Coinbase's Spam Alerts Reveal Shocking QA Lapses
What an embarrassing climb down after spamming users with endless push alerts encouraging them to gamble. Either he's lying, or this is the level of QA before Coinbase pushes code to PROD. Either way, bad sign.
Coinbase's Sports‑Bet Spam Marks Major Crypto Misstep
Coinbase spamming its users to bully them into sports gambling might turn out to be one of the great unforced errors for the blunder-prone crypto exchange
Fintech Hype Proved Wrong as Synapse Collapses
Isn’t this just a paraphrasing of @astrange’s “every company will be a fintech” thesis? Which not only didn’t come true, but saw thousands of consumers lose millions of dollars when Synapse, which Strange was a board member of, catastrophically collapsed.
Prediction Markets Ignore Legislation About Themselves
Hmmm.... @Kalshi & @Polymarket have dozens of prediction markets on whether or not Congress will pass certain laws.... Yet none on if Congress will advance laws, like the PREDICT Act or The Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act, that regulate prediction markets🤔...
Crypto Card Firm Offers $15k to Suppress Story
A person claiming to represent CinCin, the Russia-focused "no KYC" crypto card service I published a story about on Sunday, offered me $15,000 to delete it. I declined the offer. https://t.co/V8HgNcX2iQ
Teen Banking App Urges Kids to Research Dogecoin
Apparently teen banking app Step, an Evolve Bank & Trust partner, also encouraged kids to "do their own research" before considering investing in DOGECOIN https://t.co/HKioRJQbyq
CinCin Crypto Card Exploits Corporate Loophole for Laundering
CinCin: cheers to money laundering? This "no KYC" crypto card leveraged the same Bluebanc+Sutton Bank corporate card loophole Fintech Biz Weekly reported on publicly *six weeks* ago. https://t.co/q2xHeLkzlp
Bilt Users Report Unpaid Rents and Poor Support
Impacted Bilt users continue to complain about rent payments not being made to their landlords, difficulty accessing human customer support:
Corporate Trustee Seeks Eviction of Disabled Girl, Mother
Evolve, which is the corporate trustee for a disabled girl and her mother, is literally trying to evict them from their home, according to a lawsuit filed in a Louisiana court: https://t.co/SwUgZI86FG
Seeking Insight on Bridge's Current Service Issues
Anyone have context on what's going on w/Bridge at the moment? Or just garden variety client service issues? My DMs are open.
BorrowerJustice Urges CFPB Oversight of Bilt's Risky Transition
Consumer advocacy group @BorrowerJustice has asked the CFPB to bring Bilt under its supervision, owing to the risk posed to consumers from the company's problematic transition to new bank partner Column and processor Cardless. https://t.co/l6UDTQyZjI
HeyBilt Faces Rent Payment Chaos, Customer Service Crisis
Forbes coverage of the ongoing rent/mortgage payment issues & customer service meltdown at @HeyBilt: https://t.co/cHSguZwiNL
HeyBilt Blocks Unlinking External Bank Accounts, Raises UDAAP Concerns
Apparently once you link an external bank account to @HeyBilt you **cannot** unlink it. That feels pretty UDAAP-y. https://t.co/nKf1Jn1So7
Bilt Card Subjects Rent Payments to CARD Act Rules
Either rent/mortgage payments are via Bilt card (CARD Act, TILA apply) or they are not. I suspect some users' confusion is due to Bilt's communication of how housing payments work in "Bilt 2.0" https://t.co/vORPcpuwYe
TomoCredit Sues Critic for $1M Defamation Claim
TomoCredit, which numerous complaints on BBB & TrustPilot call a "scam" and "fraud," has filed a meritless defamation lawsuit against me, personally. The company is pressuring me to remove articles & posts, and, per its suit, is asking the court for...
Bilt Users Outraged over Rent Payment Delays and Dead‑end Support
Bilt users are PISSED. Delayed or bounced rent payments. Customer service from unhelpful AI bots with human agents seemingly missing in action. Any info on what’s happening? My DMs are open.
