#588
Suit Up
Published:
Apr 26, 2025
Author:
Sarah Parsons Wolter
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Crypto’s days on the fringe are ending—and this time, it’s wearing a tie. At least 12 public companies bought Bitcoin for the first time in 1Q25, pushing total corporate holdings up 16% to a record $57b. What was once a renegade asset class is now marching into boardrooms and, increasingly, into banks. As adoption accelerates and pressure builds on the financial industry to adapt, firms like Circle, Coinbase, and others are racing to secure US banking charters, driven by looming legislation that would require licenses for stablecoin issuance.
Washington is sending new signals: relaxed banking restrictions, a presidential pledge to make the US a “bitcoin superpower,” and bipartisan bills that will define who gets to issue digital dollars. In response, major institutions are stepping forward. Bank of America has signaled its intent to issue a stablecoin if the legal framework is approved. US Bancorp is relaunching its crypto custody business. And a global banking consortium—including Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered—is actively exploring how to expand into the US crypto market.
Behind the scenes, the fight is getting territorial. Circle is positioning itself as the transparent, US-compliant alternative to offshore leader Tether, while banks push to restrict nonbank entrants. Bank of America, in particular, has been actively lobbying for rules that favor traditional financial institutions and limit the ability of big tech firms like Amazon and Meta to issue US dollar-backed stablecoins.
As crypto inches toward the institutional core and banks stretch into digital territory, the fight for the future of stablecoins is as much about proximity to power as it is about product. For now, everyone’s still dressing for the part.
Portfolio News
Flutterwave, Yellow Card, join Circle Payments Network to facilitate global payments with stablecoins - The network established by Circle, a global financial technology company and stablecoin market leader, connects financial institutions – banks, neo-banks, payment service providers, virtual asset service providers and digital wallets globally. It enables real-time settlement of cross-border payments using regulated stablecoins. Read more
Alternative Payments raises $22m for B2B platform for ‘underserved industries’ - Congratulations to FTC portfolio company Alternative Payments on the announcement of their fundraise. With this platform, the company aims to digitize and automate B2B payment workflows for industries that have been underserved by the fintech industry, including IT service providers, managed services providers and blue-collar industries. Read more
CapIntel and Richardson Wealth collaborate to enhance advisor support - CapIntel and Richardson Wealth announced a strategic partnership giving Richardson Wealth’s Advisory teams access to tools that will elevate their brand and their client, and prospective client, experiences. As a wealthtech provider, CapIntel will be integrated with Richardson Wealth’s Advisor desktop platform to help create a long-term innovative practice management solution. Read more
Ziina launches Tap to Pay on iPhone to the UAE - Ziina co-founder and CEO Faisal Toukan shared that businesses of all sizes can now accept in-person, contactless payments directly on their iPhone, with no extra hardware and no complicated setup. Ziina also plans to roll out a suite of game-changing products over the coming months, all built to power the next generation of businesses in MENA. Read more
Pemo launches in Saudi Arabia to empower businesses with smarter expense management - Backed by $19m in funding from global investors, the MENA-grown FinTech company will provide smart corporate and virtual cards, automated receipt collection, and AI-driven accounting to streamline expense tracking and invoice management, enabling Saudi companies to focus their time on innovating and driving the growth of their businesses. Read more
Suit Up
Crypto knocks on the door of a banking world that shut it out - A regulatory crackdown on crypto in the wake of the meltdown of FTX and two crypto-friendly banks prompted some in traditional finance to break up with the industry two years ago. Now President Trump’s pledge to make America a “bitcoin superpower” has set the stage for crypto to become more intertwined with the banking system. Read more
Stablecoin turf wars: Bank of America, Tether and Circle battle to shape US rules - Bank of America’s interest in issuing a stablecoin has intensified the debate in Washington as lawmakers weigh the STABLE Act and the GENIUS Act—two proposals that will shape who can issue U.S. dollar-backed digital tokens. Banks, tech companies, and crypto firms like Circle and Tether are vying to influence the regulatory framework that could define the future of stablecoins in the U.S. Read more
