Swiss banks have launched multibanking for private customers through the open banking platform bLink, operated by SIX. The initiative allows individuals to securely consolidate accounts from different banks in a single banking app or, with explicit consent, integrate them into non-bank applications, offering a simplified way to manage their finances. From this week, customers of eight Swiss banks and two third-party providers can link multiple accounts to display information in one app. More than 30 banks provide the necessary data interface. The same interface also enables customers to access account data through third-party applications, such as fintech apps, with potential uses including account overviews, spending analyses, and budget planning. Over the coming years, more banks are expected to provide customers with access to account data via third-party apps. Additional financial institutions are also likely to launch multibanking services, creating an open ecosystem intended to benefit all market participants. For customers, this could lead to new products and services that simplify financial management and improve transparency. Christoph Müller, Head of Banking Services and Executive Board Member at SIX, said: Christoph Müller “We’re delighted that numerous banks are implementing this milestone via our bLink open banking platform. Now it’s time to push the expansion forward together, because the more institutions that participate, the more complete the offering becomes, the greater the value for customers, and the better the conditions for innovative products.” The multibanking initiative began in 2022 under the association Swiss Fintech Innovations (SFTI) and was later coordinated by the Swiss Bankers Association. Participating banks committed to providing access to account data via standardised interfaces, ensuring that non-banks can access information securely and with explicit customer consent. bLink provides the technical foundation for multibanking, using standardised APIs and advanced encryption to ensure secure data exchange and integrity. The platform is continually developed with input from banks and fintechs and is adapted to meet national market requirements.   Featured image credit: SIX The post Swiss Banks Launch Multibanking for Private Customers via bLink appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

PostFinance has launched a multibanking service enabling private customers to integrate accounts from other Swiss banks and financial service providers directly into e-finance or the PostFinance App. The service allows customers to view all their accounts in a single, central overview. The multibanking service is aimed at private customers with multiple banking relationships who wish to consolidate their financial information. Accounts at participating third-party banks can be linked easily with a few clicks via e-finance or the PostFinance App. Once connected, customers can see payment and savings accounts, including income, expenditure, and account balances, in one overview, eliminating the need to navigate between different banking portals or applications. To connect an account, third-party banks must meet the technical specifications for multibanking, which requires integration with SIX Group’s bLink open banking platform. A list of eligible banks is provided during the registration process. Transactions from linked accounts are automatically displayed in PostFinance’s analysis overview, giving customers a complete picture of their finances. SIX, a provider of financial infrastructure in Switzerland, ensures secure and standardised data exchange between banks and third-party providers through the bLink platform. The multibanking solution complies with recognised interface standards from the Swiss open banking ecosystem and meets all regulatory requirements for secure payment data transactions.   Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by thanyakij-12 via Freepik The post PostFinance Launches Multibanking Service for Private Customers appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

BKN301 Group, a London-based fintech architecture provider, has secured a credit facility from funds and accounts managed by BlackRock and acquired Planky, a UK-based company specialising in AI-driven financial analytics and open banking. The credit facility complements BKN301’s latest Series B round, bringing the total capital raised to US$38 million. The financing will support BKN301’s expansion across the Middle East, Africa and Europe. By combining modular digital banking infrastructure with data analytics and machine learning, the company aims to provide financial institutions and fintechs with a scalable and intelligent platform. Through the acquisition of Planky, BKN301 gains a proprietary AI and data analytics engine. Planky’s machine learning models, which focus on real-time financial insights, behavioural scoring, and predictive analytics, will be integrated into BKN301’s platform. This is intended to enhance automation and the delivery of more personalised digital banking services while maintaining compliance and scalability. Stiven Muccioli “This milestone marks a defining moment for BKN301,” said Stiven Muccioli, Founder and CEO of BKN301. “With the growth financing and Planky’s AI capabilities, we’re accelerating toward our vision of a next-generation fintech infrastructure, one that’s intelligent, open, and designed to empower financial inclusion at scale across emerging markets.” Over the next 18 months, BKN301 plans to strengthen its AI and data analytics capabilities, expand partnerships with regional financial institutions, and explore further acquisitions to support technological innovation and market growth.   Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by shammianeybee via Freepik The post BKN301 Secures $38 Million, Acquires UK AI Fintech Firm appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Despite widespread hype, the adoption of tokenization in capital markets remains at a very nascent phase. Most stakeholders are only experimenting with the technology and applications are largely focused on fixed-income products including bonds and money market funds (MFFs), according to a new report by the International Organization of Securities Commission (IOSCO), the global entity representing securities and futures regulators from around the world. The report, produced by IOSCO through its Fintech Task Force’s Financial Asset Tokenization Working Group (TWG), provides an overview of the current state of development and adoption of tokenization and distributed ledger technology (DLT) in capital markets products and services, drawing on literature review, regulatory surveys, and stakeholder outreach. According to the report, tokenization is gaining interest and initiatives are emerging across lifecycle activities. However, progress remains uneven across asset classes, and overall still at a very nascent stage. The study found that while interest in tokenizing capital-markets products is split equally across the jurisdictions studied, actual adoption, reflected in commercialized use cases, is actually really low with the vast majority of respondents (91%) indicating no or very limited tokenization use cases. Further highlighting the nascent stage of the sector, the study found that most jurisdictions are reporting more experimentation of tokenization (57%) than actual use cases (43%). Fixed-income products among top applications Despite limited adoption overall, interest is growing in specific products and activities. In particular, fixed-income products, including bonds and MMFs, are leading in both the size and number of tokenized issuances. Since 2021, more than US$5 billion in tokenized fixed-income instruments has been issued, including US$3 billion being issued in 2024 alone. That amount represents a 3.5 times increase between 2023 and 2024. McKinsey estimates that roughly US$10 billion worth of tokenized bonds have been issued in the past decade. Despite growth, tokenized issuance remains small compared to the US$140 trillion outstanding amount globally. Amount of tokenized fixed income instruments issued (by type of trial), Source: Final Report on Financial Asset Tokenization, International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), Nov 2025 Tokenized bonds are typically issued directly on the blockchain, with the tokens representing ownership of the assets. Some operators may take steps to provide greater assurance of settlement finality, often involving regulated central securities depositories (CSDs). The trading and post-trade activities of tokenized bonds are often integrated with traditional exchanges and clearing houses to provide investors with the option to use traditional financial infrastructure. Examples include UBS’s CHF 375 million bond issued on the SIX Digital Exchange in 2022, digital bonds issued by the city of Lugano in Switzerland, as well as DBS’s first tokenized bond of SGD 15 million (US$11.5 million) in 2021. MMFs, meanwhile, are typically tokenized at the fund level. Tokens are issued on a blockchain, representing ownership of fund shares or units, while the fund’s assets are managed in the same manner as conventional funds. Blockchain records may serve as proof of ownership or merely as a back-up record, and issuers and transfer agents typically have the ability to correct them when necessary, such as in the case of fraud. Examples include the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL), which invests in very short-term, safe assets such as US Treasuries, and repos, and is built on Ethereum; the Franklin Templeton OnChain US Government Money Fund (FOBXX), which is deployed on several blockchain including Stellar, Polygon, and Arbitrum; as well as sgBENJI, a US dollar MMF token issued on the XRP Ledger and launched by DBS, Franklin Templeton and Ripple. Risks and opportunities The IOSCO study found that overall, stakeholders in the capital markets are recognizing the potential of tokenization to address various market inefficiencies present in the lifecycle of financial assets, such as information asymmetries, search frictions, transaction costs, and counterparty risks. Shared and programmable ledgers can reduce frictions in issuance, trading, servicing, and redemption by linking assets directly to ledger-based ownership records. Tokenization can also reduce counterparty risk, thanks to atomic settlement, and faster distribution of dividends and interest. Tokenization also allows for fractionalization, broadening access to traditionally illiquid assets by lowering minimum investment sizes, and helping to improve liquidity and diversify risk. Finally, tokenization supports product innovation, enabling bespoke instruments, automated income flows, streamlined asset servicing, and improved environmental, social and governance (ESG) standard tracking. Despite the opportunities, the report emphasizes that tokenization also