Core Insights - Rain has announced a Series C funding round of $250 million led by ICONIQ, bringing the company's total funding to over $338 million and its valuation to $1.95 billion, which is more than 17 times its valuation in just 10 months [1][4] Company Overview - Rain is a global payment platform for stablecoins, enabling enterprises, neobanks, and developers to move, store, and use stablecoins through global payment cards, rewards, on/off-ramps, wallets, and international rails [6][7] - The company facilitates over $3 billion in annual transactions for more than 200 partners, including Western Union and Nuvei, and its technology can reach over 2.5 billion people [3] Market Position and Growth - The use of stablecoins is rapidly evolving from a speculative aspect of cryptocurrency markets to becoming one of the largest value transfer rails globally, with Rain positioned to bridge the gap for businesses transitioning to on-chain payment rails [2] - Rain's active payment card usage has increased 30 times, and its annual payment volume has grown 38 times over the past year, indicating significant growth potential [3] Future Plans - The capital from the Series C funding will be used to expand Rain's presence in key licensed markets across North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, allowing partners to launch compliant solutions globally [4] - Rain aims to further develop its full-stack stablecoin payment platform, including strategic acquisitions and investments in new products that make stablecoin payments seamless for businesses and consumers [4]

Core Insights - PayPal is integrating artificial intelligence into commerce through partnerships and new features, notably with Microsoft for Copilot Checkout and advanced analytics for its advertising platform [1][5] Group 1: Partnership with Microsoft - PayPal is enabling Microsoft's Copilot Checkout, allowing seamless product discovery and purchases within the Copilot experience [2] - The integration eliminates transaction friction, with PayPal managing inventory, checkout, and payment options [2][3] - Early adopters of this service include retailers like Ashley Global Retail and Urban Outfitters [3] Group 2: Performance Metrics - Copilot Checkout reportedly increases shopper purchases by 53% within 30 minutes and boosts conversion rates by 194% when shopping intent is expressed [4] - PayPal's General Manager highlighted the partnership's impact on "intelligent shopping," while Microsoft praised PayPal's extensive commerce expertise [4] Group 3: Advertising Innovations - PayPal Ads introduced Transaction Graph Insights and Measurement, utilizing data from over 430 million consumer accounts [5] - This tool provides a comprehensive view of shopper journeys, connecting various shopping signals for better insights [6] - Early success stories include Ulta Beauty, which experienced a 20% increase in PayPal transaction spend during a campaign [7] Group 4: Strategic Direction - These developments reflect PayPal's shift towards AI-enhanced commerce and data-driven advertising, aiming to meet the demand for seamless and measurable consumer experiences [8]

The live video conference may be accessed directly through this link, https://triumph-financial-q4-2025- earnings.open-exchange.net/registration or via the Company's IR website at ir.triumph.io through the Financial Results link. An archive of this video conference will subsequently be available at the same location, referenced above, on the Company's website. About Triumph DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Triumph Financial, Inc. (NYSE: TFIN) today announced that it expects to release its fourth quarter financial r ...

Key Takeaways Visa's tokenization now improves transaction efficiency, not just card security.AI integration helps reduce declines, optimize routing and automate risk scoring.Tokenization extends to wallets, IoT and embedded commerce for smoother payments.Visa Inc.’s (V) push into tokenization is often seen as a security upgrade, but its strategic value now runs much deeper. What started as a way to swap out sensitive card information for encrypted tokens is now transforming into a powerful tool for improvi ...

This story was originally published on Payments Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Payments Dive newsletter. A collaboration between payment processing giant Stripe and Crypto.com could foreshadow more moves by payment processors to let consumers pay with cryptocurrencies, according to industry consultants.  But they caution the speed of cryptocurrency adoption will depend largely on consumer interest.  The partnership announced on Tuesday means that users of the Singapo ...

This story was originally published on Payments Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Payments Dive newsletter. As companies like Google, PayPal Holdings and Stripe race to establish agentic AI commerce in the consumer realm, another large opportunity for the technology lies in business operations. The technology carries enormous potential in the world of commercial finance and business-to-business functions, Deloitte Consulting noted in its 2026 trends and insights report. ...

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Deluxe (NYSE: DLX), a trusted Payments and Data company, today announced its collaboration with Visa to implement Visa Direct. This collaboration introduces dlxFastFunds, a funding solution that leverages Visa's trusted payment network to help businesses take control of their cash flow by skipping the typical one- to two-day settlement delay. "As more businesses embrace digital payments, the ability to send funds efficiently and with confidence becomes a competitive advantage,† ...

Core Insights - Both retail and institutional investors are optimistic about fintech stocks in 2026, while interest in crypto stocks is declining [1][2] - The survey by Mizuho indicates a bullish sentiment towards fintech, with retail investors showing a 3.1x attractiveness ratio and institutional investors a 2.7x ratio compared to 2025 [3] Fintech Sector - Investors are particularly excited about the consumer lending space, highlighting companies like SoFi Technologies, Affirm Holdings, and Upstart [4] - Retail investors show enthusiasm for payment and checkout stocks such as PayPal, while institutional investors prefer payment networks like Visa and Mastercard [4] Crypto Sector - There is a bearish sentiment among institutional investors regarding crypto treasury companies, with notable declines in stock prices, such as a 50% drop for Strategy [5] - Both retail and institutional investors are uncertain about the future of crypto in 2026, with 53% of retail and 58% of institutional investors expecting an improvement over 2025, but lacking a clear direction [6] - Retail investors have mixed feelings about crypto/retail exchanges, ranking them as both the best (19%) and worst (16%) sectors [7]

Klarna Group plc (NYSE:KLAR) is one of the best up and coming stocks to buy according to Wall Street. On January 2, Keefe Bruyette lowered the firm’s price target on Klarna to $45 from $52 and kept an Outperform rating on the shares. The firm revised its price targets across the consumer finance and payments sectors as part of its updated valuation assessments. Additionally, Klarna Group (NYSE:KLAR) reported that the company reached a total revenue of $903 million in Q3 2025, which was supported by a 51% ...

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) is one of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 stocks Jim Cramer commented on. Cramer highlighted the stock’s valuation during the episode, as he commented: “Finally, the fifth-worst performer in the Nasdaq-100 was a real conundrum, PayPal. It was down more than 31% last year. PayPal’s classic payment offerings have mostly become commoditized, and the company’s been late to new technologies like buy now, pay later or stablecoins. That said, PayPal just keeps growing, and the stoc ...