CashApp's Credit Risk Management Highlights Intentional Crime Controls Lapses
Still thinking about @AlexH_Johnson & my pod convo about @CashApp's plan to sell its internal credit scores to third parties That the company seems to be able to manage *credit risk* reasonably effectively makes its financial crime control failures look even...
Revolut Seeks U.S. Banking Charter After Securing UK License
Revolut, which struggled but eventually obtained its U.K. bank charter, has applied for one in the U.S., the company announced this morning: https://t.co/rNHcC6IgWC
Admin Bundles Crypto Charters with Tailored Regulation
A reminder that this admin is a package deal. Regulatory "tailoring," but also a bunch of new crypto, stablecoin, and ILC charters
Banking Revolution Explored: New Episode with Jason Henrichs
Folks who enjoyed today’s newsletter on the rapidly changing banking ecosystem should listen to this ep of @Breakingbanks1 (as seen on HBO, IYKYK) with @jasonhenrichs — https://t.co/MuzhnOMJtq
Robinhood Push Alerts Push Margin Trading Like a Dealer
Robinhood using push alerts to suggest trading on margin… like a dealer tempting a junkie https://t.co/NEGFyQTVzg
Crypto.com's $15M Trump Donation Raises Charter Conflict
Crypto .com parent co donated a combined $15M to Trump entities. It just received conditional approval of its trust bank charter app. Even if these things AREN'T related, and I hope they're not, the appearance of a conflict of interest is...
Double Standards: Swiss Bank Targeted, Binance Pardoned
The hypocrisy of cutting off a Swiss Bank for facilitating payments to Iran and Russia, while the administration pardons CZ & family does business with Binance... https://t.co/p2PfBgrfDs
Bank Groups Oppose Crypto Charters, Spare World Liberty
Interesting that Bank Policy Institute and Independent Community Bankers of America pushed back to the OCC on trust charter apps from @coinbase @Ripple @circle -- but *NOT* from World Liberty Financial 🤔
Regulation Should Cover Crypto Exchanges and Wallets Equally
I trust this would apply equally to crypto and stablecoin exchanges and wallets, right? https://t.co/WxYHETT3uw
Demand Risk Mitigation Details for Efficient Money Transfers
My unsolicited comms advice: if you're going to go on at length about making it more "efficient" to move money to places like Venezuela (sanctions risk) and Colombia (narcotrafficking/money laundering risk), also explain how (if?) you mitigate these risks. https://t.co/rN8g9ibBhf
Bridge Cuts Support for High‑risk Jurisdictions, Including Russia
Stripe's stablecoin subsidiary Bridge has dropped support for ultra high-risk jurisdictions it supported as recently as Dec 2025, including Russia, Lebanon, Libya, Gaza, and South Sudan, new analysis of the company's documentation shows: https://t.co/zRVzXKZPsu
Rewards Drive AI Agents to Abandon Paper Checks
Ya'll realize people (and businesses) still use... paper checks, right? User payment preferences are rarely about fees. Will the AI agents get rewards for using a Colossuspay card? If not, why would their human switch from rewards CC? Bc it helps...
Uber Pro Driver Card Remains on Evolve via Branch
Uber Pro card/bank account for drivers is also still on Evolve (via Branch) -- https://t.co/YVTyf3zXvR
Mexico ATM Provides 3‑Hour Theft Insurance
ATM in Mexico offers a 3-hour insurance policy in case you get robbed after withdrawing money https://t.co/KsC1PfnNqW
Users Unaware Funds Are Held at Evolve, Echoing SVB Lessons
I wonder how many end users of certain products/services built on Stripe and Airwallex realize funds are held at Evolve. It's almost like no one learned anything from SVB failing because the gov't bailed out uninsured depositors. https://t.co/024w8yneu7
Modern Treasury Unveils Payment Orchestration and Stablecoin Strategies
New pod just dropped: @ModernTreasury CEO @mattgmarcus & lead counsel @regulatorynerd joined me to discuss MT's new payment service provider capabilities, who needs payment orchestration, the stablecoin gold rush & so much more. Find it where ever you get pods or...
