Adyen Shares Plummet After Payments Giant Posts Weak Revenue Growth Outlook
Adyen’s shares tumbled up to 20% after the payments firm issued a 2026 net‑revenue growth outlook of 20%‑22%, falling short of analysts’ 22.8% expectation. In the second half of 2025 the company posted 17% year‑on‑year net‑revenue growth to €1.27 billion, while processing €745.3 billion in payments, below the €771 billion forecast. Slower growth from APAC‑based online retailers and a weaker U.S. dollar were cited as moderating factors. The miss adds to a broader negative sentiment in the digital‑payments sector.
Rewards Embedded in Payment Experience Knock Traditional Loyalty Models Down
Embedded reward mechanisms are being woven directly into payment and e‑commerce flows, turning a routine transaction into an instant incentive. This gamified approach sidesteps the coupon‑hunting fatigue that plagues conventional loyalty schemes. By delivering bonuses at the point of sale,...
Consultation: The Appointed Representatives Regime
The UK government has opened a consultation to amend the Appointed Representatives (AR) regime, which lets non‑financial firms provide financial services without full authorisation. The move follows an August 2025 policy statement that flagged weak oversight of certain ARs and the...
Update on the Procurement for Digital Gilt Instrument (DIGIT) Pilot
The UK Treasury announced an update on the Digital Gilt Instrument (DIGIT) pilot, selecting HSBC’s Orion platform as the technology provider and Ashurst LLP for legal services. The competitive tender, launched in October 2025, aims to test distributed‑ledger technology for...
After Talking to 300 Fintech CxO’s, Here’s What We Missed
A recent Finextra survey of 300 fintech leaders shows AI has moved from experimental pilots to core operations, with 85% of institutions now using it and the AI‑in‑fintech market projected at $30 billion by 2025. Predictive analytics are evolving into an...
Republic Power Group Partners with NVT to Bridge ERP Platforms and Blockchain-Based Capital Markets
Singapore‑based Republic Power Group Limited (RPGL) has signed a non‑binding MOU with Hong Kong fintech NVT to integrate NVT’s regulated real‑world asset tokenization platform with RPGL’s ERP solutions across Asia. The collaboration aims to embed blockchain‑enabled capital‑market services into existing...
Cash App Adds Payment Links so You Can Get Paid in a DM
Cash App, the Block‑owned peer‑to‑peer platform, rolled out a new payment‑link feature that lets users generate a URL to request money. The link can be pasted into texts, emails, or direct messages, pre‑loading the requested amount for the recipient. Cash...
UK to Regulate BNPL in Transparency Push
The episode examines the UK’s new regulatory framework for buy‑now‑pay‑later (BNPL) services, which places providers under FCA oversight and mandates clear disclosure of terms, affordability checks, hardship support, and a route to the Financial Ombudsman. It highlights concerns about “phantom...
Best Trade Finance Bank In North America: BNY
BNY was named the Best Trade Finance Bank in North America, reflecting its robust portfolio and eight global trade centers. The bank leverages high credit ratings, competitive pricing, and a suite of digital tools to streamline trade processing, risk mitigation,...
A Banner 2025 for Zelle With 20% Year-over-Year Growth
Zelle processed over $1.2 trillion in U.S. peer‑to‑peer payments in 2025, marking a 20% year‑over‑year increase and surpassing the $1 trillion milestone reached in 2024. Transaction volume rose to 4.2 billion, a 16% jump, with daily averages of $3.4 billion moving through the network....
CFO Offices Are Getting to Grips with the Idea that AI Isn't that Simple for Their Role, but Interest Isn't...
BlackLine CEO Owen Ryan says CFOs remain wary of AI that functions as a black box, insisting on accuracy, transparency, auditability and security. The company is shifting from simple automation to an AI‑driven orchestration built on three pillars—data, context and...
Judge Backs Illinois Law on Card Fees
A federal judge upheld Illinois' Interchange Fee Prohibition Act, which bans card‑swipe interchange fees on sales tax and gratuities, finding that the National Bank Act does not preempt the state law. The ruling, issued by Judge Virginia Kendall, also struck...
