Up Fintech Q1 2026 Revenue Jumps 26% as COO Aron Lee Credits Diversification
Up Fintech Holding reported first‑quarter revenue of $154.9 million, up 26.3% year‑over‑year, while client assets grew 28.4% to $58.9 billion. COO Aron Lee attributed the performance to a broader product mix and geographic diversification, even as the firm absorbed a one‑time RMB 410 million regulatory penalty.
EU Antitrust Pressure Drives Visa's $673M Investment and Mastercard's Real‑Time Test
Facing heightened EU antitrust scrutiny, Visa announced a $673 million investment in European payments infrastructure while Mastercard entered a real‑time cross‑currency settlement test. The moves aim to preserve market share as Europe pushes for sovereign payment solutions.
UK Payments Initiative Rolls Out First New A2A Open‑Banking Scheme in 20 Years
The UK Payments Initiative (UKPI) consortium of major banks and fintech firms launched a new account‑to‑account (A2A) Open Banking payment scheme, the first UK payment rail introduced since Faster Payments in 2008. The framework promises recurring, automated payments for government,...
Why Enterprises Need Their Own Blockchain - Kyle Jenke | ATC #614
In this episode, Kyle Jenke, Chief Business Officer of Optimism, explains why large enterprises are opting to build their own blockchains rather than renting space on existing networks. He highlights three key drivers—product differentiation, economic control, and regulatory compliance—using Bitpanda’s...
How Embedded Payment Solutions Work: 3 Key Benefits (2026) – Shopify
Shopify outlines how embedded payment solutions keep the checkout experience on‑site, offering merchants deep customization, smoother user experience, and simpler operations. Juniper Research projects embedded payments will handle $228 billion in transactions by 2028, a 148% jump from 2024. The piece...
How Taktile Is Building the Operating System for AI-Driven Decisions in Financial Services
Taktile is building an AI‑driven decision operating system for banks, lenders, and insurers, offering a layered platform that adds governance, domain context, and human‑in‑the‑loop controls to foundation models. The Berlin‑origin startup now operates in New York and London and claims...
AI Can Mimic Bloomberg. Replacing the Terminal Is Another Matter.
The Bloomberg Terminal remains the financial industry’s core information hub, charging roughly $30,000 per seat annually despite mounting competition. AI platforms such as Perplexity’s Computer can replicate basic data feeds and charts, but they lack Bloomberg’s deep network, curated content,...
Wise Europe Faces Belgian AML Probe Over €500 Million in Suspicious Transactions
Wise disclosed that Belgian prosecutors are probing its European subsidiary for more than €500 million in transactions linked to drug trafficking, fraud and corruption. The announcement sent Wise shares down 8% and adds a third regulator to the fintech’s mounting AML...
Robinhood Unveils Agentic AI Trading Feature, Expands SaaS Super‑App
Robinhood introduced Agentic Trading and an AI‑driven credit‑card feature, allowing bots to place trades and make purchases on behalf of users. The beta launches for equities target its 27.5 million customers and $350 billion in platform assets, marking the broker’s most aggressive...
Can Fintech Shape Pacific Nation of Kiribati’s Economic Future?
Kiribati, a Pacific nation of 135,000 people scattered across 33 atolls, faces high costs and limited access to traditional banking. With a GDP per capita of roughly $3,000 and an economy driven by fisheries, public sector jobs, aid and remittances,...
Bitnob Launches Enterprise: Non-Custodial Infrastructure for Institutions
Bitnob unveiled Bitnob Enterprise, a non‑custodial infrastructure platform that lets banks, fintechs and treasury teams build on its wallets, payments, treasury and stablecoin settlement services while retaining full custody control. The offering complements Bitnob Business, a managed solution, giving institutions...
Money20/20 Europe Day One: AI, Decacorns, and the Dawn of Agentic Commerce
Money20/20 Europe returned to Amsterdam with over 7,600 attendees, centering on AI‑driven "agentic" commerce, stablecoins and fast‑moving regulation. Payward, the Kraken parent, announced a series of acquisitions and a $20 bn valuation as it eyes expansion into Asia, Africa and Latin...
