Stablecoin Settlement Is Here, but Seamless Off-Chain Money Movement Is Not
The stablecoin ecosystem reached a new milestone as Project Agora proved cross‑border blockchain settlement involving seven central banks, while SoFi became the first U.S. national bank to issue a public‑chain stablecoin. Circle expanded its payout infrastructure through a partnership with Nium, and Mastercard secured a New York crypto license to broaden stablecoin services. These advances demonstrate that on‑chain value transfer works, but the industry now faces the tougher challenge of moving that value seamlessly into existing off‑chain financial processes.
Orikan Launches PayStay Marketplace in the United States, Expanding Digital Access to Parking Payments and Services
Orikan has launched PayStay Marketplace in the United States, a digital platform that consolidates parking payments and related mobility services into a single, user‑friendly interface. The solution supports pay‑as‑you‑go sessions, major credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and offers a...
India Pilots Digital Rupee for Aid Distribution, Cross-Border Payments
India’s Reserve Bank is testing the digital rupee as a tool for welfare payments, piloting food‑benefit disbursements that leverage the currency’s instant settlement and programmable features. The RBI also announced cross‑border pilots with Singapore and the United Arab Emirates to...
Regulators Tighten Global Payments Rules to Strengthen Security and Fight Fraud
Regulators across Europe, Asia and Latin America are revising real‑time payment frameworks, embedding digital identity checks and stricter AML controls. The changes aim to close the fraud gap created by instant transfers, forcing banks and fintechs to embed compliance in...
Stripe Adds AI‑agent Payments via Link Wallet, Pushing Autonomous Checkout
Stripe announced that its Link wallet can now be used by AI agents to complete purchases, expanding the nascent market for autonomous checkout. The move follows a wave of agent‑centric tools from Visa, OpenAI and cloud providers, while consumer trust...
BIS Project Agorá Prototype Shows Tokenized Payments Settle Cross‑Border Transfers in Seconds
The Bank for International Settlements announced that its Project Agorá prototype settled wholesale cross‑border payments in seconds, dramatically lowering credit and settlement risk. Seven central banks and more than 40 financial institutions participated, and the initiative now moves to real‑value...
Fed’s Top Payments Official to Exit
Mark Gould, the Federal Reserve’s inaugural chief payments officer, announced his retirement after a 35‑year career, leaving the Fed to find a successor later this year. During his five‑year tenure as chief payments executive, Gould oversaw the launch of FedNow,...
Prompt: Robinhood Wants AI Agents to Trade, Spend on Your Behalf
Robinhood unveiled two AI‑driven products—Agentic Trading and an Agentic Credit Card—allowing retail investors to let autonomous agents execute trades and manage purchases. The tools shift the platform from offering advice to performing transactions on users' behalf. CEO Vlad Tenev framed...
Governance Becomes the Product as B2B Payments Go Real-Time
Finix’s new integration with Visa’s Cybersource platform underscores a broader shift in B2B payments from pure transaction speed to embedded governance. As enterprises weave payment capabilities into procurement, accounts‑payable automation, and treasury workflows, real‑time policy enforcement, audit trails, and dynamic...
Inside the Prediction Markets: DraftKings Bets on the CFTC Model
DraftKings submitted its first CFTC event‑contract templates, positioning its DKeX exchange under federal derivatives oversight rather than a patchwork of state licences. Simultaneously, a Google employee was charged with insider trading on Polymarket after earning roughly $1.2 million from non‑public Year‑in‑Search...
Risks of Robinhood Using AI Agents to Trade, Make Purchases
Robinhood has rolled out Agentic Trading and an Agentic Credit Card, allowing users to attach AI agents that can execute trades and make purchases on their behalf. The platform touts safety‑first measures such as limited account access, spending caps, optional...
ClearBank Europe Launches Digital Asset Rails
ClearBank Europe has launched Digital Asset Rails, a programmable liquidity platform that settles cross‑border payments with instant euro payouts via SEPA Instant. The service is live for regulated institutions and uses Circle’s EURC stablecoin to convert fiat into fully reserved...
