Weekly FinTech & Financial News
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Top Financial Institutions Updates this Week
🚀 Citi is planning to introduce a cryptocurrency custody service in 2026
🚀 RBC launches "RBC Generate" an investment initiative to help cultivate the next generation of Canadian farming with the goal of positioning agriculture as a growth driver for Canada
🌟 The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) is committing $100M to business loans for the half-million entrepreneurs living in rural and remote areas of Canada
🌟 The Real-Time Rail quarterly update of 2025 Q4: Testing of the RTR began after successful completion of the technical application build in Q3 of 2025
🚀 CIBC launches CIBC CRTeX (CIBC Real-Time Experience), an AI-enabled client personalization & engagement engine to further its industry-leading digital capabilities and enhance client experiences
💼 BMO entered into a definitive agreement to sell 138 BMO branches to First-Citizens Bank and Trust Company to reinvest in markets with strong client engagement and long-term growth potential
Top FinTech Updates this Week
🚀 EZO, Quebec-based all-in-one financial app that integrates CeFi and DeFi with payments and financial services officially launched its Canadian operations and Cryptocurrency OTC Desk
🤝 d1g1t, a Toronto-based wealthtech partnered with Mako Financial Technologies, a Montreal-based next-generation workflow technology solution provider for the financial services industry to deliver unified client management and core portfolio management workflows
🤝 Nuvei, a Montreal-based payment provider supports Visa Trusted Agent Protocol to advance agentic commerce
🤝 QuickFacts, a Nova Scotia-based SaaS platform for insurance brokers partners with Milnco, Winnipeg-based insurance broker solution centre to give brokers easier access to specialty solutions
💰 Vessel, Montreal-based investor management platform raises $1.5M debt facility in growth capital from CIBC Innovation Banking
💰 Fliip, a Montreal-based vertical software for managing gyms (payments, payroll, booking, etc.) platform raises $1.5M debt facility in growth capital from CIBC Innovation Banking
🤝 SmartSearch, UK-based digital anti-money laundering (AML) and compliance solution provider partnered with Clio, Burnaby, BC-based legal tech to enhance AML compliance for legal professionals
🤝 1Password, a Toronto-based password management firm partnered with Browserbase, an US-based infrastructure provider for artificial intelligence (AI) agents using web browsers and also had a $100M USD secondary sale
💰 Provision, Toronto-based construction management platform raised $7M USD ($9.8M CAD) in seed funding to develop its AI co-pilot for pre-construction estimates
🤝 Tracxn, India-based AI-powered private market intelligence platform partnered with TMX Datalinx, the information services division of TMX Group, to be its exclusive Canadian provider for delivering private market intelligence to financial institutions
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EZO, Quebec-based all-in-one financial app that integrates CeFi and DeFi with payments and financial services officially launched its Canadian operations and Cryptocurrency OTC Desk. EZO enters public launch with a significant scale already in motion. Over a six-month pre-launch period, the company processed more than $40 million CAD in transaction volume, generated more than $600,000 in revenue, and has already raised $3 million. EZO has secured regulatory approvals in Canada, including registration with FINTRAC and licensing from Revenu Québec as a Money Services Business (MSB), and registration with the Bank of Canada as a Payment Service Provider (PSP) under the Retail Payment Activities Act (RPAA). | Newswire
Stripe begun rolling out stablecoin payments for subscriptions with an aim to support AI companies and other firms with recurring business models. This offering will initially be rolled out in private preview to businesses based in the United States and will support subscription payments made in USDC over the Base and Polygon blockchains. With the addition of new subscription capabilities, businesses using Stripe can let their customers use their crypto wallets to pay for subscriptions and have those payments settle in fiat, manage fiat and stablecoin subscription payments together in a single dashboard, and integrate stablecoin-based subscriptions with Stripe’s Optimized Checkout Suite and Stripe Billing. | PYMNTS
Nuvei, a Montreal-based payment provider supports Visa Trusted Agent Protocol to advance agentic commerce. Through its collaboration with Visa, Nuvei is contributing to the inaugural Agent Enabler pilot and helping ensure acquirers can support trusted agent-driven transactions securely and at scale. Nuvei's integrated payments ecosystem, aligned with Visa Intelligent Commerce, is designed to help merchants adopt agent-driven payments seamlessly, moving beyond legacy checkout models dependent on human interaction or virtual card numbers. | PR Newswire
Fliip, a Montreal-based vertical software for managing gyms (payments, payroll, booking, etc.) platform raises $1.5M debt facility in growth capital from CIBC Innovation Banking. The financing will support FLiiP’s market expansion in Canada, the United States and in Europe. FLiiP is an end-to-end fitness business management and CRM platform designed for simplicity and built to scale for multi-location gyms. By unifying operations, payments, and CRM in one system, the platform helps unlock revenue opportunities across the entire member journey. | CIBC
