Worldpay has teamed with cryptocurrency bank BNVK to promote stablecoin payouts. The partnership will let Worldpay clients in the U.S. and Europe make stablecoin payments to customers, contractors, creators, sellers, and other third-party beneficiaries across more than 180 markets almost instantly, without having to hold or handle stablecoins themselves. BVNK will enable the new stablecoin offering and crypto firm Fireblocks’ integration services will help facilitate the connection to Worldpay. Worldpay clients will be able to access the new stablecoin payout service through their integration with Worldpay’s payouts platform. When the pilot goes live in the second half of the year, stablecoins will be the first type of digital asset enabled as a payout option on Worldpay’s payout platform. Worldpay’s payout platform currently supports 135 traditional currencies, and the company processed nearly $2.5 trillion in payments last year. John McNaught, head of payouts at Worldpay, said “Our new stablecoin payout service allows clients across all Worldpay’s verticals—such as marketplaces, travel, and gaming—to make seamless payouts without handling digital assets themselves.”
Block to enable merchants using the Square POS to accept bitcoin payments directly through their Square hardware via QR code scan
Block plans to launch bitcoin payments on its business technology platform Square, enabling merchants using the Square Point of Sale app to accept bitcoin payments directly through their Square hardware. The company plans to begin rolling out this new, native Bitcoin For Businesses offering in the second half of the year and then extend it to all Square sellers in 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. With Square’s integration handling the complexity behind the scenes, and the Lightning Network enabling near-instant settlement, customers will be able to pay with bitcoin by scanning a QR code at checkout. Bitcoin For Businesses builds upon Square’s Bitcoin Conversions features, which was launched in 2024 and allows qualified merchants to automatically convert a portion of their sales into bitcoin. “When a coffee shop or retail store can accept bitcoin through Square, small businesses get paid faster, and get to keep more of their revenue,” Block Bitcoin Product Lead Miles Suter said. “This is about economic empowerment for merchants who like to have options when it comes to accepting payments. We believe in an open, decentralized, fair, fast and low-cost money system for everyone, and that’s exactly what we want to bring to Square sellers,” he added.
New “selective generation” framework method uses a smaller, separate “intervention model” to decide whether the main LLM should generate an answer or abstain
A new study from Google researchers introduces “sufficient context,” a novl perspective for understanding and improving retrieval augmented generation (RAG) systems in large language models (LLMs). This approach makes it possible to determine if an LLM has enough information to answer a query accurately, a critical factor for developers building real-world enterprise applications where reliability and factual correctness are paramount. They found that Google’s Gemini 1.5 Pro model, with a single example (1-shot), performed best in classifying context sufficiency, achieving high F1 scores and accuracy. The paper notes, “In real-world scenarios, we cannot expect candidate answers when evaluating model performance. Hence, it is desirable to use a method that works using only the query and context.” Interestingly, while RAG generally improves overall performance, additional context can also reduce a model’s ability to abstain from answering when it doesn’t have sufficient information. Given the finding that models may hallucinate rather than abstain, especially with RAG compared to no RAG setting, the researchers explored techniques to mitigate this. They developed a new “selective generation” framework. This method uses a smaller, separate “intervention model” to decide whether the main LLM should generate an answer or abstain, offering a controllable trade-off between accuracy and coverage. This framework can be combined with any LLM, including proprietary models like Gemini and GPT. The study found that using sufficient context as an additional signal in this framework leads to significantly higher accuracy for answered queries across various models and datasets. This method improved the fraction of correct answers among model responses by 2–10% for Gemini, GPT, and Gemma models. For enterprise teams looking to apply these insights to their own RAG systems, such as those powering internal knowledge bases or customer support AI, Cyrus Rashtchian, co-author of the study outlines a practical approach. He suggests first collecting a dataset of query-context pairs that represent the kind of examples the model will see in production. Next, use an LLM-based autorater to label each example as having sufficient or insufficient context. “This already will give a good estimate of the % of sufficient context,” Rashtchian said. “If it is less than 80-90%, then there is likely a lot of room to improve on the retrieval or knowledge base side of things — this is a good observable symptom.”
Android’s built-in browser WebView now lets apps use Google Pay at checkout; in-app interfaces can call on Google Pay directly
Android’s native browser is finally getting Google Pay support. Google has announced that Android WebView, AOSP’s built-in browser that apps can use to render web content, now supports payments through Google Pay. Unlike standalone browsers like Chrome, Android WebView is part of the OS itself, and can be used to display content from the web within other (non-browser) apps. By default, web links in apps like Instagram open in WebView. Now, these in-app interfaces can call on Google Pay directly to make payments using methods stored in your Google account. For the change to take effect, app developers will need to add Google Pay support to their apps that use WebView, so you may not see the Pay interface in WebView right away. Google’s guidance for developers on how to do that seems straightforward enough, though, so I’d expect to see Google Pay in WebView implemented in popular apps soon.WebView supports Google Pay payments as of Google Play Services v25.18.30, which is rolling out today. With Google Pay supported in Chrome proper, Chrome Custom Tabs, and now Android WebView, every way Google has of showing you web pages on Android allows for payments using cards stored in your Google account. Assuming developers are quick to take advantage of this new WebView functionality, that should translate to a better online shopping experience.