Weecover Unveils API-First Insurance Payments Tool
Weecover has launched an API‑first Insurance Payment Orchestration Module that plugs into any ERP, CRM, core insurance or e‑commerce platform. The tool supports cards, direct debit, Bizum, PayPal, Apple Pay and Google Pay and works with providers such as Stripe, Paycomet and...
Lendingkart Finance’s Loss Widens 16% To ₹333 Cr In FY26, Revenue Falls 62%
Lendingkart Finance, the NBFC arm of the Indian fintech Lendingkart, posted a net loss of ₹333.3 crore (≈ $40 million) in FY26, a 16% increase from the prior year. Operating revenue plunged 62% to ₹327.3 crore (≈ $39 million), driven by a sharp drop in loan...
Upstart and Pagaya Vie for AI Lending Supremacy as Revenues Top $1 B
Upstart and Pagaya Technologies each reported FY 2025 revenues above $1 billion, with Upstart at $1.1 billion and Pagaya at $1.3 billion. Their stocks jumped 4.66% and 3.99% respectively, underscoring a fast‑moving battle for leadership in AI‑driven credit underwriting that could reshape consumer...
Mastercard Teams with Chainlink to Route Fiat Directly Into On‑Chain Protocols
Mastercard has partnered with decentralized oracle provider Chainlink to create a direct fiat‑to‑crypto gateway for its global card network. The joint solution uses Shift4 Payments, Zero Hash and Swapper Finance to move retail liquidity into decentralized exchanges in a single,...
Rego Updates Family Wallet Platform and Other Digital Transactions News Briefs From 5/29/26
Rego Payment Architectures rolled out an upgrade to its Family Wallet platform, giving parents direct control over children’s accounts. Fresha announced expanded Marketplace capabilities aimed at boosting client connections for beauty and wellness providers. Bilt disclosed a new partnership with...
Paxos Wins SEC Approval to Clear U.S. Stocks on Blockchain
Paxos Securities Settlement Company received full SEC registration to provide clearing and settlement services, becoming the first blockchain‑based central securities depository for U.S. equities. The approval lets Paxos bypass the legacy DTCC infrastructure and settle eligible stocks on a same‑day...
Letter From the Editor: Digital Banks Have Different Answers to What Banking Should Become Next
Digital banks have moved beyond the original goal of simply digitizing traditional banking. Two dominant logics have emerged: access‑first neobanks such as Chime and Cash App that focus on low fees and frictionless cash flow, and European platform banks like...
Fidelity's Digital Asset Division Grows Into One of the Largest Institutional Crypto Operations
Fidelity Investments has expanded its digital asset division, now ranking among the world’s largest institutional crypto operations. The move builds on a decade‑long effort that began with Bitcoin mining in 2015 and adds custody, trading and research services for institutional...
Online Bank for Business: A Smarter Way to Manage Money While Running a Growing Business
Bluevine is positioning its online bank for small businesses as a vital alternative to traditional banking, promising real‑time transaction posting, instant balance updates, and integrated financial tools. The service targets solo entrepreneurs, agencies, and growing teams that lack dedicated finance...
Dutch FinTech Silverflow Targets International Growth as Transaction Volumes Approach One Billion Annually
Silverflow, the Dutch cloud‑native payment processor, closed a €37 million ($40 million) Series B round and is now accelerating its international push. The firm has moved into larger headquarters, added more than 20% headcount and secured a new US client, while transaction volume...
TrueLayer Acquires Dutch Fintech In3 to Offer Credit at Checkout
UK‑based payments fintech TrueLayer has acquired Dutch credit‑specialist In3 to add buy‑now‑pay‑later and other credit options to its open‑banking platform. The deal, terms undisclosed, expands TrueLayer’s pay‑by‑bank network—currently focused on debit—to become Europe’s only provider offering both debit and credit...
Lenders Have Been Reading Subprime Consumers All Wrong
A PYMNTS Intelligence report reveals that roughly 44 million subprime Americans are reshaping their payment habits away from traditional revolving credit. Only 35% hold a credit or store card, and the share that regularly revolved balances fell from 50% in mid‑2023...
Why Sumsub Is Closing the Gap Between Login and KYC
Sumsub has released an Auth0 marketplace integration that embeds identity verification, AML screening, and fraud controls directly into authentication flows. The plug‑in triggers KYC checks at sign‑up or sign‑in, allowing firms to confirm a user’s identity before granting access. By...