Mastercard launches Commercial Connect API and Clearing Controls on virtual cards transaction empowering B2B payments. Commercial Connect API will address industry-wide challenges of expanding services requiring multiple APIs by simplifying integration even further through one, scalable connection and Pay4You will be the first to leverage the new API. Additionally, Clearing Controls is a first of its kind capability that enables issuers to enforce controls on virtual card transactions through clearing. This builds on the existing controls available through Mastercard’s virtual card platform at authorization, extending issuer and corporate oversight across the full transaction lifecycle. | Mastercard
Klarna, global BNPL provider strengthens collaboration with Google to support Agent Payments Protocol (AP2). Google’s Agent Payments Protocol (AP2) is an open standard designed to enable secure, agent-led payments across digital environments. The collaboration builds on Klarna’s long-standing relationship with Google, which includes integrations with Google Pay, Chrome’s autofill feature, Google Store, Google Play, and Google Cloud. With the advent of agentic commerce, extending those capabilities via AP2 means consumers can shop with confidence because it enables consistent, intelligent payment experiences regardless of whether they’re chatting with, or have even delegated transaction duties to their agent. | Business Wire
Visa introduces ‘Trusted Agent Protocol’ allowing secure communication between merchants and artificial intelligence (AI) agents. The Trusted Agent Protocol created in partnership with Worldpay and Cloudfare, is designed to address the challenges centered around agent-driven commerce and is part of Visa Intelligent Commerce (VIC). The Trusted Agent Protocol is focused on creating no-code functionality for merchants to securely identify agents with an intent to buy and provide a better payment and personalized experience for its known users. Visa added that it has gotten “insightful feedback” from early partners that include Adyen, Checkout.com, Fiserv, Microsoft, Nuvei and Shopify. | PYMNTS
Mastercard launches Merchant Cloud to simplify and support commerce growth in global acceptance ecosystem. Merchant Cloud is a next-generation payments platform that unifies market-leading services from Mastercard and its partners, helping businesses simplify and navigate the complexities of commerce around the world, supporting their expansion into new markets and delivering exceptional experiences for end users. | Fintech Finance News
The Real-Time Rail quarterly update of 2025 Q4: Testing of the RTR began after successful completion of the technical application build in Q3 of 2025. Payments Canada's delivery partners and members are focused on comprehensive testing to ensure the system meets all safety and security requirements before launch. System integration testing of the technical components is currently underway and on track to complete by year end. Testing continues into 2026 with industry-facing testing. This includes user acceptance testing for key user functionality, performance testing for volumes and resilience, security testing for safety and protection and operational readiness testing for business and technical operations. It is currently creating comprehensive training modules for participants on the full solution functionality of the RTR. This work will ensure participants can use this new national infrastructure to its full potential. In tandem, Payments Canada are finalizing the RTR rules, which will be submitted to the Bank of Canada before year end. Through the RTR use cases seen around the world like real-time rent payments, instant earned wage access and immediate me-to-me payments will improve the lives of Canadians and the efficiency of Canadian businesses. | Payments.ca
FIS, US-based global FinTech firm launches Smart Basket, transforming the shopping experience through real-time purchase intelligence. Smart Basket is a soon to be released solution being designed to leverage a real-time, item-level adjudication engine and transaction gateway to transform the payment experience at checkout. Smart Basket aims to unlock unparalleled value and convenience by analyzing an individual’s shopping behavior to proactively apply optimal rewards and payment methods at checkout, making it easier for consumers to instantly save money and earn rewards while increasing brand and seller loyalty. | Fintech Finance News
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Citi is planning to introduce a cryptocurrency custody service in 2026. The company is making progress on the crypto custody service project it began roughly three years ago. The upcoming custody service would involve Citi holding the native cryptocurrency. Citi is exploring the use of an in-house developed technology solution for custody, along with third-party partnerships. | PYMNTS
RBC launches "RBC Generate" an investment initiative to help cultivate the next generation of Canadian farming with the goal of positioning agriculture as a growth driver for Canada. RBC Generate is designed to bring together the best and brightest from across agriculture, business, industry, education and government to help cultivate a world-leading sector that feeds Canadians more affordably and sells high quality products to consumers around the globe. Introduced alongside Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, RBC Generate launches with a $5 million, five-year investment in agriculture in the prairies (coming from RBC Commercial Banking and RBC Foundation) and plans to expand through programming delivered as part of a national movement with farmers, The Canadian Alliance for Net-Zero Agri-food (CANZA) Nature United, Sustainable Food Systems for Canada (SF4C) and Indigenous sustainable farming initiatives to help Canadian producers thrive while helping advance sustainable practices for years to come. | RBC
