
Crypto.com has introduced a U.S. retirement account that lets investors hold both cryptocurrencies and traditional stocks within a single IRA. The product offers tax‑deferred or tax‑free growth, up to a 5% contribution match, and no account fees, positioning it as the first blended crypto‑stock IRA from a crypto‑native exchange. The launch follows Crypto.com’s recent conditional approval from the OCC to operate a federally regulated trust bank, enhancing its custodial capabilities. The move arrives as Fidelity rolls out crypto‑only retirement accounts, highlighting a competitive shift toward hybrid offerings.

Japan has authorized Toshiba Digital Engineering to install private‑sector applications in the unused space of the My Number Card’s IC chip, turning the national ID into a platform‑style digital identity. The move allows regulated businesses to run services on the...

Automated bank account verification protects AP departments from payment fraud. Fraudsters now use AI‑generated emails and deep‑fake audio to hijack bank‑change requests, leading to costly losses. Real‑time verification confirms account ownership, status, and matches supplier data while creating an immutable...

Nigerian neobank Kuda, serving over seven million customers, built its own core banking application, NERV, to overcome scalability and reliability limits of a third‑party provider. Starting in 2019 with a modest pre‑seed fund, the engineering‑first team ran NERV in parallel...

The Merchant Payments Ecosystem (MPE) conference highlighted three major fintech developments. OpenAI’s partnership with the Pentagon sparked industry backlash over ethical AI use. Capitec Pay launched instant bank‑payment capabilities for Paystack merchants, streamlining payouts. BitGo Europe expanded its crypto‑as‑a‑service offering...

Papua New Guinea is advancing its digital public infrastructure (DPI) with a pilot that uses the SevisPass digital ID and SevisWallet app to enable remote KYC for online bank account openings, led by MiBank and the government. The rollout is...

Bermuda announced a phased plan to become the world’s first fully on‑chain national economy, partnering with Circle and Coinbase. The strategy relies on regulated pilots that embed stablecoin‑based payments into government services, banks, insurers and merchants. Rather than mandating crypto...

The Bank of Japan announced an expansion of its blockchain sandbox to experiment with settlement of central bank reserves using tokenized deposits, targeting interbank and securities use cases. Governor Kazuo Ueda said the pilot will test connections to existing systems...

GAIB is a decentralized finance platform that lets users mint the AID stablecoin by depositing USDC and then stake it to receive sAID, a liquid token that accrues yield. The protocol allocates staked capital to real‑world AI compute, robotics infrastructure,...

Wealthsimple has become the first Canadian fintech to gain direct membership in the global SWIFT network, allowing it to send and receive international wire transfers without intermediaries. The integration will launch this spring with a flat $15 fee for outgoing...
Data analytics is reshaping risk assessment from a reactive practice into a predictive science across finance, insurance, healthcare, and transportation. Predictive modeling, machine‑learning, and real‑time dashboards now enable firms to forecast exposure, micro‑segment customers, and allocate capital with greater confidence....

Paysafe reported mixed Q4 2025 results, posting a $25.2 million net loss despite 4% revenue growth to $438.4 million and a 10% rise in transaction volume to $43.9 billion. The company highlighted its new Paysafe Wallet, now available in 18 countries with 500,000 users...
Digital‑wallet platforms from Apple and Google are evolving beyond simple payments, with startups like Badge turning them into interactive commerce channels. Badge’s infrastructure lets brands push real‑time, location‑aware offers and loyalty updates directly to a consumer’s wallet. The San‑Francisco‑based company...

Botkeeper, a venture‑backed accounting automation platform, shut down in February after a rapid loss of its core client base. CEO Enrico Palmerino explained that 30‑40% of revenue came from just ten large accounting firms, and a wave of mergers among...

African ecommerce still wrestles with deep‑rooted trust gaps, turning checkout into a conversational process often mediated through WhatsApp. Local platforms like Paystack, Flutterwave, and Egypt’s Fawry have succeeded by offering instant bank transfers, mobile‑money protocols such as STK Push, and cash‑at‑kiosk...

EuroCrowd warns that Germany’s investment crowdfunding market is only partially aligned with the European Crowdfunding Service Provider Regulation (ECSPR). The country continues to rely on the Vermögensanlagengesetz (VermAnlG) and subordinated‑loan structures, creating a parallel regulatory channel that sidesteps ECSPR. As...

