Latest FinTech & Blockchain News
Stripe and Crypto.com partner to enable direct crypto spending at Stripe merchants
Stripe announced a strategic partnership with Crypto.com that will let Crypto.com users pay with digital asset balances at online merchants powered by Stripe, with automatic conversion to fiat for merchants. The rollout, planned for early 2026, builds on Stripeâs 2025 stablecoin initiatives, including stablecoin financial accounts and merchant stablecoin acceptance, positioning Stripe as a leading enabler of low-cost crossâborder crypto payments.
Fintech giants PayPal, Stripe, Revolut, Klarna and Robinhood double down on crypto in 2026
Major fintechs are expanding aggressively into digital assets, with PayPal integrating blockchain and stablecoin-based solutions across its payments ecosystem as part of a broader reinvention strategy. Stripe is preparing the mainnet launch of its Tempo layerâ1 blockchain, Klarna is testing its KlarnaUSD stablecoin on Tempo, and Robinhood is expanding its U.S. crypto trading API and planning a prediction market after acquiring LedgerX.
Polygon Labs unveils âOpen Money Stackâ for borderless stablecoin payments
Polygon Labs launched the **Open Money Stack**, a modular framework aimed at powering stablecoin-based payments and simplifying crossâborder value transfers. The stack is designed to provide infrastructure for programmable money and global remittances, reinforcing Polygonâs push to make stablecoins a core rail for everyday and institutional payments.
Broadridgeâs blockchain repo platform processes nearly $9 trillion in a single month
Broadridge reported that its **Distributed Ledger Repo Platform** processed nearly **$9 trillion** in repurchase agreement transactions in December. The figure underscores accelerating institutional adoption of blockchain-based market infrastructure for wholesale funding markets, as large financial institutions use DLT to improve efficiency, transparency and settlement in repo trades.
Crypto market turns lower as Bitcoin falls below $90,000 ahead of key U.S. macro events
Global crypto prices declined, with Bitcoin dropping below a critical $90,000 support level and major altcoins like Ethereum, XRP, BNB and Solana slipping over 1%. Traders are bracing for heightened volatility tied to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Trump-era tariffs and upcoming U.S. nonâfarm payrolls data, both seen as important for Federal Reserve rateâcut expectations and thus crypto valuations.
FinTech Magazineâs new issue highlights 2026 trends in payments, open banking and digital assets
BizClik released the January 2026 issue of **FinTech Magazine**, covering global leaders and forecasts across payments, open banking, financial inclusion and digital assets. The broader FinTech portfolio features analysis of embedded payments in conversational AI platforms using Stripe and PayPal, and highlights Rippleâs recent US$500 million funding round at a US$40 billion valuation as a key blockchain milestone.
Visa and Fiserv advance tokenization and AI-agent payments for digital commerce
A recent AI & Finance industry update details an expanded partnership where Fiserv integrates Mastercardâs Secure Card on File tokenization and adopts the Mastercard Agent Pay Acceptance Framework. These initiatives aim to enable **AI agents** to transact on behalf of customers with strong authentication and fraud prevention, laying groundwork for secure, partially autonomous digital and potentially blockchain-linked payments.
Intuit explores stablecoins as programmable money rail across its fintech platform
The same AI & Finance report notes that Intuit is positioning stablecoins as a 24/7, lowâfriction programmable money rail integrated across its products. Intuit aims to apply stablecoins to use cases such as tax refunds, remittances, savings and payments, signaling broader fintech interest in embedding blockchain-based rails within mainstream financial workflows.
FINNY AI raises $17 million to scale AI-powered tools for financial advisors
FINNY AI, a prospecting and marketing platform for financial advisors, closed a $17 million Series A led by Venrock with participation from notable fintech investors. While not a blockchain company itself, FINNYâs funding reflects the broader convergence of AI and fintech, a trend closely related to how data-driven tools are being layered on top of digital-asset and tokenized markets.
New guidance and commentary highlight regulatory and charter shifts affecting fintech and blockchain
A January 2026 community banking update outlines trends in bank charter races, regulatory relief and AI risk guidance that impact how banks and fintechs structure innovative services. These shifts influence how institutions approach collaborations with blockchain providers, tokenized deposits and stablecoin integrations while managing compliance, fraud and operational risk.