Happy Friday!!!
 
Back from Turkey Day – we are now full steam ahead into the holiday season!  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 12/5/25 (subscribe here for free):

• 💥 Shoutout to Coverbase as they become the newest Premier Sponsor of Bankers Helping Bankers (BHB) in support of BHB’s mission to provide free access to reliable data, strategy, and intelligence to help community banks across the country grow, compete, and thrive!!! 🚀
  • “With AI-native automation, configurable workflows, and continuous monitoring, Coverbase transforms supplier onboarding, diligence, and lifecycle oversight from a compliance bottleneck into a strategic advantage.”  Check them out at coverbase.com!

​

• 👀 Green Dot Corporation (NYSE: GDOT; Green Dot Bank FDIC 22653; total assets $5B) has entered into agreements to be acquired by Smith Ventures and CommerceOne Financial Corp.  Smith Ventures will acquire and privatize Green Dot’s non-bank fintech business (Arc); and CommerceOne will acquire Green Dot Bank and become a new publicly traded bank holding company.
  • The new bank holding company will also be the fintech’s exclusive sponsor bank under a seven-year agreement; and will strive to add additional fintech partners going forward.

 

• 👉 Equipifi continues its march across the US with a pair of BNPL announcements (fully integrated in-house solution) just in time for holiday shopping:
  • Advia Credit Union (charter 61503; total assets $3.7B) launches BNPL powered by equipifi to enable its 200,000 members to divide eligible purchases into manageable installment payments directly from their existing Advia Digital Banking experience.
  • Yolo Federal Credit Union (charter 9293; total assets $415M) introduces BNPL powered by equipifi allowing its members to “split eligible debit card purchases into easy, predictable installment payments within Yolo FCU’s secure Mobile and Online Banking platforms. Members can also use Yolo FCU’s BNPL program to instantly receive extra funds in their Checking Account prior to making a purchase.”

 

• Speaking of rapid growth…  InvestiFi partners with Sesimi to enable InvestiFi to deliver compliant, customizable marketing assets for its FI customers at scale, without compromising regulatory disclosure requirements or brand control. 
  • “InvestiFi's customers, including financial institutions and credit unions, require on-brand content that's not only customizable but also fully compliant with industry standards. Sesimi addresses this by embedding locked disclosures and compliance language into dynamic templates, ensuring that every asset meets legal requirements without delaying go-to-market speed and eliminating the need for lengthy approval processes.”

 

• Socure (AI-platform for identity, compliance, and risk decisioning) announced they have acquired Qlarifi (real-time BNPL consumer credit database) creating a compliant risk-decisioning BNPL infrastructure platform that also helps to reduce fraud losses.  Nice!!!

 

• Organizers have filed applications to the OCC and FDIC to establish VALT Bank – a de novo digital bank focused on serving “digitally demanding small to midsized businesses” in the U.S. 👏

 

• Cross River Bank (FDIC 58410; total assets $8.1B) launches stablecoin payment infrastructure solution.  “Integrated directly with Cross River’s real-time core, COS, the offering unifies fiat and stablecoin flows through a single, interoperable system—enabling companies to move value across chains and traditional rails, leveraging bank-grade compliance.”

 

• Klarna launches KlarnaUSD stablecoin to cut costs of cross-border payments – partnering with Stripe (Bridge) and Paradigm on the Tempo payments blockchain.

 

• 🤷‍♂️ In the meantime….  The Federal Reserve Senior Financial Officer Survey Results (Sept 2025) shows a vastly different opinion to the development of digital asset-related products and services over the next three years (ref Part 4: Stablecoins and Digital Assets beginning on page 25) 🤔:
  • Only 8% of US banks surveyed view the issuance of tokenized deposits as a high priority
  • No (zero) US banks view the issuance of their own stablecoin as a high priority
  • Only 7% of US banks place a high priority on offering crypto custody or wallet services

 

• The Fed, FDIC, and OCC have proposed lowering the community bank leverage ratio (CBLR) requirement from 9% to 8%. It would also extend the grace period for community banks that opt into the framework and fall out of compliance to come back into compliance, from two quarters to four quarters.

 

• The Fed’s Nov Beige Book (last one of 2025 and just ahead of the FOMC meeting next week) paints a continuing difficult picture for the Fed with consumers feeling strained (declines in overall consumer spending and employment) while moderate price increases persist…  This will likely continue to divide FOMC participants in their dual mandate of price stability and maximum employment.

 

• Coinstar selects Lithic to power the new CINQ by Coinstar™ Debit Card (prepaid GPR issued by Lead Bank).

 

• Klarna launches Premium and Max memberships in the U.S. – a subscription plan that offers lounge access and premium perks without spending requirements for customers of the Klarna Card (debit card with built-in BNPL installment options issued by WebBank).
  • Per the release, “U.S. consumers who sign up for the Klarna Card can also opt into any of Klarna's four membership plans—Core ($4.99 /month), Plus ($9.99/month), Premium ($19.99 /month), or Max ($44.99 /month)—during the sign-up process.”

 

• 🤔 Hmm…  SoFi Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: SOFI; bank sub is SoFi Bank, N.A. – FDIC 26881, total assets $41.3B) is raising capital via an announced public offering of $1.5 billion of shares of its common stock.

 

• Wealthfront filed their Amended S-1 filing making public (had previously filed confidentially in June) they are targeting a valuation of $2.05B 💰 and will list on the Nasdaq exchange under the ticker WLTH.