The European Banking Authority’s temporary relief from full PSD2 compliance for Crypto‑Asset Service Providers (CASPs) ended on March 2, 2026, forcing firms to secure payment‑institution authorisation or cease payment services. Providers already approved under PSD2 can continue, while those with pending applications...

SoFi and Mastercard announced a partnership to embed the neobank’s USD‑backed stablecoin, SoFiUSD, into Mastercard’s global payments network. The integration will allow SoFiUSD to be used for settlement across the network and on Mastercard’s Multi‑Token Network, a digital‑asset platform. Launched...
Blitz, founded in April 2024 by Alex Roa, offers a creator‑payment platform that eliminates traditional net‑90 cycles by delivering payouts in three hours or less. The New York‑based startup integrates with enterprise ERP systems to automate invoice formatting, approval routing, and...

PayPay announced its initial public offering, filing a prospectus under the ticker PAYP. The Japanese mobile‑payments leader plans to list on a U.S. exchange, seeking to raise significant capital for growth. Backed by SoftBank and Yahoo Japan, PayPay aims to...

I have lots of things to say about Robinhood Most of them aren't good. But the credit card is wonderful. Use it for health insurance, car insurance, rent (I sublease so the rent exclusion doesn't get triggered), and just about everything...
Italian insurer Generali has unveiled Generali Core Tech, a dedicated software factory aimed at speeding its digital transformation under the “Lifetime Partner 27” strategy. The factory will manage the “Insurance in a Box” platform, already live in Spain and Switzerland...

Robinhood announced the launch of its Advisor Network, a marketplace that links eligible high‑net‑worth users with independent Registered Investment Advisors. The service targets investors holding at least $250,000 and requires participating advisory firms to manage a minimum of $500 million in...

The article maps the world’s fintech powerhouses, highlighting the United States’ infrastructure giants like Stripe and Plaid, Europe’s regulation‑driven champions such as Revolut and Adyen, Latin America’s Nubank dominance, Africa’s mobile‑money foundation with M‑Pesa, and Asia’s massive transaction ecosystems led...
The Bank of Lithuania has broadened TransferGo's electronic money institution licence, allowing the fintech to keep its core cross‑border money‑transfer and payment‑account services while adding new consumer products. The company plans to roll out TransferGo payment cards across the European...

BitGo Europe GmbH will launch Crypto as a Service (CaaS) across the European Economic Area after securing a MiCA licence from Germany’s BaFin. The company, founded in 2013, already serves over 2,000 institutional clients in 90 countries and went public...

Deloitte & Touche issued an independent attestation confirming that Anchorage’s USAT reserve report complies with the AICPA 2025 criteria for asset‑backed, fiat‑pegged tokens. The report, covering reserves as of Jan. 31, 2026, shows $17.6 million in assets backing 17.5 million USAT tokens, leaving a...
Bloomberg has upgraded its real‑time news feeds by introducing tickerised, machine‑readable streams that can be customized by instrument, company or macro theme. The new service embeds proprietary sentiment models and granular metadata, delivering actionable signals directly into trading and risk‑management...

HSBC upgraded Block (SQ) to a Buy, lifting its price target to $77, implying about 19% upside. The upgrade follows Block’s announcement of cutting more than 4,000 jobs, reducing its headcount to roughly 6,000 employees. HSBC’s analyst Saul Martinez highlighted...

Nasdaq exploring 24/7 trading. Blockchain already runs 24/7. The future of markets isn’t closing bells — it’s onchain infrastructure. 🔗
Taranis Capital has introduced an invitation‑only Global Investor Newsletter to satisfy growing demand from sophisticated investors worldwide. The publication will deliver strategic updates on the firm’s flagship funds, which span data centres, biotech, disruptive technology, green biotech and real estate....
A top‑ten Spanish bank overhauled its sanctions screening by deploying SymphonyAI’s SensaAI for Sanctions, slashing false positives by 91.8% across transaction and customer checks. The AI overlay processes unstructured text with generative models and refines match accuracy using predictive analytics,...
The Napier AI/AML Index 2025‑2026 estimates that AI‑driven anti‑money‑laundering (AML) solutions could shave $183 billion off global compliance costs, up from $138 billion last year, and generate $3.3 trillion in economic benefits. The United States tops potential AI savings at $26.18 billion, followed by...

