LSEG Risk Intelligence has launched Identity Gateway, an API layer that allows financial institutions to connect to multiple government-backed and private digital identity schemes across Europe through a single integration. Unveiled at Money 20/20 Europe, the platform aims to address the fragmentation of identity verification across borders. It is currently available in 10 European markets, including Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Spain, with plans to add more countries in the future. Instead of negotiating separate contracts and building direct technical integrations for each market, companies can use the platform to route verification requests centrally. LSEG Risk Intelligence stated that this approach can reduce time to market for cross-border expansion by 80 to 90%. Daniel Flowe “Digital identity is reaching an inflection point. As trusted national and private schemes continue to emerge, organisations need a simpler way to access them without rebuilding their identity processes market by market,” said Daniel Flowe, Head of Digital Identity at LSEG Risk Intelligence. The launch comes as the European Union prepares to roll out its Digital Identity (EUDI) Wallet framework. Under the initiative, all 27 member states will introduce their own digital identity implementations. Identity Gateway standardises the data returned by these schemes. Businesses can then integrate the results directly into their existing risk management and customer onboarding workflows. Microsoft Azure powers the platform. LSEG Risk Intelligence offers Identity Gateway as part of its broader identity verification suite, which also includes data- and document-based checks. The system allows companies to adjust their identity verification friction based on the transaction risk level and local regulatory requirements.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by user8647581 via Magnific The post LSEG Risk Intelligence Launches Identity Gateway for European ID Schemes appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Clear Junction is partnering with digital asset infrastructure provider Agant to support institutional access to GBPA, a pound sterling stablecoin. The collaboration addresses a gap in digital asset markets, which have largely developed around the US dollar, by providing an access route for UK and European institutions that operate with sterling at the centre of their treasury, settlement and payment flows. Clear Junction Digital Limited, the group’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) registered cryptoasset business, will act as a distribution partner for the stablecoin. For institutions requiring fiat GBP capabilities, Clear Junction Limited, an FCA-authorised electronic money institution, will support the payment flows needed for token issuance and redemption. The GBPA token is designed by Agant as a 1:1 sterling-backed stablecoin for institutional use. Agant is currently preparing for its first live issuance, with initial availability expected across the Ethereum, Base, Tempo and Solana blockchain networks. The proposition aims to support practical business use cases across domestic and cross-border payments, corporate treasury, foreign exchange and exchange liquidity. Under the agreement, Clear Junction Digital will be able to acquire, use and distribute GBPA to eligible institutional financial services and cryptoasset firms that meet specific onboarding and compliance requirements. The companies target initiating issuance and redemption payments within one hour. This turnaround remains subject to onboarding, due diligence, platform availability, transaction checks, fiat payment processing requirements and applicable operational controls. Teresa Cameron “Clear Junction Group works with licensed financial institutions that need reliable payments infrastructure, strong operational standards and a compliance-first approach,” said Teresa Cameron, CEO, Clear Junction. She added that sterling needs credible infrastructure to play a meaningful role in digital settlement. Andrew MacKenzie, Founder and CEO, Agant, said the partnership gives the firm an institutional access route through an FCA registered partner with established fiat GBP infrastructure. Andrew MacKenzie “A credible pound sterling stablecoin can help ensure sterling remains relevant as institutional finance becomes increasingly connected to blockchain-based settlement,” he said.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by thanyakij-12 via Magnific The post Clear Junction and Agant Collaborate on Access to Sterling Stablecoin GBPA appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

B2B payments provider TransferMate is expanding its global network by integrating stablecoin capabilities through a new partnership with digital asset infrastructure platform BVNK. The collaboration will enable TransferMate to offer stablecoin infrastructure across its global payment rails for the first time. The company intends to deploy these digital asset options within sectors such as global payroll, e-commerce marketplaces, and education. TransferMate operates a regulated fintech payments infrastructure holding more than 100 regulatory licenses across the Asia-Pacific, the Americas, and Europe. By introducing stablecoin payments tied to the value of traditional fiat currencies like the US dollar and euro, the company aims to offer alternative settlement rails without the volatility found in other cryptocurrencies. The integration utilises BVNK’s embedded wallet and payment infrastructure to provide on-ramps and off-ramps for digital assets. This structure allows enterprise clients to access stablecoin payment rails within their existing workflows, reducing friction during international transactions. A primary area of application for the new service is the international education market, where TransferMate manages tuition payments. Educational institutions will be able to accept tuition fees from international students via stablecoins, offering an alternative to traditional cross-border banking methods. Gary Conroy, President and Chief Commercial Officer at TransferMate, said the partnership represents the company’s first move into digital assets. Gary Conroy “Stablecoins have the potential to improve cross-border B2B payments,” Conroy said. “Sectors where speed, transparency, and cost-efficiency are critical will benefit, alongside challenging markets like Africa and LATAM, where fiat cross-border payments face friction and high costs.” The integration aims to provide faster transaction speeds and broader settlement options for business clients. Chris Harmse “By working with BVNK, TransferMate is opening up choice and improving speed for its customers,” said Chris Harmse, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer at BVNK. “We’re particularly excited about their plans for the education vertical.” TransferMate plans to roll out the new stablecoin capabilities to its corporate customers over the coming months.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by TransferMate The post TransferMate Integrates BVNK Infrastructure to Offer Stablecoin Payments appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

XTransfer has signed a MoU with global financial group BBVA to deepen cross-border payment infrastructure across Latin America and Europe. The agreement, announced during the Money20/20 Europe 2026 event in Amsterdam, focuses on delivering integrated business-to-business financial solutions. These services will span foreign exchange conversion, local payments, and cross-border payments across Latin America, Europe, and Hong Kong. The companies will explore the use of application programming interfaces, digital platforms, and virtual accounts to support automated, real-time transaction processing. The collaboration targets small and medium-sized enterprises engaged in international trade, aiming to streamline payment flows and improve operational connectivity. Trade between China and Latin America has intensified recently. Platform data from XTransfer shows that payment collections from Latin America rose 94% year-on-year in 2025. Despite this growth, many small firms face hurdles such as slow onboarding, foreign exchange constraints, and complex compliance. The alliance is designed to address these barriers directly. For XTransfer, the partnership strengthens the depth of X-Net, its global unified cross-border settlement and risk management network. Latin America has become a high-growth corridor for Chinese exporter settlements, and BBVA’s established presence across Latin America and Europe will support this geographic expansion. The agreement also allows BBVA to connect with a network of more than 897,000 small business clients worldwide, expanding its reach in global payments across multiple regions. Bill Deng “Latin America remains an active but underserved trade corridor, where smaller enterprises still encounter significant challenges,” said Bill Deng, Founder and CEO of XTransfer. “Together, we aim to simplify cross-border finance and improve the efficiency and inclusivity for global traders.” Ksenia Nekrasova “Beyond the growth in flows, we are seeing a shift in how our clients operate,” said Ksenia Nekrasova, Global Sector Co-Head of TMT at BBVA. “This agreement allows us to anticipate that evolution, supporting these clients in their international expansion with solutions designed for their scale.”     