Know What's Happening in FinTech
Know What's Happening in FinTech
FinTech Pulse
EMAIL DIGESTS
Daily
Every morning
Weekly
Tuesday recap
EMAIL DIGESTS
Daily
Every morning
Weekly
Tuesday recap
In this episode, host Tedd Huff talks with Ariel Blum of Receive and Bo Jiang of Lithic about how fintech infrastructure can give small businesses instant, interest‑free access to the revenue they’ve already earned, bypassing the delays of legacy banking. They explain why traditional loans and slow settlement cycles cause cash‑flow crises for 82% of SMBs and showcase the Receive‑Lithic partnership that provides real‑time earned‑revenue access via flexible card‑issuing APIs. Key takeaways include treating fintech partners as allies, developing compliance in parallel with product builds, and leveraging full visibility into earnings to make smarter capital decisions. The guests stress that modern, API‑first payment solutions are essential for democratizing liquidity and keeping Main Street afloat.
A Wakefield Research survey of 100 mid‑market CFOs shows 60‑77% plan AI adoption, yet a profound trust gap hinders execution. While 96% cite time‑saving as AI's top benefit, only 14% fully trust AI to produce accurate accounting data, and 97%...
Adoption of AI-powered shopping assistants is accelerating, yet most consumers remain hesitant to let these agents complete purchases autonomously. Recent surveys show that trust gaps center on payment handling, with many shoppers fearing fraud or loss of control. The friction...
Mexican fintech Clip launched a Tap to Pay solution for Android, turning smartphones into contactless point‑of‑sale terminals. The feature, available to all Clip merchants in early February 2026, lets small and medium businesses accept NFC card or wallet payments without...
Grayscale Investments released an update highlighting smart‑contract platforms as the backbone of the Web3 ecosystem, now representing roughly 70% of crypto market capitalization outside Bitcoin, or about $650 billion. The firm notes that these networks have delivered 30%‑40% annualized returns over...
Global fintech Adyen has partnered with Singapore POS provider Raptor to embed its payment platform into Raptor's systems, targeting the city’s service‑sector SMEs. The integration offers unified reporting, omnichannel cashless processing, and advanced analytics, addressing the payment‑reconciliation challenges cited by...
FLock.io has been named the Strategic AI Partner of the Blockchain for Good Alliance (BGA), a Bybit‑backed nonprofit that promotes blockchain‑driven social impact. The partnership will focus on decentralized, privacy‑preserving AI solutions and explore joint initiatives such as the AI‑and‑Blockchain...
Hong Kong legislator Johnny Ng is positioning the city as a global crypto connector, leveraging its common‑law system, open capital flows, and dense financial services ecosystem. Over the past two years he has driven stablecoin legislation and crypto‑exchange licensing, framing...
Startup founders are increasingly tapping secondary markets to secure personal liquidity without exiting their companies. Platforms such as Forge Global and Nasdaq Private Market streamline direct secondary sales and tender offers, while venture capitalists are more supportive of controlled liquidity...
x402 experts: we're examining integration of this into venice. From our research, x402 doesn't support any billing mechanism where we don't know the charge amount upfront. So for LLMs (where we don't know the fee until the end), the...
Precious Akpan won the Intrapreneurship Award at The Future Awards Africa 2023, highlighting the growing importance of internal innovators in African digital platforms. Her work spans fintech, marketplaces, and entrepreneurship programmes, emphasizing execution, system design, and measurable outcomes. Akpan champions...
Durham University researchers used machine‑learning to analyze 144 successful equity crowdfunding campaigns on China’s Dreammove platform between 2014 and 2019. They identified clear financial disclosures, realistic funding targets, concise messaging, authentic storytelling, and professional visuals as key success drivers. Quantitative...
Richecoin’s native RIC token is set to list on BitMart and AscendEX, expanding its global market reach. The Riche Chain blockchain operates a QBFT‑based Layer‑1 with three‑second block times, a 25 million gas limit, and full EVM compatibility. Its consensus delivers...
Anthony, a core Solana developer, helped build the high‑performance blockchain infrastructure that underpins modern Web3 platforms. He championed protocol‑level optimizations, fault‑tolerant architecture, and low‑latency smart‑contract execution, setting standards for scalable decentralized systems. As CTO, he now aligns protocol design, infrastructure,...