Karat Financial is launching a creator-focused business banking product- a premium offering costing $20 per month requiring a $35,000 minimum balance but offering 2% to 3% APY
Karat Financial is launching a creator-focused business banking product. Powered by digital bank Grasshopper, Karat’s banking product is a natural extension of its credit card offering with Visa. To date, Karat has extended $1.5 billion in credit, with the average credit limit per creator at $25,000. But creators needed more financial services beyond the Karat Visa. For business banking, Karat offers two tiers — one is a free, FDIC-insured business checking account with automated tax planning (most creators are independent contractors, so they have to prepare more intentionally for their tax payments than if they had a more traditional full-time job). The premium offering costs $20 per month or requires a $35,000 minimum balance, but provides 2% to 3% APY on checking accounts, free wires, and enhanced customer support, with AI bookkeeping coming soon. “We know creators actually keep a lot of money in their checking account because the industry is so unstable, so we pay meaningful APY on checking, which most banks actually don’t do,” Co-CEO Eric Wei said. In the future, Karat hopes to continue this trajectory of offering more and more business services for creators that traditional institutions are reluctant to provide. A possible avenue could be offering various types of insurance to creators, including healthcare for their companies.
Walmart’s solution lets Medicare Advantage members to add their benefit cards to their online account and shop from an assortment of benefits-eligible items
Walmart has unveiled a digital solution to help Medicare Advantage members maximize their supplemental benefits. The retail giant said that, “for the first time in retail,” customers can easily identify plan-specific, benefits-eligible products while shopping on its site and app. With the new solution, millions of Medicare Advantage members can add benefit cards to their online Walmart account. This lets them see a “benefits program eligible” badge on an assortment of non-prescription products, including over-the-counter medications and food and wellness products. Shoppers can also track their benefits spending in real time and check out for same-day pickup or delivery in as soon as an hour. Walmart is initially launching its Medicare Advantage integration with NationsBenefits. Customers can also filter search results to include benefits-eligible items, streamlining and simplifying the shopping journey. For in-store shoppers, benefits-eligible badging will show up when scanning items in the Walmart app. Walmart is also introducing Everyday Health Signals, a new artificial intelligence-based digital platform developed initially for health plans and benefit managers. It lets customers opt in to connect their Walmart.com account and receive AI-driven wellness insights. Once customers opt in, the platform analyzes their Walmart.com retail history to deliver practical tips, like nutrition analysis and shopping lists. Walmart is also kicking off this initiative for Medicare Advantage members with NationsBenefits, where eligible members can receive free, personalized guidance that aligns with their wellness goals.
Blackstone and Vanguard’s interval fund to expand alt investments access to retail investors by blending low-cost, passive strategies in public markets with high-cost, higher return-yielding private assets
Blackstone and Vanguard’s interval fund to expand alt investments access to retail investors by blending low-cost, passive strategies in public markets with high-cost, higher return-yielding private assets Blackstone, Wellington Management and Vanguard Group this month filed to launch a multi-asset interval fund, called the WVB All Markets Fund, aimed at bringing private markets exposure to a wider base of retail investors. The fund now faces the typical scrutiny of alternative investments that offer investors some exposure to investments that don’t trade on a daily basis and cost more than low-priced exchange-traded funds pegged to stock and bond indices. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) dated May 7, the WVB Fund will be structured as an interval fund – an investment vehicle that allows limited quarterly redemptions of between 5% and one-fourth of the fund’s net asset value. Wellington will act as the fund’s investment advisor. “Vanguard and Blackstone stand at opposite ends of the asset-management spectrum,” noted Jason Kephart and Bridget Hughes, both senior principals for Morningstar, in a research note. “Vanguard champions low-cost, predominantly passive strategies in public markets, while Blackstone leads in private-market investing, offering access to less liquid, often less transparent opportunities that come with the potential for higher returns, albeit at a much steeper cost than Vanguard’s razor-thin fees,” they wrote. There are benefits to such public and private investment partnerships, the Morningstar analysts noted. “For public-market asset managers, partnering with private-markets specialists, rather than acquiring them or building in-house capabilities, offers several advantages,” according to Morningstar. “First, it‘s faster: Partnerships can be negotiated quickly and come with built-in implied credibility. They’re also typically less expensive upfront and help preserve a firm’s culture and identity. Add potential broader distribution benefits from both sides, and the appeal grows stronger. And if things don’t work out, partnerships are easier to unwind than acquisitions.” But, the Morningstar analysts asked, is any such investment partnership greater than the sum of its parts? The ratings agency noted other high-profile investment managers have recently announced similar funds. “The biggest question for investors is whether these high-profile partnerships deserve a place in their portfolios,” they wrote. “Despite the brand-name pedigree of the asset managers involved, most of these strategies are untested.” “Some have only recently launched; others, like the WVB All Markets Fund, won’t debut until late 2025,” according to Kephart and Hughes. “Even the partnerships themselves are new. Their promise of seamless collaboration is more aspiration than a proven advantage.” “What is known is that private assets bring added complexity, reduced liquidity, and higher fees,” they wrote. “Investors must weigh whether the potential benefits of private-market exposure are enough to clear those hurdles.”
