Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Category Archives: Fintech International
VAST Data Hits $30B On AI Infrastructure Demand
Apr 22, 2026 | NCFA Fintech Market Activity | Artificial Intelligence And Data, Capital Markets And Funding
$1B Round Backs Unified Data Layer For AI Scale
On April 22, 2026, VAST Data closed $1 billion Series F round in primary and secondary capital at a $30 billion valuation. Drive Capital and Access Industries led the round, with Fidelity, NEA, and Nvidia also participating. The valuation has more than tripled from $9.1 billion in 2023.
VAST sells the data infrastructure empowering AI systems. Its customers include xAI, CoreWeave, and the U.S. Air Force. In November, the company signed a $1.17 billion agreement with CoreWeave. Equity research by Sacra puts Vast Data at $200 million in annual recurring revenue with positive free cash flow as of January 2025. That gives the funding round a clearer base in commercial demand.
Why VAST Is Not Just Another Storage Company
VAST is building a unified data platform rather than a single product. Its core platform architecture combines storage, database, and global data management into one stack:
- DataStore covers file, object, block, and volume services
- DataBase handles structured data, vectors, streams, and metadata
- DataSpace provides a global namespace across cloud, edge, and on-prem environments
See: AI Usage Data Shows Early Labour Market Strain
The difference shows up in how the platform is positioned for AI workloads. VAST combines storage and database functions into one system and claims performance gains tied to that design, including up to 11x faster vector search at 91% lower cost, alongside six nines availability (99.9999%) and about 60% lower total cost of ownership, as outlined on its core platform page. These are vendor claims, but they reflect how the company is positioning itself in large scale AI deployments.
What The Funding Says About The Market
The competitive landscape spans multiple layers:
- Storage incumbents such as Dell, NetApp, and Pure Storage still dominate enterprise environments
- AI-focused data infrastructure firms like DDN and Weka push into high performance training workloads
- Cloud and data platforms such as Snowflake intersect when pipelines connect into analytics and model operations
VAST is positioning itself across boundaries by collapsing multiple data layers into one system. That architecture targets a real constraint. AI systems don’t stall only because of compute limits. They stall when data throughput and pipelines slow down, when storage tiers introduce latency, or when separate systems create operational overhead. Adding more GPUs can increase pressure on that layer instead of fixing it.
The funding structure reinforces the point. Primary capital brings in new money to help the company grow and work more closely with large customers. Secondary capital lets early investors and employees sell some of their shares and take cash out without the company going public. This mix is common in large late stage rounds where demand is strong and companies stay private longer.
See: Smart Data Infrastructure Redefines Financial Competition
For smaller AI finance companies, the takeaway is practical. The infrastructure layer is being built by a small group of well funded players. There is no advantage in trying to replicate it. Their advantage comes from what they build on top. It’s about having unique data, strong products that solve real workflows, and access to customers. Those are the things that still decide who wins.
Talking Point
VAST is successfully raising money because it brings together parts of the AI system that companies usually have to piece together themselves. When computing is expensive and data slows things down, the platform that keeps data fast and accessible becomes part of the core infrastructure.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Nuvei Launches Direct Acquiring In Mexico
Apr 22, 2026 | NCFA Fintech Market Activity | Payments And Money Movement
Local Processing Improves Approval Rates And Costs
On April 21, 2026, Nuvei launched direct local acquiring in Mexico. Merchants can now process domestic card payments through Nuvei’s own licensed infrastructure instead of relying on third party processors.
Mexico is a large and growing digital commerce market. Payments volume reached more than $676 billion in 2024, with ecommerce at approximately $97 billion and growing at about 24% a year. This makes local processing important for merchants operating in the market.
Phil Fayer, Chair & CEO of Nuvei:
"Commerce is global, but payment performance is local. Our direct acquiring expansion into Mexico advances our Every Payment Everywhere strategy -- building infrastructure inside domestic payment ecosystems so customers can scale globally while performing like a local."
Direct acquiring means Nuvei connects merchants directly to card networks and local banking systems inside the country. That gives Nuvei control over authorization, settlement, and transaction data within Mexico.
This improves performance in practical ways. Domestic processing can increase approval rates, reduce cross border fees, and shorten settlement times. It also removes reliance on local partners for core processing functions.
