulatory and operational demands. Financial institutions are also assessing how to handle newer forms of digital money, including stablecoins and central bank digital currencies.

At Icon, Olofsson will focus on selling the Icon Payments Framework, or IPF, to Tier 1 banks in Asia and across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The framework is used by banks including Citi, UBS, NatWest and BNP Paribas.

Founded in 2009, Icon develops payments systems for banks. IPF is designed to help lenders build, test and deploy payment processing systems while retaining control over project timing and spending.

Senior hires in payments technology have become more important as banks rethink ageing core infrastructure and look for more flexible systems for domestic and cross-border transactions. Competition has also intensified among software providers serving large banks, particularly in real-time payments and modernisation projects.

Olofsson said the market backdrop had made speed and control central concerns for banks considering new systems.

"With payments increasingly seen as a strategic differentiator, institutions need to move quickly to integrate emerging technologies such as stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Yet at the same time, growing resiliency and compliance demands are placing greater emphasis on maintaining control over critical payments systems. It is clear to me that IPF is the only solution that enables banks to safely accelerate the development of new products and services at scale with zero vendor dependency," he said.

His appointment gives Icon an executive with experience in both card networks and banking software, two parts of the market reshaped by faster payment schemes, regulatory scrutiny and growing demand for always-on transaction processing.

Before joining Icon, Olofsson worked on payment strategy and adoption across a range of international markets. At Visa, his remit covered real-time payments in the CEMEA region, while at Finastra he oversaw sales and strategy for a payments business serving banks globally.

That background is likely to be relevant as Icon seeks deeper ties with major financial institutions, many of which are trying to reduce the risks and disruption associated with replacing long-standing systems. Banks have often taken a phased approach to payments modernisation, preferring tools that can sit alongside existing infrastructure before broader migration.

Liam Jeffs, Global Sales Director at Icon Solutions, said Olofsson's experience aligned with those customer concerns.

"Anders brings proven understanding of the operational, regulatory and technology challenges faced by banks transitioning from legacy infrastructure to next-generation payment platforms. This will be invaluable as we continue to expand the reach of IPF and empower more banks to lead payments forward," Jeffs said.

The hire also underlines the commercial importance of the EMEA region for payments vendors, where demand is being shaped by instant payment schemes, open banking initiatives and regulatory requirements around resilience and compliance. Large banks in the region are under pressure to support faster processing, add new payment types and maintain oversight of systems that regulators increasingly view as critical infrastructure.

Olofsson will work across both Asia and EMEA, reflecting the overlap in how international banks manage payments technology across major regions.