Hello Fintech Friends,
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The lines between banks and crypto keep blurring. This week, 37 European lenders united behind a single euro stablecoin to push back on dollar dominance, South Korea's Hana Bank dropped $672M on a stake in crypto exchange Upbit, and Standard Chartered moved to swallow Zodia Custody whole. In IPO news, Blockchain.com quietly filed to go public in the U.S., the latest in a growing queue of crypto firms testing public markets.
Also, President Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to review and modernize fintech rules.
Please find another week of fintech exits and deep reads below.
Have feedback for us? Let us know or reach out to @nikmilanovic, @twifintech, or @ndm
SPONSORED
Get ahead of next-gen financial fraud
Generative AI is helping fraud evolve faster than traditional defenses can handle. But these same tools can be put to good use. Read MIT Technology Review’s latest report to see how to fight back.
You’ll discover:
Why layering AI into your defense is key
Why layering AI into your defense is key
How industry collaboration is reshaping fraud prevention
Learn more about the latest fraud tactics, AI-enabled defenses, and how data sharing and policy alignment are helping the industry stay one step ahead.
Reads of the Week
IPOs & SPACs
Crypto exchange Blockchain.com confidentially filed for a U.S. IPO, adding to the wave of crypto firms testing public markets as listing activity rebound.
Indian fintech Paramotor Digital Technology confidentially filed draft IPO paperwork.
Gold-focused non-bank lender Muthoot Fincorp approved plans for an IPO targeting up to approximately $470 million, alongside a stock split.
Kraken cut 150 workers after deploying AI tools, with its IPO now potentially slipping to 2027.
M&A - Fintech
NMI agreed to acquire Dwolla, a fintech specializing in account-to-account and real-time payments infrastructure, to expand pay-by-bank capabilities and embed A2A payments into its merchant platform.
M&A - Banks and Financial Institutions
Standard Chartered agreed to acquire Zodia Custody’s digital asset custody business, expanding its institutional crypto custody offering.
South Korea’s Hana Bank will buy a 6.55% stake in Dunamu, operator of the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, for $672.5 million, becoming its fourth-largest shareholder in a major bank bet on digital assets.
Hancock Whitney agreed to buy OFB Bancshares, parent of Orlando-based One Florida Bank, for $377.6 million in cash, expanding the regional lender’s footprint in one of Florida’s fastest-growing banking markets.
Bank First agreed to acquire PSB Holdings, parent of Peoples State Bank, in an all-stock deal valued at about $202.9 million, expanding the Wisconsin lender’s footprint and creating a bank with more than $7.6 billion in assets.
SPONSORED
Get ahead of next-gen financial fraud
Generative AI is helping fraud evolve faster than traditional defenses can handle. But these same tools can be put to good use. Read MIT Technology Review’s latest report to see how to fight back.
You’ll discover:
Why layering AI into your defense is key
Why layering AI into your defense is key
How industry collaboration is reshaping fraud prevention
Learn more about the latest fraud tactics, AI-enabled defenses, and how data sharing and policy alignment are helping the industry stay one step ahead.