Google Cloud and Italy’s Nexi Group have signed a memorandum of understanding to create an agentic commerce infrastructure across Europe. The deal merges Google Cloud’s artificial‑intelligence and data platforms with Nexi’s payment‑processing network, and backs open‑source standards such as the...
Near Field Communication (NFC) is moving beyond contactless payments to become a core tool in anti‑money‑laundering (AML) and know‑your‑customer (KYC) processes. By reading encrypted chips in e‑passports, ID cards and digital badges, NFC provides instant, tamper‑evident verification of identity data....

In a February 2026 speech to Italy’s Parliamentary Committee, ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone outlined the digital euro initiative, stressing its role in modernising payments and reinforcing trust through democratic legitimacy. He framed the project as a strategic response...
Devexperts announced that its DXtrade multi‑asset trading platform will integrate theScreener’s investment intelligence, giving brokers instant, actionable research within the trading interface. The partnership adds multi‑language equity, sector and market insights to DXtrade’s existing support for stocks, options, futures, crypto...
Safaricom’s Ziidi Trader, launched on the M‑Pay platform in early February, sparked a surge in Nairobi Securities Exchange activity, with daily equity trades climbing from under 8,000 to more than 25,000. The app gives roughly 38 million M‑Pay subscribers the ability...

Programmable money embeds conditional logic into cash movements, turning treasury processes from batch‑based to event‑driven. It leverages a mix of digital instruments—CBDCs, stablecoins, and tokenised deposits—to meet varied operational needs. AI‑guided payment libraries add automation while preserving governance, and quantum‑resistant...

European #WealthManagement has a execution problem: The wealth industry has moved past the era of pilots and proof-of-concepts. Five execution priorities now define who wins and who falls behind: 1) Cloud resilience; 2) Asset #tokenization; 3) Direct indexing; 4) Advisor-ready wealth aggregation; 5) #AI at scale. 🆕#WealthTech...
New piece from me The AI Doom Loop has started Block fired 4,000 people. Stock ripped 24%, Was AI the Excuse or Reason or Both? https://t.co/cgZ6m2HSv7
AI governance is emerging as the key differentiator for Indian NBFCs, according to Piramal Finance’s Chief Data & Analytics Officer Markandey Upadhyay. Piramal has built an AI‑native operating model that embeds unified data, agentic decision systems, and risk‑specific scorecards across...
Real-time payments are table stakes. Big Tech is owning the experience while banks process transactions in the background. If you do not innovate payments, you become invisible. Watch the full episode here: https://t.co/BQNDlxuwMR https://t.co/YiBUQo0kvm

LATEST: 🇺🇸 Stablecoin talks missed the White House deadline, but lawmakers are still aiming for a mid-March Clarity Act markup amid ongoing disputes over yield and DeFi. Source: Crypto in America https://t.co/VXDrD0zcRk

Stripe announced expanded support for its Shared Payment Tokens (SPTs) to include Mastercard Agent Pay, Visa Intelligent Commerce, and buy‑now‑pay‑later providers Affirm and Klarna. The new capabilities let AI‑driven agents initiate payments using network‑issued tokens and BNPL options without exposing...
Agentic commerce is coming Zero human companies and robot money are part of this. Via @OnchainLu @artemis
UAE banks ditch SMS OTPs: biometrics, in-app approvals, and tighter AI governance become the new security baseline UAE banks must stop using SMS and email OTPs by end-March 2026 More UAE banks now tighten security with biometrics logins, AI fraud checks -...

14 sleeps until #MPE2026 with my @chyppings hat on! Join me in Berlin: https://t.co/9CufQZHi6S Move payments forward, #MPE2026 is your place. @mpecosystem #Payments #Fintech #MPEBerlin #ILoveMPE https://t.co/RUvU7kFcyZ
🌏External asset managers target 2026 growth through new markets and partnerships: Improving customer experience and engagement ranked the top priority by 63% of the respondents. Survey by @BankofSG v/@finews_asia: https://t.co/hM7kRNOqAV #WealthManagement #WealthTech
“I’m relatively bearish on the current state of spot equity markets on-chain… it’s some sort of SPV… and during off periods you can’t necessarily redeem. There are dislocations… it’s very clunky and it’s really hard to scale.” https://t.co/oUCYvsGuLW