FedNow Fortifies Security for Instant Payments
On April 28, the Federal Reserve’s Financial Services arm will roll out a network intelligence API for FedNow participants. The tool supplies receiver‑level account data and leverages historical FedNow transactions to generate instant risk insights before payments are executed. After a testing phase that began last fall, banks and service providers can now use the API to strengthen fraud controls while preserving the service’s speed. FedNow, launched in July 2023 as the first new nationwide payments infrastructure in four decades, positions the feature as a cornerstone for its security roadmap.
Building a Profitable Neobank by Doing Everything the Hard Way With Ali Niknam, CEO of Bunq
In this episode, Ali Niknam, founder and CEO of the Dutch neobank bunq, explains how he built a profitable, user‑centric bank by self‑funding it with nearly €100 million (≈ $108 million) and launching with a paid subscription model instead of free plans. He...
CloudWalk Raises $1.1B Through FIDC Issuance
Brazilian fintech CloudWalk secured $1.1 billion from institutional investors through a new FIDC‑linked issuance, led by Bradesco BBI and supported by major banks such as Itaú BBA and BTG Pactual. The capital will be used to purchase receivables from merchants on...
FASB Wants Companies to Reveal Stablecoin Holdings
The Financial Accounting Standards Board voted to propose that companies disclose the dollar value of any stablecoins held as part of cash equivalents each fiscal year. The rule would require firms to break out material stablecoin balances alongside traditional cash‑equivalent...
Anchorage Digital Adds Marinade-Powered Staking Strategies for Solana Clients
Anchorage Digital has integrated Marinade Finance’s Solana‑staking engine into its custody platform and Porto self‑custody wallet, giving institutional clients on‑chain yield without leaving custody. The service offers two options: a compliance‑focused pool of about 30 KYC‑verified validators and a dynamic...
Woori Bank Inks MOU with Vietnam’s Viettel Group to Boost Digital Banking in Asia
South Korea's Woori Bank signed a memorandum of understanding with Viettel Global, the overseas arm of Vietnam's largest mobile carrier, to deepen digital banking cooperation. The deal follows tens of millions of dollars in prior financial transactions and a high‑level...
OnePay Adds Credit-Building Card to All-in-One Financial App
OnePay announced the Builder Card, a credit‑building product embedded in its all‑in‑one financial app. The card requires no credit check, security deposit, interest or late fees, and automatically sets aside cash from the user’s OnePay Cash balance to cover purchases...
Schematic Secures $6.5M and Debuts Stripe App to Enable Real‑Time SaaS Pricing
Schematic announced a $6.5 million financing round, pushing its total capital to more than $12 million, and will unveil a Stripe‑integrated app that enforces pricing and entitlement rules at runtime. The move targets SaaS firms struggling with AI‑driven, usage‑based billing models.
The Club for Growth Tells Senate Banking Committee to Push Forward the CLARITY Act
The Club for Growth sent a letter to the Senate Banking Committee urging swift action on the CLARITY Act, legislation designed to clarify the regulatory split between the SEC and CFTC for digital assets. The nonprofit argues that regulatory uncertainty...
JetBlue Vacations Launches BNPL Option with Upgrade’s Flex Pay
JetBlue Vacations announced a partnership with Upgrade’s Flex Pay to offer a buy‑now‑pay‑later (BNPL) product for flight‑and‑hotel packages. The service, embedded in the airline’s website, app and call‑center, lets customers choose monthly installments with no late fees. The move marks...
DOJ Charges Two Chinese Nationals Over $700 Million Myanmar Crypto Scam
The Justice Department indicted Huang Xingshan and Jiang Wen Jie for operating a cryptocurrency fraud compound in Myanmar that trafficked workers and stole more than $700 million from Americans. The case marks a major step in a cross‑border crackdown on crypto‑related...
Coastal Pay Launches Next-Generation Payment Gateway
Coastal Pay unveiled a next‑generation payment gateway that eliminates both monthly and transaction fees for merchants. The platform leverages compliant surcharging and dual‑pricing to shift processing costs to cardholders while optimizing interchange rates. Features include a PCI‑compliant hosted page, QR‑code...
