Fintech Takes

Welcome back to Fintech Takes. I’m Alex Johnson, joined by Jason Mikula, and we are once again unable to resist the siren call of Bass Island. Tour we must.

First up on BaaS Island, Increase is trying to buy a tiny Washington state bank to build the BaaS Warp Core of the future: tight tech + charter in one stack. We explore what this means for infrastructure players trying to outgrow their middleware roots.

Next, California drops a consent order on Hatch Bank…without the FDIC. Are states taking the lead on BaaS enforcement, or is this just D.C. chaos fallout? Meanwhile, the cracks keep spreading. We tour banks that bet on building their own stacks and lost—just as Fiserv quietly deepens its reach into embedded finance via Thread Bank and its Finxact core. Is BaaS headed toward a two-lane future: tech-forward banks vs. core providers?

Then it's time for a Vegas flashback: Ryan Breslow’s latest Bolt reboot is here. The payments super app now offers crypto, debit rewards, peer-to-peer payments, ecomm tracking (and a sweet Spotify playlist). We’re getting serious Echo déjà vu. Do we need this? 

And finally, the weirdest fintech lawsuit yet: TomoCredit doctored blog posts to claim a trademark on “cash score”, a term Prism (a Petal spinout) was actually applying for. Prism caught them. Tomo admitted it. It’s part fraud, part farce, and a reminder that fintech grift is alive and well..

Rants, recaps, and a little righteous fury…just how we like it!

Newline™ by Fifth Third is an innovative, API-first platform that enables fintechs to launch embedded payment, card and deposit solutions directly with Fifth Third Bank. Visit ⁠Newline53.com⁠ to see how Newline can elevate your business.

The world needs MoR. With ⁠Paddle⁠ as your Merchant of Record (MoR), the global growth is yours. The risk, compliance and accountability are ours. Simple. Paddle offers all the benefits of an enterprise-grade billing system but with MoR flexibility, MoR control, and MoR focus on your core product. Visit ⁠paddle.com⁠ to learn more.

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/ 

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow Jason:

Newsletter: https://fintechbusinessweekly.substack.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmikula/

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Welcome back to the Fintech Takes podcast. I’m your host, Alex Johnson, and today, one of our favorite guests is making a triumphant return visit—Frank Rotman, founding partner and CIO at QED Investors.

Frank has a theory: in his words, the game of life is getting “harder to win.” Debt is piling up, wages are stagnant, and folks are being told they’re the only ones to blame for their financial struggles. His observation is that more people see themselves as playing PvE (Player vs. Everyone), prioritizing personal survival over collective outcomes. In a world where following the rules doesn’t pay off, so-called "irrational" moves like crypto gambles start making a lot more sense. We unpack what this shift means for finance, behavior, and the economy.

Then, we take on a big question: is traditional financial theory broken? The old "work hard, save, invest in a 60/40 portfolio" model no longer delivers retirement security, and that's because rising costs, debt, and economic shifts have eroded its effectiveness. So, what might replace it? And how can avoiding financial mistakes be just as important as making smart investments?

And finally, we explore how AI is rewriting the future of finance. Instead of generic, one-size-fits-all advice, AI-powered financial guidance could be real-time, scenario-based, and deeply personalized (aka imagine a 150-IQ financial strategist that can help you make smarter decisions on the fly...by actually talking to it? That future’s not so far away).

Instead of shopping for financial products, what happens when AI can custom-build financial products to fit our specific needs? Would that create a system that works for everyone—or just make it even more complex?

Join us for a deep, challenging, and necessary conversation about the future of money, markets, and human behavior.

Newline™ by Fifth Third is an innovative, API-first platform that enables fintechs to launch embedded payment, card and deposit solutions directly with Fifth Third Bank. Visit ⁠Newline53.com⁠ to see how Newline can elevate your business.

The world needs MoR. With ⁠Paddle⁠ as your Merchant of Record (MoR), the global growth is yours. The risk, compliance and accountability are ours. Simple.Paddle offers all the benefits of an enterprise-grade billing system but with MoR flexibility, MoR control, and MoR focus on your core product. Visit ⁠paddle.com⁠ to learn more.