79% of Middle Market Firms Plan Embedded Finance Upgrades Within a Year
According to PYMNTS Intelligence’s survey of 515 senior U.S. leaders, 79% of middle‑market companies—those with $250 million to $1 billion in revenue—plan to upgrade their embedded finance capabilities within the next year. By contrast, 63% of firms above $1 billion intend similar upgrades,...
Paypercut Secures €5M to Scale Cross-Border Payments in CEE
Paypercut, a fintech focused on Central and Eastern Europe, closed a €5 million (~$5.4 million) seed round, bringing its total capital to €7 million (~$7.6 million). The funding, co‑led by Concentric, Passion Capital and Araya Ventures, will fuel expansion into additional CEE markets and...
US Lendtech Capchase Bags $200 Million in Debt and Equity
Capchase, a U.S. lendtech, secured over $200 million in combined debt and equity financing, including $26 million in equity and a $174 million credit facility led by 01 Advisors. The round attracted institutional investors such as Caffeinated Capital, Thomvest Ventures, Scifi VC, Bling...
COLIBRIX ONE × BitGN: New Benchmark Reveals AI Reliability Gap
COLIBRIX ONE and BitGN released the results of ECOM1, a large‑scale benchmark that stress‑tested autonomous AI agents in live ecommerce and acquiring environments. Over 1,000 engineers in 100 cities generated 1.6 million scored trials and nearly 34 million API calls, exposing a...
How Tokenised Gold Is Expanding Access to Financial Ownership
Tokenised gold has surged from $1.3 billion at the end of 2024 to over $5 billion in early 2026, driven by new fractional‑ownership platforms that let investors buy as little as ten cents of gold. Ubuntu Tribe, led by former KPMG and...
How Can the UK Catch up on Stablecoins?
The Financial Times examines why the United Kingdom is trailing the United States and the European Union in stablecoin adoption and regulation. It outlines the fragmented UK approach, the absence of a clear supervisory regime, and the competitive advantage enjoyed...
FOMO Pay to Launch DuitNow QR Acceptance in Singapore Ahead of RTS Link Opening
FOMO Pay, a Singapore‑based payment institution, will roll out DuitNow QR acceptance for merchants in Singapore, letting Malaysian travelers pay with their native banking apps in Malaysian Ringgit while settlements arrive in Singapore dollars. The launch is timed ahead of...
Illinois Pushes Swipe‑fee Ban to 2027, Extending Relief for Banks
The Illinois General Assembly voted Monday to delay the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act until July 1, 2027, marking the second postponement amid ongoing litigation. Bank trade groups hailed the move, while merchant advocates warned it deepens the cost gap for retailers.
Helping Businesses Optimize Network Costs with the Visa Digital Commerce Authentication Program (DCAP)
Visa launched the Digital Commerce Authentication Program (DCAP) to lower fraud and reward U.S. merchants that share richer transaction data, offering a five‑basis‑point interchange reduction. Stripe responded by integrating DCAP with its Authorization Boost, which dynamically routes eligible payments through...
Franklin Templeton Wires BENJI Money-Market Fund Into MoonPay Trade for Onchain Stablecoin Swaps
Franklin Templeton has integrated its tokenized money‑market fund BENJI with MoonPay Trade, giving eligible institutions the ability to swap stablecoins for shares of the US government money‑market fund on‑chain. The partnership links Franklin’s Benji Technology Platform with MoonPay’s institutional routing...
Stablecoins Will Eventually “Leapfrog” Real-Time Rail Payments, Finance Leaders Say
At the 2026 Canadian Finance Summit, ATB Financial’s Brian Ford argued that stablecoins will eventually leapfrog Canada’s long‑delayed real‑time rail (RTR) payment system. The panel, featuring Cybrid and Paytrie executives, agreed that blockchain‑based stablecoins offer a cheaper, 24/7 settlement alternative...
As the EU Attacks U.S. Giants, Visa and Mastercard Get Local
Visa and Mastercard are ramping up European technology investments as the European Central Bank pushes for local payment alternatives. Visa announced a $673 million infusion to build data‑processing centers, AI labs, and a Frankfurt innovation hub, while Mastercard joined the Target...
Trump’s FinTech Executive Order and Fed Payment Account Proposal Set New Regulatory Course
On May 19, 2026 President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order to overhaul outdated financial‑service regulations and promote fintech competition. A day later the Federal Reserve unveiled a limited‑purpose payment‑account proposal that directly addresses the order’s call for greater...