BIS Report Warns Banking Services From Crypto Firms Carry Risk
The Bank for International Settlements warned that cryptocurrency exchanges acting as multifunction cryptoasset intermediaries (MCIs) are offering banking‑like services—such as lending and yield products—without the capital, liquidity and prudential safeguards that traditional banks must meet. The report cites the 2022...
Crowd Street Launches Integrated Self-Directed IRA Account Setup with Equity Trust
Crowd Street announced an integrated self‑directed IRA solution built with Equity Trust, letting members open and fund retirement accounts directly on the platform. The new workflow eliminates the need to juggle multiple custodial sites, offering digital document signing and funding...
Tether Freezes $344M USDt Stablecoins at US Law Enforcement Request
Tether announced that it has frozen approximately $344 million worth of USDT tokens following a formal request from U.S. law‑enforcement agencies. The freeze targets wallets suspected of facilitating illicit activity, and the tokens remain inaccessible pending further investigation. Tether said the...
Payments Canada Strengthens Fraud Prevention Defenses and Broadens Membership Base
Payments Canada announced two strategic moves to strengthen Canada’s payment ecosystem. Patrick Boudreau, a veteran of fraud prevention at TransUnion and RBC, will join as Vice‑President of Fraud and Financial Crimes on April 30, 2026, overseeing the National Payment Fraud...
MoonPay Launches Fiat-to-Stablecoin Virtual Accounts in New York
MoonPay has introduced fiat‑to‑stablecoin virtual accounts in New York, letting businesses turn ACH and SWIFT deposits into stablecoins and settle them directly to non‑custodial wallets via a single API. The service, built on technology from Iron—acquired by MoonPay in 2025—receives a...
Bank of Thailand: Missing Piece in the Country’s Digital ID Stack Is Data Portability
Thailand’s central bank boasts a robust digital ID system with over 30 million users and a PromptPay payments network that processed a record 96 million transactions in a single day, a ten‑fold rise since 2019. Deputy Governor Daranee Saeju warned that without...
Bread's Strong Earnings Tempered by Economic Worries
Bread Financial reported a strong first‑quarter performance, with loan balances climbing to $18.1 billion, a 2% year‑over‑year increase, and credit sales up 7% to $6.5 billion. Revenue rose 5% to $1.02 billion and net income surged 32% to $4.15 million, beating analyst forecasts. Credit...
Aave Must Incentivize Market, Not Rely on Bailouts
"If a single person is not going to come out and bail out the entire protocol ... you need to get the market to do it ... How do you get the market to do it? you offer them more...
Sunbit Launches on Stripe, Unlocking Flexible Financing for In-Person Service Businesses Nationwide
Sunbit announced general availability of its consumer financing solution on Stripe, letting U.S. in‑person service businesses embed no‑fee, 0% interest credit directly into Stripe’s payment flow. The integration offers a 90%+ approval rate, soft credit checks, and flexible plans from...
Guardian Launches: Non‑Custodial Coordination for Institutional Crypto
When we incubated @0xMiden at Polygon labs, the thesis was clear. Privacy-first infrastructure built for serious on-chain finance. Today they shipped Guardian. A non-custodial coordination layer that solves one of the hardest problems in institutional crypto. Users retain their keys. Providers...
Plaid Hits $500M ARR, AI‑Powered Growth Surge
We just published @Plaid's 2025 Shareholder Letter. 2025 highlights • >$500M ARR (~40% YoY); profitable; strong margins • >1m new connections every day • New products >20% of revenue growing at >90% • Major progress in Credit Scoring and Fraud Analytics • AI has accelerated...
Skinny Is Good
The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City granted Kraken Financial a limited‑purpose master account, giving the crypto exchange direct access to the Fed’s payment infrastructure. This marks the first time a digital‑asset platform can route transactions through the central bank...
ETH Lending Stuck with Low Yields, Insufficient Risk Premium
"Lenders in the ETH market were facing a risk of impairment on loans that were illiquid with indefinite duration and no defined maturity. "The risk premium they should be receiving were not being compensated at a yield of 3%, but...
