Obita, an enterprise-level cross-border payment and digital financial network, announced the completion of its angel round financing exceeding US$10 million. With compliant stablecoins at its foundation, Obita is building a blockchain-native payment network under its Obita Mesh framework, empowering global enterprises to experience low-cost, real-time settlement with regulatory-compliant solutions. Addressing industry pain points such as high foreign exchange costs, delayed settlements, and insufficient fund flow transparency, Obita integrates enterprise-grade compliance systems, cross-border clearing networks, and unified treasury management tools to redefine the ways capital flows for cross-border trade, e-commerce, and supply chain platforms. The company has an initial focus on high-growth markets in Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Africa, and Latin America. “Cross-border payments are at a tipping point driven by stablecoin innovation,” said Dayong ZHANG, Co-founder and CEO of Obita. “We aim to integrate blockchain technology’s revolutionary potential into real-world global capital flows through our enterprise-grade, end-to-end, compliant, secure, and high-quality integrated services.” The funds will be allocated to system R&D, compliance infrastructure development, and global market expansion, accelerating the deployment of its stablecoin-based cross-border payment network.
Debit rails drive fintech lock‑in: Cash App Card hits 26M actives; Affirm Cardholders up 97% with 132% GMV growth; PayPal/Venmo debit TPV is up 60%+
The latest batch of Q2 2025 results make it clear: Debit cards are no longer optional add-ons, they are central to how FinTech platforms lock users into an expanding bouquet of services, offering a tie-in to lending and banking tools to branded checkout experiences.1) Block’s Q2 2025 earnings presentation noted Cash App’s gross profit rose 16% year over year, driven in large part by Cash App Card, alongside Borrow and BNPL initiatives. Their shareholder letter further emphasizes accelerating user engagement and gross profit per transacting active, up 15%, with 26 million Cash App Card actives. The company has indicated that, as detailed in the latest shareholder letter, debit is holding appeal for younger consumers, as active customers “under the age of 25 have higher Paycheck Deposit attach rates and a 40% higher Cash App Card attach rate compared to the rest of our customer base. 2) Affirm’s Q2 earnings supplement confirms growth in the relatively new Affirm Card, a Visa-issued debit card, with transactions routed via the card versus typical checkout flows. Affirm Card active cardholders surged 97%. Card gross merchandise volume (GMV) grew 132% to $1.2 billion. In-store spending on those cards grew 187% year over year. 3) Klarna’s F-1 report confirms enhancements to the Klarna Card, including real-time transfers and deposits, as part of its U.S. rollout, enhancing the “smarter wallet experience.” Marqeta’s card issuing platform powers the Klarna Card debit card that will allow Klarna customers in the U.S. to use the same card to pay immediately or pay later. The F-1 stated that Klarna Balance, introduced last year, “allows consumers to Pay in Full or make Pay Later payments without connecting a bank account or a credit or debit card and facilitates the growth of cashback.” 4) PayPal’s results indicated that debit card total payment volume across PayPal and Venmo expanded over 60%, and monthly active debit accounts jumped over 65%, reflecting robust adoption as the company added 2 million first-time debit card users in the U.S. 5) LendingClub’s Q2 earnings report highlighted the launch of its LevelUp Checking account, while offering deposit and debit-like capabilities that enhance its lending ecosystem. CEO Scott Sanborn explained that adding checking functionality helps embed LendingClub deeper into consumer financial lives, supporting ecosystem expansion. LevelUp Checking offers customers 2% cash back for on-time loan payments made from this checking account and 1% cash back when using the associated debit card for qualifying purchases, according to company materials.
OnePay furthers super app initiative by adding wireless plan along side cards, savings, BNPL and P2P; it can halve typical phone bills while lowering AT&T acquisition costs.