Nuvei now operates direct acquiring in more than 50 markets, following a consistent growth pattern across the business. The company builds local infrastructure in markets where payment performance depends on domestic connectivity, as seen in its work supporting omnichannel merchants and its expansion into regulated digital asset services in Europe.
Founded in Montreal, Nuvei is one of the few Canadian fintechs building global payment infrastructure at scale. That positions the company alongside global processors that own local acquiring rather than those that depend on partner networks.
See: Peoples Group, Fiserv to Modernize Payments Infrastructure
Mexico adds another high growth market where local infrastructure determines payment performance. Without direct acquiring, transaction success depends on intermediaries. With it, Nuvei can manage approval rates, costs, and settlement directly.
Talking Point
Nuvei is building control at the processing layer. The more markets it owns locally, the less it depends on partners and the stronger its position becomes.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Brussels Faces Pressure to Fix Europe’s DLT Pilot
Apr 21, 2026 | NCFA Insight | Capital Markets And Funding
EDFA Tells Brussels What Tokenized Securities Need To Scale
On December 4, 2025, the European Commission published its market infrastructure reform package, including proposed changes to the DLT Pilot Regime. On March 19, 2026, the European Digital Finance Association (EDFA) sent a formal letter to the European Commission about the DLT Pilot Regime and MiCAR. It is addressed to Commissioner Maria Luís Albuquerque and DG FISMA Director-General John Berrigan.
EDFA writes on behalf of its members and the undersigned companies. The core point is that the pilot works for testing, but it does not work for scale. Firms are already trying to build tokenized issuance, trading, registry, custody, and settlement in Europe. The problem is that the current DLT Pilot rules keep those activities small, separate, and hard to repeat.
What EDFA Is Asking For
- Broader scope. The letter backs earlier application of changes that would extend the DLT Pilot to more, or all, financial instruments and remove product-specific thresholds. It also supports replacing the current instrument-by-instrument limits with a single overall threshold. The reason is practical. Firms will not invest for the long term if issuance caps stay low and the usable asset set stays narrow.
See: The SEC’s New Crypto Playbook Faces Its First Test
- Interoperability standards. The letter calls for mandatory interoperability between DLT infrastructures and regulated markets and central securities depositories, and asks the Commission to task ESMA with developing technical standards for cross-border connectivity. Without that, tokenized venues remain isolated pools. Liquidity fragments. Secondary trading stays thin.
- The Commission to fix the registry and notary gap. The EDFA letter explains that the EU framework opens these roles beyond traditional central securities depositories, but still leaves out firms already operating under national DLT registrar regimes. EDFA points to Germany’s eWpG (electronic securities act, June 2021) system and similar setups in Luxembourg and Italy. It wants those firms to be recognized at the EU level, allowing them to keep operating under their current approvals, and assessed fairly against EU standards. They allso says the rules should match what these firms actually do, instead of forcing them to meet the full requirements designed for large central depositories.
- Legal clarity on settlement. The letter asks for explicit recognition of tokenized commercial bank money and MiCA-regulated e-money tokens as eligible settlement mechanisms inside DLT infrastructures. This is a major point because if settlement assets aren't clearly recognized, companies can issue on-chain but still struggle to build active trading and repeat liquidity.
The Gap Between Pilot And Market
The issue is structural. The DLT Pilot allows firms to test tokenized issuance, trading, and settlement in controlled conditions. But it doesn't allow those activities to operate at scale. Issuance happens, but it stays small. Trading exists, but liquidity doesn't build. Infrastructure is in place, but it doesn't connect cleanly to the rest of the market. Until those limits are addressed, tokenized securities remain confined to pilot activity instead of forming a market where deals can regularly happen at meaningful scale.
If Brussels makes these changes, firms can issue larger deals and do it more than once. Tokenized platforms can connect to exchanges, custodians, and settlement systems instead of running separately. Companies already licensed at the national level can keep operating instead of being pushed out. And with clear settlement rules, those deals can actually trade and attract real liquidity.
See: Tokenization Finds Scale In Collateral And Cash
If Brussels does not act, the likely outcome is also clear. Europe will keep producing tokenized deals as part of the DLT pilot, but the market will remain shallow and less commercially important. Operators will keep building, but they will be outwardly looking at jurisdictions that allow larger, cleaner, and more continuous activity.