 

• The FDIC released their Quarterly Banking Profile report for 3Q2025.  Some key points:
  • Bank earnings are up due to lower provision expense (yes – even when you back out the large jump in provision expense last quarter related to the Capital One acquisition of Discover).
  • NIM continues to increase at 3.34% (community bank NIM increased to 3.73%) despite COF increasing 2bps even though the FOMC has been reducing rates (points towards continued deposit competition).
  • Unrealized losses on Securities continue to decrease although still way too high...
  • Asset Quality looks “generally” good with Past Due and Nonaccrual Rate (PDNA) at 1.49% - well below pre-pandemic average of 1.94%.  However, PDNA rates for non-owner-occupied CRE, multifamily CRE, auto, and credit card portfolios remain well above their pre-pandemic averages.
  • The number of banks on the FDIC’s “Problem Bank List” (banks with a composite CAMELS composite rating of “4” or “5”) declined by 2 in 3Q25 to 57 banks.
    • For comparison, the number of banks with a FedFis Rating© in the bottom 1% for 3Q25 is 65 with a rating of 3.86 or worse.  Call me!!! 📞🤠😉

 
And did someone mention instant payments???

• Sunflower Bank (FDIC 4767; total assets $8.5B) partners with VerityPay and enhances its suite of Treasury Management services by enabling its business customers to send payments directly to consumers via SMS text message in as little as 90 seconds, without requiring an app download. 

 

• Ferry expands its partnership with Highnote and becomes the first subscriber to implement Highnote Instant Payments enabling large restaurant groups to deliver access to automated, same-day payouts of tips and wages directly to employees.

 

• Aeropay (pay by bank) launches Instant Pay-Ins via Request for Payment (RfP) in collaboration with Cross River Bank and the RTP® network.  Allows businesses to collect consumer bank payments that settle in seconds, even when transactions occur outside of standard banking hours.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Kobalt Labs raised $11M in Series A funding round to enhance its AI-driven platform for automating risk and compliance processes for financial institutions.
  • Flex (banking app for high net worth business owners) raised $60M in Series B funding.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• This is my new favorite story of the year as I HAVE FOUND MY SPIRIT ANIMAL!!! 🤠 Apparently, a raccoon broke into a Virginia liquor store (scroll through the pics) and “went on a full-blown rampage, drinking everything” before passing out on the bathroom floor next to the toilet….  YES!!! 😄  Unfortunately, there isn’t any recorded video of the mayhem as he took out the security cameras when he fell through the ceiling tiles (which makes this even better), but the after pics are priceless – LOL!!!  In an interview, the animal control agency said, “After a few hours of sleep and zero signs of injury (other than maybe a hangover and poor life choices), he was safely released back to the wild, hopefully having learned that breaking and entering is not the answer.”
  • 🦝 Looks like Rocket has fallen on hard times since Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3!!! 😂🤣
• And here we go – here are the Dad / Bad jokes:
  • Still adjusting from the time change as every night around 10:30pm I realize it’s only 6:00pm!!! 🥱
  • I am clearly addicted to eating Thanksgiving leftovers…  You can’t just quit cold turkey…  😉
  • Mariah Carey is opening her Christmas present.  Inside she finds a deed to an undeveloped plot of land that is zoned residential.  Disappointed, she sets the deed down and says…….  “I don’t want a lot for Christmas.” 🎵🎄🙄
  • Psst… Hey Santa - How much do you want for that Naughty List???  😲😅🎅

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 

Happy Friday!!!
 
We will be pausing the Update next week for the Thanksgiving Holiday. So from our family to yours – I hope you have a wonderful, happy, and blessed Thanksgiving with lots of love, laughter, and full bellies! 🙏🍂🦃 But first - Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 11/21/25 (subscribe here for free):
 

• Mr. Warren Buffett pens his final shareholder letter (but will continue with an annual Thanksgiving message). My personal favorite part of the letter is a message for all of us in this season of thanks – delivered in classic Buffett fashion:
  • “Greatness does not come about through accumulating great amounts of money, great amounts of publicity or great power in government. When you help someone in any of thousands of ways, you help the world. Kindness is costless but also priceless. Whether you are religious or not, it’s hard to beat The Golden Rule as a guide to behavior. I write this as one who has been thoughtless countless times and made many mistakes but also became very lucky in learning from some wonderful friends how to behave better (still a long way from perfect, however). Keep in mind that the cleaning lady is as much a human being as the Chairman.” ❤️ Love this…

 

• The much delayed BLS Sept Jobs Report (data collected prior to the government shutdown) shows the US added 119,000 jobs (expectation was 50,000) and unemployment edged up slightly to 4.4% (previous was 4.3%).
  • However – prior revisions were once again material (see revision history) with August initial estimate of +22K was revised down by 26K to a total of -4K jobs lost; and Jul was revised down by 7K from the second estimate to 72K jobs added.
  • Note that the BLS is stating an Oct Jobs Report will not be released and the Nov report will be released on Tuesday, Dec 16th – 11 days later than usual. Keep in mind that the next FOMC meeting is Dec 9th so the Fed will still largely be “driving in fog” with respect to current (or lack thereof) economic data. 🤷‍♂️

 

• First announced in 2023, LevelField Financial was approved by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to acquire Burling Bank (FDIC 27556; total assets $196M) to be renamed LevelField Bank with banking services targeting crypto and the digital assets space including loans and credit cards collateralized by bitcoin, bitcoin rewards credit and debit cards, digital asset trading and custody.
  • This Banking Dive article is a good summary including pending Federal Reserve approval (to become a bank holding company), additional capital commitments, and hiring needs to support 24-7 needs of its digital-asset user base.