OnePay is reportedly adding its own branded wireless plan as it works to become an American super app, in partnership with mobile services startup Gigs. The plan costs $35 a month for unlimited 5G data, talk and text on the AT&T network, Gigs said. The plans are activated in-app with a few clicks and don’t require credit checks or activation fees. OnePay services include credit and debit cards, high-yield savings accounts, buy now, pay later loans, and a digital wallet with peer-to-peer payments. Gigs CEO Hermann Frank said that embedding wireless plans into fintech services can lower AT&T’s customer acquisition costs — savings which can be shared with end users. “The average consumer largely overpays for their phone bill,” Frank said. “We can now offer a product at a price point that is about half what the typical consumer pays right now, with all the modern features that you require.”
AEON brings scan‑to‑pay crypto via Pix QR across Brazil, layering crypto on a rail used by 76% of people and 68B annual transactions
AEON, the next generation crypto payment framework, has officially introduced its new Scan-to-Pay feature in Brazil via its Web3 mobile payment solution AEON Pay. Brazilian users can now simply scan merchants’ PIX QR codes and complete purchases with their crypto assets, and AEON automatically settles the payment to merchants in Brazilian Real (BRL) via PIX, the nation’s instant payment network. This integration allows Brazilian users to shop and pay at any merchant that supports PIX QR codes. At checkout, they can select their preferred crypto and wallet, whether through direct crypto transfer, AEON wallet balance, or popular payment options, making crypto payments as simple and familiar as using PIX. Traditional crypto-to-fiat payment rails often rely on card networks like Visa or Mastercard, which impose steep foreign exchange markups and fees, sometimes reaching 15%. In contrast, AEON Pay leverages PIX to deliver much lower-cost experiences, with effective transaction costs of around 0.8%, significantly reducing costs for users and merchants alike. For merchants, AEON Pay unlocks access to crypto-powered payments with minimal complexity. With no need to manage volatile crypto holdings and integrate any hardware solution like a POS machine, AEON settles instantly into BRL with the benefits of PIX’s low cost and high reliability. In addition, AEON doesn’t charge merchants for this service, opening up revenue channels for local merchants at no cost. Unlike crypto card programs or POS machine-based solutions, AEON operates the largest crypto payment settlement network that uses QR code and bank transfers, bridging digital assets with existing financial rails in a cost-efficient and scalable way.
Revup launches as revenue optimization orchestrator with token ownership, adaptive routing, and PCI DSS compliance, recovering up to 25% of failed transactions for merchant growth
Revup, formerly known as Macropay Payment Orchestrator, has officially launched as a revenue optimization orchestrator helping merchants worldwide turn payment challenges into growth. Revup offers token ownership, adaptive routing, and compliance-first features proven to recover up to 25% of failed transactions. With PCI DSS certification, chargeback management, and smart orchestration, Revup enables businesses to scale securely while maximizing revenue. Smart Payment Orchestration for Revenue Optimization: Strengthening compliance and control: PCI DSS certification and full token ownership reduce regulatory risk, eliminate PSP lock-in, and cut third-party dependence. Protecting revenue at every stage: An in-house chargeback management tool and dedicated fraud expertise give merchants faster dispute resolution and greater confidence at scale. Enabling business agility: A flexible subscription module with real-time modification options ensures merchants can adapt quickly to evolving needs. What Sets Revup Apart: Key differentiators include: Smart orchestration with adaptive routing and retries; Full token ownership, avoiding PSP lock-in; Ecosystem building for stronger partnerships; Regulatory rigor for reduced risk at scale; Revenue-first features to maximize recovery; and Unified data and insights for better decision-making.
YY Group integrates regulated stablecoin payments into gig platform enabling instant settlement in USDT/USDC; creating revenue through FX conversion and cross‑border efficiency
YY Group Holding plans to integrate regulated stablecoin-powered payments into its YY gig worker platform, enabling gig workers and clients to send and receive payments in seconds at a lower cost. The move positions the Company to tap into the rapidly growing global stablecoin market while creating new, high-margin fintech revenue opportunities such as FX conversion participation, instant settlement options, and other value-added services within its ecosystem. The integration will combine the speed, cost efficiency, and global reach of stablecoin payment rails with the scale and trust of YY Group’s established gig workforce ecosystem. YY Group will partner with licensed providers to integrate stablecoin capabilities directly into its platform: Gig workers can receive earnings in local currency or leading fiat-backed stablecoins like USDT or USDC, with instant or next-day settlement. Clients can pay in fiat or stablecoins, benefiting from built-in conversion without handling digital assets themselves. All transactions will follow robust compliance protocols, including full KYC/KYB checks, sanctions screening, and blockchain-based monitoring.