Are We There Yet?
The DLT Pilot was designed for controlled testing, and has done that. The question now is whether the framework evolves to support real market activity. If it doesn’t, tokenized securities will stay limited to small, controlled use cases. If it does, they can develop into a market with real issuance, trading, and liquidity.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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The SEC’s New Crypto Playbook Faces Its First Test
April 21, 2026 | NCFA Insight | Digital Assets Blockchain And Tokenization, Regulation And Policy
SEC Defines A-C-T While Market Access Remains Incomplete
On April 21, 2026, SEC Chair Paul Atkins delivered a keynote at the Economic Club of Washington to align the agency’s crypto and capital markets agenda, calling it Advance, Clarify, Transform. The SEC is close to an innovation exemption for tokenized securities, but that exemption is not yet in the market’s hands.
That speech sets a clear claim. From January to March 2026, the SEC already put key pieces in place. It clarified how tokenized securities fit within existing law. It formalized coordination with the CFTC. It introduced a working taxonomy for crypto assets. The structure is now visible. What still matters is whether firms can use it.
In these remarks, Advance updates SEC rules for markets moving onchain. Clarify defines asset categories and jurisdictional boundaries so firms can assess compliance before launch. Transform removes constraints that limit capital formation and restrict compliant experimentation with tokenized securities.
What The SEC Already Has In Place
The groundwork started in January. SEC staff outlined how tokenized securities fit within existing securities law, including issuer backed models, custodial structures, and tokenized derivatives. That same direction appears across onshore market structure discussions, where tokenized collateral, perpetuals, and retail trading models point toward a rulebook that is becoming easier to work with.
By February, the structure became clearer. Token classification and coordinated oversight came together, alongside a proposed innovation exemption for onchain activity that had not yet been published. This direction also appears across IPO burden and crypto rules, where token taxonomy and capital formation reforms begin to align.
Then in March, delivery became harder to ignore. On March 11, the SEC and CFTC formalized coordination through a memorandum of understanding. Definitions aligned. Jurisdiction became clearer. Data sharing opened up. As a result, firms operating across both regimes face less duplication and fewer conflicting requirements.
Six days later, on March 17, the SEC published its crypto asset interpretation. The release laid out a taxonomy across digital commodities, stablecoins, and digital securities. It also addressed when an asset could fall in or out of an investment contract.
The April 21 speech pulled these steps into a sequence. Define the asset. Clarify the perimeter. Align regulators. Then open a controlled lane for compliant experimentation.
Now The Real Test
One gap now matters more than the rest. The market still doesn't have a working framework for how tokenized securities can trade onchain in a compliant way.
Atkins spotlighted this issue in his recent speech and pointed to an innovation exemption that is close to release, but not yet ready for the public. Until it is, companies still lack the full mechanics needed to move from design to execution.
See: Canadian Regulators invite stakeholders to Project Tokenization
The taxonomy helps classify assets. Coordination reduces regulatory overlap. The March interpretation narrows legal uncertainty. Even so, firms still don’t have a clear way to bring tokenized securities to market. What remains outstatnding is whether issuers and platforms will get a clear, testable path to launch tokenized securities onchain.
This is where the competitive dynamic shows up. If the United States combines clear classification, coordinated oversight, and a usable exemption, it becomes easier for firms to decide where to build first. That affects trading infrastructure, custody rails, issuance platforms, and tokenized asset markets.
In April developments, staff guidance clarified when certain crypto interfaces did not require broker dealer registration under defined conditions. That gave firms more clarity on licensing exposure, product design, and how to bring products to market.
In Canada, regulators are now studying tokenized markets through a 2026 CSA initiative called Project Tokenization, but a unified framework for issuing or trading tokenized securities has not yet been defined.
Takeaway
The SEC's made the rulebook clearer. Now it has to make it usable once the innovation exemption is delivered.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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W-2 vs 1099 Filing: Key Differences Explained Clearly
April 21, 2026
Image: Pexels
W-2 and 1099 forms filing is one of the least understood areas of running a business.
Get it wrong and the IRS will come after you. Get it right and taxes will be a breeze.