 

• Traditional Bank (FDIC 2711; total assets $2.4B) selects Jack Henry for core processing.

 

• Lumio and Revio Insight partner together to help banks and credit unions (community financial institutions) to identify customers leaving for competitors and take timely action to win them back. 👏

 

• 👀 And a pair of CU acquisition of a bank this week…  If you are keeping score, these are the 12th and 13th announced CU acquisition of a bank thus far for 2025 (whole bank acquisition).  This compares to 22 for 2024, 11 in 2023, 16 in 2022, 13 in 2021, 7 in 2020, and 16 in 2019 (source: FedFis M&A database).  Both of these transactions are very stereotypical CU acquisitions of a bank that include: much larger CU acquiring a small bank; low-cost deposits; additional commercial portfolio; and market expansion for branch footprint.

 

• GECU Federal Credit Union (charter 24941; total assets $4.4B) to acquire Bank of the Southwest (FDIC 2247; total assets $187M) from New Mexico National Financial Incorporated (PCO FR 2013947).
  • The target bank is profitable and well capitalized (FedFis Rating© of 1.92), but has struggled with any prospect of loan growth since well before the pandemic.  Deposit growth has also been slightly benign, but a huge shift to noninterest bearing deposits since 2022.
  • Target bank NIM is strong at 6.88% with yield on loans at 7.94% and cost of funds at an impressive 0.07% (not a typo).  This is clearly a low-cost deposit grab by the CU; as well as a branch footprint expansion outside of Texas into New Mexico.
  • Loan profile of the target bank is 75% Real Estate with 36% of total loans being CRE (2/3rds of that in nonowner occupied) and 28% of total loans being Domestic 1-4 Family Loans.
    • This pairs nicely with the acquiring CU as they will diversify their existing concentration in Vehicle Loans of 54% of total loans (new vehicle is 22% of total loans and used is 33%).  The CU also has 15% of total loans in 1-4 Family Residential and 12% in Commercial.

 

• Next up is Community First Credit Union of Florida (charter 67290; total assets $2.9B) to acquire First Southern Bank (FDIC 10055; total assets $324M) from FSBH Corporation (PCO FR 5685653).
  • Another stereotypical CU acquisition of a very small bank ($324M total assets) by a much larger CU (total assets $2.9B) with the CU expanding its market (branch footprint) from Jacksonville, FL to include Waycross, GA.  The CU is picking up some commercial loans (CRE) and lower cost deposits.
    • The target bank is profitable (post-pandemic) and well capitalized with a FedFis Rating© of 2.34.  The bank has experienced solid loan growth since 2019 with concentrations in CRE (38% of total loans with mostly owner-occupied) and Home Mortgages of 29% of total loans.
      • Also pairs well with the acquiring CU as they have concentrations in Home Mortgages of 33% of total loans plus 20% New Vehicle loans and 17% Used Vehicle Loans as a percentage of total loans.
    • Target bank NIM is 4.57% with yield on loans (tax adjusted) at 7.18%.  Deposit profile is 34% noninterest bearing with a Cost of Funds of 1.92% (cost of total deposits is 1.27%).  Acquiring CU has a Cost of Shares & Deposits of 1.66%.

 

• And more CU headlines as Gather Federal Credit Union (charter 9381; total assets $889M) has selected Tyfone’s nFinia™ Digital Banking platform to power its next-generational mobile and online banking experience for retail and business members.
  • This is a strong win for Tyfone as the legacy core provider had a strategic position (same vendor for core, online, and mobile) – which can be difficult to break into sometimes.  For more information on Bank and CU vendor / technology stack, reach out to our own Bobby Button and ask about our FedFis FinTegration ​Ecosystem© (nice plug if I do say so myself! 😊).

 

• My friends at Vine Financial continue to sign up financial institutions across the nation – check out their AI-driven enhanced credit and underwriting platform for commercial lending at vinefin.com (tell them Uncle Sean sent you 🤠). This week it’s Ipava State Bank (FDIC 10473; total assets $215M) selects Vine for AI-powered underwriting for its commercial lending business.

 

• More credit news as FICO (NYSE: FICO) partners with Plaid to launch the UltraFICO® Score that maps real time cash flow insights into the proven FICO® Score scale – distributed via Plaid’s Consumer Reporting Agency, Plaid Check.

 

• 👉 Uptiq announced the launch of AI FinServ Launchpad – a platform designed to help fintech founders turn financial workflow expertise into AI-native products — without needing to hire engineering teams, build infrastructure, or secure major early-stage funding.  Includes pilot opportunities through Uptiq’s network of 150+ financial institutions; up to $100K worth of in-kind product development support; and early access to Uptiq’s QORE platform.  Check it out at uptiq.ai/launchpad.

