Know What's Happening in FinTech
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Daily
Every morning
Weekly
Tuesday recap
Credit unions are accelerating digital transformation, with the 2025 Credit Union Innovation Readiness Index showing an 8.5% rise in early technology adoption among the smallest institutions. However, many still rely on legacy, batch‑oriented core systems that are ill‑suited for real‑time, API‑driven workloads. This mismatch is surfacing as onboarding delays, peak‑time slowdowns, and increased support calls, threatening member experience and reputational risk. Experts recommend infrastructure assessments, workload isolation, clear roadmaps, and pre‑launch validation to align back‑end readiness with front‑end innovation.
President Donald Trump announced a proposal to cap credit‑card interest rates at 10% for one year, sparking immediate market backlash. The announcement sent shares of major card issuers and banks tumbling, with Synchrony Financial down 9%, Capital One 8.8%, and...
UK Finance, backed by Deloitte, has published a commercial model for Wave 2 of commercial variable recurring payments (cVRP), extending Open Banking into high‑volume e‑commerce scenarios. The proposal outlines fee structures, purchase‑protection mechanisms and projected outcomes to lower merchant costs while...
Mark Walker and Aishwary Gupta explore how stablecoins are reshaping the global financial system, highlighting their role in bridging fiat and crypto markets. They examine the rapid growth of dollar‑pegged tokens, which now hold over $150 billion in circulation, and the...
A coalition of leading European economists has issued an open letter urging the EU to shield the digital euro initiative from financial‑industry lobbying. They argue that delays or compromises could leave the euro area reliant on U.S. card networks and...
Regulatory clarity, led by the EU’s MiCA/MiCAR framework, is turning blockchain from experimental to mainstream. The phased rollout—initial rules in 2023, stable‑coin obligations in 2024, and full compliance by end‑2024—defines licensing, reserve and disclosure standards for crypto‑asset service providers. These...
BVNK has become a technical partner in the Bank of Lithuania’s CENTROlink system, granting it direct access to the SEPA instant euro payment network and stablecoin settlements on a single platform. The firm claims to be the only licensed provider...
Nationwide has introduced a Call Checker feature in its mobile app to verify whether incoming calls are genuinely from the building society. The service follows research showing UK residents receive an average of eight scam calls per month, with impersonation...
Digital innovation is now a strategic imperative, with businesses adopting cloud, automation and collaborative platforms to streamline operations and scale globally. Access to real‑time analytics empowers leaders to make data‑driven choices, reducing uncertainty and optimizing resource allocation. Enhanced digital channels...
Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech hub, has signed a strategic partnership with Ireland’s Venturewave Capital, marking the first Irish venture‑capital partner for the ecosystem. The alliance targets reciprocal growth pathways for startups in both regions, emphasizing impact sectors such as...
AI answering services use natural language processing, voice recognition, and machine learning to field inbound calls, book appointments, route callers, and sound human. They deliver 24/7 availability, cutting staffing costs and boosting lead capture by 30‑50% for small businesses. Platforms...
“Intelligent Bank” argues that banking is entering a third technological revolution, moving beyond the mainframe and digital eras to an intelligence era driven by AI‑powered insight and delegated decision‑making. The author contends that while digital transformation delivered apps, APIs and...
PepeEmpire positions itself as an Ethereum Layer 2 built around ease of use rather than raw speed. The platform promises fast, cheap transactions while hiding the complex steps that typically burden users, such as network switches, bridging delays, and repetitive approvals....
E‑commerce businesses now generate enterprise‑grade data streams that overwhelm traditional bookkeeping, which assumes a one‑to‑one invoice‑payment relationship. Multi‑channel payouts bundle thousands of orders, fees, refunds and tax obligations into single deposits, obscuring SKU‑level profitability and creating reconciliation nightmares. A specialist...
Fenergo has secured two high‑profile partnerships, deploying its client lifecycle management platform for SMBC Americas and development bank FMO. SMBC will use the solution to automate KYC, reuse verified data across entities, and speed up onboarding as part of a...
Malaysia’s anti‑corruption chief, Azam Baki, warned that the absence of dedicated crowdfunding legislation has enabled abuse of public donations, prompting investigations into three prominent NGOs. He cited cases where money raised for mosque construction was redirected to family members, highlighting...
