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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

Finanztexte verlangen mehr als eine sprachlich saubere Übertragung. Sie arbeiten mit fest definierten Begriffen, sensiblen Zahlen, regulatorischen Anforderungen und Formulierungen, die im falschen Kontext schnell eine andere Wirkung entfalten. Reine KI-Übersetzungen können zwar flüssig und professionell erscheinen, doch gerade diese sprachliche Glätte verdeckt mitunter fachliche Unschärfen. Ein Satz kann korrekt klingen und dennoch eine bilanzielle Nuance verschieben, einen Risikohinweis abschwächen oder eine Kennzahl missverständlich einordnen. Lokalisierung bedeutet bei Finanzsprache deshalb nicht, Wörter lediglich in eine andere Sprache zu übertragen. Entscheidend sind Zielmarkt, Dokumenttyp, Terminologie, Zahlenformate, Tonalität und der spätere Verwendungszweck. Finanzsprache verzeiht keine lockeren Näherungen Finanzsprache arbeitet mit Begriffen, die…

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%…

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…

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…

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…

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. “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…

Sequence SA has secured a fintech license from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), becoming one of only five institutions in Switzerland to hold the regulatory approval. Swiss law firm Kellerhals Carrard, which advised the company on the application, announced the regulatory milestone on Wednesday (May 27). The firm’s legal team handled the structuring, documentation, and regulatory liaison required to secure the final approval. The FINMA fintech license, granted under Article 1b of the Banking Act, allows institutions to accept public deposits of up to CHF 100 million or crypto-based assets. Under the framework, firms cannot invest these funds…

Citi and BlackRock’s HPS Investment Partners have launched a €15 billion private capital programme to expand private financing access for corporate and sponsor-owned borrowers. The initiative aims to finance €15 billion of debt opportunities over an initial five-year term. It targets borrowers with principal businesses based in Continental Europe and the UK, with plans to eventually include the Middle East. Under the agreement, Citi will use its investment, corporate, and commercial banking networks to source investment opportunities. Eligible transactions will include a broad range of sub-investment grade debt instruments. “To meet the increasing demand from our corporate and sponsor clients…

Swiss venture capital firm FiveT Fintech has rebranded to Groundshift, continuing its focus on European financial infrastructure and frontier technology. The firm was founded in 2019 as the venture arm of Avaloq. It became fully independent following Avaloq’s acquisition by NEC, initially operating under the FiveT Fintech name. Groundshift targets companies operating at the intersection of finance and emerging technologies. The firm’s current investment thesis covers artificial intelligence in financial services, stablecoins, and the tokenisation of real-world assets. It also focuses on compliance infrastructure driven by accelerating European regulations, including the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) and the Markets in…

Since the beginning of 2026, the artificial intelligence (AI) frenzy has sent the software industry into turmoil, causing public markets to plunge. Yet, fintech has emerged as a resilient outlier, facing considerably less disruption from AI compared to its peers in the wider software and technology sectors, according to new research by European buyout and growth investor Finch Capital. Since January 2026, Finch Capital’s Fintech Index has been down 19%. In contrast, a comparable basket of software-as-a-service (SaaS) firms has fallen 32%, representing a sell-off three times more severe than the index’s previous worst point. The State of AI in…

Börsenmedien is acquiring a majority stake in financial education and comparison platform Finanzwissen, effective 1 June 2026. The acquisition brings the finanzwissen.de portal into the wider publishing group. The move is designed to expand the digital reach of Börsenmedien in the retail investing sector, bundle its affiliate activities, and expand its platform for financial product comparisons. “We are pleased to have found an ideal digital complement to our traditional monthly magazine Euro in Finanzwissen,” said Bernd Förtsch, Founder and Owner, Börsenmedien. He added that the deal prepares the company for the growing focus on retirement planning through equity savings plans.…

Sygnum has tested an AI agent for live digital asset transactions, allowing clients to execute complex blockchain trades through plain text commands while retaining control of their private keys. The Swiss regulated bank used the tool to plan actions on the blockchain, review smart contracts, and flag potential risks before asking the client for final approval. The transaction is only signed through a self custodial wallet on the user’s device. The system can handle stablecoin transfers, asset swaps, lending positions, token wrapping, and liquidity provisioning. Sygnum built the pilot using Anthropic’s Claude and a Model Context Protocol server, an open…

Swiss businesses now have expanded infrastructure to access the digital asset market, following a rollout of PostFinance crypto services for corporate clients. The expansion allows companies to trade 22 cryptocurrencies and participate in Ethereum staking directly from their standard bank accounts. The B2B offering is integrated directly into the bank’s e-finance platform and mobile app. It operates as an execution-only service, mirroring the existing setup for individual retail users but catering to institutional and corporate needs. As part of this expanded service, corporate users can participate in Ethereum staking. This mechanism allows businesses to earn rewards on their digital asset…