Bitcoin held by publicly listed firms climbs 16% in Q1 - At least 12 public companies bought Bitcoin for the first time in Q1 2025, increasing corporate BTC holdings 16.1% to 688,000 BTC ($56.7B). Top new buyers included Ming Shing (833 BTC), Rumble (188 BTC), and Metaplanet (319 BTC). Read more
Industry News
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Nasdaq partners with Amazon Web to move more markets to cloud - The partnership aims to provide infrastructure, software, data management, and services to enable market operators to modernize cost-effectively without compromising resiliency or control. Read more
Nubank clears major hurdle in securing Mexico banking license - Brazilian fintech Nubank said on Thursday that its Mexico arm received regulatory approval from the Mexican National Banking and Securities Commission to begin the process of becoming a full-service bank. In a statement, Nubank, one of the fastest-growing digital lenders in the world, said the process to secure the banking license in Mexico now requires a "rigorous regulatory audit" before obtaining final authorization. Read more
Fiserv to acquire Brazilian financing engine Money Money - Fiserv plans to acquire Brazilian FinTech company Money Money Servicos Financeiros to expand the range of payment, management and cash flow solutions Fiserv’s Clover offers Brazilian small– to medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Following the planned acquisition, Money Money’s specialized financing engine will be integrated with the Clover cloud-based point-of-sale and business management platform. Read more
PayPal to launch rewards program for holders of PYUSD stablecoin - The company expects to offer a 3.7% annual rewards rate upon the launch of the program. Users will be able to immediately use the rewards to send to other PayPal or Venmo users, fund international transfers, exchange for fiat, convert to other cryptocurrencies or make purchases at merchants with PayPal Checkout. Read more
FBI says online scams raked in $16.6b last year - The figure, from the FBI’s annual Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) report, is a sharp rise from the $12.5b reported in 2023, reflecting the increased prevalence of online scams, particularly ones including cryptocurrency and those targeting older Americans. Read more
Mexico’s fintech stars start to shine at last - Mexico’s fintech ecosystem is beginning to deliver on its early promise, producing a wave of billion-dollar companies across payments, credit, and digital banking. As revenue growth accelerates and regional expansion gains pace, the sector is entering a new chapter of scale, innovation, and financial inclusion. Read more
Select Financings
Alpaca - California based developer of a stock-trading API raised $52m in Series C led by Derayah Financial. Read more
Altruist - California based provider of custodian software for RIAs raised $152m in Series F funding led by GIC. Read more
Arch Labs - Decentralized Bitcoin infrastructure startup raised $13m in Series A funding led by Pantera Capital. Read more
BitradeX - UK based digital asset trading platform raised £12m in Series A funding led by Bain Capital. Read more
Bloom Credit - Chicago based cashflow reporting and credit data infrastructure platform raised $10.5m in new funding led by Crosslink Capital. Read more
Cloud Capital - London based fintech platform for cloud usage costs, raised $5.4m in Seed funding led by Backed Ventures and Middlegame Ventures. Read more
Endor Labs - Palo Alto based software supply chain security company raised $93m in Series B funding led by DFJ Growth. Read more
Froda - Sweden based direct and embedded lender raised €20m in Series B funding led by Incore Invest. Read more
Healthee - New York based health benefits navigation startup raised $50m in Series B funding led by Key1 Capital. Read more
Hokodo - UK based digital trade finance platform raised €10m led by Korelya Capital and Opera Tech Ventures. Read more
Instrumental - Oakland based grant solution for nonprofits and universities raised $55m in new funding led by Summit Partners. Read more
Lace AI - California based revenue generation software startup raised $14m in Seed funding led by Bek Ventures. Read more
MagicBlock - Decentralized real-time engine for decentralized games and apps on Solana raised $7.5m in Seed funding led by Lightspeed. Read more
Salsa - New York based provider of embedded payroll infrastructure raised $20m in Series A funding led by Altos Ventures. Read more
Steadily - Texas based provider of landlord insurance raised $30m in Series C funding led by Two Sigma Ventures. Read more
Symbiotic - Distributed universal staking infrastructure startup raised $29m in Series A funding led by Pantera Capital. Read more
Uniqus Consultech - California based consultancy for ESG, risk, and accounting raised $20m in Series C funding led by Nexus Venture Partners. Read more
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