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow Frank:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frank-rotman/

X: https://x.com/fintechjunkie

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

X: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Welcome back to Bank Nerd Corner, featuring yours truly and—plot twist—not Kiah Haslett. Today we’re flying without our usual co-pilot, but in her place we’ve got Jason Henrichs: CEO of Alloy Labs, Breaking Banks host, and longtime Fintech Takes favorite, first time BNC co-host.

Jason knows he can’t out-nerd Kiah (who among us can?), so instead we’re flying full black-box mode: no segments, just rants. 

First rant: VCs have no business chasing board seats if they’re not ready to govern! 

We still don’t know what the Synapse board discussed, if anything, as customers lost access to their funds. Then there’s Frank, the fintech that sold a fantasy to JPMorgan. The founder’s taking the heat (rightfully so), but not a word from the investors who stood to benefit most. Shouldn’t they share the blame? How do we build governance into the capital stack…before the next meltdown makes it everyone’s problem?

Second rant: Financial infrastructure isn’t a policy tool, so stop treating it like one! 

Credit bureaus are built to assess risk, not engineer outcomes. But during the pandemic, we paused student loan delinquencies, wiped medical debt, and blocked BNPL data to improve scores, which sounds (and is!) very compassionate…but also encouraged lenders to stop trusting the data. It gets worse! The SSA quietly added living immigrants to the Death Master File used to prevent fraud, flagging them as “dead” and freezing them out of the financial system. You want to change immigration law, fine, but weaponizing infrastructure is sabotage! So, how do we restore trust in the rails before we lose it all?

Third rant: Everyone cheered deregulation, but no one told the examiners! 

Banks are facing some of the harshest exams in years, and it’s because the regulators with institutional knowledge are gone. What's left are thinly staffed teams defaulting to “no” because they don’t understand “yes.” And fintechs that pursued charters expecting clarity? They’re running into delays, confusion, and examiners who just don’t understand the model. But for most, the charter hasn’t reduced risk…it’s just introduced new kinds. 

Fourth and final rant: This isn’t deregulation; it’s deregulation theater! 

The CFPB says it won’t enforce parts of the payday lending rule…but doesn’t repeal it. FHFA reverses housing initiatives by tweet. Executive orders bypass public comment with a shrug: “because I said so.” The result is total ambiguity (good actors stay quiet; bad actors run wild). Uncertainty is the new policy…and it’s expensive! Not just for banks and fintechs, but for the trust that holds the whole system together.  

Newline™ by Fifth Third is an innovative, API-first platform that enables fintechs to launch embedded payment, card and deposit solutions directly with Fifth Third Bank. Visit ⁠Newline53.com⁠ to see how Newline can elevate your business.

The world needs MoR. With ⁠Paddle⁠ as your Merchant of Record (MoR), the global growth is yours. The risk, compliance and accountability are ours. Simple.Paddle offers all the benefits of an enterprise-grade billing system but with MoR flexibility, MoR control, and MoR focus on your core product. Visit ⁠paddle.com⁠ to learn more.

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow Jason:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonhenrichs/

Twitter: https://x.com/jasonhenrichs

Breaking Banks podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-banks/id641357669

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Welcome back to Not Fintech Investment Advice, where Simon Taylor and I talk about fintech companies that we're definitely not giving investment advice on! The theme of this episode is infrastructure galore.

We kick things off with Ubyx, who are essentially building the Visa for stablecoins–a network of merchants, issuers, and acquirers with a standardized incentive and legal structure that could help stablecoins finally qualify as cash equivalents. We’re not yet at the Visa moment of mass merchant adoption and real interoperability pain (all pain points are still mostly theoretical), but Ubyx is betting that moment’s coming fast. They’re one to watch, especially if you love good nerdy whitepaper...

Next up, Codex. They recently raised a seed round (with participation from Coinbase and Circle, among others) to build a layer 2 blockchain network specifically for stablecoins. Codex wants to be the sleek payments rail for stablecoins, and while “just another blockchain” fatigue is real, there’s logic in going vertical. They’re also pitching themselves as a liquidity hub, which, if it works, could be a major edge in reducing fragmentation.

