Conferma, the expert in travel and expense reconciliation and settlement technology, has appointed two senior executives to help further grow its travel booking and settlement offering to the corporate travel sector.

Steven Read has been appointed Chief Operating Officer. He joins from Phones4U Group where he was IT Director and responsible for delivering trading and call handling systems across all the company’s distribution channels including 450 retail outlets.  He has also held senior IT and business analyst positions at Nestor Healthcare Group and Reuters.  He holds a degree in Managerial and Administrative Studies from Aston University Business School.

Andy Mathews has joined as Financial Controller responsible for business and strategic planning, as well as developing commercial relationships and new business opportunities.  ACA qualified, he previously held senior finance and company secretary roles with MoneyExpert, the FSA regulated on-line financial services comparison service, and Surgicare, the cosmetic and weight loss surgery provider.  He holds a law degree from the University of Sheffield.

Both positions report to Simon Barker, Chief Executive, Conferma, who commented: “I am delighted to welcome Steve and Andy to the team at an exciting time in our development to help more in the travel sector benefit from our booking and settlement offering.”

Conferma recently announced an agreement with AirPlus International to offer travel management companies and hotel booking agencies an automated payment solution for hotel direct billing, enabling them to offer an automated bill back solution to their customers, whilst at the same time eliminating the need to arrange for hotel credit arrangements or assume additional credit risk.  Similar agreements are already in place with Barclaycard and American Express.