Global

February 20, 2026 @ 12:00 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Mexican drug cartels, long reliant on bulky cash piles from fentanyl and other narcotics sales, are rapidly pivoting to digital assets for cleaning their illicit profits. A Bloomberg Businessweek investigation reveals how a decentralized, gig-economy-powered network has emerged to handle these transactions, leaving US and… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 9:35 am By Omar Faridi  |  

In the ecosystem of alternative investments, certain phrases should trigger immediate caution. When a fund announces that redemptions are “permanently” suspended, orchestrates a $1.4 billion bulk asset sale, and operates under an opaque four-letter acronym like OBDC II, experienced observers recognize classic warning signals of… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 8:07 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The euro area’s property investment sector, which contracted sharply after its post-pandemic peak, now shows tentative signs of stabilisation, according to a new focus piece in the European Central Bank’s Economic Bulletin. Recently authored by ECB economist Johannes Gareis, the report concludes that while investment… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 4:38 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Lloyds Banking Group has extended a £200 million revolving credit facility to Sovereign Network Group (SNG), reinforcing its role as one of the UK’s most active supporters of affordable housing. The new funding will help the housing association accelerate the construction of thousands of new… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 4:33 am By Omar Faridi  |  

San Francisco-based data and AI focused firm Databricks noted this past week that it has delivered steady results, announcing on February 9, 2026, that it has exceeded a $5.4 billion annual revenue run-rate while posting more than 65% year-over-year growth in the fourth quarter. The… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 2:37 am By Omar Faridi  |  

In closely timed addresses this month, senior officials at the Central Bank of Ireland have underscored the urgent need for Ireland to strengthen its economic foundations amid heightened global uncertainty. Governor Gabriel Makhlouf and Deputy Governor Vasileios Madouros emphasised that while the Irish economy enters… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 1:08 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) has mapped the latest patterns of artificial intelligence being turned against organizations and individuals. The report, part of an ongoing series tracking adversarial AI use, examines how threat actors are stealing model capabilities, enhancing conventional attacks, and embedding generative… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 12:32 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The latest UK labor market figures released on 17 February 2026 point to a steadily cooling jobs market, strengthening the case for the Bank of England to resume cutting interest rates as soon as March, according to leading economists at KPMG UK. Yael Selfin, Vice… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 10:07 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Modern Treasury has unveiled Payments, a payment service provider (PSP) that unifies fiat and stablecoin transactions under a single API. Announced recently this month, the platform promises to eliminate the fragmentation that has long plagued teams building money-movement features into their products. For years, developers… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 9:06 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Blockchain infrastructure firm Eco recently spotlighted compelling on-chain data from Dune Analytics, revealing explosive growth in USDC activity. Across 49 queried networks, monthly USDC transactions jumped from 31 million in July 2024 to 613 million by January 2026—a 20-fold increase in just 18 months for… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 7:39 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The year 2025 stands out as a pivotal moment in the enforcement of sanctions within the cryptocurrency sector, according to insights from blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. This period witnessed unprecedented actions by authorities, underscoring the growing intersection of digital assets with global security concerns. From… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 7:36 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

In an advancement for tokenized real-world assets, World Liberty Financial (WLFI) has announced its collaboration with Securitize and DarGlobal to tokenize loan revenue interests in the Trump International Hotel & Resort, Maldives. This initiative, revealed on February 18, 2026, at the World Liberty Forum held… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 7:30 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

ACT Group has deployed Fenergo’s FinCrime Operating System. The leading global provider of environmental and decarbonization solutions, which also operates as a regulated financial intermediary in energy and commodities trading, completed the implementation in just three months. This rollout marks a significant upgrade from manual… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 12:06 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tokenized money, either stablecoins or central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), are on the forefront of the digital asset sector. Stablecoins were initially the go-to digital asset for crypto traders seeking to exit a holding and hold value in something safe. Today, stablecoins are growing rapidly,… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 9:09 am By Omar Faridi  |  

NoCFO has integrated Salt Edge’s Pay by Bank solution, enabling entrepreneurs and founder-led companies to handle payments, invoice approvals, cash flow tracking, and bookkeeping entirely within its AI-native platform. The collaboration, which is live in Finland and ready for NoCFO’s 2026 entry into Germany, eliminates… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 8:17 am By Omar Faridi  |  

NatWest indicated that London’s prime property market is entering 2026 with a compelling message for discerning buyers: considerable value has returned to some of the capital’s most prestigious addresses. NatWest also pointed out in a blog post that according to the latest edition of Coutts’… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 3:31 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Brookfield Corporation (NYSE:BN) has unveiled key financial outcomes for the year ending December 31, 2025, highlighting growth across its diverse operations. The company achieved $5.4 billion in distributable earnings before realizations, marking an 11% rise per share compared to the previous year. Overall distributable earnings… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 3:16 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The British Business Bank has announced two significant investments this week, underscoring its commitment to fueling innovation across high-potential sectors. Recently, the Bank revealed a cornerstone commitment of up to £45 million to Redrice Ventures’ targeted £75 million Fund II, aimed at nurturing the UK’s… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 2:12 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Italy’s banking group, Intesa Sanpaolo, has made significant strides in both technological advancements and efforts to ensure financial stability. The institution announced an enhanced partnership with BI-REX to propel Industry 4.0 advancements, alongside a successful €1.25 billion bond issuance that underscores its robust market position…. Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 1:07 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK mortgage market demonstrated further resilience in the final three months of 2025, as both arrears and repossessions declined according to the latest industry data from UK Finance. Released recently this month, the figures highlight ongoing stability in homeowner and buy-to-let lending, with arrears… Read More