The good news? Once the differences click, it's pretty straightforward.
What's Inside:
- What Are W-2 and 1099 Forms?
- Who Gets Which Form?
- The Big Tax Differences
- Filing Deadlines You Cannot Miss
- The Real Cost of Getting It Wrong
- How To Stay Compliant
What Are W-2 and 1099 Forms?
Both forms report income received during the year. However they are used for very different circumstances.
A W-2 form gets sent to employees. It shows wages earned and all taxes withheld (federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare). The employer automatically withheld those amounts during the year.
A 1099 form is sent to contractors and freelancers. The most familiar one is called a 1099-NEC, which stands for nonemployee compensation. With a 1099 they don't withhold taxes at all. The contractor is responsible for paying it all themselves.
Here's why getting this right matters from day one...
Accuracy is not negotiable when it comes to W-2 and 1099 forms filing. Whether processing just a few contractors or hundreds of employees, this software solution handles the guesswork of generating, filing, and distributing both W-2s and 1099s correctly — freeing up time and eliminating expensive mistakes.
Who Gets Which Form?
This is where most businesses get tripped up.
The IRS Worker Classification Test evaluates three distinct factors. They are as follows:
- Behavioral control: Does the business control how the work is done?
- Financial control: Does the business control the financial aspects of the job?
- Relationship: Is there an ongoing relationship with benefits involved?
If everyone says yes... then that worker is most likely an employee that requires a W-2.
If the worker gets to set their own schedule, uses their own tools and equipment, and gets paid per project... chances are they are an independent contractor that requires a 1099-NEC.
Pretty straightforward, right?
Here are a few quick examples to make it clear:
W-2 employees typically include:
- Office workers with set hours
- Retail and restaurant staff
- Healthcare workers in hospitals
- Government employees
1099 contractors typically include:
- Freelance designers and writers
- Independent consultants
- IT contractors brought in per project
- Tradespeople hired for one-off jobs
With over 36% of the US workforce now freelancing — that's over 70 million Americans — understanding the 1099 side of things has never been more important.
The Big Tax Differences
This is the part that catches a lot of people off guard.
When it comes to W-2 employees, the employer handles payroll taxes. This includes withholding federal income tax, state income tax, and paying half of the FICA tax (Social Security and Medicare taxes) while the employee pays the other half.
For 1099 contractors, it is a completely different story.
Taxes aren't automatically withheld from their paycheck. Instead, they pay estimated quarterly taxes directly to the IRS.
What's more, the self-employment tax sits at 15.3% — twice as much as what a W-2 employee pays. Why? Because 1099 workers pay both the employer and employee portion of Social Security and Medicare taxes.
Granted, 1099 workers have one benefit. Many of their work-related expenses are deductible on Schedule C. This includes home office expenses, equipment, software, mileage, etc. These write-offs lower taxable income, partially negating that higher rate.
It balances out for many contractors — but only if they track everything properly.
Filing Deadlines You Cannot Miss
Missing these deadlines comes with real penalties. So mark the calendar.
January 31 is the IRS deadline for W-2 and 1099-NEC forms.
Here is what needs to happen by that date:
- Deliver copies to employees and contractors
- Submit W-2 copies to the Social Security Administration
- Submit 1099-NEC copies to the IRS (March 31 if filing electronically)
One final 1099-NEC tidbit... File a form for any contractor paid $600 or more. In 2026, the minimum increases to $2,000 per new law. Regardless, keep records of contractor payments all year long — not just January.
The Real Cost of Getting It Wrong
Misclassifying workers is not just a paperwork problem. It is a financial one.
Misclassification is taken very seriously by the IRS. When a company willfully misclassifies employees as contractors to evade paying payroll taxes, the penalties stack up fast:
- $60 per form for W-2s filed within 30 days of the deadline
- $130 per form after 30 days but before August 1
- $330 per form if filed after August 1
- Back taxes, interest, and additional FICA penalties on top of all of that
And the IRS typically goes back three years when auditing unpaid employment taxes.
See: New AI Minister Prioritizes Growth Over Rules
The silver lining? If there is genuine uncertainty about whether a worker is a W-2 employee or a 1099 contractor, businesses can file Form SS-8 and let the IRS make the call.