 

• Amscot Financial partners with Green Dot (NYSE: GDOT; FDIC 22653; total assets $5B) to bring modern embedded banking solutions to Amscot’s customers “including a DDA, a built-in secured credit card, a network of more than 25,000 free in-network ATMs, and additional features to come.”  Powered by Green Dot’s embedded finance platform, Arc.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Kraken raised $800 Million at a $20 Billion valuation and subsequently filed a confidential draft S-1 registration statement with the SEC for a potential IPO.
  • Ramp raised $300 Million at a $32 Billion valuation.
  • Kaaj (agentic AI platform for small business credit underwriting and loan origination) raised $3.8M in Seed funding.
  • Coverbase (AI procurement and risk platform for highly regulated, security-conscious sectors such as financial services) raised $16.5M in Series A funding round.
  • Made Card (credit card for homeowners) launches with $8M In Seed Funding.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• With Turkey Day coming up next week, here is what’s on the menu at our house:  Cajun smoked turkey, deviled eggs, burgundy mushrooms (pairs great with smoked tri-tip which I am certain Parker Mayo will force me to cook at some point over the weekend LOL), mashed potatoes, green bean bundles, garlic bread, and of course a key lime pie and maybe a pecan pie too. Nom, nom, nom!!! 😋 Oh – and lots of football!!!! 😊  Aunt Patty’s favorite is making turkey hash from the leftovers after a couple of days once we are tired of leftover turkey sandwiches – It’s kind of like a turkey and potato stew (but I like to add plenty of sliced jalapeno’s in mine with a side of cornbread). Time to break out the stretchy pants!!!! 😄
• And of course here are the Dad / Bad jokes to kick off the holiday week:
  • There should be a dating app that matches people who are on the same meds… Call it: ‘Relationscripts’ 😜🤪
  • And a holiday reminder – If your birth year starts with a 19, you should probably wrap your presents on a table, not on the floor! 😬
  • Scientists recently combined DNA of a cheetah with the DNA of a crab… Things went sideways real fast!!! 🦀😅
  • Did you know that 14 muscles are used when you open a bottle of wine? Okay – I completely made that up, but be sure to follow me anyway for more holiday fitness ideas!!! 🍷🤠💪

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend, a WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING ❤️, and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 

​Happy Friday!!!
 
Hoping everyone enjoyed a wonderful Veterans Day here in the US; and a happy 250th anniversary of the US Marines being organized under the Continental Congress. Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 11/14/25 (you can subscribe here for free along with 18,000+ of your industry peers):
 

• The Government shutdown is officially over, but don’t expect a flurry of economic data just yet as this CNBC article highlights significant uncertainty as to when, and in some cases if, data will be available. 🤷‍♂️

 

• Uncle Sean loves seeing this - two great companies expanding on an existing multi-year partnership 💥… RiskScout announced they have been selected as the preferred provider of BSA/AML and fraud solutions for Data Center Inc. (DCI).  RiskScout will replace DCI’s BSA Navigator system, which is scheduled to be retired in December 2026.  Very nice!!! 😊

 

• Vine Financial expands its AI-powered document reading capabilities beyond tax returns to include audited and interim financials supporting faster and more efficient loan decisions.
  • As someone who has literally keyed in thousands of financial statements into models and spreadsheets earlier in my career - all I can say is, “YES, PLEASE!” 🤠

 

• ICYMI…  Openbank, Santander Bank, N.A. (FDIC 29950; total assets $98B) direct digital bank, announced that Openbank has grown to more than $6 Billion in deposits since its launch in Oct 2024.
  • Yeah – that’s $6 Billion with a B in one year!!! Holy Smokes!!! 💰

 

• Bangor Savings Bank (FDIC 18408; total assets $7.3B) has selected Helix by Q2 (NYSE: QTWO) as one of its Banking as a Service (BaaS) platform partners to help power its expansion of fintech solutions.

 

• PNC Bank. N.A. (FDIC 6384; total assets $564B) added another 100 branches to its expansion plan stating it would now open 300 new locations by 2030.  As part of the initiative, the bank plans to hire approximately 2,000 new employees; and placed a specific growth emphasis on Nashville (35 new branches) and Chicago (25 new branches).

 

• The Synapse bankruptcy case gets dismissed as per bankruptcy trustee Jelena McWilliams’ request.  This is largely the result of the CFPB coming in and taking over as the option of last resort with Synapse’s estate being insolvent and has had no viable bidders for the firms remaining assets.
  • However… Plenty of eyes are looking at the CFPB's ability to continue as the acting Director has called for its elimination.

 

• Propel Holdings and Column N.A. (FDIC 58224; total assets $1.2B) announce a strategic partnership to expand access to credit across the US. The new product – Freshline, provided by Column - is expected to launch in Q1, 2026. Propel will provide servicing and forward flowing the loan economics to third-party partners.

 

• Everything old is new again… SoFi Technologies (Nasdaq: SOFI) announced the launch of SoFi Crypto, the “first and only nationally chartered bank where consumers can bank, borrow, invest — and now buy, sell and hold crypto – all in one place and on a platform they trust.”
  • This Banking Dive article is a good summary of SoFi’s relaunch of crypto trading.

 

• Serial acquirer (47 acquisitions over the last 52 years 😲) Central Bancompany, Inc. (bank subsidiary is The Central Trust Bank; FDIC 12633; total assets $19.2B) announced the launch of their IPO (Nasdaq: CBC) with their sights clearly set on additional acquisitions.
  • Per the Amended S-1 filing with the SEC (pg 22 of the Prospectus Summary), “This offering is intended to facilitate our acquisition efforts. As we have grown larger, so have our target acquisitions and our potential partners’ preference for stock consideration. Our private company status has slowed our desired acquisition pace. We believe the combination of a liquid public stock and our significant efforts over the last several years to cultivate relationships with high-quality potential partners will position us to substantially accelerate our deployment of capital.”

 

• JPMorgan Chase has officially launched JPM Coin (JPMD), a digital deposit token for institutional clients, on Coinbase's Base network - marking the bank's first deployment of a native payment product on a public blockchain.
  • Meanwhile, the FDIC is preparing new guidance for tokenized deposits and expects to introduce an application process for stablecoin issuers by the end of 2025.