Corporate Bitcoin treasuries are testing the resilience of balance‑sheet strategies as Bitcoin hovers around $78,500. Early adopters like MicroStrategy, Tesla and Coinbase entered at lower prices, showing paper gains of $100 million to $500 million, while late entrants such as Metaplanet and...
Everest Group’s latest report shows earned wage access (EWA) has shifted from a niche perk to a mainstream workforce benefit. While 77% of employers now offer EWA, 83% admit their broader wellness programs struggle to prove financial impact. The study...
In 2026 crypto users are gravitating toward direct swap services as centralized exchanges become bogged down by KYC and onboarding friction. Fujn Swap, a non‑custodial bridge, lets traders move assets like TRX, SOL, and XMR to Bitcoin without accounts or...
Card payments in Singapore are projected to grow at a 7.2% compound annual growth rate from 2025 to 2029, reaching S$209.2 billion by the end of the period. In 2025 the market already rose 6.2% year‑on‑year to S$158.2 billion, driven by stronger...
Nomura Holdings announced it will reduce its cryptocurrency exposure and tighten risk controls after its European subsidiary, Laser Digital, posted losses in Q3 2025. CFO Hiroyuki Moriuchi said the pullback aims to curb short‑term profit volatility while reaffirming the bank’s...
#debanking hearings in the Senate Banking Committee are finally about to gear up, Sen Lummis just told the local press: https://lnkd.in/eTUGjZfd
Jeffrey Fratarcangeli warns that the AI‑driven surge in technology stocks is inflating portfolio concentration risk, even as wealth creation accelerates. He stresses that traditional risk principles—diversification, liquidity planning, and disciplined exposure limits—remain unchanged. Fratarcangeli advises keeping any single stock under...
Tether disclosed its 2025 financial results, posting more than $10 billion in net profit and building $6.3 billion of excess reserves. The stablecoin’s supply surged to $186 billion, driven by a $50 billion issuance year, while its U.S. Treasury exposure climbed to $141 billion, the...
Amazon’s Know Your Customer (KYC) verification is once again stalling payouts for a growing number of sellers, with many reports of documents being rejected and disbursements withheld for months. The issue disproportionately affects UK merchants who cannot use a driving...
Mr. Phil, a veteran Web3 entrepreneur, now serves as CEO of Universe Pro, steering the firm toward next‑generation blockchain infrastructure built on systems thinking. His cross‑regional experience in Europe and Asia informs a strategy that prioritizes transparency, operational resilience, and...
Yesterday was another significant stress test to Aave's +$50B onchain lending markets. Aave Protocol liquidated over $140M collateral across multiple networks without any issues, fully automated demontrating (yet again) the market leader protocol resiliency. Aave will win.
A UAE‑backed vehicle, Aryam Investment 1, agreed to purchase a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial for $500 million, with $187 million paid upfront to Trump‑family entities. The deal, signed by Eric Trump, links Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan to the crypto startup...
Beeks Financial Cloud, a Scottish tech firm, provides private ultra‑low‑latency cloud infrastructure for high‑frequency traders and exchanges. The company has moved from one‑off hardware sales to multi‑year, revenue‑sharing contracts with major exchanges in Australia, Canada and Latin America, creating predictable...
Bitcoin just hit its lowest level since the 2025 tariff shock. The slide comes as gold and other precious metals also sell off sharply, a reminder that in stress moments, even “digital gold” trades like a risk asset. Macro pressure is back...
Disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman‑Fried intensified his public support for former President Donald Trump on X, praising Trump’s stance on crypto and recent foreign‑policy actions. The comments came days after former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison was released from prison following a...
The Finanser’s weekly roundup (Jan 26‑Feb 1, 2026) spotlights three intertwined themes: the enduring relevance of physical bank branches, the surge of artificial‑intelligence discourse at Davos and in a new White House report, and cultural commentary surrounding Elon Musk’s self‑described alien persona. Articles...
SmartThings Ventures Ltd has launched the Paytech platform, a turnkey payment solution aimed at eCommerce and digital‑first merchants. The service consolidates transaction processing, settlement and reporting into a single, secure framework, reducing the need for fragmented tools. It emphasizes consistency,...
Global Trustnet announced enhancements to its client intake and internal case review frameworks, emphasizing security, verification discipline, and structured governance. The new standardized onboarding workflow aims to improve data accuracy, traceability, and consistency as digital‑asset trading volumes rise. Parallel upgrades...