Stripe Valuation Nears $140B in Latest Tender Offer, Company Maintains Private Status
Stripe is arranging a secondary tender offer that could value the payments firm at about $140 billion, up from roughly $107 billion a year earlier. The company reiterated it has no immediate plans for an IPO, preferring private‑market liquidity for employees and...
Pathward’s Anthony Sharett on Why Sponsor Banking’s Future Is About Evolution, Not Revolution
Sponsor banking, the bridge between fintechs and regulated banks, is under intense regulatory scrutiny but remains a vital conduit for expanding financial access. Anthony Sharett, President of Pathward, argues that the model’s future lies in gradual evolution rather than radical...
Nexi Introduces Single-Device Checkout System to Combine POS, Software and Payments
Nexi has unveiled SmartStation, a single‑device checkout solution that merges point‑of‑sale software, store‑management tools and payment acceptance into one Android‑based unit. The system features a 15.6‑inch merchant tablet, an 8‑inch customer display and a detachable payment terminal, supporting cards, NFC,...
UK to Regulate BNPL Platforms From 15 July
The UK Financial Conduct Authority will begin regulating buy‑now‑pay‑later (BNPL) providers from 15 July 2026 under a temporary permission regime (TPR). Firms active on 15 July 2025 must apply for TPR and confirm registration intent by early May, while those opting out must halt...
Sam Bankman-Fried Requests New Trial Claiming FTX Had $16.5 Billion Surplus in 2022, but Does It Matter?
Sam Bankman‑Fried filed a Rule 33 motion asking for a new trial, asserting that FTX’s balance sheet showed a $16.5 billion net asset value at the November 2022 bankruptcy filing, which he says contradicts the prosecution’s insolvency narrative. The motion claims undisclosed witnesses...
The High Cost of Going Cashless: Why Payment Choice Is Essential for Economic Equity
The push toward a cashless economy is accelerating, but the hidden fees and infrastructure demands are creating a financial burden for low‑income and unbanked consumers. As merchants adopt digital terminals and fintech platforms expand, cash‑only transactions become increasingly costly or...
Engines, Not Experiments: A Real Path to AI in Finance
Financial firms are moving AI from pilot projects to production by adopting application engines that provide a unified environment for data, business logic, and user interfaces. A Gartner survey shows 59% of CFOs use AI but only 10% have production‑grade...
EximPe Gets Final PA-CB Licence to Process UPI Cross-Border Payments
EximPe, a cross‑border payment startup, has secured the Reserve Bank of India’s final Payment Aggregator Cross‑Border (PA‑CB) licence. The authorisation lets the firm enable global merchants to collect Indian consumer payments via UPI, cards, wallets and other methods, with settlements...
Spark Looks to Build Building a Safe Bridge Between Onchain Capital and TradFi
Spark introduced Spark Prime and Spark Institutional Lending, extending more than $9 billion of stablecoin liquidity to hedge funds, trading firms and fintechs operating under traditional custody rules. The offerings combine over‑collateralized loan structures with a unified risk framework that spans...
Malsons Ventures Makes Strategic Pre-Series A Bet on Mumbai-Based Fintech Startup Seven
Seven, a Mumbai fintech startup known for its 7 Ring wearable payment device, secured a strategic pre‑Series A investment from Shivam Malhotra, founder of Malsons Ventures, acquiring a 1% equity stake. The capital will fund product innovation, market penetration, team...
Hong Kong Working to Allow Perpetual Contracts, Chief Regulator Says
Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) announced it will release a high‑level regulatory framework permitting trading platforms to offer perpetual contracts. The framework targets institutional investors and mandates robust risk‑management and conflict‑of‑interest safeguards. Brokers will also be allowed to...
Tradeweb Markets: Growth Outlook Remains Robust
Tradeweb Markets posted 12.5% year‑over‑year revenue growth in Q4 2025 and expanded its adjusted EBITDA margin to 53.2%, driven by strong volume gains in rates and derivatives. Early 2026 data shows double‑digit daily volume growth, supporting the firm’s high‑teens growth...
