ICE Mortgage Technology has announced the debut of ICE Asset Analyzer and ICE Audit Analyzer, adding to the existing ICE Income and ICE Credit analyzers. The products, which are fully integrated into the Encompass system, allow mortgage professionals to quickly and accurately streamline lending processes, improve accuracy and support compliance efforts. Asset Analyzer uses data analysis and configurable logic to “simplify the traditionally manual process of assessing borrower assets,” ICE said. It added that its key tasks include identifying large deposits, recognizing withdrawal patterns and applying a standardized checklist to ensure consistency across loans. The tools allow lenders to free up employees to execute higher-value work, ICE said. ICE’s Audit Analyzer is designed to improve post-closing quality control. Instead of relying on manual checklists, the tool uses automated technology to help identify missing documents, data discrepancies and compliance risks to ensure document accuracy, improve regulatory adherence and limit repurchase risk. Tim Bowler, president of ICE Mortgage Technology, said “By integrating these Analyzers within Encompass, we’re enabling our customers to perform more of their essential work within a single platform, making their lives easier, and saving them time and money they’d otherwise have to spend performing these functions offline.”
Virgin Money Credit Card App integrates Mastercard’s open banking tech, enabling users to view balances and transactions from multiple banks in one place
Virgin Money, a UK financial services provider, is set to offer its credit card customers the ability to view balances and transactions from other banks directly within the Virgin Money Credit Card App. This feature is part of a collaboration with Mastercard, a global payments technology company, and uses Mastercard’s open banking technology. Open banking allows third-party financial service providers to access consumer banking data through APIs with consumer consent. This integration enables Virgin Money users to manage various financial accounts through a single interface, providing a comprehensive view of customers’ finances without requiring them to switch between multiple banking applications. The move aligns with trends in the financial services industry towards greater integration of financial data and services, as banks increasingly recognize the value of providing comprehensive views of their finances through primary banking applications.
LexisNexis uses small, distilled GenAI models and model routing; achieving faster response times and models more fine-tuned for legal use cases
LexisNexis AI assistant Protégé, aims to help lawyers, associates and paralegals write and proof legal documents and ensure that anything they cite in complaints and briefs is accurate. However, LexisNexis didn’t want a general legal AI assistant; they wanted to build one that learns a firm’s workflow and is more customizable. LexisNexis saw the opportunity to bring the power of large language models (LLMs) from Anthropic and Mistral and find the best models that answer user questions the best, Jeff Riehl, CTO of LexisNexis Legal and Professional, told. LexisNexis uses different models from most of the major model providers when building its AI platforms. For Protégé, the company wanted faster response times and models more fine-tuned for legal use cases. So it turned to what Riehl calls “fine-tuned” versions of models, essentially smaller weight versions of LLMs or distilled models. When a user asks Protégé a question about a specific case, the first model it pings is a fine-tuned Mistral “for assessing the query, then determining what the purpose and intent of that query is” before switching to the model best suited to complete the task. The next model could be an LLM that generates new queries for the search engine or another model that summarizes results.
Afterpay launches its own commerce media network based on signals and audience data from 350M transactions, to help brands reach young shoppers
Afterpay’s move into advertising is leveraging its younger user base. Saket Mehta, Afterpay’s VP of global advertising, partnerships and revenue, said Gen Z and millennials are using Afterpay to engage with brands and manage their spending. “So leveraging commerce media, the signals that we have, the audiences that are coming, and really shaping the way that the next generation is going to pay and work with financial companies is critical,” Mehta told. Afterpay launched its own media network, powered by Yahoo DSP, to help advertisers reach shoppers across the web and in-store, in September. The network has connected 240,000 Australian merchants to 6.9 million customers, generating $13.4 billion in sales across both online and offline channels. Yahoo DSP’s director of commercial and platforms Andrew Gilbert said a common misconception is that commerce media and retail media are the same. “When we talk about commerce media we’re talking about multiple merchants at one time and when we’re talking about retail media we’re talking about one singular retailer,” he said. Brands can deliver personalised ads, track sales, measure campaign performance and gain insights about their customers. Mehta said Afterpay is able to create “rich audience profiles” based on their purchases and “target” them with relevant messaging. “Leveraging all of that information, both online and offline, we’re able to create really rich audience profiles based on the signals we’re seeing,” he said. “It creates a more customised experience between the customer and the merchant, ideally driving stronger engagement and conversion rates with the brand.” Gilbert said there has been a significant amount of interest from media agencies. Afterpay has already ran a number of successful campaigns focussed on electronics, fashion, travel, entertainment and retail. One CTV campaign with a major retailer led to a 35% increase in basket size, a 2.3% rise in category share, and attracted 327,000 new customers to the brand. Mehta said commerce media provides advertisers and agencies valuable insights about peoples’ shopping habits. “The fact that we have 350 million transactions allows us to create a new offering which allows them to connect across multiple verticals, not just one. “Those nuggets are incredibly valuable to an advertiser and agency as they think about furthering their customer personas.” Gilbert said transaction level data is the future of identifiers. “This will allow marketers, retailers and brands to go after different segments because they actually understand who their consumer is, what they’re doing and where they are,” he said.
