Core Insights - Coinbax has joined the Jack Henry Fintech Integration Network (FIN), allowing it to integrate with Jack Henry's core banking platforms, enhancing its capabilities in stablecoin payments [1][4] - The integration with Jack Henry's systems will enable financial institutions to offer stablecoin payment solutions while maintaining compliance and operational workflows [3][4] Company Overview - Coinbax serves as a trust layer for stablecoin payments, providing programmable escrow infrastructure and automated settlement logic designed for financial institutions [6] - Jack Henry & Associates, Inc. is a financial technology company that connects financial institutions with their customers, offering a range of technology solutions to enhance innovation and competitiveness [5] Technical Integration - Coinbax integrates with SilverLake and Symitar through jXchange and SymXchange, respectively, ensuring secure access to core data and maintaining data integrity [2] - The integration allows for real-time visibility into transaction statuses and seamless reconciliation with core banking systems, which is crucial for financial institutions [3]

Core Insights - Visa has partnered with BVNK to enable stablecoin-funded payouts through Visa Direct, expanding payment options beyond traditional fiat systems [1][2] - The partnership allows select business customers to pre-fund payouts using stablecoins and send them directly to recipients' stablecoin wallets [2] - Visa's global head of product highlighted the advantages of stablecoins for global payments, particularly their operational capabilities during non-banking hours [3] Group 1: Partnership Details - The collaboration will initially focus on markets with high demand for digital asset payments, with plans for further expansion based on customer needs and regulatory approval [2] - Visa's venture arm previously invested in BVNK, indicating a strategic relationship that has been developing since last May [5] - Visa began piloting stablecoin wallet payouts in November, allowing fiat payments to settle in dollar-pegged stablecoins, with wider access expected by the second half of 2026 [5] Group 2: Industry Implications - The integration of stablecoins is seen as a potential disruptor to traditional banking systems, shifting the focus from speed and efficiency to compliance and trust [4] - Payment networks will play a crucial role in determining which stablecoins gain traction, but the underlying infrastructure's reliability will be a key factor in their success [4] - The collaboration comes amid evolving regulatory frameworks for payment stablecoins in the U.S., such as the GENIUS Act [6]

Core Insights - Polygon Labs is acquiring Coinme and Sequence to enhance its stablecoin payment capabilities, supporting its Open Money Stack framework set to launch in 2026 [1][6] Group 1: Acquisition Details - Coinme operates a regulated digital currency payments business, allowing users to convert cash into cryptocurrency, and holds money-transmitter licenses in 48 US states [2] - Coinme manages over 50,000 locations for cash-to-crypto exchanges and serves over one million users through its consumer payments app [2] - Sequence provides technology to simplify crypto transfers across multiple blockchains, complementing Polygon's interoperability efforts [3][4] Group 2: Technology and Infrastructure - Sequence's offerings include enterprise-grade smart wallets and a 1-click cross-chain routing engine called Trails, which simplifies the user experience by hiding blockchain complexities [4] - Sequence's infrastructure is already utilized across various blockchain ecosystems, including Polygon, Immutable, and newer networks like SKALE and Etherlink [5] - Once integrated, Sequence and Trails will function as an orchestration layer, facilitating seamless money transfers across different chains without user intervention [6]

Group 1: Ingenico and WalletConnect Integration - Ingenico has launched an integration with WalletConnect Pay to enable merchants to accept stablecoin payments directly at checkout [2] - The integration allows customers to pay with supported stablecoins at millions of Ingenico point-of-sale terminals across various sectors including retail, hospitality, and transportation [2] - Ingenico aims to provide a secure and seamless payment method for merchants, addressing the growing interest in stablecoin payments without requiring extra hardware or digital currency balances [4] Group 2: Polygon Labs Acquisitions - Polygon Labs announced the acquisition of cryptocurrency exchange Coinme and crypto wallet infrastructure provider Sequence for over $250 million to enhance its stablecoin payments business [5] - The acquisitions are intended to deliver key components of the Polygon Open Money Stack, including cash and digital fiat on- and off-ramps, wallet infrastructure, and cross-chain orchestration [6] - Polygon Labs emphasizes the need for improved infrastructure around stablecoins, aiming to build an open payments business leveraging regulated access to U.S. payment rails and cross-chain capabilities [7]

Core Insights - Bakkt Holdings has agreed to acquire Distributed Technologies Research (DTR) in an all-stock transaction to enhance its programmable payments strategy [1] Group 1: Acquisition Details - The acquisition involves Bakkt issuing Class A common shares equal to 31.5% of the "Bakkt Share Number," which translates to approximately 9.1 million shares for DTR's existing shareholders [2] - The final number of shares to be issued will be determined based on a methodology in the cooperation agreement and may change before the deal closes [3] - The acquisition aims to integrate DTR's stablecoin settlement infrastructure into Bakkt, accelerating the rollout of stablecoin services and reducing reliance on external providers [4] Group 2: Strategic Implications - The CEO of Bakkt, Akshay Naheta, emphasized that the acquisition will transform the company into a unified global financial infrastructure platform, enhancing capabilities for merchants, financial institutions, and end users [3][4] - The deal has been approved by a special committee of Bakkt's board and is subject to regulatory clearances and shareholder approval, with Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) agreeing to vote in favor of the transaction [5] Group 3: Corporate Changes - Bakkt will change its corporate name to "Bakkt, Inc." effective from 22 January 2026, while continuing to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "BKKT" [5][6] - An investor day is planned for 17 March 2026 at the New York Stock Exchange, with further details to be provided later [6]