 

• Speaking of JPM…  Yodlee and JPM further strengthened their 20-year partnership through an amendment to their existing Data Access agreement which includes mutual commitments and a pricing structure for “open finance” data access.
  • Per this CNBC article, JPM now has agreements in place “with fintech middlemen that make up more than 95% of the data pulls on its systems. Including Plaid, Yodlee, Morningstar and Akoya.”  (bold emphasis added by Uncle Sean)

 

• Telcoin gets its final charter approval from the Nebraska Department of Banking and Finance to launch Telcoin Digital Asset Bank.

 

• Freestar Financial Credit Union (charter 60406; total assets $326M) has implemented Mahalo Banking's digital platform that also coincided with the CU’s core conversion to Corelation Keystone completed in August.  Yeah – they’ve been busy!!!

 

• Jeanne D'Arc Credit Union (charter 67352; total assets $2.2B) partners with Alkami for account opening and onboarding.  The CU will implement Mantl's (acquired by Alkami earlier this year) account opening solution in two phases starting with business accounts and then expanding to retail customers.

 

• SouthPoint Financial Credit Union (charter 68667; total assets $583M) partners with InvestiFi to offer digital investing to its 34,000 members.

 

• equipifi gets a 2’fer this week (they’re on a roll)🤠:
  • North Star Community Credit Union (charter 62563; total assets $459M) launches debit BNPL through the CU’s mobile app via equipifi for its 20,000 members; and is the first CU “to introduce this program on debit cards in North Dakota.” 👏  
  • Velocity Credit Union (charter 68359; total assets $1B) launches their new BNPL program (powered by equipifi) through its mobile and online banking platforms for its 80,000 members.

 

• Reseda Group, a wholly owned CUSO of MSU Federal Credit Union (charter 23279; total assets $8.2B), has acquired Tandem a fintech app that helps couples manage shared finances.
  • Interesting note that Tandem offers a deposit account provided by Third Coast Bank – I am curious to see if this changes going forward…

 

• Some personnel moves:
  • DailyPay hires Andrew Brandman as Chief Operating Officer.
  • FIntegrate Technology welcomes Boyce Adams as Strategic Partner.
  • Fiserv picks up Rob Thatcher as Vice President of Information Technology.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Crew (high-yield checking and budgeting app) raised $3.8M Seed Round.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• 🤔 According to a Bloomberg report, Apple is nearing a deal to pay roughly $1 billion per year (cha-ching!!!) to use Google’s Gemini AI model to power an upgrade of Siri, due to launch sometime next spring.
• 🏈 Looking forward to some college football this weekend – particularly the Oklahoma Sooners (#11) at Alabama (#4) on ABC at 2:30 PM CST.  Following that is Texas (#10) at Georgia (#5) also on ABC at 6:30 PM CST.
• Okay – let’s get to the good stuff!  Here are the Dad / Bad Jokes for the week:
  • Putting ketchup on your steak should negatively affect your credit score. 🥩
  • I usually don’t’ talk about expensive trips I take… But I just got back from the grocery store! 😬
  • Managing your weight around the holidays just requires a little planning… For example, I took the batteries out of my scale on Monday. 🤠
  • Aunt Patty gave me an envelope that said, “do not open until 2026.” Inside was a list of reasons why I apparently can’t be trusted to carry out simple instructions! 😂🤣
  • Having a weird Dad builds character… At least that’s what I tell my kids!!! 🤪🙃

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend, and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 

Happy Friday & Happy Halloween 🐈‍⬛🎃🦇!!!
 
We will be pausing the Uncle Sean Update next week due to our annual community bank and fintech conference, The Roundup powered by FedFis data – I hope to see you there 🤠!!!  In the meantime don’t forget to sign up here for free to receive the Uncle Sean Update delivered straight to your inbox.  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 10/31/25:

• 🎉 I am super excited to announce that Bedel Security has renewed their sponsorship of Bankers Helping Bankers (BHB)!!!  Way back in the beginning - Bedel Security was one of the first to partner with BHB in our shared vision to help community banking – not just survive but thrive. 🫶 💪
  • “Bedel Security believed in us before the world knew who we were,” said Matthew Smith, CEO of Bankers Helping Bankers. “They stood beside us when this mission was just taking shape—and they’ve never wavered. Their renewal reminds every banker that true allies don’t just show up when it’s easy; they show up when it matters.”
    • So definitely check out Bedel Security and tell them Uncle Sean sent you!!! 😉

 

• It’s Fed Week!!!  As was widely expected, the FOMC voted to lower the fed funds rate by 25 bps to 3.75% - 4% and to end quantitative tightening (the reduction of its securities holdings) on Dec 1.
  • A couple of noteworthy comments from Chairman Powell (bold emphasis added by Uncle Sean):
    • “In the near term, risks to inflation are tilted to the upside and risks to employment to the downside—a challenging situation. There is no risk-free path for policy as we navigate this tension between our employment and inflation goals.”
    • “In the Committee’s discussions at this meeting, there were strongly differing views about how to proceed in December. A further reduction in the policy rate at the December meeting is not a forgone conclusion—far from it.”
    • Regarding the lack of data due to the continued government shutdown… “what do you do if you're driving in the fog? You slow down.”
  • And as always, here is the link to Chairman Powell’s Press Conference transcript (27 pages) and the Press Conference video (54:50)

 

• Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has confirmed that the five finalists to succeed Jay Powell as Federal Reserve chair are NEC director Kevin Hassett, Fed governor Christopher Waller, former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, BlackRock's Rick Rieder and Fed governor Michelle Bowman.