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by XTransfer This article first appeared on Fintech News Hong Kong The post XTransfer and BBVA Partner on Cross-Border Payments in Latin America and Europe appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Fingerprint has released the preview version of its AI Assistant Detection and Automation Intelligence API, delivering an AI traffic identification layer designed to detect automated systems in real time. The tool provides visibility into traffic from prominent AI assistants, including OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and Anthropic’s Claude. The Automation Intelligence API powers the technology as a platform-agnostic solution that identifies automated traffic without requiring client-side JavaScript. The launch follows the company’s February 2026 release of Authorised AI Agent Detection. Together, the tools aim to provide a unified view of AI traffic, encompassing agents that take actions on a user’s behalf and assistants that browse and summarise content. Navigating browserless AI traffic Traditional web security and analytics tools operate on the assumption that web traffic stems from humans opening standard browsers. JavaScript-based detection systems rely on this assumption, but the rise of browserless AI assistants presents a challenge to this model. AI assistants access websites over HTTP to pull content, summarise documentation, and conduct research without executing JavaScript. The company highlighted this accelerating shift by pointing to tools like Google’s Gemini Spark, which runs on dedicated cloud virtual machines without a user opening a browser, alongside similar patterns from OpenAI‘s ChatGPT and Anthropic‘s Claude. Valentin Vasilyev “The web is going browserless, and the pace of that shift is faster than most security stacks were built to handle,” said Valentin Vasilyev, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, Fingerprint. “Google’s Gemini Spark, ChatGPT, and Claude demonstrate how a growing share of traffic will arrive with no browser, no JavaScript, and no traditional signals to rely on.” Closing the blind spot in bot detection According to Fingerprint, traditional bot detection creates a blind spot because malicious scrapers and low-quality bots frequently spoof the user-agent of popular AI assistants. Security operators often hesitate to block this traffic out of fear of cutting off legitimate AI discovery channels, allowing impersonators to scrape data or skew analytics. By operating at the HTTP level rather than relying on browser-based signals, the new solution verifies legitimate assistant traffic and flags impersonators before they access content. The API can be deployed at the content delivery network edge, in middleware, or on any backend cloud platform to analyse requests before they reach an application. Providing contextual network intelligence In addition to a verdict, the system delivers network risk intelligence, including proxy, virtual private network, Tor, and geolocation signals, to help teams block, throttle, or allow traffic. The AI Assistant Detection signal is currently available in preview to a select group of existing Fingerprint customers using the Bot Detection Smart Signal at no additional cost. The company plans to add support for Microsoft’s Copilot, xAI‘s Grok, and OpenClaw in future updates.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by brilian via Magnific The post Fingerprint Launches AI Assistant Detection Preview for Real-Time Traffic ID appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

ClearBank has partnered with Bybit EU to deliver core banking infrastructure across Europe. Under the agreement, ClearBank Europe is providing safeguarding on customer accounts alongside fiat on-ramping and off-ramping services. These services enable Bybit EU customers to manage their funds and move assets between fiat and digital currencies across the region. ClearBank established the banking relationship during Bybit EU’s pre-registration phase. Following the receipt of its Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license, the exchange used ClearBank Europe’s infrastructure to launch its platform for European customers. Bybit EU is actively pursuing an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) licence to expand its product offering. The exchange also intends to use ClearBank Europe’s services to support its upcoming entry into the UK market while exploring further international expansion. Tristan Kirchner “Our partnership with Bybit EU reflects both our deep knowledge of the digital asset sector and the strength of ClearBank Europe’s offering,” said Tristan Kirchner, CEO, ClearBank Europe. “We supported Bybit EU’s launch in the region with secure, scalable banking infrastructure designed to meet the needs of fast-growing firms operating in complex markets.” Georg Harer “ClearBank Europe has supported us from an early stage as we built our operations in Europe,” said Georg Harer, Co-CEO, Bybit EU. “The strength of its infrastructure and processes has helped us establish the banking services we needed to get up and running.”     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by 21studio via Magnific The post ClearBank Partners with Bybit EU to Provide MiCA-Compliant Banking Infrastructure appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Mastercard has announced plans to expand its settlement capabilities by introducing intraday, weekend, and holiday settlement options. The update supports both fiat currencies and on-chain settlement using regulated stablecoins for card network settlement flows. The enhancements aim to give issuers and acquirers greater flexibility in settling transactions across the global network. This functionality is designed to help improve liquidity management and expand options for corporate money movement. Expanding network flexibility The global infrastructure currently supports various settlement models to align with the business, regulatory, and liquidity needs of partners. These new options introduce greater flexibility in timing and liquidity while operating alongside existing ecosystem processes. The capabilities are relevant for treasury, payouts, and cross-border transactions where timing and transparency are critical. Source: Mastercard Stablecoin settlement represents an optional method for partners to incorporate regulated digital assets alongside existing traditional rails as adoption evolves. Mastercard will support regulated stablecoins including Circle’s USDC, which already supports early on-chain settlement flows in select markets. The network will also enable Paxos-issued stablecoins including PYUSD, USDG, and USDP, alongside Ripple’s RLUSD and SoFi’s SoFiUSD. These digital assets will be enabled across several blockchain networks, including Arbitrum, Base, Canton, Ethereum, Polygon, Solana, Tempo, and XRPL. Initial support for stablecoin settlement optionality is expected in the United States and Latin America through companies such as ARQ, CBW Bank, Cross River, Lead Bank, and Nuvei, with further expansion planned through 2026. Network security and scaling The network-level enhancement allows partners to access traditional and digital asset-based settlement through their existing global infrastructure. This model ensures consistency, scalability, and interoperability across the ecosystem while preserving existing protection frameworks, security standards, fraud safeguards, and dispute processes. Raj Dhamodharan “The next phase of stablecoin adoption is about real-world utility, especially in settlement, where timing and liquidity matter most,” said Raj Dhamodharan, Executive Vice President, Blockchain and Digital Assets at Mastercard. Dhamodharan stated that the introduction of intraday and weekend options expands how partners manage liquidity in an always-on digital economy, while maintaining the trust and resilience expected from the network. The expanded settlement capabilities will continue to roll out globally, subject to local regulation, with additional regions, partners, and regulated stablecoins added over time.