Checkbook API’s new payment rails enable instant fund transfers to PayPal and Venmo wallets directly, eliminating the need for bank account details
Checkbook, a leading innovator in payment solutions, today announced the launch of its new payment rails, now integrating PayPal and Venmo seamlessly into its existing APIs. This significant advancement empowers businesses to send funds directly to their customers’ digital and mobile wallets, offering increased speed, convenience, and flexibility. Key Benefits: Instant Transfers: Deliver funds directly to PayPal and Venmo wallets, enabling near-instant access for recipients; Enhanced Convenience: Simplify the payment process by eliminating the need for bank account information. Increased Flexibility: Offer recipients a wider range of payment options, catering to diverse preferences; Improved Customer Satisfaction: Provide a seamless and efficient payment experience, fostering customer loyalty; Financial Inclusion: Enabling companies to disburse money to those who are historically underbanked or unbanked; Modernized Payments: Checkbook continues to lead the way in modernizing payment operations.
Fifth Third Bank’s partnership with Atomic streamlines onboarding for new customers by enabling instant direct deposit switching and tracking complaints to nip any issues in the bud
Bankers have to “earn the right to win other business,” says Mark Beausoleil, director of retail banking at Valley National Bank, and those first impressions are key. The initial conversations help bankers fully familiarize themselves with clients’ financial footings and needs, all while crystallizing their mission to make clients’ “financial life easier,” he says. But at Frost Bank in Texas, the goal for initial conversations is “not to sell more products or services,” says Mary Soesbee, vice president of statewide consumer banking. Rather, bankers must learn about customers’ financial goals, educate them on account tools and fraud prevention and ultimately try building a “relationship that lasts for generations,” she says. Pushing a product that’s not a good fit leads to a “very confused and probably disillusioned client,” says Beausoleil, the Valley National banker. Frost Bank employees reach out proactively to new customers, to educate them on account features or fraud prevention, but also to learn more about their interests and goals. “When Frost bankers are making calls, the goal is to educate, discover, and build the relationship,” Soesbee, the Frost vice president, says. “We don’t use the term ‘cross-sell,’ and we don’t incentivize our bankers to do it.” And at Fifth Third, the first 90 days are centered around “helping you get started, funding your account, getting access to Zelle,” Shawn Niehaus, head of consumer banking at Ohio-based Fifth Third Bank says. First impressions are so critical that Fifth Third has focused on making the first moments smoother, including with a partnership with Atomic to help new customers switch their direct deposits within minutes. Those initial engagements don’t just help banks understand whether they’ll be a good fit for a certain products. They also help banks adapt their future outreach — how often to ping customers or whether they prefer phone calls, texts or app notifications. Some sophisticated clients just want a bit of help getting going. Others want more help, are wondering about specific products or indicate they’re more receptive to outreach, says Beausoleil. Once a customer is underway, Frost employees contact them at least three times within their first year. And the bank wants to make sure it’s reachable too, with 24/7 customer service by phone and live chat. Niehaus, the Fifth Third banker, says he’s been surprised at how effective phone calls have been — countering the notion that many no longer pick up the phone. It’s part of the “white glove treatment” Fifth Third aims to offer consumers, he says. Valley uses exit surveys to ask customers “what went wrong, so we can learn,” Beausoleil says. But it also measures client satisfaction with banker interactions along the way, prompting an immediate response from Valley to see if specific issues can be fixedThe company also works with mystery shoppers to see whether bankers are on track with their messaging that Valley wants to be customers’ long-term financial partners. At Fifth Third, the bank tracks complaints “very, very closely” to spot any potential trends and nip any issues in the bud, says Niehaus, the bank’s consumer banking head.