CIBC launches CIBC CRTeX (CIBC Real-Time Experience), an AI-enabled client personalization & engagement engine to further its industry-leading digital capabilities and enhance client experiences. CIBC CRTeX combines client preferences with near real-time decision-making to enable the delivery of personalized solutions that support each client's unique financial journey and ambitions. Seamless integration with existing technology platforms ensures a consistent experience across every client touchpoint, enabling true omni-channel engagement across online, mobile, contact centres and banking centres. | CIBC
BMO entered into a definitive agreement to sell 138 BMO branches to First-Citizens Bank and Trust Company to reinvest in markets with strong client engagement and long-term growth potential. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions and is expected to close in mid-2026 and in parallel, BMO plans to open 150 new branches over the next five years, with a focus on densifying its presence in U.S. markets where it has opportunity to achieve critical mass and build on established offerings across Personal and Business Banking, Commercial Banking, and Wealth Management to deliver integrated and personalized service and advice at scale. | BMO
RBC ranked Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among the Big Five Retail Banks by J.D. Power, marking the fifth time it has earned this ranking in the past six years. The ranking is based on insights from the J.D. Power 2025 Canada Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, compiled from extensive consumer feedback across Canada. The research measures Retail Banking Overall Satisfaction by examining the critical dimensions of the experience. | RBC
RBC is eyeing to expand its US banking operations through the acquisition of “highly coveted” wealth-management firms. Chief Executive Officer Dave McKay expressed the bank’s interest in enlisting advisers capable of attracting new clients and is particularly keen on businesses that can contribute “lots of sweep deposits” to enhance RBC’s funding within the US market. The expansion strategy also includes a focus on Asia, where RBC is open to forming partnerships with other banks to facilitate support for RBC’s clients engaged in global business activities. | Private Banker International
RBC earned the most awards among Canada's Big 5 banks in the 2025 Ipsos Financial Service Excellence Awards, with wins in 10 categories. In addition, RBC is the only Big Five financial institution to be a sole award recipient, earning four: Recommend to Friends or Family (Net Promoter Score), Financial Planning & Advice, ATM Banking Excellence, and Online Banking Excellence. These awards, based on 47,969 completed surveys for the 2025 Ipsos Customer Service Index (CSI) program year ending September 2025, recognize Canadian financial institutions for excellence in customer experience. The bank's comprehensive approach to customer experience has consistently earned top recognition in this annual program. | RBC
CIBC ranks No. 1 in the 2025 Mobile Banking Award by Surviscor Inc., Ontario-based firm specializing in the analysis and ranking of Canadian digital customer experience. The 2025 Surviscor Canadian Mobile Banking Experience Review measured overall customer experience in mobile banking based on features and functionality, with criteria assessed in five categories: pre-login, user experience, account information, transactional experience, and mobile resources. Surviscor's review audits 23 Canadian digital banking firms, including Canada's big banks, leading credit unions, popular neo (branchless) banks, and other firms that identify as a bank or a co-operative movement, each offering a banking platform designed for mobile use. | CIBC
EQ Bank named the No. 1 Bank in Canada and North America by Financial Times' magazine on international finance, The Banker, in its inaugural Top 50 Banking Brands list. The recognition, which ranks global banks best positioned to grow market share, reinforces the value of EQ Bank's distinct challenger role in Canadian banking and its efforts to deliver an innovative, purpose-built banking experience for customers. | EQB
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QuickFacts, a Nova Scotia-based SaaS platform for insurance brokers partners with Milnco, Winnipeg-based insurance broker solution centre to give brokers easier access to specialty solutions. The partnership aims to provide brokers in Western Canada and Ontario with faster and more efficient access to a wide range of personal and commercial insurance products. By integrating Milnco’s markets into the QuickFacts platform, brokers can now search, compare, and place risks more confidently in one centralized location. | Insurance-Canada.ca
Acera Insurance, Calgary-based independent, employee-controlled brokerage partnered with Pemberton Insurance, a Vancouver-based oldest independent brokerage firm to expand West Coast presence. The agreement marks Acera’s first location in downtown Vancouver and builds on its existing presence in Burnaby and Surrey. The partnership adds to a series of moves by Acera aimed at expanding regional reach and reinforcing its independent ownership structure. The deal also highlights an increasingly competitive environment in Canada’s brokerage sector. | Insurance Business Mag.