Mitek Joins FICO Marketplace as Fraud Threats Escalate
Mitek Systems has added its Verified Identity Platform (MiVIP) to the FICO Marketplace, the first composable enterprise decision‑making hub. The move lets firms pull real‑time identity intelligence into FICO’s risk‑decision workflows, from digital onboarding to account recovery. As fraudsters adopt...
Brazil Nixes Settlement for Stablecoin eFX
Brazil’s central bank issued Resolution 561, prohibiting fintechs and payment providers from settling cross‑border transactions with stablecoins such as USDT or USDC. The rule takes effect on Oct. 1, restoring traditional bank spreads, correspondent fees and longer settlement times. While stablecoins...
Meilleurtaux Accelerates AI Strategy as First Broker to Launch Mortgage Lending App on ChatGPT in France
Meilleurtaux, France’s leading omnichannel financial‑services broker, has unveiled a mortgage‑lending app that runs inside OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The new tool lets consumers simulate borrowing capacity and assess purchase feasibility using natural‑language prompts, eliminating traditional web forms. Powered by the Model Context...
The 20 AI Fintech, InsurTech & Compliance CEOs You Need to Know in 2026
The AI Insider’s 2026 roundup spotlights 15 fintech, insurtech and compliance CEOs reshaping finance with artificial intelligence. Leaders like Brex’s Pedro Franceschi and Chainalysis’ Jonathan Levin are leveraging AI to automate spend management and freeze $34 billion in illicit crypto funds,...
Mercury Secures $200M Series D at $5.2B Valuation, Eyes US Bank Charter
Mercury announced a $200 million Series D financing round that lifts its valuation to $5.2 billion. Led by TCV, the round brings total capital raised to roughly $700 million and fuels the company’s plan to apply for a U.S. national bank charter.
Ascend Bank Aims for July Launch
Ascend Bank, the virtual bank backed by Thailand's CP Group, is slated to launch in July, senior CP executive Suphachai Chearavanont announced. The rollout follows a June 19 mobile‑app debut by rival Clicx Bank, a joint venture of Krungthai Bank,...
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Best Student Loans for June 2026
Investopedia evaluated 16 private student‑loan providers using 92 criteria and over 1,400 data points, publishing its June 2026 rankings. SoFi earned the top spot overall, praised for competitive rates as low as 2.98% APR, no origination fees and member discounts. Earnest...
Do Small Banks Have an AI Advantage? Inbenta’s Merlin Bise Makes the Case
Inbenta CTO Merlin Bise argued that smaller banks can outpace larger rivals in AI adoption by leveraging ready‑made, agentic AI solutions. Inbenta’s platform, used by over 1,000 firms, delivers 95% response accuracy in more than 100 languages while meeting safety...
Mastercard Secures NY BitLicense, Accelerating Stablecoin Push
Mastercard Transaction Services (U.S.) LLC has been granted a New York BitLicense, allowing the payments giant to run stablecoin and other digital‑asset services in the state. The approval comes as Mastercard finalizes a $1.8 billion acquisition of BVNK, underscating its aggressive...
AAZZUR Teams Up with Corpay to Enhance Cross-Border Payments
Embedded‑finance platform AAZZUR announced a partnership with Corpay Cross‑Border, the international payments arm of Corpay Inc. The deal merges AAZZUR’s orchestration layer with Corpay’s global network, letting businesses embed payment, expense and foreign‑exchange services through a single API. AAZZUR’s Smart...
Fresh Connect Breaks Out Four Different Grocery Cards
Fresh Connect, the payment platform behind food‑as‑medicine programs, announced the rollout of four new prepaid grocery cards plus a Companion App that instantly shows eligible items. Since its 2020 launch, the service has funded $12.3 million in fruits and vegetables for...
Beeline Holdings to Acquire 100% of AI Real Estate Company
Beeline Holdings announced a non‑binding LOI to acquire 100% of MagicBlocks, an AI‑driven real‑estate technology firm, for an estimated $1 million. The deal will give Beeline full control of MagicBlocks’ proprietary AI, blockchain settlement and tokenization platforms, bolstering its digital mortgage...