How To Stay Compliant
Staying compliant with W-2 and 1099 forms filing does not have to be stressful.
Here is a simple process to follow:
- Collect W-9 forms from every contractor before the first payment
- Track all contractor payments throughout the year in real time
- Review worker classification annually using the IRS three-part test
- File on time — both January 31 and the SSA/IRS submission deadlines
- Use the right tools to generate accurate forms at scale
The biggest mistake businesses make is waiting until January. By January it is a frenzy. Start with a clean system and tax season is a non-event.
Tying It All Together
When it comes to W-2 and 1099 forms filing, there's really only one question. How is the worker classified?
W-2 employees receive W-2 forms. 1099 contractors receive 1099-NEC forms. The taxes, deadlines, and penalties are entirely different.
To quickly recap what matters most:
- W-2 = employer withholds taxes, employee gets benefits and protections
- 1099 = contractor manages their own taxes, pays 15.3% self-employment tax
- Both forms are due to recipients by January 31 each year
- Misclassification carries serious IRS penalties going back three years
- When in doubt, file Form SS-8 for an official IRS determination
Classify properly, stay ahead of deadlines, and implement with the correct toolset. Those are the only things needed to stay clean and compliant year after year.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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UK Private Markets Add Liquidity Canada Still Lags
Apr 20, 2026 | NCFA Insight | Capital Markets And Funding, Regulation And Policy
Crowdcube Expands Secondary While Canada Stays Primary
On April 15, 2026, Europe’s largest private market investment platform Crowdcube outlined a full menu of primary and secondary options. Investors can now fund companies and sell private company shares through the same platform. So the equity crowdfunding story is not only about raising capital, but also about what happens after the raise.
In the UK, a non public company can now structure a raise in three ways.
- It can run a primary round to bring in new capital.
- It can run a secondary share sale to give existing shareholders liquidity.
- It can also combine both in one transaction.
It can then choose how to execute the transaction, either through Crowdcube for retail participation, through the London Stock Exchange’s PISCES private market for institutional access, or through both at the same time.
See: How Fintechs Are Unlocking Value in Private Markets 2024
Here’s a recent example outlining how this works in practice. Crowdcube says Chip completed a £11 million transaction. That total included £8.9 million in primary capital and £2.1 million in secondary sales. In other words, the company raised new funds while giving early investors and employees a chance to sell part of their holdings.
This applies to private company shares held by retail and early investors, not publicly listed equities.
How Canada's Model Limits Liquidity
Canada isn't starting from zero. Platforms such as Hiive support pre IPO private share transactions for qualified buyers and sellers under exempt market rules. That means Canada does have private secondaries, but not a broad, regulated system for intermittent trading of private company shares.
The better comparison is Hiive versus PISCES. Canada has exempt private secondary platforms where transactions are negotiated, access is limited, and liquidity is episodic. The UK is moving toward a regulated framework where private company shares can trade through repeatable windows on approved venues, with more standardized access and price discovery.
As a result, platforms haven't developed structured secondary liquidity in the same way, and investors often wait for a later financing, an acquisition, or a public listing to exit. That delay has real effects.
When investors know they may be locked in for years, fewer participate and those who do often invest smaller amounts. That reduces momentum in early rounds.
It also limits how quickly capital can recycle into new companies, since returns stay tied up until a major exit.
See: Insights and Challenges of Raising Capital via Reg A+
For founders, it creates pressure to deliver a large liquidity event instead of offering smaller, earlier opportunities for partial exits. It also makes it harder to use equity as a tool to attract and retain talent, since employees may not see a clear path to liquidity. Over time, this slows the overall flow of capital through the ecosystem.
This can also affect upside. When early investors and employees have limited options to realize value while a company remains private, pressure builds toward a full exit. That can lead some companies to sell earlier than they otherwise might, which may limit how much value is created over the longer term.
Why The UK Model Feels Different
Meanwhile, the UK is building a different approach. In August 2025, the Financial Conduct Authority approved the London Stock Exchange to operate PISCES, a regulated venue for intermittent trading of private company shares.
Unlike a public market, PISCES uses scheduled trading windows instead of continuous listing. It is also designed to bridge private and public markets, as outlined in NCFA’s breakdown of the PISCES framework. Transactions routed through PISCES can reach institutional buyers and settle on exchange infrastructure. Stamp duty exemption also reduces costs for sellers.