Then, there’s Agent AV, which is basically Shopify for AI agents. They’re tackling the wild west of agentic commerce, where bots now shop on our behalf. E-commerce was built to keep bots out—but now, humans are deploying bots on their behalf. The challenge, then, is separating the good bots (authorized agents) from the bad. That’s why a two-sided mode, building for both agents and merchants, makes a lot of sense. It’s early days, but they might be laying rails for a whole new kind of shopping experience.

And finally, the dark horse of the episode: Experian. Yes, that Experian. They just launched a new cashflow-based credit score and, in a twist, are skipping the bottom of the data stack to go full-FICO. In an open banking world, they don’t want to be the bureau—they want to be the scorer.

No end-of-show manifestations on this go-around; Simon already manifested the biggest fintech nerd gathering ever, Fintech NerdCon, so Alex is manifesting an excellent inaugural NerdCon in Miami come November. 

00:02:36 - UBYX

00:16:25 - Codex

00:30:05 - Agent AV

00:41:14 - Experian

Newline™ by Fifth Third is an innovative, API-first platform that enables fintechs to launch embedded payment, card and deposit solutions directly with Fifth Third Bank. Visit ⁠Newline53.com⁠ to see how Newline can elevate your business.

The world needs MoR. With Paddle as your Merchant of Record (MoR), the global growth is yours. The risk, compliance and accountability are ours. Simple. Paddle offers all the benefits of an enterprise-grade billing system but with MoR flexibility, MoR control, and MoR focus on your core product. Visit paddle.com to learn more.

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow Simon:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sytaylor/

Substack: https://sytaylor.substack.com

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Companies featured:

https://www.ubyx.xyz/

https://www.codex.xyz/

https://www.experian.com/

Welcome back to the Fintech Takes podcast. I’m Alex Johnson, and as always, I’m joined by my partner-in-crime, Jason Mikula. Today, we’re unpacking Klarna’s public debut, the growing rift between Mercury and Evolv, and why getting wrecked might just be the best education in lending

First up, the BNPL giant Klarna has finally gone public, filing an F1 as a foreign entity. Now as a public company, we’ll get to see their actual numbers. With 93M active consumers, Klarna isn’t small, but its path to profitability is still a question mark. The key stat? Transaction margins. Klarna’s European banking license gives it an advantage in low-interest rate markets, but as it pushes deeper into the U.S., credit losses are an issue. The big question: can Klarna mature fast enough to bring those losses down?

Next, we’re diving into the fallout between Mercury and Evolv. Mercury has stopped onboarding customers through Evolv and is actively shifting accounts elsewhere—publicly, at that. Meanwhile, Evolv seems caught off guard for Mercury’s departure, with mixed signals on whether this was a surprise or a slow-moving train wreck. So, what really happened? And what does it say about the state of fintech-banking relationships? 

And finally, is taking a beating the only way to master lending? We think so. The right order? Start with lending, get punched in the face by risk, and then consider a bank charter. Doing it the other way around? Painful. Avoidable. And yet...it keeps happening. Please stop!

Newline™ by Fifth Third is an innovative, API-first platform that enables fintechs to launch embedded payment, card and deposit solutions directly with Fifth Third Bank. Visit Newline53.com to see how Newline can elevate your business.

The world needs MoR. With Paddle as your Merchant of Record (MoR), the global growth is yours. The risk, compliance and accountability are ours. Simple.Paddle offers all the benefits of an enterprise-grade billing system but with MoR flexibility, MoR control, and MoR focus on your core product. Visit paddle.com to learn more.

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/ 

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow Jason:

Newsletter: https://fintechbusinessweekly.substack.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmikula/

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Welcome back to Fintech Takes! I’m Alex Johnson, and today we’re unpacking stablecoins with James Wester, co-head of payments research at Javelin Strategy & Research. 

James isn’t new to the space—he’s led strategic communications for blockchain, crypto, and digital currencies at PayPal (highly relevant to our conversation!) and has been a market research analyst at IDC.

First up, we dive into whether stablecoins can disrupt traditional payment systems like cards and ACH. Merchants loathe interchange fees, but replacing cards with "cheaper" stablecoin solutions overlooks the added value of cards (fraud protection, rewards, and consumer trust). As for ACH, it’s already a low-cost option, so what makes stablecoins stand out?