ECB to Extend TARGET Hours Enabling Pontes, 24/7 DLT Settlement
The European Central Bank announced it will extend the operating hours of its TARGET settlement platform, while the core RTGS system will remain unchanged for now. The change is intended to ease liquidity pressures in the instant payment system TIPS...
Central Bank-Backed Tokenization Pilot Exposes Settlement Problem Assets Alone Cannot Solve
Australia’s Reserve Bank and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre completed Project Acacia, a wholesale‑scale pilot that examined how tokenised assets settle across four money forms – traditional RBA exchange settlement accounts, a pilot wholesale CBDC, tokenised commercial‑bank deposits and...
FDIC Proposes First AML Rule for Stablecoin Issuers Under BSA
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) board approved a notice of proposed rulemaking that would extend Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and sanctions compliance to FDIC‑supervised permitted payment stablecoin issuers (PPSIs). The rule, required by the GENIUS Act, mandates AML/CFT programs,...
PayPal Veteran Launches AeQuitas Invest to Tackle Gender Bias in VC Funding
Molly Huyck, a two‑decade PayPal veteran, unveiled AeQuitas Invest (AQi), a Regulation Crowdfunding marketplace dedicated to women‑founders. The launch comes as venture capital allocated to women‑led companies fell to 1.1% in 2025, down from 2.1% in 2024, and seeks to...
ROLLER and Adyen Launch Embedded Financing for 3,000+ Venue SaaS Customers, $1M Loans in First Week
ROLLER has teamed up with payments giant Adyen to roll out ROLLER Capital, an embedded financing product for its venue‑management platform. Within the first week of launch, more than $1 million in loans were funded for operators across the United States,...
DTCC to Link Tokenized Securities Platform to Stellar Network by 2027
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation announced it will integrate its tokenized securities service with the Stellar public blockchain, targeting rollout in the first half of 2027. The move positions Stellar as a key infrastructure layer for tokenized stocks, ETFs...
IPC, 24X National Exchange Team up to Deliver Market Data Connectivity for Overnight US Equities Trading
IPC Systems has partnered with 24X National Exchange to provide market‑data connectivity for overnight U.S. equities trading. Leveraging IPC’s resilient, low‑latency global network, the collaboration enables 23/5 trading and real‑time data distribution across key Asia‑Pacific hubs such as Hong Kong,...
Tieto Banktech Layers AI Defence Against Payment Fraud
Tieto Banktech’s Financial Crime Prevention unit has rolled out a multi‑layered AI architecture that blends real‑time detection with human oversight. Its Token Enrolment Monitoring (TEM) system now blocks 70‑80% of token‑based card fraud before activation, while Card Transaction Monitoring (CTM)...
Wealthsimple to Offer Early Access to IPO Trading
Wealthsimple announced that its platform will now allow retail investors to request shares of selected U.S. and Canadian IPOs at the initial offering price, a privilege traditionally reserved for institutions and accredited investors. The service operates through allocations from investment...
Digital Debit Card Use Surged in the First Quarter, a Galileo Report Finds
Galileo’s inaugural Debit Spend Index shows debit card usage climbing sharply in Q1 2026. Restaurant transactions rose more than 18%, while saved‑card purchases grew to 24% of all debit activity and posted an average ticket of $61.23, 65% higher than...
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Belmoney, DigiPay Enable Congolese Remittances From France and Belgium
Belmoney and DigiPay Group have launched the DigiTransfer mobile app to serve the Congolese diaspora in France and Belgium, enabling instant transfers to mobile‑money wallets and bank accounts in the Republic of Congo and the DRC. The service routes funds...
SEC Grants Clearing Agency Registration to Paxos Securities Settlement Company
Paxos announced that its subsidiary, Paxos Securities Settlement Company (PSSC), has been granted SEC registration as a clearing agency under Section 17A of the Securities Exchange Act. The approval caps a seven‑year effort that began with a 2019 no‑action letter and...
Fingerprint’s Bet on Policy-Led Communications Oversight
Regulators are shifting from simple record‑keeping to active, policy‑driven supervision of all communications, prompting firms to seek automated solutions. Fingerprint, recognized as a market leader in eComms surveillance by the Global State of RegTech 2026 report, offers a unified platform...