Simply put, a UK private company can now raise capital, provide partial liquidity, and choose the investor mix in one coordinated process.
By contrast, a Canadian company using investment crowdfunding still focuses on raising capital first. Liquidity comes later, if it comes at all.
This Difference Matters
When investors can see a path to liquidity, they’re more willing to participate earlier. When founders can offer partial exits, they can manage employee and early-investor expectations more effectively. And when capital can recycle, the market compounds faster.
See: Equity Crowdfunding Breaks Records in Canada
Access to private markets was the first step. Liquidity is the next one. Platforms that support both can attract more liquidity and better manage how early-stage capital forms and flows.
Conclusion
UK platforms are building liquidity into private markets at the point of fundraising. Canada still focuses just on the raise. A practical next step in Canada would be to pilot regulated secondary trading windows for private shares under existing frameworks such as National Instrument 45-110. Regulators could test those windows under controlled conditions and measure how they affect liquidity without increasing unwanted risk. That would give investors a clearer path to exit, help founders manage early shareholders, and let capital recycle more efficiently across the ecosystem.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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NCFA Weekly Fintech Intelligence Apr 11-17, 2026
April 17, 2026 | NCFA Fintech Whisperer Weekly Intelligence | Regulation And Policy, Digital Assets Blockchain And Tokenization, Capital Markets And Market Infrastructure, Risk Compliance And Regtech
Image: Freepik
This live weekly NCFA intelligence page tracks financial technology developments that significantly affect how fintechs build, sell, raise capital, and operate under scrutiny. Coverage prioritizes Canada and includes global events that directly influence competitive conditions, market access, and execution realities across fintech sectors. This page will be updated throughout the week with market movers in a live format and then each week we'll close the prior week's contents in prep for the upcoming week, and continue on a rolling basis. (Missed prior week's Fintech Whisperer? (December 6-12, 2025, December 13-19, 2025, January 1-9, 2026, January 10-16, 2026, January 17-23, 2026, January 24-30, 2026, January 31-February 6, 2026, February 7-13, 2026, February 14-20, 2026, February 21-27, 2026, February 28-March 6, 2026, March 7-13, 2026, March 14-20, 2026, March 21-27, 2026, March 28-April 3, 2026, April 4-10, 2026).
Weekly Fintech Market Intelligence Apr 11 - 17, 2026
Regulation And Policy
OSFI Returns Non Bank Financial Institution Risk To The Foreground
Apr 14, 2026, Canada
- OSFI’s 2026–2027 Annual Risk Outlook names real estate secured lending, non bank financial institution risk, and liquidity and funding risk as its top priorities. Risks outside the traditional banking system have grown, including areas where non bank lenders and investment funds rely more heavily on borrowing.
- The outlook links that risk view to live supervisory work, including a Credit Risk Management Guideline consultation open until Jul 29, 2026 and liquidity adequacy revisions taking effect on May 1, 2026.
OSFI has returned non bank financial institution risk to the supervisory foreground. That puts more attention on leverage, liquidity, and credit formation outside the traditional banking perimeter.
Digital Assets Blockchain And Tokenization
France Urges More Euro Stablecoins And Tokenized Deposits
Apr 17, 2026, France
- France’s finance minister flags the gap between euro pegged and dollar pegged stablecoin volumes and calls for stronger euro denominated digital payment infrastructure.
- European banks are being pushed to develop tokenized deposits and euro stablecoins as part of that response.
- A consortium including ING, UniCredit, and BNP Paribas is preparing a euro pegged stablecoin for the second half of 2026, while dollar stablecoins continue to dominate with significantly larger circulation.
European policymakers are now linking stablecoins, tokenized deposits, and payment sovereignty. If banks move on this, product teams will need to build for liquidity, redemption certainty, and distribution at scale.
FCA Sets UK Crypto Authorisation Path And 2027 Go Live Date
Apr 15, 2026, United Kingdom
- The FCA said crypto will be regulated in the UK from Oct 2027 and that firms will be able to start applying for authorisation from Sep 2026.
- The consultation sets out guidance on which activities fall within the future regime, including issuing qualifying stablecoin, operating trading platforms, dealing and arranging deals in qualifying cryptoassets, safeguarding cryptoassets, and staking.