Fintech Book Library: Curated Reads Shaping Finance's Future
Today we're launching our Fintech Book Library, a curated discovery hub for the books shaping the future of finance. 👉 Explore the library: https://t.co/FfXpCy9BJQ From AI in banking to digital assets, embedded finance to wealth management, every book we've discussed at...
The WealthTech Platform Built to Help Advisors Demonstrate Real Value
Picton Investments launched 2ND ENGINE in 2024 as a WealthTech platform that equips financial advisors with institutional‑grade, multi‑asset risk analysis. The solution moves beyond data aggregation, delivering defensible insights that can be turned into clear client narratives within minutes. AI...
Canton Touted as DocuSign for Tokens, Faces Scrutiny
.@gluk64 on @unchained_pod: Canton is “a DocuSign for tokens.” @yuvalrooz disagreed — and pointed to $400B of Broadridge repo to make the case that Canton is load-bearing. @hosseeb asked whether any of this is different from how USDC works. Full segment: https://t.co/WuHWGRuDtO
Judge Converts TRO to Preliminary Injunction, Vacates May Hearing
NEW: The Arizona federal judge in the Kalshi/CFTC v. AZ prediction markets lawsuit will be converting the TRO granted to the CFTC into a preliminary injunction after the parties submit proposed language, vacates PI hearing scheduled for May 6th. https://t.co/Lc4JPo30wX
Council Issues ‘I’ Item Note on PSD3
On 23 April 2026 the EU Council issued an ‘I’ Item Note on the draft Payment Services Directive 3 (PSD3) and the accompanying Payment Services Regulation (PSR). The Council simultaneously published final compromise texts for both the Directive and the...
Aave's Umbrella Module Under‑Capitalized, Fails to Cover $250M Exploit
"The Aave Umbrella module, meant to cover bad debt, which had $250 million going into the exploit, seemed like a nice cushion, because Aave has had less than $5 million worth of bad debt throughout its history. "But now we see...
Kuwait Makes My Identity Mobile App Mandatory for Online Remittance Authentication
Kuwait’s Central Bank has ordered every licensed exchange company to verify customers through the government‑run My Identity mobile app before processing any online international money transfer. The directive requires real‑time identity checks via the app for each transaction and documentation...
CEX.IO Teams with OpenPayd to Deliver Real‑Time Fiat Settlements for Institutions
CEX.IO has joined forces with embedded‑finance platform OpenPayd to revamp its fiat payment rails, introducing multi‑currency accounts and near‑real‑time euro settlements. The move aims to give institutional traders a treasury view comparable to traditional banks and to accelerate the exchange’s...
Ripple CEO Says XRP Could Overtake Ethereum’s $282B Market Cap
Ripple chief Brad Garlinghouse warned that XRP, now valued at about $88 billion, could eclipse Ethereum’s $282 billion market cap if its price climbs above $4.58. The outlook rests on Ripple’s aggressive acquisitions, expanding blockchain utility, and strong ETF inflows.
I2c to Join Nacha Payments 2026 Panel on Navigating Legal Risk in Embedded Finance
i2c Inc. announced that its General Counsel, Meredith Carlo, will speak on a panel at Nacha’s Smarter Faster Payments 2026 conference in San Diego. The session, titled “Embedded Finance and ‘Payments‑as‑a‑Service’ Models: Navigating Legal Risk,” will examine contractual, compliance and oversight...
SEC Likely to Keep P1 Million Minimum Capital for Lending
The Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission is expected to retain the P1 million (≈ $18,200) minimum paid‑up capital rule for lending firms that do not run online lending platforms (OLPs). At the same time, the agency plans to restrict such low‑capital entities...
Green Check Data Signals Cannabis Market Stabilization as 4/20 Shifts to Loyalty-Driven Event
Green Check’s 2026 4/20 transaction data shows a 120% surge in sales, driven primarily by repeat customers rather than larger baskets. Edibles revenue jumped 54% year‑over‑year, while average order values fell, indicating a shift toward high‑frequency, low‑ticket purchases. Despite 85%...
