Top Fintech News Around the World — 2026-08-13

TLDR: A day about infrastructure and execution. Tether completed its first full "Big Four" audit — KPMG issued an unqualified opinion on the $180B USDT issuer, showing reserves exceeded liabilities by $6.814B. RBC and BMO sold payments processor Moneris to Francisco Partners for C$2B, ending 25+ years of bank ownership. Bank of America agreed to acquire up to 49.9% of Jio Credit (Jio Financial) in a Rs 18,268 crore JV. The SEC again delayed its tokenization "innovation exemption" amid Wall Street and White House concerns. Zilch unveiled its largest product expansion (turning BNPL into a financial layer), and N26 integrated EPI's Wero for instant payments in Germany and France. Goldman agreed to buy NEOS for up to $2.25B (active ETFs), and Singapore's Graas raised $17M and acquired Trustana. Coinbase won Abu Dhabi approval for a tokenization hub, and Adyen expanded its Toast partnership into the US.

TLDR

Tether KPMG audit — 🌍 KPMG issues unqualified opinion on $180B USDT issuer's 2025 statements; reserves exceed liabilities by $6.814B. First full Big Four audit.
Moneris C$2B sale — 🇨🇦 RBC and BMO sell payments processor Moneris to Francisco Partners (C$2B cash), ending 25+ years of joint bank ownership; banks keep referral deals.
BofA-Jio Credit JV — 🇮🇳 BofA to acquire up to 49.9% of Jio Credit (Jio Financial) in Rs 18,268 crore (~$1.9B) deal; Jio Credit has Rs 30,667 crore AUM in two years.
SEC tokenization delay — 🇺🇸 SEC again delays tokenization 'innovation exemption' amid White House and SIFMA concerns; market-structure questions (Reg NMS) unresolved.
Zilch expansion — 🇬🇧 Zilch's largest expansion: Extra/Plus memberships (£2.99/£3.99), Pay Monthly (14.9% APR), Zilch Advance earned-wage access; BNPL → financial layer.
N26-Wero — 🇪🇺 N26 integrates EPI's Wero instant A2A payments in Germany and France; alias-based transfers test Europe's payment sovereignty.
Goldman-NEOS $2.25B — 🇺🇸 Goldman to buy NEOS (options-based income ETFs, ~$30B AUM); pushes active ETF assets to ~$130B (top-eight).
Graas Series B — 🇸🇬 Singapore's Graas raises $17M (Temasek-linked LemmaTree) and acquires Trustana; data foundation for agentic retail commerce.
Coinbase Abu Dhabi — 🇦🇪 Coinbase wins FSRA approval for regulated international tokenization hub (arrange deals + custody).
Adyen-Toast US — 🇺🇸 Adyen expands Toast partnership into the US, adding payments to a $215B+ GPV platform.

Top-10 notes

#	Title	Region
1	Tether Completes First Full 'Big Four' Audit — KPMG Issues Unqualified Opinion on $180B USDT Reserves	Global
2	RBC and BMO Sell Payments Processor Moneris to Francisco Partners for C$2 Billion	Canada
3	Bank of America to Acquire 49.9% of Jio Credit (Jio Financial) in Rs 18,268 Crore JV — Major Foreign Investment in Indian Fintech	Asia (India)
4	SEC Again Delays Tokenization 'Innovation Exemption' Amid Wall Street and White House Concerns	US
5	Zilch Unveils Largest Product Expansion — Turning BNPL Into a Financial Operating Layer	UK
6	N26 Integrates EPI's Wero in Germany and France — Europe's Payment Sovereignty Gets a Distribution Test	Europe
7	Goldman Sachs to Buy NEOS for Up to $2.25 Billion — Pushes Active ETF AUM Toward $130 Billion	US
8	Singapore's Graas Raises $17M Series B and Acquires Product-Data Startup Trustana	Asia (Singapore)
9	Coinbase Wins Abu Dhabi Approval to Build Regulated International Tokenization Hub	UAE/Global
10	Adyen Expands Toast Partnership Into the US — Adding Payments to a Platform Doing $215B+ in GPV	US

Follow-up reference notes

#	Title	Seed Question
1	REF: Tether's First Big Four Audit — What the KPMG Unqualified Opinion Means for USDT and Stablecoin Transparency	What does Tether's first full KPMG audit reveal about its reserves, and what does an unqualified Big Four opinion mean for USDT and the broader stablecoin market?
2	REF: RBC and BMO's C$2B Moneris Sale — Why Banks Are Exiting Merchant Acquiring for Private Equity	Why are RBC and BMO selling Moneris to Francisco Partners, and what does the C$2B deal signal about bank ownership of merchant acquiring?
3	REF: Bank of America's Rs 18,268 Crore Jio Credit JV — Foreign Capital Meets India's Digital Credit Boom	What does Bank of America's up-to-49.9% stake in Jio Credit mean for India's digital credit market, and why are global banks entering India via fintech partnerships?
4	REF: Why the SEC Keeps Delaying the Tokenization 'Innovation Exemption' — Wall Street, White House, and Market Structure	Why is the SEC delaying its tokenization 'innovation exemption', and what does it reveal about the legal and market-structure challenges of tokenized securities?
5	REF: Zilch's Expansion From BNPL to a Financial Operating Layer — Strategy, Consumer-Protection Risks, and Open Banking	How is Zilch turning BNPL into a broader financial operating layer, and what consumer-protection and product-design risks does bundling create?
6	REF: N26 and Wero — Europe's Test of Instant Payment Sovereignty and Alias-Based Banking Identity	How does N26's Wero integration advance Europe's instant-payment sovereignty, and what network-effect, fraud, and privacy challenges must be overcome?
7	REF: Goldman Sachs' Up-to-$2.25B NEOS Acquisition — Why Asset Managers Buy Scaled ETF Franchises	Why did Goldman Sachs buy NEOS for up to $2.25B, and what does the deal reveal about where durable value accumulates in active ETF products and wealthtech?
8	REF: Graas' Series B and Trustana Acquisition — The Data Foundation for Agentic Retail Commerce	How does Graas combine product, customer, and inventory data to power agentic AI in retail, and what does its Temasek-linked Series B signal?

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