- The FCA said its rules for the future cryptoasset regime are largely complete, with policy statements due this summer and final perimeter guidance due in autumn.
The UK now has a clearer crypto timetable. Firms can see when the authorisation gate opens, when the regime goes live, and which business models sit inside scope. That gives exchanges, custodians, stablecoin issuers, and staking providers a more defined build and compliance window.
Pakistan Opens Banking Access For Licensed Virtual Asset Firms
Apr 15, 2026, Pakistan
- The State Bank of Pakistan said SBP regulated entities may open and maintain accounts for virtual asset service providers licensed by the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority.
- The circular requires banks to verify licences, apply AML/CFT controls, and maintain segregated non interest bearing local currency client accounts for customer funds.
- Regulated entities must not invest in or directly hold virtual assets on their own balance sheets.
Pakistan has opened a formal banking channel for licensed virtual asset firms while keeping balance sheet exposure and client money handling tightly controlled. That gives the market a clearer regulated path for fiat access without relaxing the banking perimeter.
HSBC Expands Tokenized Deposit Service To The United States
Apr 13, 2026, United States
- HSBC launched its Tokenized Deposit Service in the United States, extending a service already available in Hong Kong, Singapore, Luxembourg, and the UK.
- The bank says eligible corporate and institutional clients can move funds 24/7, domestically and cross border, between treasury centers and subsidiaries on-chain.
- HSBC says the service supports EUR, GBP, HKD, SGD, and USD and is built to integrate with existing treasury and payment infrastructure.
A global bank has expanded tokenized deposits into the U.S. for real treasury and liquidity use. That brings tokenized money closer to core banking and cross-border cash management, not just digital asset experimentation.
SEC Sets Broker Dealer Boundary For Certain Crypto Interfaces
Apr 13, 2026, United States
- SEC staff issued a statement describing when certain crypto asset user interfaces would not require broker dealer registration.
- The position applies to interfaces that do not solicit securities transactions, do not route orders based on transaction based compensation, and do not handle customer funds or securities.
- SEC staff said the position is temporary and will expire in five years if it is not extended, amended, or withdrawn earlier.
The SEC has drawn a clearer line around how crypto interfaces can operate without crossing into broker dealer registration. That gives wallet providers, front ends, and trading interfaces a more defined design perimeter, while keeping execution control, solicitation, and custody inside the regulated boundary.
Open Banking Open Finance And Data Sharing
FCA Publishes Open Finance Roadmap With 2027 Framework Target
Mar 2026, United Kingdom
- The FCA published its Open Finance roadmap (download UK Open Finance Vision PDF), setting out how data sharing will extend beyond payments into mortgages, investments, savings, and pensions.
- The roadmap prioritizes SME access to credit, faster lending decisions, and mortgage use cases as early focus areas.
- The FCA is progressing delivery through the Smart Data Accelerator and industry programs to test and scale real use cases.
- The regulator targets the end of 2027 for the regulatory framework to support the first Open Finance schemes.
Open finance now has a regulator defined build plan with a clear timeline. That gives banks and fintechs a window to develop data driven products beyond payments and reshape how credit and financial services are distributed.
Payments And Market Infrastructure
Movantis Adds Latin America Scale To Circle Payments Network
Apr 11, 2026, Latin America and Global
- Movantis joined Circle Payments Network to add stablecoin based settlement to its cross border payments infrastructure.
- The company says it processes more than $60 billion in annual volume, works with more than 70 money transfer operators, and supports more than 80,000 payout locations across 130 plus countries.
- The integration adds bidirectional payment flows and off ramp capability in more than 10 Latin American countries.
- Movantis says the setup connects stablecoin settlement to local fiat payout rails across its corridor network.
Stablecoin settlement now runs through a $60 billion cross border network. Banks and existing rails face direct competition on settlement.
Capital Markets And Market Infrastructure
Payward (Kraken) Buys Bitnomial To Secure Full CFTC Derivatives Stack
Apr 17, 2026, United States
- Payward (Kraken) agreed to acquire Bitnomial for up to $550 million in cash and stock.