Institutions Fuel Tokenized RWA Boom as Retail Looks Set to Follow Suit
Tokenized real‑world assets (RWAs) are now dominated by institutions, with U.S. Treasuries, money‑market funds and stablecoin‑backed collateral products leading the market. Panelists at Consensus Hong Kong 2026 highlighted the next frontier: tokenized equities, private credit, real estate and other illiquid assets aimed...
Robinhood Markets, Inc. (HOOD) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Robinhood held its Q4 2025 earnings call on February 10 2026, where CEO Vladimir Tenev and CFO Shiv Verma presented a solid financial rebound. Revenue rose 18% year‑over‑year to $1.2 billion and the net loss narrowed to $150 million, reflecting higher margin contributions from crypto...
ESMA’s Digital and Data Strategies Support Supervision of EU Financial Markets
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has launched a new Digital Strategy for 2026‑2028 and refreshed its Data Strategy covering 2023‑2028. Both roadmaps aim to accelerate digital transformation, simplify supervisory reporting and harness data‑driven insights across the European System...
The European Supervisory Authorities and UK Financial Regulators Sign Memorandum of Understanding on Oversight of Critical ICT Third-Party Service Providers...
The European Supervisory Authorities (EBA, EIOPA and ESMA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Bank of England, the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority to coordinate oversight of critical ICT third‑party service providers under the Digital...
Know Before You Share: Be Mindful of Data Aggregation Risks
Financial data aggregators consolidate accounts into a single dashboard, using either APIs or screen‑scraping to retrieve information. While APIs provide scoped, credential‑free access, many providers still rely on screen‑scraping, which requires users to share login details. The article highlights privacy,...
Following the Crowd: Investing and Social Media
Investors, especially those under 35, are turning to social media for investment ideas, with 60% of young investors citing it as an information source. The article presents five practical tips—evaluate sources, keep emotions out of decisions, understand day‑trader, margin and...
Shorooq, PayLater Sign MOU to Explore Institutional Credit Facility
UAE‑based investment firm Shorooq has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Qatar’s first QCB‑licensed, Sharia‑compliant BNPL provider PayLater to explore a scalable, institutional‑grade credit facility. The proposed financing would be non‑dilutive and aligned with Sharia principles, giving PayLater capital to...
Saudi Fintech SiFi Raises $20 Million Series A Led by Ra’ed Ventures
Saudi fintech Simplified Financial Solutions Company (SiFi) secured a $20 million Series A round led by Ra’ed Ventures, with participation from QED Investors, Breyer Capital, MEVP and several local backers. The financing follows a $10 million seed round, bringing total capital raised to...
Next Steps for Establishing a Bond Consolidated Tape Provider
The FCA has signed a contract with Etrading Software (ETS) to build a UK bond consolidated tape, aiming to deliver a high‑quality data stream for investors. The tape will improve price discovery, liquidity, and market transparency, supporting the UK’s competitive...
Emil the Seal Hijacks Waterloo Station to Warn Commuters About Investment Scams
The FCA staged a pop‑up ATM at London Waterloo featuring its mascot Emil the Seal to promote its new Firm Checker tool. The stunt highlighted that around 700,000 adults lost money to investment scams in the past year. The interactive...
AI Live Testing: How It Can Support Safe and Responsible AI Deployment
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has opened a second application window for its AI Live Testing programme, inviting firms to trial AI‑driven services in real‑world market conditions with regulatory oversight and technical support from Advai. The initiative targets companies...
The FCA’s Long Term Review Into AI and Retail Financial Services: Designing for the Unknown
Sheldon Mills announced that the FCA is undertaking a long‑term review of artificial intelligence in retail financial services, with findings to be presented to the board this summer. The review will explore how generative AI, multimodal models and autonomous agents...
Gemini Payments UK Ltd and Gemini Intergalactic UK Ltd Exit the UK Market
Gemini Payments UK Ltd and Gemini Intergalactic UK Ltd announced a complete market exit, closing all UK customer accounts on 6 April 2026. The e‑money arm will operate normally until 4 March, after which accounts shift to withdrawal‑only mode from 5 March. Crypto‑asset services...
Independent Assessment to Support Establishment of a Future Entity
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has released a letter to trade associations announcing KPMG’s appointment to conduct an independent assessment of proposals for a Future Entity that would set standards for UK open‑banking APIs. The assessment will evaluate governance, technical...