Then, we dive into how Stripe’s $1.1B investment in Bridge made even the skeptics rethink stablecoins. While they may not replace traditional payment rails, stablecoins have huge potential in closed ecosystems like Starbucks or Disney (imagine paying for your coffee with “Starbucks Coins” or skipping the line with “Mickey Bucks”—seriously, picture it!).

Next, we tackle the UX hurdles of stablecoins. Right now with crypto, if you send funds to the wrong address, poof! They’re gone. For stablecoins to really take off, they need to be as smooth as the Starbucks app, making payments simple and rewarding users without them even noticing the tech behind it. Stablecoins need that same familiarity, aka dollar-backed balances and real-world incentives, to drive adoption.

In the end, stablecoins could outpace prepaid and pay-by-bank systems with their flexibility, liquidity, and potential for ecosystem-wide adoption (which comes with major advantages), although regulatory hurdles loom. They won’t topple cards overnight, but in the long run? They could really reshape retail ecosystems. It’s a slow burn, but the potential is huge.

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow James:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameswester/

X: https://x.com/jameswester

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

X: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Welcome back to Not Fintech Investment Advice! I’m Alex Johnson, creator of Fintech Takes, recording live (!) at Fintech Meetup with my co-host, Simon Taylor—the genius behind Fintech Brain Food—sitting right across from me. How lucky are we?! Wait... how lucky are you?!?

First up, Payman AI’s agentic payments API lets AI initiate transactions under human oversight in a monitored, auditable environment. Backed by Visa, Coinbase, and Circle, they’re blending wallet control with agent intelligence in stablecoins. Can we hold AI accountable without a chatbot fiasco (looking at you, Air Canada)? AI can go rogue, but so can humans—card controls and approvals manage it. So, how much autonomy are we willing to give AI agents?

Next, staying on theme, Shiboleth is taking a fresh spin on BaaS with continuous, AI-driven verification. Gone are the days of “trust but verify”—now it’s all about constant verification. Shiboleth scans everything from customer complaints to service calls, helping banks detect red flags in real-time. With fraud losses at an all-time high, can Shiboleth’s solution scale? And can AI really spot subtle compliance risks without getting bogged down?

Now, let’s talk about Stablecore (i.e. stablecoins, but with a twist). This hybrid platform helps financial institutions use stablecoins alongside legacy systems.The short-term play is integrating with orchestration partners like Zero Hash. But as for long-term vision, are we ready for a world where deposits flow through stablecoins?

Next, Estrada unbundles corporate cards, letting any Visa or MasterCard plug into spend management, ERPs, and even consumers’ wallets—without needing to issue their own cards. It’s “Bring Your Own Card” as a service; Estrada lets businesses tap into corporate card data without reinventing the wheel.

Finally, we explore fintech "franchising" to help distribute products through banks and credit unions. Innovation’s ahead of customer acquisition, but what if we could rethink distribution?

00:02:15 - Payman

00:17:13 - Shibboleth

00:30:22 - Stablecore

00:43:51 - Astrada

00:52:20 - Manifesting Fintech Ideas 

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow Simon:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sytaylor/

Substack: https://sytaylor.substack.com

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Companies featured:

https://www.paymanai.com/

https://shiboleth.ai/

https://stablecore.com/

https://astrada.co/

This week on Bank Nerd Corner, Kiah and Alex welcome a special guest (arguably the MOST special?), former Acting Comptroller of the Currency, Michael Hsu. Together, they explore the fascinating crossroads where financial tradition, innovation, and regulation collide.

From the challenges of de novo bank formation post-Great Recession to the rise of Banking as a Service (BaaS), we unpack the risks and rewards of each path. And we’re turning it into a fun,  “Would You Rather” game, tackling burning questions like:

• Would you rather see a banking system with higher risk tolerance for new bank formations OR fintechs operating through BaaS?

• Would you prefer robust fintech industry standards OR direct regulatory oversight of fintechs?

• Can fintech thrive without bank charters?

Plus, we tackle the core issue of fintech regulation: should we lean on industry standards, or is direct regulatory oversight the only way to protect consumers and avoid future crises? 

Tune in for a thought-provoking “Would you Rather?” roulette and a super fun dive into the future of financial services—straight from one of the industry's key players. Roll the dice, hit the gas, and let’s see where the game takes us!

