UK’s Digital Bank Monzo Makes Leadership Adjustments, Introduces Tax Tools
Monzo announced a revised leadership plan, keeping outgoing CEO TS Anil in a broader board role after investor pushback, while appointing former Google executive Diana Layfield as his successor. The fintech also launched an in‑app tax‑filing tool for sole traders and landlords, powered by Sage, to meet the UK’s Making Tax Digital deadline. Additionally, Monzo introduced a Double Payday promotion that randomly doubles salaries for ten personal customers each month. These moves come as Monzo reports £1.2 billion revenue and £60.5 million pre‑tax profit, serving 13‑14 million customers.
UK’s FCA Aims to Support Integration of Stablecoins Into Payments Landscape
The UK Financial Conduct Authority is launching a two‑day "Stablecoin Sprint" on March 4‑5, 2026 in London, inviting fintechs, banks, issuers and regulators to shape stablecoin payment standards. The event targets retail, remittance and B2B use cases, aiming to create faster, cheaper...
Checkout.com Focuses on US Expansion with Approval for Georgia Bank Charter
Checkout.com secured a Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Bank charter from Georgia, allowing it to operate as an independent acquirer in the United States. The approval paves the way for a new Atlanta operational center, complementing its New York and San...
Payments Canada to Focus on Enterprise-Wide Product Development Strategy with Key Appointment
Payments Canada has appointed Stephanie Zee as chief product officer, tasking her with an enterprise‑wide product strategy to modernize Canada’s payment systems. Zee brings over two decades of payments expertise and prior board experience, positioning her to oversee product management,...
AI Adoption : Colossus 2 Supercomputer for Grok Now Operational, Will Have Significant Implications for Fintech Platforms
xAI has brought its Colossus 2 supercomputer online, becoming the world’s first gigawatt‑level AI training cluster and targeting 1.5 GW by April. The facility powers the Grok model with energy comparable to a major city, outpacing rivals who plan similar sites for...
Meta Castigated for Illegal Canadian Debt Relief Ads
Meta faces criticism from a Canadian licensed insolvency trustee after $20 million in 2023 was paid to unlicensed debt‑relief advertisers on Facebook and Instagram. Despite repeated outreach, evidence, and federal warnings, the ads remain live, prompting calls for accountability. The Office...
Morgan Stanley Now Focused on Digital Assets, Private Market Investments
Morgan Stanley is reshaping its wealth‑management platform for 2026 by centering digital assets, workplace financial services, and private‑market access. The firm will launch crypto trading on E*Trade with Zerohash in the first half of 2026 and introduce a proprietary digital...
Aether’s Alpha Edge Media Acquires Institutional Crypto Newsletter Coinstack
Aether Holdings’ Alpha Edge Media has acquired Coinstack, an institutional‑focused cryptocurrency newsletter with more than 340,000 subscribers. The deal, whose financial terms were not disclosed, allows Coinstack to retain its brand while tapping Aether’s technology, analytics infrastructure, and distribution network....
UK Small Businesses Face Growing Pessimism Amid Economic Challenges, Report Reveals
European fintech iwoca reports a sharp drop in UK SME confidence, with optimism falling to 38% from 51% in a year. Hiring intentions have weakened, as only 45% of small‑business leaders plan to expand staff in 2026, a ten‑point decline....
Euroclear Completes Integration of MFEX Platform
Euroclear announced the full integration of MFEX into its operations effective January 1, 2026, merging MFEX’s fund‑distribution technology with Euroclear’s settlement and custody infrastructure. The combined platform, now part of Euroclear FundsPlace, offers a single‑entry point for mutual funds, alternative funds, private...
World Network Makes Italian Market Debut After Making Steady Progress in Past Year
World announced its Italian market debut on January 15, expanding its human verification network to a fifth EU country. The company now serves nearly 38 million users, with over 17 million verified identities across six continents. Recent upgrades include NVIDIA‑powered hardware, an...
Digital Assets : TRON (TRX) Network Now Supported on MetaMask
MetaMask has expanded its multichain wallet to include the TRON (TRX) network, allowing users to manage TRX and TRC‑10/20 tokens directly within the app. The update introduces native staking on mobile, where holders can lock TRX to earn Bandwidth and...
