December 23, 2025 @ 9:42 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Australians really splashed out during this past Black Friday, with consumer spending reportedly reaching $23.8 billion – which is 19.5 per cent higher than a typical fortnight. The latest figures come from CommBank iQ, which combines data from one of Australia’s largest banks with over… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 2:44 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

CertiK has noted that privacy coins are cryptocurrencies engineered to significantly improve user anonymity by effectively obscuring transaction data (such as sender identities, transaction amounts, transaction history, etc.). CertiK explained that, unlike pseudonymous virtual currencies such as Bitcoin (BTC), privacy coins tend to employ more… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 2:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US Federal Reserve Board has proposed a new “payment account” that certain financial institutions could use solely for clearing and settling payments. This may appeal to Fintechs in the payments sector. This would differ from a “master account,” which is what many regulated financial… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 1:34 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

TRM Labs policy team’s Ari Redbord and Angela Ang were joined by TRM’s EMEA Compliance Advisor Luke Dufour for a review of what mattered most in global crypto policy in Q4 2025. As jurisdictions across the globe move from rule‑setting to execution, the crypto and… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 1:32 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Kaspersky has recently shared end-of-year insights on AI-driven shopping and privacy. and what the retail and e-commerce sector should expect in 2026. Kaspersky had launched its 2025 update focused on cybersecurity in the retail and e-commerce sector, examining “real-world incidents and key threat trends affecting… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 10:55 am By Omar Faridi  |  

CB Insights noted that AI is now considered to be a universal focus area for retail banks, with various generative AI use cases increasingly emerging across operations, from fraud prevention to enhancing a range of customer service solution. CB Insights also mentioned that as agentic… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 10:46 am By Omar Faridi  |  

PitchBook noted that Q3 2025 cybersecurity investment reached a multiyear low amid shifting enterprise security priorities. The research report from PitchBook also mentioned that Q3 cybersecurity venture capital activity fell sharply, with deal value dropping to $2.6 billion across 158 transactions. This was the lowest… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 9:31 am By JD Alois  |  

The European Commission (EC) has published a fact sheet outlining its ambition to make regulations clearer and more straightforward. The EC is run by an appointed body of policymakers that aims to establish pan-European rules to build a stronger and more cohesive Europe. This includes… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 9:02 am By JD Alois  |  

It was reported last March that UK VC funding increased by 43.5% YoY to $1.2 billion in January 2025, in spite of fewer deals, but the quick start has apparently stalled over the following months as both deal volume and value have declined. A report… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:47 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Chainalysis noted that stablecoins have reportedly crossed the chasm from trading utility to live, programmable payment channels that are able to regularly settle value in “minutes, 24/7/365, across borders and applications.” Chainalysis also mentioned that banks now face both demand to serve and margins to… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:45 am By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s venture capital funding ecosystem has experienced a significant decline in deal value, despite showcasing “resilience in terms of volume.” The total number of VC deals announced in China increased by 8% during January-November 2025 compared to the same period in the previous year whereas… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:43 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Business confidence in the United Kingdom reportedly increased to around 47% in December of 2025, surging five points from the past month and standing 10 points higher than the start of 2025, according to the most recent Lloyds Business Barometer. In addition to this, overall… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:40 am By Omar Faridi  |  

CoinGecko noted that MYX Finance (MYX) is now by “far” the top crypto gainer this year, achieving the highest YTD price returns of 3,358.15% among the largest market cap crypto assets. The BNB Chain-native derivatives protocol launched its token at “around $0.097 on May 6… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:31 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The United Kingdom’s credit ecosystem is changing, according to an extensive update from industry body UK Finance. The regulation that now governs this seemingly critical area of consumer finance will see several bursts of change, with an outdated regime reformed and a new regulatory framework… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:30 am By Omar Faridi  |  

NYDIG noted that DATs or digital asset treasuries are now making billion-dollar financing moves based on rather “inconsistent, loosely defined metrics, risking major strategic missteps.” NYDIG pointed out recently in a blog post that with several companies trading right around “1x mNAV,” small changes in… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 6:42 am By Omar Faridi  |  

PitchBook noted that e-commerce enablement startups made a fairly strong comeback in Q3 2025, securing $3.8 billion, which represents a significant 35% quarter-over-quarter jump and the sector’s “strongest funding performance in over two years.” PitchBook also mentioned that while the overall deal volume dipped slightly,… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 4:36 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Hana Securities announced it gained exposure to a Digitally Native Note (DNN) through a Total Return Swap (TRS) structure, marking their entry into the digital bond market. The investment aligns with their strategy to participate in tech-driven capital-market innovation. Standard Chartered acted as the TRS… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 1:40 am By Tony Zerucha  |  

AIQuant Labs has launched DexTrader.ai, a machine learning-powered investment platform designed to bring institutional-grade DEX trading and tokenized real-world assets into a single, fully on-chain experience. DexTrader.ai addresses two of the most prevalent problems confronting crypto investors: the difficulty of consistently trading fast-moving DEX markets,… Read More

December 22, 2025 @ 8:09 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has assessed a $3,500,000 civil money penalty against Paxful, Inc. and Paxful USA, Inc. (collectively doing business as, Paxful) for its (alleged) willful violations of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), the primary U.S. anti-money laundering… Read More

December 22, 2025 @ 4:49 pm By JD Alois  |  

Marquis, a software provider for banks that also supports compliance needs, has been the target of a ransomware attack apparently caused by a SonicWall flaw. While there is no information on the Marquis website, multiple reports indicate that around 400,000 customers saw their information pilfered…. Read More