Crypto infrastructure builder Polygon Labs said it has signed definitive agreements to acquire crypto payments firm Coinme and wallet infrastructure provider Sequence for more than $250 million, as it looks to expand Polygon’s role in stablecoin-based payments and onchain money movement. The move comes as crypto projects increasingly position themselves as neobank-like platforms, offering payments, custody and compliance services that resemble traditional digital banks, but operate on blockchain rails. Th ...

Core Insights - Trip.com has begun allowing overseas users to pay for prepaid hotel and flight bookings using stablecoins USDT and USDC, indicating a growing acceptance of these dollar-pegged tokens [1][5] - This development occurs despite the Chinese government's strict stance on cryptocurrency activities [2][5] Group 1: Company Actions - The stablecoin payment option was enabled on October 9, and is available to users in specific regions when booking through Trip.com's international platform [1] - A Foresight reporter successfully booked a hotel and flight using USDT in Vietnam, noting that these bookings were cheaper than those on Trip.com's mainland China app [3] Group 2: Market Context - The People's Bank of China stated that stablecoins do not meet the mainland's anti-money-laundering requirements, which may limit their use in certain markets [4] - Trip.com does not offer stablecoin payments to users in mainland China and some other regions, with the availability of the option determined by the user's IP address [5] - In August, over US$10 billion worth of stablecoins were used for payments, more than double the US$4.3 billion from the previous year, with business-to-business transfers making up most of this total [6] Group 3: Industry Trends - Several Chinese tech firms, including Ant Group and JD.com, are exploring stablecoin initiatives in Hong Kong, which is establishing a licensing regime for stablecoin issuers to become a digital asset hub [7]

Core Insights - Exodus Movement (EXOD) and CleanSpark (CLSK) are significant players in the cryptocurrency market, with EXOD focusing on self-custodial wallets and Web3 financial services, while CLSK is primarily a Bitcoin miner [1][2] Exodus Movement (EXOD) - EXOD has a market cap of over $3 trillion in cryptocurrency and has entered the stablecoin market, achieving $26 trillion in stablecoin transaction volume [3][4] - Revenues for EXOD increased by 51% year-over-year due to rising digital asset prices throughout 2025 [3] - The company experienced an 82% year-over-year growth in swap volume in Q3 2025, with 28% of this volume coming from B2B swaps [5] - EXOD has a robust balance sheet with $315 million in digital and liquid assets and no debt, leading to optimistic earnings growth projections [6] - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EXOD's 2025 earnings has been revised upward in the past 60 days [6] CleanSpark (CLSK) - CLSK is transitioning from a Bitcoin mining company to a diversified digital infrastructure model, focusing on opportunities in the AI and high-performance computing (HPC) markets [8][9] - The company has a significant electricity and land portfolio of 1.3 gigawatts across the U.S. to support this transition [8] - CLSK has acquired a 285 MW site in Texas for an AI campus and identified a 250 MW site in Georgia for AI development [10] - Despite the transition, CLSK faces intense competition from other crypto mining companies and hyperscalers, which may constrain its bottom line [11] - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CLSK's fiscal 2026 earnings has been revised downward in the past 30 days [11] Price Performance and Valuation - Over the past six months, EXOD shares have decreased by 53.8%, while CLSK shares have increased by 14.6% [12] - In terms of valuation, EXOD trades at a forward 12-month price-to-sales (P/S) multiple of 3.58X, compared to CLSK's 3.49X [13] Conclusion - EXOD is currently performing better in the crypto market, focusing on self-custodial wallets and stablecoin payments, while CLSK is pivoting towards AI and HPC infrastructure amidst competition and costs [15]

RT Yogita Khatri (@Yogita_Khatri5)Stablecoin payments are scaling fast.Unicorn @RedotPay has raised $107M in a Series B, saying it now processes over $10B in annualized volume and generates more than $150M in annualized revenue while already profitable, with backing from @PanteraCapital, @blockchaincap, @circle Ventures and others.CEO Michael Gao said RedotPay has “meaningful users” across the Middle East and North Africa and plans to use the fresh capital to expand into new markets and grow its regulatory ...

Hong Kong-based payments fintech RedotPay has raised a $107 million in a Series B round as it scales stablecoin-powered payments across more than 100 countries, betting that blockchain rails can compete directly with traditional cross-border finance. The oversubscribed round, led by Goodwater Capital with participation from Pantera Capital, Blockchain Capital, and Circle Ventures, brings RedotPay’s total capital raised in 2025 to $194 million, it said in a release. RedotPay said it now serves more than ...