introduces new risks. Greater sharability and programmability may facilitate wider and faster spread of shocks across the markets and thereby increase the cost of operational risk events. Furthermore, new process flows or intermediaries with roles such as token minters, and DLT platform developers, can reshape traditional activities, causing disruption. Tokenization also introduces new complexities due to its reliance on DLT, which existing laws are not designed to accommodate, and ownership and investor rights can be unclear. But more importantly, DLT networks themselves pose risks. Because blockchains rely on consensus across nodes, they can experience forks, resulting in a split into two distinct networks. This makes it unclear which version is the authoritative record of ownership. Both public and permissioned blockchains can also be targeted by cyberattacks, including attempts to take over the network or exploit weaknesses in node management. Data privacy is another challenge. Because blockchains are transparent and immutable, this can conflict with legal privacy requirements. It can also create market-integrity risks if visible transaction flows trigger panic or manipulation. Fragmentation across different, non-interoperable DLT networks is also a critical issue, creating liquidity silos and introducing vulnerabilities in the bridges that link networks. Other challenges include delays and high transaction fees due to network congestion, money-laundering risks, and smart contract vulnerabilities. McKinsey estimates that total tokenized market capitalization could reach around US$2 trillion by 2030, excluding cryptocurrencies and private stablecoins. In a bullish scenario, this value could double to around US$4 trillion, it predicts.   Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by thanyakij-12 via Freepik The post Adoption of Tokenization in Capital Markets Remains Limited appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Danish fintech Flatpay, which provides card payment solutions for SMBs, has reached unicorn status with a valuation of €1.5 billion, just three years after its founding. The startup has raised €145 million in its latest funding round, led by AVP and Smash Capital, with participation from Dawn Capital, which had backed its US$47 million Series B, and former German footballer Mario Götze. Flatpay’s growth strategy focuses on offering small merchants a flat transaction rate for its card terminals and point-of-sale systems, targeting the segment that accounts for 99% of European businesses. According to TechCrunch, the company now serves around 60,000 customers, up from 7,000 in April 2024. CEO and co-founder Sander Janca-Jensen highlighted the startup’s financial progress: Sander Janca-Jensen “We crossed €100 million of ARR in October,” he said, noting that the figure is growing by roughly €1 million per day. “The plan for 2026 is to grow another 300%, so hopefully leave the year with between €400 and €500 million of ARR.” Flatpay employs 1,500 staff, referred to internally as “flatpayers”, and plans to double this number by the end of next year, alongside expanding into one or two new markets. Its growth model relies heavily on in-person onboarding, with sales staff visiting SMBs directly to explain pricing and provide card terminals for demonstrations. Janca-Jensen described this hands-on approach as central to acquiring customers: “Every sales person has that suitcase.” While the approach increases customer acquisition costs, the company argues it accelerates growth by generating demand and supporting high retention. Flatpay also integrates AI for real-time features and is experimenting with voice agents, while planning a gradual rollout of a broader banking suite for SMBs, including cards and accounts. Janca-Jensen said the aim is to allow SMB owners to “eat the elephant one bite at a time.”     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by rawpixel.com via Freepik The post Danish Fintech Flatpay Reaches Unicorn Status appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

OpenAI and Intuit have announced a multi year strategic partnership that will bring new Intuit app experiences into ChatGPT and expand Intuit’s use of OpenAI’s frontier models under an agreement valued at more than US$100 million. The partnership will extend Intuit’s use of OpenAI models across a range of functions within its platform. It builds on Intuit’s long running investment in data, AI and fintech, enabling the company to deliver more personalised services at greater speed and scale. OpenAI models will support selected Intuit artificial intelligence agents across its products. These agents will assist with tasks such as cash flow forecasting, tax preparation and payroll management, operating under Intuit’s existing privacy, security and responsible artificial intelligence frameworks. Intuit will also continue using ChatGPT Enterprise internally to support employee productivity. Fidji Simo “Intuit’s AI powered financial platform helps millions of people manage their finances and run their businesses,” said Fidji Simo, Chief Executive of Applications at OpenAI. “This partnership combines our most advanced models and global scale with Intuit’s platform capabilities to help everyone make smarter financial decisions and build more secure futures.” Intuit apps will soon be accessible within ChatGPT, allowing users to take secure and personalised financial actions. This will connect Intuit’s proprietary