- Bitnomial holds the full set of CFTC-issued licenses needed to run a U.S. crypto trading and derivatives business: exchange, clearinghouse, and brokerage.
- The platform will support regulated U.S. products including spot margin, perpetuals, and options, and will also be available to partners through Payward Services.
This gives Payward regulated U.S. clearing infrastructure that took more than a decade to build. That puts crypto-native derivatives closer to the core of U.S. market structure and gives banks, brokerages, and fintech partners a new route into regulated digital asset derivatives.
SEC Reopens Core Market Surveillance Debate Around CAT
Apr 16, 2026, United States
- The SEC issued a concept release for a comprehensive review of the Consolidated Audit Trail and other audit trails and related data sources used in U.S. securities market regulation.
- The review seeks comment on CAT funding and cost management, regulatory purpose, structure and governance, design and scope, cybersecurity, data privacy, and the balance between privacy, civil liberties, and regulatory need.
- The SEC said recent changes reduced projected annual CAT operating costs by more than $100 million and permanently eliminated reporting of personal identifiable information to the CAT.
The SEC has reopened foundational questions around the main surveillance infrastructure for U.S. equity markets. That puts market structure, compliance technology, cost allocation, and data governance back into active review.
FCA Finalizes Clearer Simpler Short Selling Rules
Apr 16, 2026, United Kingdom
- Public disclosure switches to aggregated data showing the overall size of net short positions in each company rather than identifying individual short sellers.
- Firms get more time to calculate and submit short position reports under the new timetable.
- Eligible market makers move from repeated exemption notifications to an annual confirmation.
The FCA has reduced reporting friction without removing oversight. That changes daily reporting operations for trading firms and market makers, and it forces compliance, data, and regtech teams to adjust how short position data is calculated, submitted, and published.
Wealthsimple Brings Trade Ready Cashtags To X In Canada
Apr 17, 2026, Canada and United States
- X launched Cashtags with real time market data, showing posts, price charts, and asset context directly inside the feed.
- Smart Cashtags open Wealthsimple for Canadian users and take signed in users to a security detail page ready to trade.
- Trading remains inside Wealthsimple, while X acts as the entry point from content to execution.
The trade entry point is entering the social layer. X now controls how users move from conversation to market data, while brokerages plug into that flow to capture execution.
Crowdcube Connects Primary Raises And Secondary Liquidity Through LSEG Infrastructure
Apr 14, 2026, United Kingdom and Europe
- Crowdcube can now execute primary capital raises and secondary share sales in parallel on a single platform.
- Transactions can run on its private platform or through LSEG’s PISCES regulated market, opening access to institutional investors.
- The platform supports both concentrated block sales and large-scale liquidity events involving thousands of retail shareholders.
Crowdcube is linking retail private markets with regulated public market infrastructure. That gives companies a new way to raise capital and provide liquidity without waiting for an IPO, and it opens institutional demand to retail-originated share flow.
Risk Compliance And Regtech
UAE Expands AML And Financial Crime Guidance Across Banking Stack
Apr 16, 2026, United Arab Emirates
- The Central Bank of the UAE issued an AML/CFT/CPF guidance package covering proliferation financing, trade-based money laundering, correspondent banking, and customer due diligence.
- The package includes four regulatory guidance documents and two best practice manuals aimed at strengthening institution-wide compliance systems.
- The guidance sets expectations for risk-based frameworks, continuous monitoring of emerging risks, and stronger controls across cross-border financial activity.
The update raises the compliance baseline across multiple financial crime domains at once. Banks, PSPs, and fintechs operating in or through UAE corridors will need to adjust risk models, monitoring systems, and correspondent banking controls.
Conclusion
This week tightens the real constraint on fintech execution. It is no longer access or distribution, it is whether your product can operate inside the rules of the rails it touches. Payment flows now include machine-initiated actions, reporting regimes are getting simpler but less tolerant of errors, and market infrastructure expects you to plug in cleanly from day one. If your system cannot enforce permissions at the transaction level, produce a clear audit trail, and align with regulated reporting without rework, it will slow down as the market speeds up. NCFA offers various curated resources to help founders and investors stay current on developments that impact fintech markets, subscribe to NCFA weekly newsletter updates, view a rundown of current fintech news and insights, or dive into the latest fintech industry research.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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