Surprised SBF and CZ Missing From Advisory Committee
At this point, honestly surprised that SBF and CZ aren't on this advisory committee- https://t.co/6eDUVHAPxL
Bankrupt Fraudster Now on Fox Promoting Killer Robots
I don't mean to alarm anyone, but the guy who lost track of $95 million of depositors' money is on Fox talking about building killer robots-
Venezuelan Crypto App Kontigo Secures License From Top Official
It appears Y Combinator-backed Venezuelan crypto app Kontigo received a new license from SUNACRIP. License is signed by Anabel Pereira Fernández, who also holds roles as Venezuela’s economy minister, vice president of the central bank, and on the board of...
Sutton Bank Shuts Down No‑KYC Bitsika Card
Well, looks like Sutton Bank deactivated at least ONE of the "no KYC" bitsika cards marketed as useful for evading U.S. sanctions on Iran: https://t.co/octdNESoOh
Mastercard Crackdown Forces UnCash Shutdown
"No KYC" site UnCash abruptly shuts down following my reporting, calling @Mastercard's actions a "corporate guillotine" and "death sentence" -- https://t.co/18pB9101xT
Bank Is Just a Third‑tier Kids Fintech Partner
The bad news: the “bank” is a third-tier kids fintech app that partners with Evolve Bank & Trust
No‑KYC Crypto Cards Exploit Loopholes, Face Sudden Shutdowns
So-called "no KYC" crypto cards use corporate issuing loopholes & outright fraud - making such services susceptible to abrupt shutdowns One such "no KYC" provider, bitsika, explicitly markets its service as a way to circumvent sanctions on Iran Deep dive in Fintech...
YC Founders Overpaying Fees for Stablecoin Transfers
YC bros so desperate to pump stables they'll pay 0.5% x $500,000 instead of using a free ACH 😂
Coinbase Quietly Removes Kontigo After $20M Funding
Coinbase, which led Kontigo’s $20m funding round announced less than two months ago, appears to have quietly scrubbed the company from its website:
Stripe's Stablecoin Gambit Risks a Heavy Hangover
This quote from The Information's latest story on Stripe's stablecoin infra subsidiary Bridge is interesting. Seems like Stripe drank the kool-aid. Now the question is, how bad will the hangover be? https://t.co/J2DnaC7z02
Third‑party Users Linked to Kontigo Wallets Face Account Closures
Looks like some users of third-party platforms who have interacted w/Kontigo wallets are having their accounts shut down:
Warsh’s Fed Nomination Backed by Andreessen and Crypto Bank
Fed chair nominee Warsh has the seal of approval from a16z's Marc Andreessen & cofounder/CEO of Anchorage Digital, the crypto bank where Warsh has served as an advisor "since the very beginning" -- https://t.co/pnDnonrw2N
Varo Raises $124M Despite $92M Loss
The sunk cost fallacy is alive & well: Varo announced it has raised ANOTHER $123.9 million. Varo posted a net loss of $91.7 million in 2025, per its just-released call report. https://t.co/iGHX1ILeL9
WSJ Validates My Kontigo App Investigation
WSJ confirms my reporting from Jan 11th on Y Combinator- and Coinbase-backed @kontigo_app Get the full story at Fintech Biz Weekly / support independent journalism with a paid subscription:
Kontigo's SUNACRIP License Expired;
One add'l q for @jecastillof: has @kontigo_app renewed its SUNACRIP license, which expired on Jan 8, 2026? Crixto, the other Venezuelan crypto platform, was granted a license on Jan 2, valid through end of 2026.
Seeking Transparency on Kontigo's Internal Review and Sanctions Compliance
To avoid any claims to the contrary, I have emailed @kontigo_app CEO @jecastillof a set of questions regarding the company's "internal review" and stated commitment to comply w/U.S. laws & sanctions: https://t.co/5NwmienN2p
2026 Still Stuck Using Outdated Microdeposit Verification
Literally insane anyone still needs to do microdeposits for bank account verification in our year of the lord 2026 https://t.co/jubY3sc9qB
Tech Is Erasing the Line Between Banks and Fintech
Distinctions between banks and other kinds of FIs blurring because of technology.... can you guess what year this was written? https://t.co/WcajuBHnoU