Is ISO 20022 Still Relevant in a DLT World?
ISO 20022, the XML‑based global payments messaging standard introduced in 2004, is finally reaching full worldwide adoption across SWIFT, Fedwire, SEPA and dozens of domestic rails. At the same time, blockchain‑based protocols such as Coinbase’s X402 and stablecoin networks are emerging as internet‑native alternatives for instant, machine‑to‑machine payments. Industry leaders argue that these new protocols will sit on top of, rather than replace, ISO 20022, using APIs to map data between legacy finance infrastructure and decentralized ledgers. Consequently, ISO 20022 remains the lingua franca for settlement, compliance and treasury reporting.
Treasurers Wanted for Faster-Payments Work Groups
The US Faster Payments Council (FPC) is actively recruiting corporate treasurers to join its eleven work groups that are shaping the nation’s digital payments ecosystem. Treasury teams from Walmart, Netflix and BNY Mellon are already participating in projects covering instant...
Press Release: National Wealth Fund Backs Major Port Infrastructure Projects with £200m Commitment to ABP
The National Wealth Fund (NWF) pledged a £200 million (~$255 million) commitment to Associated British Ports (ABP), complementing a £300 million (~$380 million) financing package led by Bank of America, Lloyds and NatWest. The funds will underwrite a suite of port projects—including a new...
Press Release: Barriers to Planning in Development Pipeline Are Choking the £57bn Invested in UK Property Annually
UK property investment reached roughly $72 billion in 2025, driven by a record $23 billion inflow from US investors across office, healthcare, industrial and residential assets. Yet nearly half of manufacturers (46%) say the planning system stalls their projects, and 43% report...
Press Release: SpaceX’s $1.8trn IPO Raises Questions over Investor Demand
SpaceX is preparing an IPO that targets a minimum $1.8 trillion valuation and could raise up to $75 billion, making it the largest public offering in history. The company posted roughly $19 billion in revenue last year, driven by Starlink’s expansion to over...
Press Release: Dun & Bradstreet: Supply Chain Exposure From Strait of Hormuz Disruption Grows
Dun & Bradstreet’s latest shipping analysis shows the Strait of Hormuz disruption has shifted from an initial collapse to a lingering, uneven supply‑chain shock. Persian Gulf import bookings remain about 70% below pre‑disruption levels, while export bookings sit roughly 90%...
Press Release: J.P. Morgan Payments Expands Electronic Bill of Exchange Offering Into US
J.P. Morgan Payments announced the U.S. launch of its electronic Bill of Exchange (eBoE) service, timed with New York’s new Article 12 amendment to the Uniform Commercial Code that legally recognizes digital bills. The offering, slated for June 3 2026, builds on a...
Press Release: Huntington Bank Joins CHIPS® for High-Value Payments
Huntington National Bank announced its entry into The Clearing House's CHIPS network, the world’s largest private‑sector U.S. dollar clearing system. The move gives Huntington the ability to send and receive high‑value domestic payments through a platform that processes more than...
Press Release: FIS Launches Enterprise Risk Suite on AWS to Provide Continuous Cloud-Native Delivery
FIS announced the Enterprise Risk Suite on Amazon Web Services, delivering a cloud‑native risk management platform that updates continuously via CI/CD. The microservice architecture lets banks and insurers scale calculations linearly and tap burst compute for peak workloads, removing the...
Press Release: KPMG Launches Trusted AI Centre of Excellence to Strengthen Singapore’s Position as a Globally Trusted AI Hub
KPMG announced the launch of its Trusted Artificial Intelligence Centre of Excellence in Singapore, backed by the Economic Development Board. The Centre introduces a Trusted AI Assurance service that delivers evidence‑based, sector‑specific assessments of AI governance, security, and regulatory compliance....
Press Release: G20 Goals for Enhancing Cross-Border Payments
The G20, together with the Financial Stability Board, has set a 2027 roadmap to overhaul cross‑border payments, aiming for faster settlement, lower costs, greater transparency, and broader access. By the end of 2027, 75% of payments should reach recipients within...
Press Release: New Research Shows 468 UK Sold Off Subsidiaries Last Year, Major Jump – Is This Good or Bad...
Research by Lubbock Fine shows UK carve‑out transactions jumped 8% to 468 in 2025, up from 435 the year before. The deals were valued at £63bn, roughly $80bn, indicating strong appetite for divesting non‑core assets. High‑profile transactions include Unilever’s £33.8bn...
Will Democratising Bond Markets Broaden Participation?
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) lowered the minimum investment on three of its corporate bonds from £100,000 (about $127,000) to £1,000 (about $1,270) to let retail investors buy directly. The bonds now sit in LSEG’s Access Bonds programme and meet...
A CFO at the Top of His Game
Aonic, a European technology and video‑gaming group, was named the continent’s eighth‑fastest‑growing company and the top performer in the IT & Software category of the 2026 FT1000. Over the past year the firm added Casa Media and Prime Insights, blending...
Press Release: Frankfurt School of Finance & Management Appoints Siemens AG CFO Veronika Bienert to Its Board of Trustees
Frankfurt School of Finance & Management announced that Veronika Bienert, CFO of Siemens AG, has been appointed to its Board of Trustees effective May 1, 2026. Bienert, who has overseen Siemens Financial Services, Real Estate and Global Business Services, brings...