Qualcomm CEO say AI will be the new UI for devices, understanding context and seamlessly performing tasks in response to prompts, across multiple domains and apps
Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said that AI is ushering in the next fundamental shift in how humans interact with technology, describing it as a “generation change” poised to reshape the tech landscape and redefine user experiences across devices. According to Amon, rather than navigating between different apps for specific tasks, users will interact with AI agents that understand context and can seamlessly perform tasks across multiple domains. “You’re going to have different inputs, whether it’s voice and audio, or text. … Every text that you write could be a prompt for a model and for an agent to understand what you do and then be ready to help you when you need help,” Amon explained. Amon emphasized that this transformation extends beyond smartphones to other devices, such as automobiles and wearable technology like AR glasses. He also described cars as “a new computing space” where agent-based interfaces are particularly well-suited, allowing drivers to interact naturally through voice and visual cues. Amon said AI as the new user interface could be ubiquitous within five years, with edge computing further hastening the transition. This on-device AI processing is what Amon referred to as “AI at the edge.” This approach offers advantages in speed, privacy, reliability and cost compared to cloud-based alternatives, he said.
Beroe will infuse procurement market intelligence into nnamu, a negotiation agentic AI that uses game theory
Procurement decision intelligence platform Beroe acquired nnamu GmbH, a pioneering negotiation technology business that has created the world’s first game theory-based AI agent. nnamu uses advanced game theory principles to recommend and deliver optimal negotiation strategies, generating substantial cost savings and total cost of ownership improvements. Having deployed AI in multiple use cases on the Beroe Live.ai platform, the company saw synergies with nnamu’s exceptional capabilities in autonomous negotiations. As part of the integration roadmap, Beroe will infuse its proprietary market intelligence into nnamu’s negotiation agent, ensuring even better outcomes for customers. Effective negotiations are core to procurement’s ability to deliver savings and bottom-line impact. nnamu’s AI agent is built on a unique 20-year data set of more than 2,000 negotiations, undertaken by more than 100 specialists in game theory and economics, with a cumulative value exceeding €400 billion. With this acquisition, Beroe is paving the way for procurement professionals to access advanced AI and game theory concepts, revolutionizing how procurement professionals negotiate with their suppliers.
Senate Banking Committee establishes a regulatory framework for stablecoin issuers (focus on non-interest bearing token), requiring 1:1 reserves and AML compliance
A stablecoin bill, the GENIUS Act, is headed to the full Senate after being advanced by an 18-6 vote in the Senate Banking Committee. The GENIUS Act is the most prominent stablecoin bill and proposes a regulatory balance between state and federal oversight that allows smaller issuers to operate under state supervision while placing larger stablecoin providers under federal jurisdiction, among other requirements. The vote puts bill on a “fast track” in the Senate, as it is a priority of President Donald Trump. “This legislation is a critical first step in establishing a safe and pro-growth regulatory framework that will unleash innovation and advance the President’s mission to make America the world capital of crypto,” Hagerty said. “I look forward to seeing this bill pass the Senate in the near future and ultimately signed into law by President Trump.” An opponent of the bill in its current form, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said that, without updates, the bill would ignore basic consumer protections, lack basic national security protections, and lack basic safeguards necessary to ensure that stablecoins “don’t blow up our entire financial system.”
EarnIn has debuted Early Pay, a product that lets users access their paychecks two days early no matter where they bank
EarnIn has debuted Early Pay, a product that lets users access their paychecks two days early no matter where they bank. Early Pay lets users keep their existing banking relationships while accessing their earnings “on their own terms.” From the EarnIn app, customers can add their info to create a deposit account with the company’s partner bank, update their direct deposit through their payroll, and opt in to Early Pay on the app. The service costs $2.99 per paycheck and can be turned on and off at will. After one or two pay cycles, paychecks start fast-tracking into their primary bank account, allowing them to keep their current banking apps and automatic bill pays, while helping to avoid late fees and planning ahead better for any expenditures or financial goals. While EarnIn’s Cash Out feature allows employees to access their wages before payday, Early Pay is a separate service that automatically delivers a user’s regular paycheck up to two days faster when they enroll. Ram Palaniappan, EarnIn’s founder/CEO, said. “We created Early Pay to give people faster access to their paychecks so they can manage their money on their own terms, not their bank’s schedule.”