 

• 👀 Infinant continues to win big!  This week Valley National Bank (FDIC 9396; total assets $63B; Nasdaq: VLY) announced it is partnering with Infinant to scale the bank’s Partner Banking and embedded finance capabilities by leveraging Infinant’s Interlace platform – infinant.com/platform.
  • I have to wonder – do the folks over at Infinant ever sleep???  They are on a roll!!

 

• LoanPro announced the launch of its Model Context Protocol (MCP) model-agnostic gateway enabling “LoanPro clients and partners to begin testing and developing their AI-powered credit servicing and collections initiatives, while ensuring regulatory guardrails and auditability.” 🚀
  • “Unlike basic chatbot integrations that stop at the recommendation layer, MCP acts as a secure protocol between any AI model and LoanPro’s core platform…”

 

• SkyOne Federal Credit Union (charter 6248; total assets $928M) selects Lumin Digital as its new digital banking provider for its 60,000+ members.

 

• Ascend Federal Credit Union (charter 7397; total assets $4.6B) launched their new BNPL program powered by equipifi for its 260,000+ members.

 

• 👉 Check out Qolo’s big announcement this week as The Huntington National Bank (FDIC 6560; total assets $210B) partners with Qolo to deliver a next-generation treasury solution for Huntington’s commercial clients.  Huntington’s Connected Deposits platform, their new ledgering and Virtual Account Management (VAM) platform, is designed to meet the evolving needs of commercial banking clients by enabling real-time cash visibility, streamlined reconciliation and scalable sub-account management – powered by Qolo’s flexible technology stack. Great win for the Qolo Team! 🤙

 

• Alogent partners with Vine to accelerate commercial lending workflows for banks and credit unions. “The collaboration integrates Vine’s AI-powered lending platform with Alogent’s AccuAccount loan management system, creating a unified document workflow that spans from application to post-close.”  Nice!!! 👏

 

• 💥 Uptiq (AI infrastructure for financial services) had a couple of announcements this week:
  • Tyfone has partnered with Uptiq’s enterprise AI platform to deliver actionable business insights for financial institutions that use Tyfone’s nFinia® Business Digital Banking Platform.
  • Uptiq.ai raised $12M in capital to drive large-scale adoption of Uptiq Qore, the company’s next-generation AI infrastructure platform for banks, credit unions, wealth managers, and fintech companies – enabling “financial institutions to build production-grade AI applications and agents in weeks, not months.”

 

• Carefull announced the launch of GreyMatter, its proprietary AI intelligence layer built to detect, prevent, and predict the complex risks of aging and money (elder fraud prevention) – helping financial institutions support older adults and next-generation financial caregivers.
  • This statistic really caught my attention, “30% of age-adjusted revenue at financial institutions is controlled by depositors and clients with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI).”  Check it out at getcarefull.com/greymatter! 👏

 

• FinWise Bancorp (Nasdaq: FINW; bank subsidiary is FinWise Bank; FDIC 35323; total assets $900M) announced a program management, network issuer processor and servicer agreement with Tallied Technologies, Inc. to deliver credit card products and card processing solutions to Fintechs, their businesses, and their customers.

 

• nbkc bank (FDIC 35014; total assets $1.2B) enhances its BaaS suite with Interchecks modern payments platform to deliver faster and more flexible payments.
  • “ This collaboration enhances nbkc's BaaS platform by integrating Interchecks' instant payment technology, enabling fintechs and non-bank innovators to deliver seamless "push-to-card" disbursements, sending funds directly to customers' debit cards in real-time, without the delays of traditional payment rails.”

 

• Best Egg (currently servicing about $11B in personal loans) was acquired by Barclays (UK bank) for $800M to expand Barclays’ U.S. consumer banking presence.

 

• Some personnel moves:
  • Integris hires Kyle Wewe as its new Chief Revenue Officer.
  • equipifi names Karen Buell as COO per this LinkedIn post.
  • Dave appoints Parker Barrile as Chief Product Officer.
  • Fiserv announced multiple updates to leadership team and board refreshment including Takis Georgakopoulos promotion to Co-President, the hiring of Dhivya Suryadevara as Co-President, and Paul Todd joins as the new CFO.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • SavvyMoney (consumer financial wellness and growth solutions for FI’s) raised $225M in capital as a minority investment stating it has nearly “doubled its institutional footprint to over 1,500 partners since 2021 while expanding its digital banking capabilities through new product offerings and strategic acquisitions like CreditSnap, which now powers intelligent loan origination, deposit, and account onboarding solutions.”
  • Lettuce (fintech platform targeting self-employed and solopreneurs) raised $28M in Capital to expand its AI-powered operating system; and acquired Besolo, a benefits startup, for additional healthcare options and other benefits.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• PSA – Don’t forget to turn your clocks back 1 hour this weekend (technically at 2AM on Sunday, Nov 2) as we move from Daylight Savings Time (DT) to Standard Time (ST).  Of course, if you are in Hawaii or Arizona you are exempt from daylight savings time – so you don’t have to do anything. 🕰️
• The World Series is proving to be much more competitive than I originally expected.  Game 6 kicks off tonight at 7 CDT on FOX with the Toronto Blue Jays leading the series 3-2 putting the Los Angeles Dodgers in a must-win position (on the road nonetheless) to make it to Game 7.
• And of course, the obligatory Dad / Bad Jokes for the week:
  • Me – I should put a bowl of Halloween candy in my office in case anyone wants some…
    • Also me – Working from home… Alone... 🎃🍬😋
  • For our son, Marshall…😉 They’re called “deviled eggs” because the voices whisper and say... “go ahead and eat 25 of them”… 🤠
  • I got a job as a model…. I’m the “before” picture. 😂🤣
  • They say nothing is impossible, but I’ve been doing nothing all day (crushing it)!!! 😏😎
  • If by free spirits you mean an open bar, then YES – I love free spirits!!! 🍸🍷

 
 
Have a Happy Halloween, a GREAT weekend, and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis

​Happy Friday!!!
 