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by graphiculon via Magnific The post Mastercard Expands Network to Support Regulated Stablecoin Settlement appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Stablecoins, a form a tokenized money issued primarily by non-banks, promise efficiency gains in payments, but also introduce new risks to financial stability and monetary control. Because of this, policymakers in the European Union (EU) have largely discouraged their development, favoring instead tokenized deposits issued by banks. According to a new paper by Bruegel, a European economics think tank, this stance risks driving stablecoin activity offshore and exposing EU holders to USD currency risk and the bloc itself to the risk of “infrastructure dollarization”. The EU’s stance on stablecoins Under the 2023 Markets in Crypto Assets regulation (MiCA), the EU has set a clear policy direction that favors the development of private-sector digital money within the architecture of the existing monetary system, such as tokenized deposits and stablecoins issued by banks, while discouraging the development of stablecoins outside that architecture, the paper says. The European Central Bank (ECB) has acknowledged the technological possibilities offered by digital money, while also warning of the risks to financial stability and monetary policy transmission created specifically by stablecoins. Conversely, the US has taken a difference stance. Although the 2025 US Genius Act has much in common with MiCA, it actively encourage the development of USD stablecoins, the paper says. It argues that while EU policymakers aim to protect the architecture of the euro-area financial system and maintain the sovereignty of the currency, they may unintentionally achieve the opposite. By discouraging the development of stablecoins, the EU could push demand to the US, exposing the bloc to the risk of “infrastructure dollarization” and of an over-reliance on the USD and US-controlled networks rather than domestic currency and infrastructure. Consequently, Europe could be left without a competitive distributed ledger technology (DLT) payment infrastructure anchored in EU public money. This gap would emerge during the critical period when global norms are established for tokenized payments. A strategy to contain these risks To mitigate these risks, Bruegel advises supporting of the development of euro-denominated, EU-regulated stablecoins, while ensuring their safety and preserving the role of central-bank money in the euro area’s financial architecture. This would require ensuring public settlement for tokenized markets, including by accelerating the ECB’s Appia project to establish interoperability between DLT platforms and ECB payments infrastructure. Launched in 2025, Appia is the cornerstone of the Eurosystem strategy to provide central bank money within tokenized wholesale financial markets, leveraging DLT to preserve central bank money as the anchor of the monetary system, foster a more integrated and resilient financial ecosystem, ensure strategic autonomy, and maintain the euro’s relevance as an international currency. Bruegel also recommends introducing measures to increase the liquidity of euro stablecoins on secondary markets, and removing MiCA requirements to hold a large share of stablecoin reserves in the form of bank deposits. Additionally, the think tank proposes allowing EU stablecoin issuers to remunerate stablecoin holders directly as long as the remuneration rate is below the rate on ECB reserves and standard deposit rates. Finally, it recommends granting EU-regulated stablecoin issuers access to the ECB’s balance sheet, including to lending-in-last-resort facilities. This would ensure that stablecoin issuers receive emergency funding during a crisis, preventing their collapse from destabilizing the broader financial system. The dominance of USD-denominated stablecoins Stablecoins emerged in 2014 but really took off starting in 2020. By 2026, the top seven stablecoins had reached a cumulative volume of nearly US$300 billion. Top seven stablecoins, Source: Bruegel, May 2026 These digital assets are now finding increasing use beyond cryptocurrency trading in more mainstream applications. Since 2023, stablecoin transaction volumes excluding bot-driven transactions have grown at a compound annual rate of 133%, reaching approximately US$28 trillion in 2025. Similarly, retail-scale transactions below US$250 and excluding bot activity and high-frequency trading increased from around US$500 million in 2019 to US$69.13 billion in 2025, reflecting growing use in smaller-value, consumer and business payments. Total retail-scale stablecoin transactions (US$ billions), Source: Bruegel, May 2026 Despite surging stablecoin volumes and usage, issuance and transactions remain overwhelmingly USD-based. Euro-denominated stablecoins account for just 0.3% of total supply, with the largest euro-denominated stablecoin, Circle’s EURC, ranking only twentieth. At the same time, Europe-based stablecoin transactions made up 38% of global transactions in the final quarter of 2025. This discrepancy implies that the vast majority of crypto-asset transactions associated with Europe are conducted in tokenized USD, rather than the euro. Dominance of dollar-denominated stablecoins and transactions, Source: Bruegel, May 2026   Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by rawpixel.com via Magnific The post Economic Think Tank Warns EU Stablecoin Restrictions Risk Driving Activity Offshore appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is creating a new cyber battleground where adversaries are using AI tools to launch sophisticated attacks. Against this backdrop, organizations face the dual challenge of defending against AI-powered threats while simultaneously implementing AI within their own security operations, a new paper by KPMG says. Released earlier this year, the report emphasizes the urgent need for organizations to prepare for the AI era. It highlights a recent incident involving Anthropic as a prime example of the threats arising from the rapid advancement and availability of powerful AI tools. In late 2025, Anthropic, the AI research company behind the Claude AI assistant, said it caught hackers sponsored by the Chinese government using its chatbot to perform automated cyber attacks against around 30 global organisations. The attackers tricked its tool into performing automated tasks under the guise of carrying out cyber security research. They gave the chatbot small automated tasks which, when strung together, formed a “highly sophisticated espionage campaign”, Anthropic said in a blog post in November 2025. Anthropic researchers said humans chose the targets, including large tech companies, financial institutions, chemical manufacturing companies, and government agencies. They qualified the incident as the “first reported AI-orchestrated cyber espionage campaign”. Criminals are also utilizing AI for social engineering and malware development. According to 2026 research by cybersecurity firm Expel, a group of hacker from North Korea had been using AI tools from OpenAI, Cursor and Anima to target crypto developers with fake job offers and malware, stealing up to US$12 million in cryptocurrency in a span of only three months. Other cases have also emerged. In 2023, security researchers documented the use of generative AI (genAI) to craft highly convincing, personalized phishing emails in seconds, targeting thousands of employees simultaneously. This capability allowed for a 40% increase in successful phishing incidents. AI-based attacks have proliferated over the past years. According to cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, AI-enabled entities increased attacks by 89% in 2025 from a year earlier, with nearly half of organizations now identifying AI-automated attack chains as the most significant ransomware threat. Establishing trusted AI frameworks and processes According to KPMG, these developments raise fundamental questions regarding the trustworthiness and security of popular large language models (LLMs) and market-available solutions. These technologies are being rapidly integrated into organizations as trusted solutions, often without full consideration of the associated risks. To ensure that AI use cases and solutions do not compromise an organization’s risk posture, KPMG advises establishing “trusted AI frameworks and processes”, sharing a practical implementation roadmap with key considerations. First, AI solutions must be designed to reduce or eliminate bias against individuals, communities and groups. These systems must be transparent and ensure a clear understanding of operations throughout the AI lifecycle. Human oversight must be integrated into the full AI lifecycle to manage risks and comply with applicable regulations. These solutions must also be safeguarded against cybercriminals, disinformation and other adverse events, and must be designed and implemented to prevent harm to individuals, companies and assets. Finally, AI tools must be designed to comply with applicable privacy and data protection laws and regulations. Furthermore, the data used must be obtained in compliance with applicable regulations and assessed for accuracy, integrity, and quality. Leveraging AI for enhanced intelligent protection While AI has intensified the cyber threat landscape, it has also equipped organizations with powerful new defensive tools and enabled a strategic shift from reactive defense to intelligent, adaptive protection. By learning behavioral baselines and understanding context, AI transforms fragmented evidence into coherent narratives while prioritizing alerts by business impact. This enables security teams to detect critical threats earlier with greater accuracy, allowing them to respond with precision and contain risks before significant harm occurs. For example, IBM provides a genAI-powered tool integrated into its managed Threat Detection and Response (TDR) Services to help security analysts identify, investigate, and respond to critical security threats more efficiently. The assistant reportedly reduced alert investigation times by 48% for one client and helps automate the escalation or closure of up to 85% of security alerts. Similarly, the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency uses AI as a powerful assistant for its analysts, helping them spot cyber threats faster and more accurately. Instead of manually sifting through endless streams of data, AI tools automatically scan for unusual patterns that might indicate a hacker, flag sensitive personal information to protect privacy, and assign “confidence scores” to help teams decide which alerts need immediate attention. Additionally, AI helps experts quickly understand complex malware by analyzing its code and generating summaries, allowing the agency to detect attacks on government networks and critical infrastructure sooner.   Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by freepik via Magnific The post AI: A Double-Edged Sword for Cyber Threats and Defense appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Worldline, ING and Mastercard have completed a live agentic payment transaction, demonstrating how an AI agent can assist consumers in initiating purchases. The transaction took place between an ING cardholder and a merchant in the Netherlands, using infrastructure that operates across Belgium on the Mastercard network. Under this system, a merchant’s AI agent searches for items within a predefined budget and presents a curated selection to the buyer. The consumer remains directly involved and must give explicit approval before the purchase proceeds. The AI assists with initiation, but it does not replace consumer authentication authority. ING handles the authentication and authorisation using its established security mechanisms, while Worldline processes the payment across its issuing and acquiring platforms. The companies stated the transaction proves that agentic commerce can function securely across European payment infrastructures while maintaining transparency for the issuing bank. Madalena Cascais Tomé “Agentic commerce is no longer theoretical, it is production-ready today,” said Madalena Cascais Tomé, Member of the Executive Committee at Worldline. Hans Overeem “For ING, this collaboration is the perfect opportunity to lay a solid foundation for our continued role as a trusted partner in an increasingly agentic future in banking.” said Hans Overeem, Head of Payments, ING Netherlands. The pilot establishes that the required technical workflows are ready for deployment, with the companies planning to explore future use cases such as recurring transactions and delegated purchases.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by Worldline The post Worldline, ING and Mastercard Complete Live Agentic Payment Pilot in Europe appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Thunes has partnered with Canadian payout provider Trolley to expand international payment options for businesses in the creator economy. Through the integration, Trolley will use the Thunes network to offer its enterprise clients a wider range of local payment methods and instant transfer capabilities. Trolley provides payout infrastructure for platforms including SoundCloud, Canva, and Epic Games. The collaboration is designed to bypass complex regional banking setups, giving Trolley customers direct access to mobile wallets and real-time payment systems. This is particularly relevant for businesses making cross-border payouts to Asia, Africa, and Latin America, where recipients often prefer mobile wallets and real-time payment systems over traditional bank transfers. Retaining talent in the freelance and creator markets increasingly depends on payment speed. According to Trolley, the majority of gig workers prioritise quick access to their funds when choosing a payout system. Kyle Rosen “Businesses today need to provide specialised, local payment options to attract and keep global talent,” said Kyle Rosen, Head of North America at Thunes. “By welcoming Trolley into our network, we are helping platforms deliver the payout flexibility and speed that modern recipients demand.” Trolley Founder and CEO Tim Nixon said the partnership allows the company to offer access to local wallets and payment rails that were previously difficult to reach. Tim Nixon “Trolley customers can access Thunes’ trusted and expansive network while delivering on-demand pay to gig workers and creators exactly when and where they need it,” Nixon added. Thunes reports that its direct global network currently reaches 12 billion mobile wallets and bank accounts across 140 countries, supporting transactions in 90 currencies and more than 220 local payment methods through a single integration.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by freepik via Magnific The post Thunes Partners With Trolley to Expand Creator Economy Payouts appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Digital real-world assets (RWAs) are projected to reach US$88 trillion by 2035, accounting for approximately 16% of all investable assets, according to a new report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG). The research, released in May 2026, shares different scenarios for the evolution of digital assets, highlighting that in progressive scenarios (#1 and #3), global digital RWAs could reach this peak valuation. Scenario 1 envisions privately led growth where private actors and consumers drive digital asset adoption faster than public coordination efforts. In Scenario 3, growth would be driven by institutions, with digital assets becoming a deep but largely invisible upgrade of the current financial system. Scenario 2 projects growth across multiple, partially incompatible tracks within a fragmented landscape. This fragmented, multitrack system, characterized by prolonged regulatory fragmentation, would slow adoption and limits interoperability. Under this scenario, estimated RWAs would stand at US$46 trillion, accounting for 9% of investable assets. Finally, Scenario 4 represents a backlash in which digital assets are constrained, serving as a base case for a world without digital assets. In this scenario, digital RWA and stablecoin volumes would be negligible. Digital RWA projection (in USD trillion), Source: BCG scenario analysis, May 2026 Penetration rates by asset class Commodity funds are projected to experience the highest impact from tokenization, with penetration rates expected to reach 40-50% by 2035. This growth will be driven by tokenized precious metals, especially among crypto-savvy customers. Tokenized money market instruments are set to follow closely, with a projected penetration rate of 25-40% by 2035. Their operationally intensive, balance-sheet-heavy, and short-dated nature makes them prime candidates for on-chain issuance. By 2035, tokenized money market instruments are forecast to constitute 14% of the digital RWA market, valued at US$12.4 trillion in progressive scenarios. Alternative assets, including private credit, and real estate, represent another significant growth era. For this asset class, tokenization penetration is expected to range between 25% and 35% by 2035, fueled by a drive to broaden client accessibility and tokenize new asset types. Alternatives are projected to hold the largest share of the digital RWA market at 27%, totaling US$23.5 trillion by 2035. Securitized debt is similarly positioned for strong adoption, with estimated tokenization penetration between 20% and 30%. This asset class faces hurdles including structuring complexity, lifecycle events, and opacity, making it a strong candidate for tokenization. By 2035, tokenized securitized debt is projected to make up 21% of the digital RWA market, amounting to US$18.9 trillion. Asset class tokenization potential by 2035 (estimates), Source: BCG scenario analysis, May 2026 Impact on banks The rise of digital assets is expected to significantly impact banking revenue streams, expanding opportunities in asset and wealth management, while introducing new dynamics in capital markets. Conversely, transaction banking revenues will face the most significant pressure, followed by net interest income (NII) businesses. In personal banking, the biggest opportunity lies in recapturing client assets currently held in non-bank wallets. The most immediate defensive move involves wallet and custody provision, with bank-issued or bank-controlled wallets. These wallets would enable clients to hold cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, deposit tokens, and tokenized securities within a regulated environment. By integrating