European Consumers Back Payment Sovereignty
A new Enfuce report surveying 3,000 European consumers and 500 payment‑industry executives reveals rising anxiety over reliance on U.S.-owned payment networks. Six‑two percent fear geopolitical tensions could restrict access, while 73% want stronger European control of domestic systems. Eighty‑five percent...
Ripple Is Bringing Its Regulated RLUSD Stablecoin to MENA’s Biggest Crypto Market
Ripple announced on June 2 that its dollar‑pegged stablecoin RLUSD is now available to institutional clients in Turkey through integrations with BiLira, Bitexen and Bitlo. The move targets Turkey’s massive crypto market, which handles roughly $200 billion in annual transactions—four times...
Stablecoin Infrastructure Takes Center Stage at Money2020
Here's what broke at #Money2020 and it's all stablecoin infrastructure: 🔵 Coinbase × https://t.co/7uZkqCJxfj — https://t.co/7uZkqCJxfj is launching stablecoin acceptance for its 1,000+ enterprise merchants, powered by Coinbase Payments. Consumers can pay in USDC or USDT; merchants settle in USD through...
AI Pushes Advisors Toward Complex, High‑trust Services
AI wealth management is going to compress the middle of the advice market. Portfolios, rebalancing, tax harvesting, reporting, and basic planning become software work. Human advisors will still matter, but the bar moves up: complexity, trust, estate, tax, behavior, and judgment. Research gets...
Shift4 Technologies Posts 34% YoY Revenue Surge, Beats Q4 2025 Guidance
Shift4 Technologies announced Q4 2025 revenue of $1.189 billion, a 34% year‑over‑year increase that topped the high end of its guidance. The fintech firm also posted a 50% adjusted EBITDA margin and outlined a 2026 outlook that includes $2.5‑$2.6 billion in GRLNF...
OpenPayd to List on Nasdaq via $276M SPAC Deal, Targeting Unicorn Valuation
OpenPayd has signed a definitive business‑combination agreement with Titan Acquisition Corp., a SPAC, to list on Nasdaq under the ticker OP. The deal could deliver up to $276 million in gross proceeds and values the fintech infrastructure firm at unicorn status,...
Guide to Testing Fintech Apps: Fintech Applications, Wallet, and Application Testing
Fintech app testing ensures security, compliance, and reliability for financial applications before real users depend on them. Global App Testing (GAT) provides independent human QA to validate high‑risk journeys such as onboarding, transfers, and payments, complementing automated test suites. The...
UK Payments Initiative Launches New Open Banking Scheme As TrueLayer Rolls Out Recurring Pay By Bank Payments
The UK Payments Initiative (UKPI) has launched, creating the first new UK payment scheme in nearly 20 years and uniting more than 30 banks and fintech firms around a commercial‑grade open‑banking framework. The scheme introduces commercial variable recurring payments (cVRPs),...
Eye on Faster Payments: Payfinia’s RTP Integration; Aeropay’s Jack Henry Tie-In
Payfinia has completed an integration with The Clearing House’s RTP network, enabling its Instant Payment Xchange platform to connect financial institutions directly to the real‑time payments rail. The company already supports FedNow and has several credit unions live on RTP,...
Crypto.com Goes Multi-Asset with TradingView Integration
Crypto.com Exchange has become an official broker on TradingView, letting users link accounts and execute trades directly from the charting platform. The integration opens access to traditional assets such as equities and commodities, as well as tokenized real‑world assets and...
Worldline & ING Complete First European Agentic Payment Transaction In Production
Worldline and ING have completed Europe’s first live end‑to‑end agentic payment in production using Mastercard’s network. An AI‑driven merchant agent selected a wedding‑anniversary gift for an ING cardholder, obtained the customer’s approval, and processed the transaction across the Netherlands and...
Exclusive: Wallester Expands to UK with EMI Authorisation
Estonia‑based payments fintech Wallester has secured FCA authorisation as an Electronic Money Institution, clearing the path for a UK launch in Q3 2026. The licence enables the company to offer embedded finance services, including custom physical and virtual cards, corporate...
Losses Widen at UK Fintech Monese in Eight Month Delayed Accounts
UK fintech Monese reported a pre‑tax loss of £15.9 million (about $20.2 million) for 2024. Revenue slipped to £12.2 million ($15.5 million) after the spin‑off of its B2B arm XY B, which also removed £3.1 million ($3.9 million) of recharge income. Restructuring expenses surged to more than...