Ant’s Antom Antom launches agentic payment solution with AI-driven APM checkout, MPC-based risk management and Mastercard+Visa partnership for secure tokenized card payments
Antom, a merchant payment and digitisation services provider under Ant International, today announced the launch of an agentic payment solution, featuring a first-of-its-kind secure APM checkout solution. Antom is also among the first partners of Mastercard and Visa to pilot card-based transaction capabilities for AI agents. Antom’s agentic payment solution is expected to meet this need with broad payment method coverage, offering convenient checkout through APMs and cards. It features an AI-ready payment mandate model and enhanced payment asset management to ensure precise recognition of user intent while safeguarding transaction security and providing increased transparency for users. Building upon the Model Context Protocol (MCP), this agentic payment solution supports embedded payment flows through dialogue-based interactions with AI agents, covering both confirmed purchase requests and conditional, pre-authorized transactions, such as purchases within a predefined spending limit or scheduled flash sales. The Antom agentic payment solution is now open-sourced on GitHub. Antom can connect AI agents to diverse APMs, including a wide range of digital wallets. With Antom EasySafePay, the industry’s first streamlined checkout solution for APMs, the payment process is faster and simpler. Antom EasySafePay allows users to link their digital wallets directly to the checkout page without being redirected to external apps, fitting naturally into agent-initiated payment flows. Antom EasySafePay combines convenience with robust safeguards. It leverages Multi-Party Computation (MPC)-based AI risk management and mobile device security systems to identify and block fraudulent transactions, preventing phishing, fraud, and identity misuse, reducing the risk of account takeovers for digital wallet users while protecting privacy. Antom’s structured and adaptable solution is designed to help AI agents support diverse payment methods such as cards, wallets, and bank transfers, reaching a broad customer base efficiently while reducing integration costs.
With CardFree deal Fiserv’s Clover gains enhanced loyalty capabilities, from mobile pay-and-earn flows to kiosk-based redemption, housed within Clover and Commerce Hub
Fiserv’s acquisition of CardFree brings a new suite of loyalty and payment options tailored to restaurants. By integrating CardFree’s mobile ordering, pay and loyalty platform into Fiserv’s ecosystem, merchants can now embed seamless reward programs directly into ordering flows, reducing friction and deepening engagement. CardFree’s technology allows restaurants to offer integrated loyalty, rewarding customers automatically at checkout, whether they order in-venue, via kiosk or through delivery partnerships. For hotel operators, loyalty is equally critical to guest retention and spend. The integration of CardFree into Fiserv can extend to lodging, enabling hotels to embed loyalty offers directly into guest interactions, whether ordering room service, checking out via kiosk or engaging with property management systems. With third-party software integration capabilities, Fiserv now supports loyalty programs that travel across guest touch points, making each stay more rewarding and reinforcing brand preference in a competitive hospitality landscape. Moreover, CardFree’s drive-thru and kiosk functionality also serves restaurants and hotels operating quick-service or grab-and-go models. Guests ordering through a drive-thru window or self-ordering kiosk can be rewarded in real time. Through the deal, Fiserv’s Clover gains enhanced loyalty capabilities, from mobile pay-and-earn flows to kiosk-based redemption, housed within Clover and Commerce Hub.