PayEngine, ServiceTitan Bring Tap-To-Pay to Field Service Techs
PayEngine and ServiceTitan have teamed up to embed SoftPOS tap‑to‑pay functionality directly into ServiceTitan’s field‑service platform. The integration lets HVAC, plumbing, electrical and other contractors accept contactless card payments on their existing smartphones or tablets, eliminating the need for separate...
Checkbook Names Co-CEOs
Checkbook, a digital‑payment platform, appointed Pia Thompson and Aditya Raikar as co‑CEOs, succeeding founder PJ Gupta who remains executive chairman. Thompson, the company’s general counsel, and Raikar, its chief revenue officer, bring over 30 years of combined fintech experience in...
Insight, Stripe, Expand Tech Partnership
Insight (NASDAQ: NSIT) announced an expanded global partnership with Stripe to modernize legacy financial systems and enable AI‑driven commerce for large enterprises. The collaboration blends Stripe’s programmable payments platform with Insight’s systems‑integration expertise, delivering end‑to‑end checkout, billing, subscription and agentic...
Accertify Names Dukat CEO, Adds to Leadership Team
Accertify announced Greg Dukat as its new chief executive officer, adding a seasoned technology leader to its ranks. Dukat, who previously led Revel Systems and other firms, will steer the company’s commercial strategy alongside President Mark Michelon. The announcement also...
Schroders Capital Enhances Private Debt Capabilities with New Investment Director Appointment
Schroders Capital has appointed Brad Ross‑Williams as Investment Director for its Securitized Products and Asset‑Based Finance team, reinforcing its private debt capabilities. The hire adds a veteran with over 20 years in structured finance and investor relations, most recently at...
Eco CEO Says Crypto Market Infrastructure Bill Fail Exposes Critical Gap Between Policymakers and Digital Asset Innovators
The Senate Banking Committee halted a markup hearing after Coinbase withdrew its backing for the crypto market infrastructure bill, leaving the legislation in limbo. ECO CEO Ryne Saxe says the delay highlights a widening gap between lawmakers and DeFi innovators,...
Bain & Company, 7 VCs, Announce AI Partnership
Bain & Company has teamed up with seven top venture‑capital firms—Bain Capital Ventures, Battery Ventures, ICONIQ, Insight Partners, Lightspeed, Menlo Ventures and NEA—to create a dedicated AI pipeline through its Venture Ecosystem. The VCs collectively manage roughly $190 billion in assets...
Central Bank of Ireland and Banca D’Italia Introduce Innovation Data Challenge to Enhance Payments
The Central Bank of Ireland unveiled a multi‑year regulatory overhaul aimed at simplifying rules, harmonising with EU standards, and strengthening supervision. The plan introduces a risk‑focused, cross‑functional supervisory model, a dedicated gatekeeping unit, and a streamlined data‑reporting framework. In January...
Digital Asset Firm Meld Closes $7M Round
Meld announced the close of a $7 million strategic funding round led by Lightspeed Faction, with participation from F‑Prime, Yolo Investments, and Scytale Digital. The capital will accelerate Meld’s go‑to‑market push, expand the Meld Network, and deepen its customer‑success capabilities. Meld’s platform...
Singapore Gulf Bank Gains J.P. Morgan Clearing Network Access
Singapore Gulf Bank (SGB) has opened a correspondent banking account with J.P. Morgan, gaining direct access to the firm’s extensive USD clearing network. The partnership introduces J.P. Morgan Payments’ Wire 365 solution, delivering near‑real‑time, 365‑day USD clearing for cross‑border transactions. By merging this...
Benji Pays Unveils Integrated Payment Solution with Adyen Partnership
Benji Pays launched Benji Payments, an integrated payment solution built on Adyen for Platforms. The offering lets SMBs and managed service providers choose a turnkey system or connect existing gateways, while adding automated reconciliation, customizable surcharging, and in‑app merchant onboarding....
Animoca Brands Expands Web3 Portfolio with Acquisition of SOMO
Animoca Brands has completed its acquisition of SOMO, a crypto‑collectibles and interactive entertainment startup. The deal adds gacha‑style on‑chain games to Animoca’s portfolio, which already includes The Sandbox, Open Campus and the Moca Network. By integrating SOMO’s technology, Animoca aims...
Apex Fintech Solutions Partners with Allfunds to Boost Global Offshore Investment Opportunities
Fintech firm Apex Solutions has partnered with European wealth‑tech provider Allfunds to embed its fund distribution platform into Apex’s AscendOS infrastructure. The integration will give U.S. broker‑dealers, RIAs and fintech companies a single point of access to offshore mutual funds,...
