Yuze, a UAE-based AI-enabled digital business banking platform, and Zand, an AI and blockchain-powered digital bank in the UAE, have joined forces to provide digital business accounts to eligible SMEs, startups and entrepreneurs of all sizes in the UAE.

StoneX Group Inc. today announced that StoneX Digital, a division of StoneX, has secured its Crypto-Asset Service Provider (“CASP”) licence under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (“MiCA”), granted by the Central Bank of Ireland. 

The authorisation represents a further step forward for StoneX as it continues to expand its regulated digital asset capabilities and serve an increasingly global institutional and corporate client base. 

Thunes, the Smart Superhighway to move money around the world, today announced a landmark collaboration with Sterling Bank, one of Nigeria's leading full-service commercial banks, to drive easy-access cross-border payments for Nigerians in the diaspora. This alliance ultimately ushers in a new standard for cross-border payments, empowering Nigerians abroad with a quicker and simpler method of sending funds home.

Global Fintech leader Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has completed its previously announced acquisition of Acolin, a leading European provider of cross-border fund distribution and regulatory services. The acquisition expands Broadridge’s distribution solutions for asset managers, helping them enter new markets and grow assets, while also strengthening its regulatory services for the global asset management industry. 

Sagent, a leading provider of mortgage servicing technology, today announced the appointment of its board Chairman Chris Marshall as Chief Executive Officer, effective January 5.

Fiserv, Inc., a leading global provider of payments and financial services technology, has published the Fiserv Small Business Index for December 2025, indicating small businesses closed out the holiday season with modest gains. The seasonally adjusted Index climbed to 144, while year-over-year sales grew (+1.6%), due to higher average ticket sizes and steady demand for essentials.

VoPay International Inc., a global fintech infrastructure platform, today announced the establishment of its global headquarters in Qatar. The move positions Qatar as VoPay’s primary hub for advancing digital financial infrastructure and supporting scalable financial modernization across the Middle East and North Africa, Africa, Southeast Asia, and other high-growth regions, while continuing to serve the company’s operations across North America, Europe, and Latin America.

Iute Group, a banking group founded in Estonia, will establish a business entity in Ukraine and is preparing to enter the market by building a digital bank, subject to regulatory approval.

Mastercard announced that QNB Group, the largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa, was granted a Mastercard license to extend its issuing and acquiring activities in Syria, enabling it to provide Mastercard payment solutions - accepted locally and internationally- to individuals and businesses.