these assets into the existing mobile banking interface, banks can reposition themselves as the trusted aggregation layer for all client wealth. Beyond defense, digital assets expand the product shelf. Tokenization lowers operational friction in distributing alternatives, private credit, infrastructure, or real estate to a broader client base through fractionalization and greater reach, opening up new revenue opportunities. Operating models can also benefit. In particular, tokenized life cycle management reduces manual reconciliation, automates corporate actions, and embeds compliance into programmable rails, lowering cost-to-serve per position and enabling scalable servicing of smaller tickets. On liquidity management and cross-border payments, the report identifies treasury solutions and programmable liquidity as the primarily growth areas. Banks can monetize these opportunities by offering real-time cash visibility, automated sweeping, and conditional payments, alongside stablecoin-enabled cross-border payments. This is particularly valuable for developed-to-emerging-market corridors where revenue can be generated through payment orchestration, currency conversion, compliance, and connectivity fees. The core opportunity, therefore, lies in proactively capturing of future rails and treasury economics before clients move to non-banking players. Impact on asset managers For asset managers, the core effect of tokenization will be an expansion of the addressable assets under management (AUM) base and a higher share of assets captured in scalable, fee-bearing structures. First, tokenization will drive structural growth in investable RWA volumes. By improving settlement speed, reducing prefunding and collateral buffers, and lowering life cycle friction in issuance and transfer, tokenization will release previously locked capital. Second, tokenization will enhance productization and accessibility, especially in alternatives. Tokenization enables fractionalization, lower minimum subscription sizes, and more systematic life cycle management. Lower operational friction makes it economically viable to distribute private credit, infrastructure, real estate, or structured exposures into discretionary mandates, model portfolios, and standardized fund vehicles, supporting deeper penetration of higher-fee asset classes across both institutional and wealth segments and thus expanding AUM without fundamentally changing investment strategy. Third, tokenization will expand the service stack. Tokenized share classes can embed eligibility rules, jurisdictional transfer restrictions, reporting logic, and potentially settlement connectivity directly into the instrument. Economically, this shifts the manager’s role from pure product manufacturer toward platform operator, owning not only the investment strategy but also a greater share of the operational and distribution plumbing. The benefit here is higher wallet share, greater asset stickiness, and improved bargaining power in distribution relationships. Impact on capital markets In capital markets, aggregate trading revenue pools are expected to remain broadly stable as higher trading frequency and improved capital velocity are offset by tighter spreads and more transparency. The value creation therefore does not stem from top-line expansion, but rather from efficiency gains, capital intensity effects, and liquidity mechanics. For banks, the revenue effects will be two-sided. New fee pools will emerge in tokenized issuance, digital custody, smart-contract life cycle management, and collateral mobility. At the same time, legacy post-trade revenues will compress as reconciliation intensity falls, servicing spreads narrow, and pricing power declines on standardized rails. Key scenario assumptions: Details, Source: BCG scenario analysis, May 2026 The state of digital assets in Europe In Europe, digital assets have moved from the periphery to being deeply embedded in many client portfolios. A 2025 survey by Boerse Stuttgart Digital found that 25% of investors in Germany, Italy, Spain, and France have already invested in cryptocurrencies, with adoption highest in Spain at 28%, and Germany at 25%. 36% of crypto investors say they are likely to invest again within the next five years, demonstrating sustained interest despite market volatility. This growing engagement is reshaping customer expectations toward traditional banking. Nearly one in five investors expect their bank to offer access to crypto within the next three years, with demand strongest in Germany, where 22% of investors expect this service, followed by Spain at 19%, and Italy at 18%. Potential switching behavior underscores the strategic relevance of crypto. 35% of respondents across Europe could imagine changing their bank if another institution offered better crypto investment opportunities. This pattern is consistent across markets, with Spain leading at 40%, followed by Italy at 35% and France at 33%, highlighting crypto services as a key differentiator for financial institutions.   Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by DC Studio via Magnific The post Digital Real-World Assets Could Account for 16% of All Investable Assets by 2035 appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Over the past decade, fintech festivals and “fintech weeks” have proliferated around the world, expanding the traditional conference format into living ecosystems and immersive experiences. These events transform entire cities or districts into dynamic stages, offering participants access to a dense network of stakeholders, and blending formal sessions with cultural immersion, informal networking, and real-world demonstrations. One major attraction of fintech festivals is the density of interaction. During these week-long events, banks, startups, regulators, venture capital (VC) firms, payment companies, crypto firms, and infrastructure providers all host their own side events simultaneously, allowing participants to move through dozens of overlapping events tailored to their specific interests. Another appeal is that fintech festivals often blur the boundary between business, culture, and technology. While traditional conferences can feel transactional and highly scripted, festivals incorporate startup showcases, hackathons, investor dinners, product demos, nightlife, live media, and informal gatherings, making networking feel more natural and less forced. Finally, fintech festivals generate network effects that continue after the event ends. Since many organizations coordinate announcements, fundraises, partnerships, and launches around the same week, the event becomes a focal point for media attention and industry momentum. Among the dozens of such events that have emerged over the past years, the following eight stand out as the most prominent. Each year, they convene thousands of top decision-makers and innovators to shape the future of the sector, discuss the most promising issues, and close the industry’s most significant deals. Singapore Fintech Festival Singapore Fintech Festival (SFF) is one of the largest fintech festivals in the world, serving as a significant global convergence point where the worlds of policy, finance, and technology intersect. Organized by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the Global Finance and Technology Network (GFTN), and Constellar, in collaboration with The Association of Banks in Singapore, the event is designed not merely as a conference, but as an immersive platform for discovering the future trajectories of financial services. Through a mix of insightful sessions, roundtables, workshops, and exhibitions, it facilitates dialogue on how cutting-edge financial solutions, evolving regulatory landscapes, and technological innovations are reshaping global economies. In 2025, the event set a new benchmark, uniting over 65,000 participants from 134 countries. With more than 900 global speakers across approximately 300 sessions, the festival highlighted the transformative power of artificial intelligence (AI), tokenization, and quantum technologies in shaping the future of finance. In 2026, SFF will take place from November 18 to 20, at the Singapore EXPO. The program will feature six thematic stages dedicated to emerging trends, including blockchain, AI, and next-generation financial technologies. SFF 2026 will also offer a variety of exhibition options, including standard and premium booths, international pavilions, dedicated startup and technology zones, and bespoke activations for demonstrations, workshops, or private events, as well as opportunities for business development and collaboration. Hong Kong Fintech Week x StartmeupHK Every year, Hong Kong Fintech Week x StartmeupHK brings together the brightest minds to shape the future of technology. From the main conference to exhibitions and community events across various venues, attendees gain exclusive access to transformative insights, and experience the pulse of innovation in Hong Kong. The event also offers a unique opportunity to connect with influencers across