Quantitative finance transforms data into actionable risk tools, a need highlighted by the IMF’s 2025 warning of heightened global financial instability. Abdelmadjid Laouedj, a JPMorgan quantitative researcher, first cut hospital cash‑flow forecasting errors to within 10% before applying the same rigor...
Card‑issuer platform Lithic announced a partnership with Minnesota‑based Stearns Bank, which will act as the BIN sponsor for Lithic’s program‑managed card services across major payment networks. The collaboration gives fintech companies enterprise‑grade infrastructure to launch both consumer and commercial card...
Electronic binders replace physical folders with cloud‑based containers for PDFs, spreadsheets, and images. They offer anywhere‑anytime access, instant keyword search, real‑time multi‑user collaboration, and automatic version history. Built‑in encryption, role‑based permissions and audit trails provide security far beyond traditional locks....
The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) announced a partnership with AI specialist Saal.ai to develop a next‑generation, AI‑powered market data dissemination platform. The new system will replace ADX’s legacy infrastructure with a unified, scalable solution that delivers real‑time and periodic...
CollectWise, a Y Combinator‑backed startup, uses generative AI to automate debt collection in the $35 billion U.S. market. Its voice AI agents already outperform human collectors by roughly two‑fold while costing less. The three‑person team hit a $1 million annualized run rate within...
Tokenized equities surged almost 3,000% in 2025, pushing the market close to the $1 billion milestone. The jump to $963 million was driven by new SEC guidance on broker‑dealer custody and a DTCC no‑action letter that legitimized token‑based settlement. Ondo Global Markets...
Ledger announced new BIP32 derivation rules that require hardened prefixes for its Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Bitcoin Cash applications. The change isolates each app’s key subtree, preventing cross‑application key exposure even if a single app is compromised. Enforcement begins on February 26...
Growfin, an AI‑native accounts‑receivable automation firm, has partnered with Credit Pulse, an AI‑powered credit risk platform, to combine predictive credit scoring with end‑to‑end AR automation. Leveraging Agentic AI, the alliance aims to improve cash‑flow efficiency, reduce days sales outstanding, and...
Bitcoin slipped to $84,200, its lowest level since November 21, pushing the Santiment fear index to a 2026 peak. The surge in negative social‑media commentary marks a shift from cautious optimism to outright fear, a pattern often seen near market capitulation....
Startups are piloting pay‑on‑behalf solutions that let consumers spend cryptocurrency at ordinary merchants without altering point‑of‑sale systems. Thailand’s PlebQR routes Bitcoin Lightning payments through local partners who settle in fiat, reporting over 1,270 transactions worth roughly $21,500 with a 75 %...
OrynteX announced a series of incremental enhancements to its multi‑asset trading platform, targeting improved reliability, execution consistency, and a unified user experience across stocks and cryptocurrencies. The updates are delivered through structured, governance‑driven processes that prioritize system stability over rapid...
FinTech Armenia’s CEO Stefan Lucas urges the United Kingdom to view Armenia as an emerging fintech hub and an “open goal” for British investment. He highlights a recent UK‑Armenia strategic partnership, a near‑finalized peace framework with Azerbaijan, and a surge...
Early lesson for the AI age. When electricity arrived, factories didn’t get smarter by swapping engines. They only unlocked real gains after redesigning how work actually flowed. AI agents are the same. Dropping them into old org charts won’t work. The real...
Bitcoin Knots vs Core v30 - Part X w/ Jonny Bair (aka Bitmex Research) of Blocksize Wars https://t.co/Rw83t1G3pe
Ondo Finance’s Ondo Global Markets platform has amassed over $500 million in total value locked and $7 billion in trading volume since its September 2025 launch, making it the largest tokenized‑stock provider. The broader market of tokenized equities is approaching $1 billion and grew...
Environmental credits are poised to become the largest tokenized asset class as institutions confront fragmented registries, costly MRV processes, and regulatory demand for transparent carbon data. Tokenization can streamline issuance, tracking, and retirement, turning manual spreadsheets into auditable digital tokens....
Goldbridge, a Y Combinator F25 startup founded in 2025, is building an AI‑powered banking platform for real‑estate owners. The company highlights that over $1 trillion in rent flows through landlord accounts each year, with a quarter tied up in idle reserves,...
WeberKraus announced a series of upgrades aimed at bolstering its trading platform’s resilience amid heightened market volatility across equities and digital assets. The enhancements focus on infrastructure stability, execution consistency, data flow coordination, and continuous monitoring rather than short‑term performance...