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Read more about Michael here:

https://www.occ.gov/about/who-we-are/history/previous-comptrollers/previous-acting-comptrollers/bio-michael-hsu.html

Follow Kiah:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/khaslett/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/khaslett

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Welcome back to the Fintech Takes podcast. I’m Alex Johnson, and as always, I’m joined by my partner-in-crime, Jason Mikula. Today, we’re unpacking the chaos around regulatory shifts, fintech's shifting landscape, and the not-so-rosy reality of BNPL.

First up, we're diving into the latest news coming from D.C. The Trump administration is considering consolidating bank supervision under the OCC, with reports of employee transfers from the FDIC and CFPB in the works. The possible gutting of agencies and the shifting regulatory approach isn’t exactly a surprise, but we’re seeing this transition go from theoretical to action. What’s at stake for banks and fintechs?

Next, we dive into Varo’s challenges as the first fintech to snag a de novo bank charter during fintech 1.0’s big promises. Once a leader, Varo is now facing financial losses and a shrinking customer base, while rivals like Chime scale quickly. Varo’s struggles highlight the tension between building responsible products for underserved communities and navigating complex regulatory oversight. Its de novo charter has tied its hands, making it harder to compete in a fast-moving market where flexibility is key.

The January CFPB report on Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) brings eye-opening insights. Despite its claim to help those without credit, 45% of BNPL loans go to deep subprime borrowers, not credit newbies. The data also shows users stacking loans across providers, with rising credit card default rates. The takeaway: BNPL’s shiny promises don't align with its impact. Plus, we’re keeping the BNPL convo going with a rapid-fire round of updates.

Finally, we wrap up with a few rants you won’t want to miss—like the transparency crisis in financial services and crypto. Powell’s vague responses to Synapse’s failures highlight a deeper issue: accountability. Meanwhile, crypto’s obsession with meme coins is sinking to new lows. Where have all serious players gone? We're diving in.

00:04:50 - Washingtonian Recap

00:26:41 - Varo’s Charter Conundrum

00:40:59 - BNPL News, Grab Bag Style

01:07:45 - Can’t Let It Go

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/ 

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow Jason:

Newsletter: https://fintechbusinessweekly.substack.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmikula/

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/AlexH_Johnson

Welcome to Fintech Takes! I’m Alex Johnson, and today we’re heading straight into the belly of the beast—Washington, D.C.—where regulators, banks, and fintechs are jockeying for position. Joining me is Rob Blackwell, a 20-year American Banker veteran, Intrafi’s Chief Content Officer, and host of the Banking with Interest pod.

Today, we're diving into the big four: CFPB, OCC, FDIC, and the Fed. Regulatory shifts are moving fast, so by the time this airs, this could all be outdated—but hey, c’est la vie!

First up, the push to gut the CFPB is gaining ground in some circles, but even banks and credit unions see value in maintaining a referee. Will the CFPB be sidelined (to, ahem, crypto’s benefit) or bounce back with a vengeance? Rob’s take is that it’ll be weakened, not wiped out—it’s too useful politically.

Next, the FDIC's tailored supervision shouldn’t mean loosening oversight, especially where fintech partnerships are involved. Small banks aren’t JPMorgan, but they still need scrutiny. Same goes for the OCC, where new leadership is prioritizing collaboration with banks while pushing for targeted regulation to keep things fair. No wild cards here; Trump’s picks are pragmatic, not radical.

Finally, the FDIC and Fed are pushing for clearer rules and more transparency, aiming to rein in overreach without forcing banks into unwanted partnerships. The challenge: giving banks discretion while preventing regulators from nudging them into silent exclusions.

Bottom line? The rules are changing, but power plays never do.

Sign up for Alex’s Fintech Takes newsletter for the latest insightful analysis on fintech trends, along with a heaping pile of pop culture references and copious footnotes. Every Monday and Thursday: https://workweek.com/brand/fintech-takes/

And for more exclusive insider content, don’t forget to check out my YouTube page.

Follow Rob:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-blackwell-63884826/

X: https://x.com/robblackwellab

Follow Alex: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJgfH47QEwbQmkQlz1V9rQA/videos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhjohnson

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