financial data and AI systems with OpenAI’s models. Sasan Goodarzi “We are taking a massive step forward to fuel financial success for consumers and businesses, unlocking growth for both companies,” said Sasan Goodarzi, Chief Executive of Intuit. “Our partnership combines the power of Intuit’s proprietary financial data, credit models and artificial intelligence platform capabilities with OpenAI’s scale and frontier models to give users the financial advantage they need to prosper.” Consumers will be able to use Intuit apps within ChatGPT to receive personalised insights and take relevant actions, including identifying suitable credit products, receiving clearer tax guidance, estimating refunds, connecting with tax specialists and improving their financial position. For businesses, Intuit apps will provide tailored insights to improve cash flow, automate follow ups and support email marketing efforts, using real time business data. The partnership aims to help businesses increase revenue and profitability through more targeted insights and reduced effort.   Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by ttonaorh via Freepik The post Intuit to Integrate Financial Apps with ChatGPT appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Zilch, the consumer payments platform, has announced a multi-year agreement with Arsenal to become the club’s Official Way to Pay. The partnership, Zilch’s first in sport, covers both the men’s and women’s teams and will introduce its flexible payment options to Arsenal supporters. As part of the launch, Zilch will provide £50,000 in discounts for fans shopping on Arsenal Direct. From 12pm on 21 November, the first 1,000 supporters who spend £50 or more online will receive £50 off their purchase. Supporters will also have access to up to 10% savings in-store at the Armoury and opportunities to win tickets, access merchandise releases, enjoy hospitality, meet players, and join stadium tours. Zilch said the partnership aligns with its aim to offer alternatives to high-cost credit by providing payment tools designed to benefit users. Philip Belamant, CEO and Co-Founder of Zilch, said: Philip Belamant “We have spent the past five years building a customer base of over 5 million highly engaged users, and we’ve done so organically through the strength of our proposition. We are hugely excited as we now embark on our first brand partnership with one of the most recognisable brands in the world, Arsenal.” Juliet Slot, Chief Commercial Officer at Arsenal, said: Juliet Slot “We are delighted to welcome Zilch to the Arsenal family as a new Partner. Zilch is a new and exciting proposition… Their support and investment will help drive our ambition to win major trophies.”     Featured image credit: Zilch The post Arsenal Names Zilch as Official Payment Partner in Multi-Year Deal appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Julius Baer has selected software provider Temenos to replace its ageing core banking system in Switzerland, according to four people familiar with the matter, as the bank moves to modernise critical infrastructure amid rising regulatory demands. Reuters reports that CEO Stefan Bollinger announced in June the creation of a new digital business transformation function and the launch of a project to update the bank’s Swiss IT systems, without disclosing the supplier’s identity. Stefan Bollinger “It has to be done, and I want to do a substantial proportion in the current strategic cycle,” Bollinger said, referring to the period ending in 2028, citing increasing regulatory requirements as a key driver. The bank is aligning its Swiss systems with Temenos’ T24 platform, which Julius Baer already uses in Singapore and Luxembourg, two of the sources said. The lender is also adding a Temenos wealth management interface for relationship managers and high-net-worth clients, according to one source. Temenos generally signs new deals under a subscription model, with cash flows spread over five years, according to Reto Huber, an analyst at consultancy Research Partners. Switzerland introduced a requirement in 2016 for banks to use computer-based systems to monitor transactions, increasing the need for digital customer data, according to financial regulator FINMA. Julius Baer, which remains under a FINMA enforcement procedure related to losses tied to the failed Signa property group, said the IT overhaul is unrelated to the ongoing assessment. “The IT infrastructure programme in Switzerland is not an operational risk issue, rather an initiative to gain strategic flexibility in pursuit of the bank’s future ambitions,” it said.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by brilian via Freepik The post Julius Baer Picks Temenos to Overhaul Swiss Core Banking Systems appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Prediction markets have grown rapidly, driven by regulation, a dynamic fundraising landscape, and rising mainstream adoption, especially in sports. That momentum is projected to continue as major financial institutions enter the space, and as new markets and decentralized finance (DeFi) technologies push the sector to new heights, according to a new report by Sporting Crypto, a sports and blockchain media and intelligence company. Prediction markets: an overview Prediction markets are marketplaces designed to aggregate information and forecast future events by allowing participants to buy and sell contracts based on the outcome of these events. These platforms essentially allow users to “bet” on what will happen, with prices reflecting the collective belief about the probability of each outcome. Prediction markets have existed in the US for decades but only bursted into the mainstream in the fall of 2024 after Kalshi, a federally regulated derivatives exchange and clearinghouse, began offering contracts based on the outcome of political events. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), then under the Biden Administration, sought to prohibit such contracts, arguing that they resembled gambling and contrary to the public interest. However, Kalshi sued the CFTC in court and won. Momentum builds in prediction markets Since Kalshi’s 2024 legal victory, and following other bullish CFTC decisions, the popularity of prediction markets has grown steadily and expected to cover crypto, climate, economic, financial, corporate, and sports events. A multi-year legal timeline, Source: Predicted: The State of Prediction Markets 2025, Sporting Crypto, Nov 2025 Crypto-native platforms have emerged as highly influential, led by players such as Polymarket, a decentralized platform for trading on global events, often using cryptocurrencies; and Augur a decentralized, blockchain-based prediction market. The sector also comprises regulated exchanges like Kalshi, which offers contracts on political, economic, and weather events; as well as PredictIt, a US-based political prediction market, popular for elections. Polymarket and Kalshi currently dominate the market, accounting for 98% of the total volume in prediction markets, according to Sporting Crypto. Volumes have surged over the past year, rising 580% from roughly US$50 million in August 2025 to about US$340 million in November 2025. Kalshi and Polymarket volumes, Source: Predicted: The State of Prediction Markets 2025, Sporting Crypto, Nov 2025 Sports now lead prediction-market activity. Over the last 12 months, Kalshi derived 59.3% of its volume from sports versus just 19.8% from politics. More recent data shows that Kalshi’s sports concentration has surged even higher, approaching about 90% of volume as the company double down on its CFTC-approved sports betting advantage. Polymarket, meanwhile, has a more diversified distribution, with about 35% from sports and 47% from politics, in addition to meaningful presence across verticals like crypto, reflecting its broader prediction market positioning. Kalshi and Polymarket volume by category, Source: Predicted: The State of Prediction Markets 2025, Sporting Crypto, Nov 2025 In addition to bullish regulatory developments, venture capital (VC) activity in the sector has also fueled the growth of the prediction markets sector. Since 2015, prediction-market startups have raised US$3.1 billion, with US$2.7 billion, or 87% of that total, raised in 2025 alone. Polymarket (US$2.15 billion) and Kalshi (US$485 million) secured 90% of this year’s funding. Coinbase Ventures has been the most active investor in 2025, with five deals so far. Major traditional VC firms like Sequoia Capital, Founders Fund, Union Square Ventures, CapitalG, General Catalyst, and Bond Capital, have also been active in the space. Venture funding in prediction market, Source: Predicted: The State of Prediction Markets 2025, Sporting Crypto, Nov 2025 Blockchain poised to boost the sector The prediction market had a total addressable market (TAM) of US$1.4 billion in 2024. This figure is projected to grow to over US$95 billion by 2035, driven by regulatory clarity, institutional participation, the expansion into new sectors, and the adoption of blockchain technology. Permissionless access can help aggregate liquidity across crypto speculators, casual traders, institutional speculators, and professional forecasters, helping them participate simultaneously in the same markets. Smart contracts automate settlement and eliminate intermediaries across the full spectrum of market participants, improving efficiencies, and enabling instantaneous price discovery that reflects real-time shifts in collective probabilities. Onchain prediction markets also support yield-generating products tied to long-term positions such as election outcomes or sports season results. Meanwhile, smart contracts and oracles enable automated, verifiable settlement. Oracles can verify event outcomes onchain, enabling automatic payouts without manual intervention. Prediction markets can also provide real-time probability data that artificial intelligence (AI) models can use to improve forecasts and decision-making. By tapping into decentralized, crowd-sourced insights, Al systems can gain more adaptive and accurate signals beyond traditional data. Emerging sectors The Sporting Crypto report notes that while politics and sports contracts continue to lead prediction market volumes, several emerging sectors are gaining traction. Enterprise forecasting, weather, and entertainment talent, in particular, are projected to reach TAMs of US$110.5 billion, US$10 billion, and US$7.8 billion, respectively, by 2030, with compound annual growth rates (CAGR) of 14.9%, 14.9%, and 14.3%. Where prediction markets could be going next, Source: Predicted: The State of Prediction Markets 2025, Sporting Crypto, Nov 2025   Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by wahyu_t via Freepik The post Prediction Markets Set to Surge, Fueled by Clearer Regulations, Sector Expansion, and Blockchain Integration appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.