the finance, tech, and startup ecosystems while hearing from over 1,000 world-class speakers. Furthermore, it serves as a critical hub for networking, securing a place where the industry’s most important deals are discussed. The 2026 edition of Hong Kong Fintech Week x StartmeupHK will take place from November 02 to 06. The event is expected to convene over 45,000 global leaders from more than 120 economies, featuring a roster of more than 1,000 world-class speakers, 800 sponsors, exhibitors, and startups, alongside 30 delegations. The main conference will be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on November 02 and 03, complemented by a week-long schedule of community and networking events hosted across multiple venues throughout the city and the Greater Bay Area. The 2025 edition attracted a record high of over 45,000 visitors from over 120 economies and featured over 1 000 distinguished speakers, over 800 exhibitors and more than 30 Chinese Mainland and international delegations. The event was organized by the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau and Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK), in collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), and the Insurance Authority (IA), and the appointed event organiser, Finoverse. Swiss Fintech Week Swiss Fintech Week happening for the first time and aims to serve as the premier convergence point for the global financial technology landscape. Over the course of seven days, the festival brings together leading Swiss fintech events, connecting the brightest minds, the most promising startups, and the industry’s most influential players. A joint-initiative by Swiss Fintech ecosystem players and in collaboration with the Global Finance and Technology Network (GFTN), Swiss Fintech Week seeks to act as a launchpad for ideas, partnerships, and game-changing innovation. It is designed specifically for entrepreneurs driving the next generation of financial breakthroughs, investors seeking transformative opportunities, and regulators shaping the future of the sector. The 2026 edition of Swiss Fintech Week will take place from June 19 to 25, with the Kongresshaus Zurich as its central venue in addition to diverse locations across the city. The week will focus on industry’s most pressing technological developments, including next-generation banking, the impact of AI on efficiency and customer experiences, tokenization and digital assets, and the integration of financial services into the digital everyday lives of businesses and consumers. Nordic Fintech Week Nordic Fintech Week is the yearly conference where the Nordic and global financial industry converge to connect, reflect, and collaboratively build the future of fintech. The event began in 2017 as Copenhagen Fintech Week, a modest gathering in Copenhagen harbor during a time before industry hype. Since then, the event has grown, eventually rebranding to Nordic Fintech Week in 2022 to better reflect its status as a leading community-driven conference that fosters “Nordic Innovation, Global Scale” by facilitating global networks, partnerships, and knowledge sharing. Today, Nordic Fintech Week serves as a vital hub for gaining local and global perspectives, creating the connections and partnerships necessary to lead the financial industry of tomorrow. This year, the event will take place from September 21 to 25, at TAP1 in Copenhagen, Denmark, gathering more than 2,000 participants, over 225 speakers, 200 fintech startups and 150 financial institutions across roughly 100 sessions. The event promises a fresh approach to engaging with the ecosystem, delving into emerging trends, and actively helping shape what comes next. Fintech Week London Fintech Week London is one of the UK’s largest event dedicated to scaling fintech companies, offering a week of curated content, smart matchmaking, and nonstop buzz. The event is specifically designed for CEOs, founders, managing directors, country managers, and C-suite leaders involved in international expansion, serving as a vital platform for UK-based fintech scaleups seeking the expertise and support needed to fuel their next phase of growth, as well as overseas scaleups assessing the UK as a key market for international expansion. The 2026 edition will take place from September 07 to 11, and is expected to welcome 1,500 attendees, continuing its trajectory of year-on-year growth. This five-day celebration of scale, growth, and innovation will be centrally located at the Old Sessions House in Clerkenwell. The festival twill transform the neighborhood into a buzzing ecosystem with brand activations in local pubs, churches, and hotels, while the beating heart of the conference remains at FinClub within the Old Sessions House. Every session, ranging from scaling strategies to investor readiness, will be meticulously crafted to help fintech startups accelerate their growth. The 2025 edition delivered two days packed with energy, connection, and real-world insights that featured three content stages, showcases, workshops, and live demos, alongside after-hours networking, debates, and live music. It hosted over 150 speakers from the fintech, investment, and enterprise sectors and attracted more than 1,000 attendees. UK Fintech Week UK Fintech Week is a major annual event series in the UK focused on fintech. It brings together startups, banks, investors, regulators, policymakers, and technology companies to discuss trends and innovation in financial services. The week is typically centered in London and organized around conferences, networking events, product showcases, and policy discussions. One of its flagship events is the Innovate Finance Global Summit (IFGS), hosted by Innovate Finance, the UK fintech industry body. Each year, fintech founders, entrepreneurs, investors, former bank executives, regulators, policymakers, academics and media representations from around the world come together to learn, discuss, debate and network. The event offers ample networking opportunities across the week at its flagship events and the UK Fintech Week campus. Attendees gain access to a dedicated app that facilitates connections with other participants and allows them to schedule one-on-one meetings at their convenience. The 2026 edition was held from April 20 to 24, with the flagship IFGS event kick-starting a week-long program of events. This program delivered world-class content, thought leadership, and extensive networking opportunities for the entire UK fintech ecosystem. New York Fintech Week New York Fintech Week 2026, Source: New York Fintech Week New York Fintech Week is a large annual fintech event ecosystem held across New York City that brings together startups, banks, investors, regulators, and technology companies working in financial services. Unlike a single conference in one venue, it operates as a decentralized week of events hosted by many organizations throughout the city. New York Fintech Week annually draws in an audience of 6,000 attendees with over 65 events attended by top founders and senior leaders from Citi, JPMorgan, U.S. Bank, Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, Brex, SoFi, and more. Its flagship event, the Official New York Fintech Week Conference, takes over Manhattan for three days of bold ideas, real conversations, and the decision-makers actually building the future of finance. The 2026 edition of New York Fintech Week took place from April 27 to May 01. This year’s main conference brought together three cornerstone summits – the Fintech Summit, the Fintech Is Femme Leadership Summit, and the Fintech Security Summit – with each summit gathering an audience of approximately 200 senior decision-makers, enabling deeper dialogue, stronger connections, and measurable business outcomes. Abu Dhabi Finance Week Abu Dhabi Finance Week (ADFW) is a premier international festival dedicated to finance and fintech, held annually in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It brings together banks, fintech startups, investors, regulators, sovereign wealth funds, technology companies, and policymakers from around the world. The event is organized mainly by the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), which is Abu Dhabi’s international financial center, and aims to position the emirate as a major global hub for finance, investment, fintech, and innovation. The 2025 edition brought together more than 35,000 attendees representing 175 nationalities, across 68 events and 394 thematic sessions. The event convened 819 influential speakers and over 69 global and regional partners, including Hanwha as a Strategic Partner. This year’s edition will take place from December 07 to 10. Dubai Future Finance Week Dubai Future Finance Week is a landmark initiative organized by the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) to convene global financial leaders, innovators, regulators, and investors. Anchored by Dubai Fintech Summit, the week features a curated series of events that explore the future of finance across technology, capital, sustainability, and governance. DFFW 2026 will take place from November 02 to 06, in Dubai. This year’s edition is expected to convene more than 40,000 global attendees, 1,000 international speakers, and 1,000 sponsors and exhibitors from over 120 countries, across more than ten global events. Under the theme “Shaping the Next Era of Global Finance”, DFFW 2026 will explore the forces redefining the global financial landscape, with discussions focusing on technology, capital, sustainability, governance, and the future of interconnected finance. The week will also feature platforms that examine the systems and standards underpinning the future of financial services, including the Future Tokenization Forum, the Dubai Fintech Summit, the Future Sustainability Forum, and the Future Islamic Finance Forum.   Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by shyam lal via Magnific The post Must-Attend Fintech Festivals Around the Globe appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Mastercard announced its recent participation in a Eurosystem-led pilot, which was conducted in collaboration with Danmarks Nationalbank and Sveriges Riksbank on the TARGET Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS) platform. The Mastercard cross-border payments pilot tested instant cross-currency payments (TIPS X-CCY). Mastercard Move is said to be among the first participants to process transactions using the cross-currency pilot function. Payments were settled atomically between Euros and Danish kroner, which meant that both currency legs were completed at the same time, decreasing settlement risk. Pratik Khowala, the Global Head of Transfer Solutions at Mastercard, shared that the pilot showcased a new model where payments could move across borders and currencies with fewer intermediaries and better predictability. He added, Pratik Khowala “For Mastercard Move, this is a critical step in building direct connectivity to payment infrastructures that our bank, fintech and public sector partners can rely on. It also sets a clear path forward as we expand to additional schemes, currencies and corridors.” Mastercard Move is the company’s global money movement platform, which allows banks, corporates, fintechs and other payment providers to send and receive funds through Mastercard’s card and non-card networks. The pilot included the successful execution of inbound as well as outbound transaction flows under the One Leg Out Instant Credit Transfer (OCT Inst) scheme, with Mastercard performing both entry-leg and exit-leg Payment Service Provider roles in a cross-currency setup. The Mastercard cross-border payments pilot is said to support public sector efforts to modernise cross-border payments and has also showcased that regulated non-bank payment service providers are able to operate in alignment with ECB governance, EPC scheme rules, and ISO 20022 standards. Featured image edited by Fintech News Switzerland based on image by wahyu_t on Magnific The post Mastercard Joins TIPS Cross-Currency Pilot For Instant Cross-Border Payments appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Cryptocurrency exchange OKX is formally incorporating AI proficiency into its staff evaluations, reflecting a growing push among digital asset firms to integrate AI into daily operations. The company plans to assess how well employees use AI tools during its upcoming mid-year reviews in September, according to a report by Bloomberg. The decision follows an internal campaign that began earlier this year, encouraging OKX’s 5,000-strong workforce to adopt AI in their daily routines. The company cut hundreds of jobs over the past year, although the performance review changes are not directly tied to immediate job cuts. OKX recently designated Malta as its regional hub for Europe, part of its broader push to streamline global operations and compliance. OKX has provided its employees with access to enterprise versions of OpenAI‘s ChatGPT and Anthropic‘s Claude. Token consumption on these platforms, which indicates how much data an employee processes through the AI, could serve as a metric in the upcoming appraisals. Managers may also require staff to document the time they save through AI assistance. “We’re committed to staying at the forefront of AI so we can continue to build the best possible products and compete at the highest level,” an OKX spokesperson said. Following an industry trend The drive to measure AI competency extends beyond OKX. Several competing crypto exchanges have reduced their workforces this year while simultaneously urging remaining staff to increase their use of automation. Coinbase and Gemini are among the firms that have cut jobs recently as trading activity slowed. Coinbase Chief Executive Officer Brian Armstrong noted earlier this month that AI is altering work processes across the company, allowing engineers to complete tasks in days rather than weeks. At OKX, the push for AI integration has strongly affected customer service operations. The exchange recently launched an AI-powered knowledge base that allows bots to retrieve information and handle client inquiries. Training and quality assurance teams are currently embedding similar tools into their workflows. Managers design performance evaluations that include AI usage metrics to compel staff to learn the technology.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by wahyu_t via Magnific The post OKX to Factor AI Usage into Staff Performance Reviews Amid Industry Shift appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

The world’s largest fintech companies are operating at record profitability, with 74% of major public players turning a profit in 2025, according to a joint report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and FT Partners. The Global Fintech Report 2026 indicates that global fintech revenues have passed the half-trillion-dollar mark, growing at 22%. This growth rate is more than four times faster than that of incumbent financial institutions. Equity funding in the sector reached US$58 billion, a 53% increase year on year. Average EBITDA margins rose by 400 basis points to 20% in 2025. The sector now accounts for about 4% of total global financial services revenue. The report attributes this rebound to operating performance rather than cheap capital or speculative optimism. Exit markets are also recovering. Fintech initial public offerings (IPOs) increased by 50% year on year to 42 deals in 2025. Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) volumes accelerated, reaching US$251 billion in 2025 compared to US$184 billion the previous year. Inderpreet Batra “Fintech has not simply bounced back from the reset years, it has come out the other side as a fundamentally more mature industry,” said Inderpreet Batra, Managing Director and Senior Partner at BCG. “The firms leading today are profitable, disciplined, and expanding into new products and geographies with a seriousness that was not always present in the boom years.” Regulatory shifts and acquisition trends Regulatory changes are narrowing the gap between banks and fintech firms. In the European Union, the UK, and the US, charter and licensing pathways are becoming more accessible. Major fintechs are increasingly applying for banking charters to lower funding costs and gain direct ownership of the customer relationship. For the first time on record outside of 2023, scaled fintech companies acquired more businesses than banks did. Fintechs completed 659 deals in 2025, compared to 589 by incumbents. M&A is increasingly being used to build capabilities in AI, digital assets, and compliance, as building these organically is often deemed too slow. Neobanks expanding into financial platforms Neobanks are moving beyond basic payments and low-friction onboarding to become broader financial platforms. Leading players are diversifying into lending, investing, insurance, cross-border transfers, and mass-affluent wealth management. Consumer credit represents a major growth area. Unsecured lending allows neobanks to deepen customer relationships using alternative underwriting models. European neobanks in particular have expanded their wealth and trading offerings and moved into mortgage products. AI driving productivity AI continues to reshape sector competition. BCG data shows that fintechs using AI effectively achieve up to five times greater developer productivity. The strongest near-term gains are seen in engineering, underwriting, compliance, and customer support. Steve McLaughlin “Large, established companies are pouring capital into AI, but capital alone hasn’t produced breakout capability,” said Steve McLaughlin, CEO and Managing Partner at FT Partners. “The difference comes down to management, engineering talent, and the drive to actually rewire the organisation.” The findings suggest the sector has transitioned into a more mature landscape. The basis of competition has shifted from digital nativity and category creation to profitable scale and regulatory readiness.