Visa enables agentic commerce with tokenized credentials, device-specific authentication and intent-matching “payment instructions,” that verify agent purchases against consumer requests to mitigate hallucinations and fraud
Visa has released new developer tools that allow AI agents to connect directly to Visa’s payment infrastructure, enabling what the company calls “agentic commerce” — a system where AI bots handle everything from product discovery to checkout completion based on consumer preferences and spending limits. Rather than browsing websites and manually completing purchases, consumers would set parameters for AI agents that then autonomously find, evaluate, and buy products across multiple merchants. Rubail Birwadker, Visa’s Global Head of Growth said “These agents will need to be trusted with payments, not only by users, but by banks and sellers as well.” Visa’s new offering centers on two key products: a Model Context Protocol (MCP) Server that provides secure access to Visa’s payment APIs, and the Visa Acceptance Agent Toolkit, which allows both technical and non-technical users to deploy AI-powered payment workflows using plain language commands. The MCP Server represents a significant technical breakthrough, providing AI agents with a standardized way to communicate with Visa’s trusted network without requiring custom integrations for each application. Developers can now move “from idea to functional prototype in hours instead of days or weeks,” according to the company. Visa has implemented multiple layers of protection, including immediate tokenization of card credentials, device-specific authentication, and what Birwadker calls “payment signals” and “payment instructions” that verify AI agent actions align with original consumer intent. “Your PII or your PAN is never going to be exposed,” Birwadker said, referring to personally identifiable information and primary account numbers. “We almost immediately take that pan, we convert it into a token, and we authenticate that token and tie it to a specific device for a specific application.” The company has also developed a matching process that prevents transaction completion until it confirms an AI agent’s intended purchase matches what the consumer originally requested. This addresses concerns about AI “hallucinations” — instances where language models generate incorrect or nonsensical outputs.
As embedded payments commoditize, platforms shift to adjacencies—credit, fraud, liquidity and analytics—to expand ARPU and net revenue retention. Embedded payments is becoming commoditized, forcing firms to rethink how they capture value. The most promising answers to the question of where else platforms can turn to capture margin may lie in the adjacencies, services that are enabled by, but not limited to, payment rails. Each transaction creates a byproduct of data, trust and liquidity that can be harnessed for new, higher-margin offerings. Meanwhile, payments create liquidity flows that can be optimized. Platforms that manage funds in transit can capture spread by offering features like instant payouts, yield-bearing accounts or even cross-border treasury solutions. Perhaps the least glamorous but most sticky adjacency is data. Platforms that can analyze transaction flows to help merchants optimize pricing, forecast demand or identify churn risk can create defensible revenue streams beyond the margin of payment processing itself. Some platforms are becoming financial supermarkets, bundling a full suite of services from payments to lending to insurance. Others are doubling down on vertical specialization, offering tailored financial workflows for industries like healthcare or construction. A third path is infrastructure ownership, where platforms seek to build or control enough of the financial stack to capture margin that would otherwise leak to partners. The companies that could be most likely to sustain superior economics may be those that successfully layer higher-margin financial services onto their payments base. Industry observers have noted talk centered around “ARPU (average revenue per user) expansion through financial services” rather than “payments attach.” The market is shifting from excitement over gross payment volume to scrutiny of net revenue retention driven by adjacencies.
Embedded payments is becoming commoditized, forcing firms to rethink how they capture value. The most promising answers to the question of where else platforms can turn to capture margin may lie in the adjacencies, services that are enabled by, but not limited to, payment rails. Each transaction creates a byproduct of data, trust and liquidity that can be harnessed for new, higher-margin offerings. Meanwhile, payments create liquidity flows that can be optimized. Platforms that manage funds in transit can capture spread by offering features like instant payouts, yield-bearing accounts or even cross-border treasury solutions. Perhaps the least glamorous but most sticky adjacency is data. Platforms that can analyze transaction flows to help merchants optimize pricing, forecast demand or identify churn risk can create defensible revenue streams beyond the margin of payment processing itself. Some platforms are becoming financial supermarkets, bundling a full suite of services from payments to lending to insurance. Others are doubling down on vertical specialization, offering tailored financial workflows for industries like healthcare or construction. A third path is infrastructure ownership, where platforms seek to build or control enough of the financial stack to capture margin that would otherwise leak to partners. The companies that could be most likely to sustain superior economics may be those that successfully layer higher-margin financial services onto their payments base. Industry observers have noted talk centered around “ARPU (average revenue per user) expansion through financial services” rather than “payments attach.” The market is shifting from excitement over gross payment volume to scrutiny of net revenue retention driven by adjacencies.