Conversation with… David Gebhardt, Head of Enterprise – Merchant Services at Wordline
David Gebhardt, Head of Enterprise – Merchant Services at Worldline, outlines the evolution from hardware‑centric POS to service‑focused merchant solutions and introduces the One Commerce platform. He emphasizes that improving acceptance rates by just a few percent can unlock massive...
Fund Manager FINQ Lets AI Run US ETFs
FINQ has introduced two U.S. large‑cap equity ETFs—AIUP and AINT—where an artificial‑intelligence model exclusively selects, weights and rebalances holdings. The AI engine ranks every S&P 500 component daily using market, financial and textual data, guiding long‑only and long‑short exposures respectively. The...
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What Is World Liberty Financial? What to Know About The Trump Family's Crypto Firm
World Liberty Financial, the Trump family’s crypto venture, has applied for a national banking charter and launched WLFI Markets, a DeFi platform that lets users borrow and earn points using its USD 1 stablecoin and WLFI token. The WLFI token, which...
How Printable Check Designs Simplify Modern Business Payments
Printable check designs are gaining traction as businesses seek to modernize traditional payment methods while retaining the benefits of paper checks. By using on‑demand templates, companies can generate professional checks directly from accounting software, eliminating bulk ordering and reducing turnaround...
Citadel and Cathie Wood Back Zero, a New Blockchain Designed for Traditional Finance
LayerZero, backed by Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia, unveiled Zero—a new blockchain built for traditional finance. The network leverages zero‑knowledge proofs to claim 2 million transactions per second at sub‑cent costs, far outpacing Solana’s 100k TPS limit. Wall Street heavyweights including Citadel Securities,...
China Bitcoin Legalization Is Priced at 5% but Beijing’s February 2026 Ban 2.0 Made One Detail Brutal
Polymarket traders are pricing the chance that China will legalise on‑shore Bitcoin purchases at roughly 5%, reflecting a low‑probability bet on policy reversal. In February 2026 Beijing issued a sweeping “Ban 2.0” notice that broadened the illegal‑financial‑activity classification to include marketing,...
Developer Colony Ridge to Pay $68M in DOJ, Texas Settlement
Houston developer Colony Ridge Development LLC agreed to a $68 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, the CFPB and Texas over allegations of discriminatory, predatory lending targeting Hispanic immigrants. The deal allocates $48 million to flood‑control, road and utility upgrades...
Onchain Options Volumes Hit All-Time Highs as Lending Yields Dry Up
On‑chain options activity surged to record levels, posting $44 million of volume in the first week of February and $28 million in the final week of January. More than 80% of this trade flow is dominated by two protocols—Ithaca and Derive—which together...
US Private Credit Market Adapts to Post Rate Hike Environment : Analysis
PitchBook’s latest report shows U.S. private credit remaining resilient despite a modest year‑over‑year dip in January transaction volume. Eight mega‑deals exceeding $1 billion offset the slowdown, while mid‑market issuance stayed robust, highlighting depth in smaller opportunities. Leveraged‑buyout transactions shifted toward fewer,...
Curql Funds Stablecore to Secure Credit Union Deposits
Curql, a coalition of over 160 credit unions, announced a strategic investment in Stablecore, a digital‑asset core platform. The move follows the July passage of the GENIUS Act and other regulatory shifts that are easing the path for stablecoins in...
Ex-SafeMoon CEO Gets 8-Year Prison Sentence for Defrauding Investors
Former SafeMoon chief Braden John Karony received a 100‑month (eight‑year) prison sentence after a federal trial in New York. The Department of Justice ordered him to forfeit $7.5 million and two residences. He was convicted of conspiracy to commit securities fraud,...
Ethereum Becomes Rail of Choice for Crypto-Curious Bankers
Major U.S. banks are reviving Ethereum‑based solutions, especially Layer‑2 networks, to launch tokenized deposits and cross‑border payments. Projects such as JPMCoin on Base, Citi’s USD tokens, and a SWIFT‑backed Ethereum platform illustrate growing institutional confidence. Legislative moves like the GENIUS...