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by Pixelid via Magnific The post Global Fintech Revenues Hit US$504 Billion as Profitability Reaches Record Highs appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Workday is expanding its partnership with Google Cloud to embed AI agents directly into enterprise finance applications. The integration allows finance teams to automate tasks like spend management, data analytics, and monthly reporting without leaving their existing daily workflows. The collaboration brings Workday’s Sana Self-Service Agent into Gemini Enterprise. This setup enables employees to query financial policies, check corporate card eligibility, and generate expense requests through conversational prompts. Operationally, Gemini is now the default AI model for the Sana assistant. Workday stated that this infrastructure gives users access to advanced reasoning and multilingual support while maintaining existing enterprise security permissions and approval chains. The system supports multiple integration approaches, allowing AI agents to share information and hand off tasks autonomously in real time. Zero-copy data integration The partnership also links Workday Data Cloud with Google Cloud’s BigQuery using zero-copy data-sharing technology. This method allows both platforms to query data exactly where it resides, removing the need to move or duplicate sensitive financial records for analysis. This seamless connection is designed to help organisations analyse financial risks and business trends faster without compromising data security. Gerrit Kazmaier “Our customers want HR and finance at their fingertips, not scattered across a dozen applications,” said Gerrit Kazmaier, President of Product and Technology at Workday. Kazmaier added that the Google Cloud partnership places necessary answers and actions where people already work, supported by Workday’s built-in security and approvals. Karthik Narain “This partnership significantly expands integrations between Google Cloud and Workday in order to make AI agents more useful and accessible across the enterprise,” said Karthik Narain, Chief Product and Business Officer at Google Cloud. Deployment with system integrators Workday and Google Cloud are working with global system integrators, including KPMG, Deloitte, and Accenture, to deploy the technology for enterprise clients. These partners will help organisations identify high-impact use cases for agentic AI. The Sana Self-Service Agent in Gemini Enterprise is currently in early access for eligible Workday customers. The Workday Data Cloud connection will reach general availability later this year.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by Pixelid via Magnific The post Workday and Google Cloud Expand AI Agent Partnership for HR and Finance appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

ClearBank Europe has launched its Digital Asset Rails capability to provide programmable liquidity for cross-border settlements. The service is live and being used by clients for cross-border payment flows, with USDC to be offered later in the year. The capability allows regulated institutions, including electronic money institutions, payment institutions, and banks, to use stablecoin-based transfers with fiat payouts via SEPA Instant through established banking rails. The system functions as a programmable liquidity capability. It enables clients to convert fiat funds into EURC, a MiCA-compliant euro-denominated stablecoin issued by Circle’s regulated e-money institution in the European Union. Value moves through the network, returns to fiat, and ClearBank executes real-time payouts via SEPA Instant. ClearBank provides the underlying regulated banking layer, which includes fiat account infrastructure and access to SEPA Instant. This model aims to bring improved liquidity efficiency and reductions in the need for prefunding across multiple markets. MiCA-regulated firms with non-retail use cases will also be able to transfer funds through the digital asset infrastructure. The initiative builds on the status of ClearBank Europe as the first Dutch credit institution to complete the MiCA notification process to offer digital asset services. While the service targets European clients initially, the bank has the scope to expand the opportunity internationally over time. Mark Fairless “This launch is a further step forward in how we deliver on our purpose to unlock our clients’ potential,” said Mark Fairless, Group CEO, ClearBank. “By combining our cloud-native platform with regulated banking, we are removing friction from cross-border flows and giving clients a more effective way to control and deploy liquidity.”     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by brilian via Magnific The post ClearBank Europe Launches Digital Asset Rails for Cross-Border Settlement appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Orbital is partnering with Banking Circle to expand its multi-currency payment infrastructure, with plans to introduce CHF capabilities for its enterprise clients in Switzerland. The payment orchestration platform connects digital asset rails, including stablecoins, with traditional payment networks. Through its agreement with the Luxembourg-regulated credit institution, Orbital has launched client-named virtual IBANs in DKK, SEK, and HUF. The companies stated that capabilities for CHF and AUD will follow soon. These additions will allow businesses operating in Switzerland, the Nordics, Central Europe, and Australia to hold and settle funds under their own names. This approach replaces the need for pooled virtual accounts, which can complicate the reconciliation of incoming funds and regulatory reporting. Chris Mason “Enterprises are increasingly thinking in multi-currency terms,” said Chris Mason, CEO at Orbital. “They want to hold and settle in those currencies under their own name, not via pooled wallets or opaque structures.” Banking Circle will provide the safeguarding of client funds in line with Orbital’s regulatory obligations. Nischa Us-Moynihan “Working with Orbital brings together client-named multi-currency accounts and access to clearing schemes with a platform designed for both fiat and stablecoin flows,” said Nischa Us-Moynihan, Chief Sales Officer at Banking Circle. The new currency corridors build on Orbital’s existing EUR, GBP, and USD banking infrastructure, extending its third-party local payment capabilities.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by FestArt via Magnific The post Orbital Partners With Banking Circle to Expand Multi-Currency Payment Infrastructure appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.

Robinhood has launched features that enable AI agents to execute equity trades and make credit card purchases with varying levels of user oversight and approval settings. The platform introduced Agentic Trading and the Agentic Credit Card to help users manage their investments and spending. Instead of allowing unrestricted external control, users can connect their AI agents via Model Context Protocol integration directly into Robinhood systems. Vlad Tenev “Our mission has always been to democratise finance for all, and now, that mission extends to AI agents,” said Vlad Tenev, CEO of Robinhood. Agentic trading and portfolio management The Agentic Trading feature allows users to open a dedicated account separate from the rest of their portfolio, limiting agent access only to deposited funds. Source: Robinhood The platform sends push notifications for every trade. It also provides a real-time activity feed. In addition, it offers profit-and-loss tracking specifically for the agentic trading account inside the application. Investors can use these agents to analyse portfolios for concentration risk, build thematic portfolios, or deploy backtested mean reversion strategies. The trading feature is currently in beta and supports equities only, with plans to add options, cryptocurrency, event contracts, and futures in the future. Virtual cards and spending controls For spending, the Agentic Credit Card connects agents to the banking servers to make purchases through a dedicated virtual Gold Card. Source: Robinhood Customers maintain control by setting specific spending limits. They can choose whether to require manual approvals for purchases and also have the ability to delete the virtual card instantly. As illustrative use cases, the company said agents could scan for the best prices. They could also purchase items such as retail drops, restaurant reservations, or business inventory. The system includes built-in safety controls and fraud detection. These allow the support team to review agent instructions and resolve disputes if a transaction appears unusual. Existing Gold Card customers can access the feature immediately. Support for the upcoming Platinum Card is planned for later this year.     Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by watercolor_vect via Magnific The post Robinhood Launches AI Agent Trading and Credit Card Tools with User Controls appeared first on Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - FintechNewsCH.