SIOUX FALLS, S.D.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct 8, 2026--
Pathward Financial, Inc. (Nasdaq: CASH) through its subsidiary, Pathward ®, N.A., (“Pathward”) a national bank focused on expanding financial access through payments and lending solutions, announced an extension of its partnership with Clair, an embedded financial technology company providing earned wage advances through payroll and workforce platforms. Under the renewed agreement, Pathward will continue originating advances offered through Clair’s platform, helping workers access eligible earned wages before payday.
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“Clair has built an embedded solution that gives workers greater choice in when they access their earnings,” said Pathward’s Chief Customer Officer Will Sowell. “Extending our partnership reflects our shared commitment to responsible innovation and expands the reach of a solution designed to improve financial access. We look forward to continuing to provide the banking and lending infrastructure that supports Clair’s growth.”
Clair embeds earned wage advance solutions into payroll and workforce platforms, giving eligible workers access to a portion of their earned wages before payday. For employers, the solution can provide a financial wellness benefit without requiring changes to existing payroll processes and without an employer fee. Through the partnership, Pathward provides the lending infrastructure and originates the earned wage advances offered through Clair’s platform. According to Clair, its platform has reached a $2 billion wage advance volume run rate, 500,000 monthly active users, and more than 300,000 active businesses.
“Our partnership with Pathward has been central to building an experience that can scale responsibly across payroll and workforce platforms,” said Clair CEO and Founder Nico Simko. “This extension allows us to continue expanding access to earned wages through the technology workers already use.”
Learn about Pathward’s credit sponsorship capabilities.
About Pathward Financial, Inc.
Pathward Financial, Inc. (Nasdaq: CASH) is a U.S.-based financial holding company driven by its purpose to power financial inclusion. Through our subsidiary, Pathward®, N.A., we strive to increase financial availability, choice and opportunity through payments sponsorship and lending. These capabilities provide support to individuals and businesses. Learn more at pathwardfinancial.com.
About Clair
Clair is a leading provider of embedded Earned Wage Access (EWA), empowering workforce management and payroll platforms to offer early access to earned wages to employees at no cost to employers. Supported by its partnership with FDIC-insured national bank Pathward, N.A., Clair has 300,000 active businesses on the platform across 41 different industries, increasing retention and financial wellness amid front-line worker shortages. Based in New York, Clair has a team of 78 full-time employees and has raised $69.2M in funding from investors including Thrive Capital, Upfront Ventures, Kairos HQ, and Founder Collective. For more information, visit getclair.com.
National bank, Pathward, announced an extension of its partnership with Clair, an embedded financial technology company providing earned wage advances through payroll and workforce platforms.
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct 8, 2026--
Pavilion Payments, a leading provider of payments and technology solutions for the gaming industry, today announced two key appointments to its executive leadership team. Mary Beth Higgins, who has served as the company’s Interim Chief Financial Officer, has been named Chief Executive Officer. Alyssa Beaver has been promoted to Chief Revenue Officer. Both appointments are effective immediately.
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The appointments strengthen Pavilion’s executive leadership team as the company continues to grow, deepen customer partnerships, and expand its presence across the gaming industry.
Mary Beth Higgins Named Chief Executive Officer
Higgins joined Pavilion as Interim Chief Financial Officer, bringing more than 30 years of executive leadership experience across the gaming industry. Her career spans senior CEO and CFO roles with both casino operators and gaming technology providers, with deep expertise in business transformation, strategic financial management, capital formation, acquisition strategy and investor relations.
“Since joining Pavilion as Interim Chief Financial Officer, Mary Beth has demonstrated the strategic judgment, operational discipline and leadership needed to guide the company forward,” said Zach Sadek, Senior Partner at Parthenon Capital. “Her deep experience across gaming and financial services, combined with her understanding of Pavilion’s business, customers and opportunities, gives us tremendous confidence in her leadership as CEO. We look forward to working closely with Mary Beth and the Pavilion leadership team as the company builds on its momentum and enters its next phase of growth.”
Prior to joining Pavilion, Higgins served as Chief Executive Officer of Affinity Interactive and its sister company, Gaming and Hospitality Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: GHACU). Earlier in her career, she played a key role in the formation of VICI Properties, the real estate investment trust created through the restructuring of Caesars Entertainment Operating Company (CEOC). Higgins also served as Chief Financial Officer of CEOC, the largest subsidiary of Caesars Entertainment Corporation, overseeing the financial operations of 38 casino properties across 14 U.S. states and five countries. Her previous leadership roles include CFO positions at Global Cash Access Holdings, now IGT, Herbst Gaming, and Camco, Inc.
Higgins currently serves on the Board of Trustees of Chatham Lodging Trust (NYSE: CLDT), where she is Lead Director, and on the board of Klai Juba Wald Architects. She holds a B.S. from the University of Southern California and an MBA from Memphis State University.
Alyssa Beaver Promoted to Chief Revenue Officer
In her new role, Beaver will lead Pavilion Payments’ revenue strategy and organization, with responsibility for driving sustainable growth, strengthening customer relationships, and expanding Pavilion’s presence across the gaming industry. She will work closely with the company’s Product, Operations, and Service teams to align customer needs with Pavilion’s broader business and growth strategy.
Beaver joined Pavilion in May 2025 as Senior Vice President of Sales, where she led the company’s brick-and-mortar sales organization and helped strengthen its approach to customer engagement and enterprise growth. Prior to Pavilion, she led Sales and Marketing at Passport Technology, where she grew EBITDA substantially over four and a half years while securing several key enterprise accounts. Her experience also includes enterprise sales at Apriva, an omnichannel fintech platform, as well as an earlier role at Paycom supporting its SaaS-based human capital management solutions.
"Alyssa has made a significant impact on Pavilion since joining the company, strengthening our sales organization, deepening customer relationships, and bringing a disciplined, collaborative approach to growth," said Higgins. "What sets her apart is her ability to connect our customers’ needs with the work happening across Product, Operations, and Service, creating greater alignment across the organization. As we enter our next phase of growth, expanding Alyssa’s leadership across our revenue organization is a natural progression and an important step forward for Pavilion. I have tremendous confidence in her leadership and in what we will accomplish together."
"Pavilion has significant momentum, and I’m incredibly proud of what our team has accomplished together," said Beaver. "As we enter our next phase of growth, my focus is on deepening our customer relationships, creating greater value for operators, and ensuring we’re aligned across the organization to deliver on our commitments. Growth starts with understanding what our customers need and building partnerships that last. I’m honored to take on this role and excited about what we can accomplish together."
About Pavilion Payments
Pavilion Payments enables the world’s gaming entertainment leaders to create exceptional consumer experiences and maximize spend across physical and digital properties. As the industry’s leading omnichannel payment solutions provider, Pavilion delivers integrated software and funding options that make it easy for players to fund play, access winnings, and manage transactions securely.
With a full suite of cashless, digital, and in-person payment technologies, Pavilion Payments helps operators enhance the guest experience, streamline operations, and drive growth across the gaming ecosystem.
For more information, visit pavilionpayments.com.
Alyssa Beaver, Chief Revenue Officer, Pavilion Payments
Mary Beth Higgins, Chief Executive Officer, Pavilion Payments