FICO partners with AWS to accelerate the adoption of AI-driven, automated decision workflows in its platform and simplify procurement for customers through its availability on AWS Marketplace
FICO has signed a new strategic collaboration agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to bring more organizations worldwide the power of AI-driven, automated decision workflows with FICO Platform, which runs on AWS, and FICO will broaden its participation in AWS partner programs to accelerate client adoption of FICO Platform. FICO solutions will also be available through AWS Marketplace Private Offers. The first of these solutions, FICO Decision Modeler, is now available in AWS Marketplace. FICO Decision Modeler is the advanced decision management system that powers greater flexibility, ease of use and decision accuracy, and is at the core of FICO Platform. Many financial institutions are already using FICO Platform on AWS to drive successful business initiatives, such as Westpac NZ, one of New Zealand’s largest retail banks. “With FICO Platform, which supports transformation at scale on AWS, we’ve been able to shift from focusing on individual decisions we make on a customer’s account, to thinking strategically about how we manage customers across all of their accounts and throughout their lifetime with the bank,” said Regan Goble, Risk Analytics senior manager at Westpac NZ. “FICO’s decision management solutions provide customers with powerful tools for making data-driven financial decisions,” said Scott Mullins, managing director, Worldwide Financial Services at AWS. “Making these solutions available in AWS Marketplace simplifies procurement for our customers while providing the security, scalability, and performance benefits of AWS.
Vibe coding: Superblocks AI agent addresses security and privacy risks by turning NL prompts into secure, production-grade applications optimized for building any user interfaces; Google launches Stitch, a platform that designs UIs with one prompt
DayZero Software Inc., a maker of secure software development tools that does business as Superblocks, has raised $23 million in a Series A venture capital round extension, bringing its total funding to $60 million. The company is addressing a problem caused by generative artificial intelligence: vibe coding. It involves using AI tools to generate software quickly based on natural language prompts, often without a deep understanding of the underlying code. While great for rapid prototyping, vibe coding carries the risk of errors, security holes and inadvertent disclosure of proprietary information. Superblocks’ answer is Clark, an AI agent that turns natural language prompts into secure, production-grade applications written in React, a JavaScript library optimized for building user interfaces that can also support production-grade applications. “React is the largest front-end framework in the world so you can build pretty much any user interface with it, and most of the modern web is on it,” Superbocks co-founder and Chief Executive Brad Menezes said. Clark routes requests through a cadre of specialized AI agents covering design, security, quality assurance and IT policy. That mimics how a real internal development team operates. Superblocks is betting that the volume of homegrown software in use in enterprises will grow as generative AI lowers barriers to entry. Clark uses an assortment of popular LLMS that are trained using “unique, enterprise context on the company’s design system,” Menezes said. “When you build an application in Superblocks, you know it has the right audit logging, permissions, private data and integration.”
Mastercard launches Small Business Navigator a new curated offering of digital education, insights, protection, and planning tools to help entrepreneurs
By uniting data, digital tools and offers across three core areas, Small Business Navigator is built to help small businesses work smarter, stay safer, and grow stronger.
Knowledge and insights: Business owners get information they need to make smarter decisions, including:
An AI-powered chatbot that acts as a mentor by answering questions and guiding small businesses through their most pressing business challenges
Access to actionable insights and data from The Mastercard Economics Institute and Mastercard SpendingPulse™ reports with state-level consumer spending trends
Educational content from Mastercard and partners such as Square, covering cybersecurity, marketing, and digital tools like tap-on-phone payments
Security and protection: Small businesses can stay ahead of threats with simple, practical, powerful cybersecurity tools:
Access to My Cyber Risk powered by RiskRecon, providing prioritized guidance to help small businesses strengthen their defenses3
A personalized report with recommendations tailored to each business based on their individual Cybersecurity Assessment Quiz results