FinTech Australia welcomed the Productivity Commission’s final inquiry report on data and digital technology, which estimates the Consumer Data Right (CDR) could add up to $10 billion to Australia’s GDP each year. The report rejects a de‑minimis exemption for small banks,...
When there’s a structural weakness in a market that allows companies to grow by violating the law or taking excessive risks, there’s always at least one cartoonishly-bad example that highlights that weakness in a maximally absurd way. In BaaS, that was...
What the future of insurance distribution could look like? → https://t.co/nIXzfWgcCE This is probably one of the hottest topics discussed in the insurance innovation space. CBinsights has mapped tech which are revamping the distribution part of the insurance value chain. https://t.co/6xZogSnXTX
U.S. Treasury, through FinCEN, launched a probe into alleged benefits fraud in Minnesota, focusing on money transmitters in Hennepin and Ramsey counties. A Geographic Targeting Order now requires reporting of cross‑border transfers of $3,000 or more. Officials say the scheme...
Google just standardized how AI shopping agents talk to retailers. That’s not a feature, it’s Google building the rails of the next trillion-dollar commerce layer. Who else even has a shot at owning this? https://t.co/NaLCGBOrW8 @cnbc
YouHodler CEO Ilya Volkov predicts that by 2026 Bitcoin will shift from a speculative token to a macro‑hedge akin to gold, with sovereign funds and pension managers taking modest positions. The Lightning Network is expected to double cross‑border remittance volumes,...
Cowbell, an adaptive cyber and specialty insurer, announced its “Next Cycle” initiative aimed at sustained growth, operational profitability, and aggressive global expansion. The plan follows its recent entry into Australia and includes five strategic drivers such as international cyber expansion...
Boutique offshore banks are gaining prominence as the global economy fragments into regional supply chains, divergent regulations, and heightened digital interdependence. Their lean structures let them navigate multiple jurisdictions, offering bespoke financial solutions that large megabanks struggle to provide. By...
What kind of due diligence did @stripe @Stablecoin @raincards @checkbook do before working with Kontigo, exactly? https://t.co/gpNCUPnzM0
WisdomTree announced it is withdrawing its U.S. XRP exchange‑traded fund application, ending plans to launch the product domestically. The firm continues to offer a Physical XRP fund in Europe, listed on Deutsche Börse Xetra, the Swiss Exchange and Euronext. The...
CoinGecko’s latest report shows that 53.2% of all cryptocurrencies tracked on GeckoTerminal have become “dead coins” as of Dec 31 2025, equating to 11.6 million failed projects. The surge accelerated in 2024‑2025, with 86.3% of total failures occurring in 2025 alone, driven by...
Apparently, you can land American investors for a sanctions evasion app, as long as it's en español. Kontigo's stated investors only include ONE LatAm-based investor🤔
Online cryptocurrency activity is expanding rapidly, increasing the need for clear analysis of complex blockchain transactions. Justice Trace positions itself as a neutral cyber‑trace investigation platform that reconstructs on‑chain activity without participating in trading or providing financial advice. The brief...
Walmart is hedging its AI bets. Gemini from Google, ChatGPT from OpenAI. When consumers start shopping through chatbots, retailers can’t afford to be absent. Link: https://t.co/fjexyHFvSa
Incredible work by @mikulaja @kontigo_app was at best a naive puppet for sanctions violations At worst a knowing participant. The whole stablecoin industry is on notice Get your AML and Sanctions controls buttoned up or there will be blowback It's when not...
A continuous vulnerability assessment program (CVAP) shifts security from periodic audits to daily, automated risk management. It begins with clear objectives, scoped asset inventory, and defined roles, then uses both automated scanners and manual testing to uncover weaknesses. Prioritization leverages...
Fintech Biz Weekly just dropped: Y Combinator & Coinbase invested in a Venezuelan sanctions evasion app linked to the Maduro regime, including, rumors say, the son of Nícolas Maduro: @kontigo_app The story is a LONG one. You know where...
Technology is rapidly reshaping regulatory compliance by embedding automation, artificial intelligence, and blockchain into core risk‑management processes. These tools streamline monitoring, improve data accuracy, and enable real‑time adjustments to complex legal requirements. The article highlights the growing relevance of cybersecurity...