Don’t forget to sign up here for free to join 18,000+ of your peers and get the Uncle Sean Update delivered straight to your inbox every week – all the cool kids are doing it 😊!  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 10/24/25:
 

• A virtual fist-bump 👊 top my friends at FinPro as they renew their sponsorship of Bankers Helping Bankers (BHB)!!!
  • Definitely check them out at finpro.us (and tell them Uncle Sean sent you).  From their time series liquidity and scorecard models, strategic planning, and their consistent work with regulators and policymakers – their impact on community banking is profound.

 

• Speaking of Bankers Helping Bankers…  Be sure to reserve your spot here - https://luma.com/Q32025InsideTheNumbers for the 3Q2025 BHB Inside the Numbers webinar next week featuring special guest, Mr. Dory Wiley from Commerce Street Holdings as we unpack early call report data, discuss macroeconomics, M&A, and anything else we might dive off into!!!  This is going to be great (I hope I don’t geek out too much, but NO PROMISES – LOL!!!). 😊

 

• While we continue to endure the government shutdown and resulting data void (FOMC meeting is next week), we finally get a sliver of macroeconomic data due to Social Security law requiring a CPI measure to calculate cost-of-living adjustments…
  • The BLS Sept CPI data (10 days late due to the shutdown) came in a tad lower than expected (woohoo) at 0.3% for the month and 3.0% YoY (expectation was 0.4% and 3.1% respectively; August CPI was 0.4% and 2.9% respectively) with Core CPI at 0.2% for the month and 3.0% YoY (expectation was 0.3% and 3.1% respectively; August Core CPI was 0.3% and 3.1% respectively). CNBC has a good summary.
  • As a result, the Social Security Administration announced a 2.8% benefit increase for 2026 and has averaged about 3.1% over the last decade.

 

• 👉 Vantage Bank Texas (FDIC 3405; total assets $4.7B) has launched a turnkey and accretive tokenized deposits and stablecoin platform for community and regional banks nationwide utilizing Custodia's bank-grade blockchain platform and Infinant's Interlace platform (Infinant has really been on roll over the last several months!!!).
  • For more detailed info, check out this really cool FAQ page from Vantage Bank - Tokenized Deposits are Coming. 🚀

 

• Academy Bank (FDIC 19600; total assets $3.1B) selects Cable compliance platform to help Academy Bank to effectively and compliantly grow its fintech partnerships as well as its core client base by enabling complete automation of control testing across the BSA regulatory framework. 👏

 

• 👀 Going international ✈️🌎…  Early Warning Services, the network operator of Zelle®, announced a new initiative for Zelle to deliver cross-border money movement by leveraging stablecoins.
  • Early Warning Services CEO Cameron Fowler stated, "Our goal is to bring the trust, speed and convenience of Zelle to consumers' international money movement needs. We're investing where consumer need, bank capability and global opportunity intersect. With improved regulatory clarity in the U.S., we can focus on what we do best: driving innovation to market."

 

• Done deal… 
  • CSI has completed its acquisition of Apiture digital banking solution.
  • Centerbridge Partners completes its acquisition of MeridianLink end-to-end digital lending platform.

 

• Bead (payments company specializing in the acceptance and settlement of digital asset and digital wallet transactions) selects Lead Bank (FDIC 8283; total assets $1.7B) as its sponsor bank.

 

• Suncoast Credit Union (charter 68645; total assets $19B) selects Bloom Credit's "Bloom+" platform allowing its members to report up to five recurring bill payments (such as rent, utilities, phone bills, etc.) directly from their checking account to the credit bureaus to build or improve credit without incurring debt. 👍

 

• Lumin Digital continues to crush it – this week Sierra Central Credit Union (charter 68053; total assets $1.5B) selects Lumin Digital as its new digital banking provider.

 

• More CU news…  Mambu targets US credit unions with “composable banking” core system to help credit unions move beyond legacy core systems, modernize their infrastructure, and deliver next-generation digital experiences to their members.

 

• Treasury Prime and U.S. Bank (FDIC 6548; total assets $671B) announced mutual partnerships together:
  • Treasury Prime joins the U.S. Bank Connected Partnership Network, an online marketplace of “fintech and other third-party payment and treasury solutions that are fully integrated with U.S. Bank systems.”
  • “The partnership also adds U.S. Bank to Treasury Prime’s Bank Network, which now includes more than 15 leading financial institutions. With Treasury Prime’s OneKey product, fintechs and enterprises can seamlessly connect to multiple banks through a single API integration – reducing implementation complexity and accelerating speed to market.”

 

• Worldpay signs an exclusive agreement to power payment processing for Kroger’s in-store, online, and mobile transactions.

