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Archive · September 25, 2026

September 25, 2026.
Five payments stories that matter.

The 5-minute briefing for payments professionals who need to know what happened, what it means, and what to do about it — before their 9am.

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The Lead

Story 01

FedNow to Pilot Cross-Border Real-Time Payments, Targeting SWIFT’s Messaging and Ripple’s Settlement Speed

The US Federal Reserve is preparing FedNow to support cross-border real-time payments, with pilot programs involving major US banks and select international partners. By enabling instant settlement and direct bank-to-bank transfers, FedNow aims to bypass SWIFT’s batch messaging delays and Ripple’s reliance on intermediaries. Early participants like JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo are evaluating FedNow’s potential to reduce costs and settlement times for US-to-Europe corridors.

Source: Finextra
Also Worth Knowing
№02

Fed Proposes Reserve and Capital Standards for Stablecoin Issuers Under GENIUS Act

The Federal Reserve has proposed new rules requiring stablecoin issuers to hold specific reserve assets and meet standardized capital requirements, as part of the GENIUS Act. This move brings stablecoin oversight closer to traditional banking standards, raising compliance costs for issuers like Circle and PayPal. Stablecoin providers must now adapt to tighter regulatory scrutiny or risk losing access to US markets.

Source: The Block
№03

The Clearing House Selects Quant to Launch Tokenized Deposit Network

The Clearing House has chosen Quant to build an interoperable network for clearing and settling tokenized deposit transactions among US financial institutions. The new network will enable banks to transfer tokenized deposits instantly and securely, reducing reconciliation errors and operational costs. Major processors and regional banks must now accelerate digital infrastructure upgrades to remain competitive as tokenized money moves toward mainstream adoption.

Source: Finextra
№04

ARK Invest Tokenizes $1.3 Billion Venture Fund on Ethereum

ARK Invest is moving its $1.3 billion ARK Venture Fund onchain via Securitize, with tokenized shares representing holdings in OpenAI, Anthropic, and Stripe. This marks one of the largest venture funds to adopt blockchain-based tokenization, potentially setting a new standard for fund accessibility and liquidity. Other asset managers may follow suit as tokenized funds gain traction with institutional and retail investors.

Source: The Block
№05

Revolut Trials Facial Recognition Payments at London Cafés

Revolut is piloting a 'Pay with Smile' system, letting customers pay using facial recognition at select London cafés. This biometric payment method introduces a new layer of convenience while intensifying privacy and data security debates among UK regulators and consumer advocates. Competing payment platforms are monitoring user feedback and regulatory responses as they consider their own biometric rollouts.

Source: Finextra
The Long Memory
“The first POS terminal to process debit cards in the U.S. was so novel in 1986 that merchants initially worried it would slow down checkout lines, not speed them up.

Filed under: Payments History · The Long Memory

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