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Nova Credit, US-based credit infrastructure company raises $35M Series D to accelerate cash flow underwriting revolution. The funding is led by Socium Ventures, a venture firm backed by Cox Enterprises, to accelerate the growth of the Nova Credit Platform. Recently Chase, PayPal, and Yardi will deploy Cash Atlas™, Nova Credit’s cash flow underwriting solution, across their lending and tenant screening operations, exemplifying the growing industry shift toward comprehensive financial data analytics that go beyond traditional credit scoring. | Fintech Finance News
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) is committing $100M to business loans for the half-million entrepreneurs living in rural and remote areas of Canada. The Crown corporation, whose sole shareholder is the Canadian government, partnered with a federally funded network of economic development organizations to increase the financing and resources available to small business owners. The new envelope builds on BDC’s Community Banking initiative, an effort launched in November to boost Canada’s entrepreneurship rate. | BetaKit
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SmartSearch, UK-based digital anti-money laundering (AML) and compliance solution provider partnered with Clio, Burnaby, BC-based legal tech to enhance AML compliance for legal professionals. This collaboration integrates SmartSearch’s award-winning AML verification and monitoring tools directly into Clio’s legal practice management platform, enabling law firms to manage compliance seamlessly within their existing workflows. | Fintech Finance News
1Password, a Toronto-based password management firm partnered with Browserbase, an US-based infrastructure provider for artificial intelligence (AI) agents using web browsers and also had a $100M USD secondary sale. The partnership will address a key security challenge in the agentic AI pipeline while also creating liquidity for shareholders. 1Password’s Secure Agentic Autofill plug-in allows agents on Browserbase’s infrastructure to authenticate with web services (like logging into a user’s account) without exposing the user’s credentials. The partnership followed a $100-million USD secondary sale of the company this month, with participation from Qualtrics founder Ryan Smith and Accel partner Ryan Sweeney. Flume Ventures also participated in the sale. | BetaKit
Clio, Burnaby, BC-based legal tech platform launched ClioCon, an enterprise division to support large law firms and corporate legal departments. ClioCon, the enterprise suite provides software for both the legal and business operations side of a customer base Clio has been targeting for some time. The new suite caps off Clio’s work in artificial intelligence (AI) over the past year, bringing together its Clio Operate, Clio Docket, Clio Library, and Vincent by Clio offerings for enterprise clients. | BetaKit
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Vessel, Montreal-based investor management platform raises $1.5M debt facility in growth capital from CIBC Innovation Banking. The financing will support Vessel’s continued global expansion and product innovation. Vessel’s platform enables fund managers and limited partners with real-time insights, streamlined workflows, and enhanced transparency, helping drive operational efficiency and improved decision-making across the investment lifecycle. | CIBC
CIBC Innovation Banking has provided a financing package to GRO, a Denmark-based software-focused private equity firm, to support its acquisition of AIMMS, a Netherland-based global supply chain and decision optimisation software provider. The financing will help GRO support AIMMS in scaling its operations, accelerating product innovation, and expanding its global footprint. GRO helps software companies to scale, providing them with the capital to expand sales and marketing, R&D, or to grow through acquisitions. AIMMS was founded to help businesses become more efficient, profitable, and sustainable by leveraging the power of mathematical optimisation. | CIBC
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Spellbook a Toronto-based provider of legal AI for transactional law raised $50M in Series B funding. The round was led by Keith Rabois at Khosla Ventures. The company intends to use the funds to build out the most data-driven contract review tool available, providing relevant and substantive suggestions grounded in realtime market data, lawyer preferences and deal history. | FinSMEs
Shopify, Ottawa-based global commerce firm promotes its general counsel, Jess Hertz, to Chief Operating Officer, while the company’s Chief Revenue Officer departs after 3 years. Shopify had restructured its commercial organization, which had impacts on leadership. The shake-up follows the departure of COO Kaz Nejatian last month, after he left Shopify to lead US-based real estate tech firm Opendoor. Jess Hertz to replace Kaz Nejatian. Jess Hertz is an attorney and Harvard University graduate, Hertz clerked for eventual United States Supreme Court judge Sonia Sotomayor, then worked as a counsellor for a federal agency and the US deputy attorney general. She was former US President Joe Biden’s principal deputy counsel when he was vice-president under the Obama administration. | BetaKit
Provision, Toronto-based construction management platform raised $7M USD ($9.8M CAD) in seed funding to develop its AI co-pilot for pre-construction estimates. It aims to help construction estimators find information and identify risks and opportunities based on project documents. The round, which closed in August, was led by Cercano Management with support from fellow new backer Jamie McDonald of Black & McDonald, as well as existing investors Y Combinator and One Way Ventures. It brings Provision’s total funding to $8.7 million USD. | BetaKit
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