- Wells Fargo enabled alternative investments;
- The CFTC unveiled a framework for foreign exchanges who want to onshore their operations;
- Google introduced its blockchain;
- Visa teamed up with Authvia to launch text-based payments;
- Plus, RentRedi and Stripe brought a new solution to the marketplace (read on to find out);
- And much more!
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Wealthtech, Regtech, Regulatory, and Treasury
Wells Fargo/InvestCloud, Inc.
Banking giant Wells Fargo teamed up with InvestCloud to expand its Personalized Unified Managed Account (UMA) program to include alternative investments. The move offers clients a comprehensive approach to portfolio management.
Advisors can incorporate other assets into a single account structure alongside traditional holdings.
State Street Corporation/Columbia Threadneedle Investments
Columbia Threadneedle Investments selected State Street Corporation to serve as its global back-office provider. The deployment consolidates fund accounting, administration, and custody services across its U.S. and European pooled funds.
Additionally, over 100 Columbia Threadneedle employees will transfer to State Street beginning Q4 2025, with completion expected within a year.
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)
On August 28, the CFTC unveiled its Foreign Board of Trade (FBOT) framework for non-U.S. exchanges seeking direct market access. The advisory addresses confusion stemming from recent enforcement actions.
Moreover, the new rules cover different asset types and markets.
Docupace Technologies, LLC
Boutique Fintech Docupace released a strategic vision paper outlining its roadmap for integrating agentic AI into wealth management operations. The company aims to automate up to 80% of manual tasks and accelerate account processing by 85%.
Furthermore, the initiative targets a $50 billion inefficiency crisis due to paperwork, account rework, and regulatory issues, introducing AI agents for advisor onboarding, account management, document extraction, surveillance, and compensation.
Crypto, Blockchain, and Digital Assets
Sony’s Soneium launched the Soneium Score, a new metric designed to evaluate user engagement and influence. The score aggregates data from various activities, including NFT interactions, token holdings, and participation in DAOs.
Furthermore, the Soneium Score is interoperable across multiple blockchains.
Department of Commerce
The Department of Commerce published the U.S. quarterly GDP data on the blockchain, starting with the second quarter of 2025. The move is the first time a federal agency has used blockchain technology to distribute official economic statistics.
In addition, the Department posted a cryptographic hash of the GDP report to nine blockchains, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, TRON, Stellar, Avalanche, Arbitrum One, Polygon PoS, and Optimism. It also coordinated with oracles like Pyth and Chainlink. Exchanges such as Coinbase, Gemini, and Kraken are also part of the setup.
Google Cloud has unveiled plans for a new layer-1 blockchain. The Google Cloud Universal Ledger (GCUL) aims to serve as a neutral infrastructure layer for financial institutions.
Furthermore, the blockchain will support Python-based smart contracts and aims to provide bank-grade functionality at a global scale. The Universal Ledger is already in a pilot phase with CME Group for tokenized asset settlement and wholesale payments.
Fintech, Personal Finance, and Apps
PayPal/accesso Technology Group
Accesso Technology Group expanded its partnership with PayPal to deliver conversion-optimized payment experiences. Building on its initial integration of PayPal Checkout, the new implementation—available through AccessoPay 3.0—introduces support for Venmo, Pay Later, PayPal Credit, Pay in 3 (UK), and card-based payments.
The enhanced collaboration allows Accesso’s sector-focused clients to offer guests a broader range of payment methods.
Niche Fintech Authvia integrated Visa Direct into its TXT2PAY platform. The move enables businesses to send real-time payouts to eligible Visa debit cards via text, email, and messaging apps.
Additionally, companies can issue refunds, reimbursements, and incentives without checks, apps, or portals.
Data-focused ABBYY and IBM joined forces to modernize KYC processes for financial services and insurance firms. The move aims to transform manual workflows into automated, auditable systems.
Furthermore, the setup combines ABBYY’s Document AI and Process Intelligence with IBM’s watsonx.ai Orchestrate platform.
Niche Fintech Workday partnered with Chime to integrate the Chime Workplace financial wellness suite into its employee benefits platform, Workday Wellness. The collaboration integrates tools, including overdraft protection and early wage access, into the Workday ecosystem.
Moreover, the integration helps employees manage money, build credit, and gain real-time financial health insights.
Banking, Payments, and Infrastructure
Johnson City, Tennessee-based ThreadBank teamed up with Fiserv to deploy the Finxact core banking system as part of its digitization strategy. The real-time platform enhances the bank’s infrastructure and supports over 2,800 API endpoints for seamless integration with third-party fintechs.
ThreadBank adopted Infinant’s Interlace platform to serve as the embedded banking layer.
Narmi/Grasshopper Bank
Grasshopper Bank has partnered with digital banking provider Narmi to launch a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for its business clients. The MCP server enables seamless interaction between AI models and external financial data sources.
Clients can also receive personalized insights through Anthropic’s AI assistant, Claude. The integration is currently in a controlled beta phase, with broader rollout expected in Q4 2025.
Cayman Islands-based FundBank went live with Temenos’ SaaS platform to support its expansion into the U.S. market. The deployment includes Temenos’ full suite of capabilities—digital banking, core processing, payments, and analytics—allowing FundBank to streamline operations while accelerating product launches and onboarding processes.
Temenos will handle ongoing support and updates, freeing FundBank to concentrate on innovation and growth.
Michigan State University Federal Credit Union (MSUFCU)/equipifi
MSUFCU introduced a Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) feature within its digital banking platform. Members can split eligible debit card purchases into manageable instalments.
The initiative boosts financial flexibility and control, especially for younger consumers. MSUFCU partnered with equipifi for this service.
REtech, Insurtech, and Investing
RentRedi partnered with Stripe Capital to offer flexible financing options to landlords and property managers. The new feature allows users to access working capital from within the RentRedi dashboard.
Stripe’s underwriting model evaluates eligibility based on transaction history.
Niche Insurtech ZestyAI expanded its collaboration with Steadily, a leading rental property insurer, to enhance storm risk modelling in high-exposure regions. The setup deploys ZestyAI’s Z-HAIL™ and Z-WIND™ models in additional states to improve underwriting accuracy for hail and wind events.
These AI-driven tools merge climatology datasets with granular property data.
Arcadium Technologies /Assurant
Assurant joined forces with Arcadium Technologies to simplify sales and service contract management for truck, trailer, and equipment dealerships. The integration eliminates duplicate data entry and reduces errors.
Moreover, the move improves operational efficiency while enhancing the customer experience at the point of sale.
Niche Insurtech OneShield introduced the OneShield AI Hub, a centralized environment for building, deploying, and managing AI-driven insurance technologies. The hub enables insurers, MGAs, and partners to collaborate on intelligent tools that streamline operations.
At launch, the platform features foundational AI agents and large language model-based applications specifically designed for various tasks.