Circle launched the Circle Payments Network (CPN), an open, stablecoin‑based infrastructure that lets banks and fintechs settle cross‑border payments in near‑real‑time using USDC. The network acts as a coordination layer, handling FX quoting, AML/KYC data, and on‑chain token transfer while...
Maalexi, an Abu Dhabi‑based agri‑trade fintech, is launching MAATEX, the world’s first agricultural asset token exchange built on the Avalanche blockchain. The platform will issue Maalexi Agri Tokens (MATs) that represent insured, audited and legally owned commodities, enabling instant cross‑border...
Dark pool decentralized exchanges (DEXs) offer private order execution, shielding trade intent from public order books and reducing front‑running, slippage, and MEV exposure. By settling trades in stablecoins, platforms like quote.trade provide predictable pricing, lower volatility risk, and easier profit‑loss...
Alpaca, the fintech infrastructure provider, reported a year of aggressive product and geographic expansion, adding advanced API features such as Level 3 multi‑leg options, high‑yield cash accounts, and a real‑time tokenization network. The company secured $52 million in Series C funding, obtained regulatory...
Lafayette Digital Acquisition Corp. I priced a $250 million IPO, selling 25 million units at $10 each on Nasdaq under the ticker ZKPU. Each unit contains one Class A share and a quarter of a redeemable warrant, with full warrants exercisable at $11.50...
Chainlink cemented its role as a backbone for on‑chain finance in 2025, expanding from government data feeds to major banking and tokenization projects. The U.S. Department of Commerce used Chainlink Data Feeds to publish macroeconomic statistics, while Mastercard, UBS and...
Anchorage Digital celebrated five years since the OCC granted it the first federal bank charter to a crypto firm, proving that digital‑asset services can operate under strict U.S. banking supervision. The company built a crypto‑native compliance stack, attracted billions in...
🚨On Thursday, almost 600 days since Synapse/Evolve end users had their funds frozen, Evolve announced that it, I guess, “found” some more money — https://t.co/ZpCcjXfezR
Digital communication now floods users with real‑time activity data, but it rarely explains the why behind the what. This persistent visibility forces people to interpret fragmented signals—reply times, status changes, privacy shifts—without sufficient context, turning trust into a mental exercise....
Banks are abandoning siloed underwriting for an integrated, lifecycle‑based loss‑prevention model. AI‑driven credit scoring now pulls alternative data to sharpen borrower risk profiles at onboarding. Dynamic credit limits and real‑time covenant management let lenders adjust exposure before a loan deteriorates....
KPMG Ireland’s latest reports highlight tightening credit markets, rising default rates and heightened borrower distress, especially for SMEs. They also flag power constraints as a decisive factor for data‑centre expansion, with grid‑access delays pushing firms toward hybrid energy solutions and...
In 2025, Coinbase and Binance cemented their status as the world’s leading crypto exchanges, each pursuing distinct strategies that accelerated digital‑asset adoption. Coinbase focused on U.S. regulatory compliance, launching perpetual futures, acquiring Deribit and expanding spot markets to over 350...
Kraken Custody has been chosen as the official custodian for Ethena’s USDe synthetic dollar, providing institutional‑grade protection for the stablecoin’s backing assets. The partnership includes monthly attestations and weekly proof‑of‑reserves reports, reinforcing transparency and risk management. Simultaneously, Kraken announced a...
Exolane launches a DeFi platform that removes discretionary controls by making every component verifiable. The protocol is non‑custodial, uses oracle‑derived pricing, continuously checks collateral on‑chain, and enforces liquidations through immutable code. By prioritising predictability over raw speed, it contrasts with...
Cambodia is under growing international scrutiny as U.S. sanctions target high‑risk sectors linked to cross‑border cybercrime and illicit finance. Recent enforcement actions against Huione Group and Prince Group have highlighted the prevalence of "pig‑butchering" scams in the region. Investor Bao...
EverTrust Group Inc unveiled the ETG Smart Quantitative Trading System, a military‑grade AI investment engine designed for civilian wealth management. The platform promises 24/7 automated execution, data‑driven decision making, and customizable risk profiles. EverTrust also announced a global expansion with...