Crypto Exchange BTCC Claims to Have Booked $5 Billion in Tokenized Gold Trading Volume
Vilnius‑based crypto exchange BTCC announced it traded $5.72 billion in tokenized gold during 2025, surpassing the $5 billion milestone. The fourth quarter alone generated $2.74 billion, an 809 % increase from Q1. BTCC also reported $53.1 billion in total tokenized gold futures volume, driven by...
InRento CEO Gustas Germanavicius’ 3 2026 European Proptech Investing Trends
European real‑estate is at a crossroads as land scarcity and abundant household savings drive investors toward income‑generating assets. InRento CEO Gustas Germanavicius identifies three 2026 trends—sustainability mandates, building conversions, and fractional ownership—that will reshape the market. Stricter ESG rules are...
TZERO, North Capital to Unveil ATS Connector Agora
tZERO Group and North Capital Investment Technology have launched Agora, a technology network that links alternative trading systems (ATS) to broaden market access for tokenized and private securities. The platform lets securities listed on one ATS be traded by qualified...
Payments Fintech dLocal Plans Business Expansion Into Asian Markets
dLocal, the Uruguay‑based fintech known for simplifying cross‑border payments in Latin America, announced a multi‑year expansion into Asia that will begin in 2026. CEO Pedro Arnt called the continent a strategic priority, outlining plans to boost sales teams, open new...
Global Payments Finalizes Worldpay Acquisition
Global Payments Inc. has finalized its $43 billion acquisition of Worldpay from FIS and GTCR, while divesting its Issuer Solutions unit back to FIS. The merger creates a commerce‑solutions powerhouse serving over 6 million merchants and handling $3.7 trillion in payments across 175...
France: AMF Plans to Tackle AI in Finance, Tokenization, More in 2026
The French securities regulator, the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), unveiled its 2026 agenda, centering on confidence‑building measures across the financial sector. AI governance sits at the core of the plan, with a finalized roadmap slated for the year. The...
YouHodler’s Tony Severino Shares 2026 Crypto Predictions for BTC, ETH and More
YouHodler analyst Tony Severino predicts 2026 will be Bitcoin’s pivotal year, with the $74,000 support zone acting as a litmus test for a continued bull market. He warns that failure to hold $100,000 could signal a shift to a bear...
Republic Shares Update on 2025 Activities
Republic released its 2025 activity update, spotlighting the launch of Mirror Tokens—digital assets that track private‑company securities—issued under Reg D for accredited investors. The platform reported $500 million in reservations of interest, with SpaceX tokens as the first listing. Across its verticals,...
Bilt Introduces Credit Cards with Mortgage Rewards
Bilt has launched Bilt Card 2.0, adding three credit cards—Blue, Obsidian and premium Palladium—that let users earn points on mortgage payments for the first time. The cards also introduce Bilt Cash, a new rewards currency that pays 4% on everyday non‑housing spend....
Digital Assets: Figment, Ledger, Lombard Partner to Enable Earning Opportunities for Bitcoin Holders
Figment, Ledger and Lombard have launched a joint solution that lets Bitcoin holders earn yields while keeping their coins in self‑custody. The system swaps deposited BTC for Lombard’s LBTC token, which accrues rewards via the Babylon Bitcoin Staking Protocol. Figment...
YouHodler’s Tony Severino Looks Back on 2025 and Crypto Investing
Tony Severino of YouHodler reviews 2025, highlighting the end of synchronized global liquidity expansion as central banks diverged, raising funding costs and prompting a broad deleveraging. He notes that crypto, once buoyed by cheap capital, became highly sensitive to macro...
FTC Seeks Contempt Ruling Against Payment Processor for Breaching Decade-Old Fraud Prevention Order
The Federal Trade Commission has asked a Nevada federal court to hold payment‑processor Cliq Inc., its CEO Andrew Phillips and CTO John Blaugrund in contempt for breaching a 2015 court order that mandated strict fraud‑prevention controls. The agency alleges Cliq...
Walmart Backed Fintech OnePay Achieves $4 Billion Valuation Milestone
Fintech firm OnePay, backed by Walmart, announced a valuation exceeding $4 billion following an employee share‑buyback program. The new figure doubles the $2.5 billion valuation set after a $300 million funding round led by Walmart and Ribbit Capital in late 2024. OnePay’s super‑app...