The Sharpei Lending Edge: Maria Azofra with Anna Barber
Sharpei, an AI‑native operating system, is redesigning equipment financing by automating the pre‑qualification stage that traditionally takes 20‑30 days. The platform transforms manual document collection into a two‑hour AI‑driven process, targeting U.S. lenders with a white‑label solution. By partnering with...
Crossmint Launches Agentic Cards API Leveraging Smart Visa Tech
Crossmint has introduced an Agentic Cards API that lets developers attach eligible US‑issued Visa credit and debit cards to AI‑driven agents on platforms such as OpenClaw, Claude Code, and Hermes. The service uses Visa Intelligent Commerce to tokenize card data,...
SUNRATE Makes FXC Intelligence Top 100 Cross‑Border Payments List for 2026
SUNRATE has been named among the Top 100 Cross‑Border Payment Companies for 2026 by FXC Intelligence, its third consecutive inclusion. The fintech highlighted its expansion across 190+ countries and its growing infrastructure in Asia, Europe and the Middle East. The...
Revolut Launches Beta to Thousands in India Ahead of Full Rollout
Revolut confirmed that a few thousand Indian users are now accessing a beta version of its app, marking the first live rollout in the country. The controlled onboarding aims to fine‑tune core product functions before a mass launch, which the...
Stellar CEO Says Clarity Act Would Help, but Tokenization Isn't Dependent on It
Stellar Development Foundation CEO Denelle Dixon announced that the DTCC has chosen Stellar as the first public blockchain for its upcoming tokenized securities settlement platform. Stellar’s tokenized real‑world assets surged from $1 billion in December to roughly $3 billion within five months,...
Affirm Launches UK BNPL Partnership With Stripe
Affirm and Stripe announced an expanded partnership that will bring the buy‑now‑pay‑later (BNPL) solution to UK‑based Stripe merchants starting July 2026. The integration lets online retailers add an “Affirm at checkout” option, turning the payment step into a decision moment...
Walmart’s Answer to Apple Pay Wants to Be Your Favorite Financial App
Walmart is launching OnePay, a fintech platform aimed at rivaling Apple Pay. The service now boasts 6 million monthly active users, twice the count from a year ago, and processes $50 billion in annualized payments, also a 100% increase. Backed by Walmart’s massive...
Amy Lee Launches Singapore Gulf Bank, the First Crypto‑friendly Bank Targeting Wealth Managers
Amy Lee, niece of Singapore’s founding prime minister, has inaugurated Singapore Gulf Bank (SGB), the first crypto‑friendly bank aimed at high‑net‑worth investors. Backed by the Whampoa Group and Bahrain’s sovereign fund Mumtalakat, SGB recorded $4 bn in deposits and $12 bn in...
Binance Rolls Out Commission‑Free U.S. Stock and ETF Trading, Adds Tokenized Equity Plans
Binance has launched commission‑free trading of more than 7,000 U.S. stocks and ETFs, allowing fractional purchases as low as $5. The service runs 24/5 through its ADGM‑regulated broker Nest Trading, and the exchange has outlined a future tokenized‑equity product called...
Juspay Accelerates Global Click to Pay Expansion With Mastercard Engage
Juspay, an Indian payment‑tech and orchestration provider, has joined Mastercard’s Engage partner program to launch Click to Pay globally after a successful pilot in Brazil. The partnership grants Juspay access to biometric passkey authentication, card tokenisation and streamlined checkout, tools...
RedotPay Connect Launch Cuts B2B Payment Fees by Up to 70% with Stablecoin Gateway
RedotPay rolled out RedotPay Connect at Money20/20 Europe, a B2B gateway that lets merchants accept stablecoins and settle in USD, EUR or GBP while slashing merchant discount rates by as much as 70%. The solution taps a global base of...
Building for the Future: Making Change Simple on GOV.UK Pay
GOV.UK Pay has processed over £9 billion (about $11.4 billion) in 135 million transactions during its ten‑year run supporting public‑sector services. The platform is switching its non‑Crown card and pay‑by‑bank provider from Stripe to Adyen, affecting roughly 1,000 local authority, police and armed‑forces...