Jump Expands Leadership Team to Accelerate Next Phase of AI Operating System Growth
Jump, the AI operating system for financial advisors, announced four senior hires to accelerate product, customer experience, and partnership growth. The moves follow a $80 million Series B round that brings total capital to $105 million. Jump’s platform, now used by over 30,000...
Forte Bank Chooses CSI as Core Technology Provider to Accelerate Growth and Modernize the Customer Experience
Forte Bank, a Wisconsin community lender, has selected CSI's NuPoint core banking platform together with the Apiture digital‑banking suite. The integrated solution combines core processing, loan origination and an API‑first digital front end, allowing the bank to modernize operations and...
Musk Could Acquire PayPal for $45B, Merge Into X
At $45 billion valuation - Elon Musk should just buy PayPal and integrate it into X (finally).
Nuuvia and Emmy Award-Winning Biz Kid$ Launch Financial Literacy Program Giving Financial Institutions the Latest Growth Hack for Winning Over...
Nuuvia announced a partnership with Emmy‑award‑winning Biz Kid$ to embed the program’s financial‑literacy content into its white‑labeled youth banking platform for community banks and credit unions. The integration delivers gamified, TikTok‑style lessons that link real money to budgeting, saving, and entrepreneurship....
Nexi and Visa Partner to Modernise German Card Issuing
Nexi and Visa have signed a long‑term partnership to deliver fully managed card‑issuing solutions to German banks. The collaboration introduces Nexi Ready, an end‑to‑end service that lets banks launch Visa‑branded cards without handling complex operations, compliance, or ongoing development. By...
Kraken Calls for Reform of Digital Asset Taxes as Micro-Transactions Overwhelm Everyday Investors
Kraken disclosed that it issued more than 56 million Form 1099‑DA tax documents for the 2025 tax year, with the majority tied to micro‑transactions—nearly a third under $1, over half $10 or less, and three‑quarters below $50. The exchange argues that current...
Morpho Agents - DeFi Lending Built for Machines
Morpho launched a beta suite called Morpho Agents on April 8, delivering a command‑line interface and a knowledge‑base Builder for AI agents to interact with its DeFi lending platform. The tools give agents read, simulate, and write access across Ethereum...
Schroders Capital & Hannover Re Integrate Tokenisation Capability Into ILS Platform
Schroders Capital’s Private Debt & Credit Alternatives team and reinsurer Hannover Re have added a tokenised capability to their insurance‑linked securities (ILS) platform, completing the first real‑world collateralised reinsurance transaction on the system. The new model uses blockchain‑based smart contracts to...
Why AmEx Is Going Full Steam Ahead in AI
American Express announced an aggressive push into artificial intelligence and “agentic commerce,” an AI‑driven shopping experience. The strategy includes the recent acquisition of Hypercard Network, an AI expense‑management platform, and the launch of an Agentic Commerce Experiences SDK for merchants....
Tether Freezes $344 Million in USDT on Tron Tied to 'Illicit Activity'
Tether announced it has frozen $344 million worth of USDT on the Tron blockchain after coordination with U.S. law‑enforcement. The freeze affects two wallets flagged for suspected illicit activity, which blockchain‑analytics firm AMLbot linked to scam‑related documents. The move arrives amid...
AI Advisor Beats $5k Advisors, Disrupts Wealth Management
Your financial advisor charges $5,000/year and doesn't know what you had for breakfast. Astor connects to your actual brokerage, reads your real portfolio, and texts you AI-driven advice in real time. $200M in assets connected in under 2 months. The wealth management industry...
Amex CEO Gushes over Next Gen
American Express posted its strongest quarterly growth in three years, with first‑quarter revenue of $18.9 billion, up 11%, and net income rising 15% to $2.97 billion. Spending by Gen Z cardholders surged 38% YoY and Millennials 13%, while older cohorts grew only modestly....
The CLARITY Act: Blockchain Association, Crypto Council for Innovation Join to Demand Senate Moves on Crypto Market Infrastructure Legislation
The Blockchain Association and the Crypto Council for Innovation have jointly urged the Senate Banking Committee to move forward with the CLARITY Act, a market‑infrastructure bill that would create a federal framework for digital assets. The appeal is backed by...