Blockchain Analytics Platform Nansen, Katana Partner to Provide Enhanced On-Chain Insights
Nansen has partnered with Katana, a high‑performance DeFi blockchain, to embed its analytics suite into the network via a dedicated Growth Dashboard. Katana has processed over 11 million transactions in six months, averaging more than 100 000 daily swaps and serving 35 000+...
Swiss Retail Banking Report : Incumbents Embrace Digital Innovations, Neobanks Tailor Services to Individual Consumers
Swiss retail banks continue to dominate digital maturity, with UBS retaining the top spot in the latest Digital Index, followed by Raiffeisen, Swissquote and Revolut. Legacy institutions excel in website performance, social media engagement and mobile app visibility, while neobanks...
ESMA Publishes Report on EU Securities Crowdfunding
ESMA released its 2024 EU crowdfunding report, showing 181 platforms raised over €4 billion across the bloc. Loan‑based projects dominated, accounting for 58% of activity, while equity offerings remained modest at 12%. France, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy and Lithuania generated more...
Senate Banking Committee Still on Track for Markup on Crypto Infrastructure Legislation, Senate Agriculture Committee Happens End of Month
The Senate Banking Committee will hold a markup hearing on the crypto infrastructure bill on Jan 15, 2026, after dozens of amendments were filed, many focused on stablecoin yield rules. Incumbent banks fear interest‑bearing stablecoins could siphon deposits, prompting aggressive lobbying....
AML Needs an Update as Crypto Adoption Surges Across Europe : Analysis
Europe’s crypto boom is accelerating as the EU’s MiCA framework standardizes digital‑asset rules, prompting banks, fintechs and payment processors to embed cryptocurrencies into core services. In the UK, the FCA’s 2025 consultation papers CP25/25 and CP25/14 aim to align crypto...
Capital Ideas: Inside Crypto’s Institutional Shift and the Policy Gap Holding It Back, Eric Peterson of Kraken Shares Perspective
Crypto’s institutional engagement is maturing, even as recent price swings spark headlines. Eric Peterson of Kraken notes that liquidity and exchange reliability have held, indicating digital assets behave like a mature asset class within broader market cycles. He warns regulators still...
Senate Banking Committee Shares “Myth Vs. Fact” On Crypto Infrastructure Bill, the CLARITY Act
The Senate Banking Committee released a "Myth vs. Fact" brief on the CLARITY Act, a crypto‑infrastructure bill designed to replace fragmented oversight with clear, enforceable rules. The legislation distinguishes digital securities from commodities, assigns joint jurisdiction to the SEC and...
Lloyds Bank Comments on Potential Impact of Digital Assets on UK Financial Services Sector
London‑based Lloyds Banking Group says digital assets will reshape UK finance by 2026, moving from pilot projects to mainstream use. The bank is backing tokenized deposits, the Great British Tokenized Deposits initiative, and stablecoin‑based cross‑border payments to improve efficiency and...
Bitcoin L2 Protocol Spark Unveils Q2 2026 Roadmap
Lightspark’s Bitcoin Layer 2 protocol Spark announced its Q2 2026 roadmap, focusing on cost‑effective BTC acquisition, one‑tap cross‑chain swaps, and native stablecoins. The upgrades aim to deliver instant, low‑fee transactions while expanding interoperability with wallets, neobanks, and DEXs. By introducing user‑friendly token...
Cross River Bank Advocates for Maintaining Stablecoin Yield Regulations
Cross River Bank has urged the U.S. Senate to preserve the newly enacted GENIUS Act provisions that allow yields on stablecoin deposits. The bank argues that these rules create competitive parity between digital and traditional financial products and protect consumer...
Riskified Analysis Reveals 25% of Refund Dollars Are Abusive, Introduces “Dynamic Returns” To Safeguard Revenue
Riskified’s latest study of over one million 2024 refund requests shows that abusive refunds account for roughly 25% of the dollar value reclaimed, despite overall refunds representing only 1‑2% of order totals. High‑ticket purchases and early‑post‑purchase claims are disproportionately targeted,...
Private Securities Secondaries Topped $110 Billion in 2025 – Report
Private securities secondaries surged to $110 billion in 2025, eclipsing the $89 billion recorded in 2024, according to HarbourVest Partners. The growth reflects heightened investor demand for liquidity and the increasing prominence of GP‑led transactions within private market portfolios. Technological advances are...