 

• 💥 Bank M&A continues to roll full steam ahead…  This week we saw 4 more deals involving target banks over $1B in total assets; and the Texas trend continues with 11 Texas banks being acquired (announced) since 7/1/25 (source - FedFis Bank M&A database):
  • 10/20 – HBT Financial to acquire CNB Bank Shares (bank subsidiary is CNB Bank and Trust; FDIC 3775; total assets $1.8B)
  • 10/22 – Farmers National Banc Corp. to acquire Middlefield Banc Corp (bank subsidiary is The Middlefield Banking Company; FDIC 13716; total assets $1.9B)
  • 10/22 – Third Coast Bancshares, Inc. to acquire Keystone Bancshares, Inc. (bank subsidiary is Keystone Bank, SSB; FDIC 34456; total assets $1B)
  • 10/23 – Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. to acquire Midwestone Financial Group, Inc. (bank subsidiary is MidWestOne Bank; FDIC 14843; total assets $6.2B)

 

• Notable FinTech Funding for the week:
  • Clerq (Pay-by-Bank / A2A checkout platform) raised $21M in Capital including a $12M Series A and showcasing “6x revenue growth” over the prior 12 months.
  • Kard (modern rewards network) raised $15M in growth capital.
  • Ava (consumer credit-builder app) raised $15.5M seed round to scale its platform.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• ⚾ It’s set…  The Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers will face off in the World Series with game 1 starting tonight!

• ICYMI, the 15-hour AWS outage 😬 on Monday is a reminder of concentration risk from a solution that was originally intended (at least in part) to mitigate local disaster recovery risks.
• 🏈 The Oklahoma Sooners college football schedule for the second half of the season may be the toughest in the country as they face #8 Ole Miss, @ #17 Tennessee, @ #4 Alabama, #15 Missouri, and close it out against #20 LSU…  WHEW!!!
• We made it!!!  Here are the Dad / Bad Jokes for the week:
  • Apparently, cats can hear 4 to 5 times farther than humans can – which makes it all the more impressive when they totally ignore you! 🐱
  • I used to teach origami.  Gave it up because of too much paperwork! 😅
  • I want to lose weight, but I don’t want to get caught up in one of those “eat right and exercise” scams! 🏋️‍♂️
  • I’m in big trouble if people find out I don’t really have Tourette’s…. 🤠

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 
 

Happy Friday!!!
 
It was a shorter week for many due to Columbus / Indigenous Peoples’ Day, but still some notable headlines.  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 10/17/25 (click here to subscribe for FREE):
 

• ❤️ Uncle Sean is happy to report that Smiley Technologies has renewed their Sponsorship of Bankers Helping Bankers (BHB)!!! 🎉
  • “Smiley Technologies lives and breathes community banking, and their renewal is proof of that commitment,” said Matthew Smith, CEO of Bankers Helping Bankers. “Their support helps us keep building the safe space where bankers connect, innovate, and fight for the future of Main Street.” 🚀

 

• 👀 UFS (core banking, digital, payment solutions, and advisory services) continues their push into managed IT services with the acquisition of BankOnIT in support of the evolving IT needs of community FI’s. Check out their cool video to hear from their leadership on how the partnership brings enhanced value to community banks.
  • This follows the acquisition of Safe Systems (another IT managed services provider) back in Aug of 2024. At that time, Safe Systems served about 260 FI’s and gave UFS a footprint of about 400 FI’s for IT and security services.

 

• 😲 Wow – that was fast!!! The OCC has granted preliminary conditional approval of the de novo bank charter for Erebor Bank, National Association on Oct 15th. Erebor Bank plans to “target its products and services to technology companies and ultra-high-net-worth individuals that utilize virtual currencies. The Bank plans to offer a variety of lending and deposit products and other related services. The Bank plans to hold non-asset backed virtual currencies on balance sheet…” 
  • Based on this Erebor Bank, N.A.: Charter Application dated June 11, 2025, this approval was granted in roughly 4 months (yes that’s super-fast; particularly for a national bank involved in novel activities – i.e. crypto-asset related activities – AML anyone??? 😬). Keep in mind that FDIC approval is still pending…

 

• Okay…  Here comes an Uncle Sean “Off the Rails” moment, so feel free to scroll down… 😊
  • I originally wasn’t going to comment on this, but I will… 😁 I’m already tired of hearing about “cockroaches” in the NDFI / private credit markets.  No disrespect intended towards Mr. Jamie Dimon (who started the cockroach commentary in response to JPM losses stemming from Tricolor and First Brands fraud related bankruptcies), but he is paid extremely well to be the Nation’s Chief Pessimistic Risk Officer. 🙄 And I am assuming that his cockroach comment may have been more directed at his own staff more than the market as a whole.
    • These were instances of fraud – NOT systemic asset quality problems that the broader media seems to be loathing for… Yes, there were two other non-related fraud issues this week as well (I think that makes 4).  The $ amounts are not inconsequential but are also not largely material considering the specific bank equity capital positions, credit loss reserves, and resulting market cap losses this week for those publicly traded banks.  Certainly worth keeping an eye on; and impacted banks (as well as others) are undoubtedly reviewing their NDFI concentrations as well as underwriting processes and portfolio monitoring for improvement (as they should). But this is not a systemic asset quality meltdown moment as the broader media is intent on portraying (in my unsolicited opinion).
  • 👉 The existence of NDFI lending is not within itself a catalyst for alarm as there are many other variables to consider related to credit structure and collateral. Remember your bond underwriting classes – it’s not just Probability of Default (PoD), but Loss Given Default (LGD) that matters.  That’s precisely why loan structure, reserves, collateral, and hedging are so important – and bankers are largely damn good at this. 🏆 But that doesn’t stop knee-jerk market reactions… 🤷‍♂️
  • This Banking Dive article is a great summary of events with a TD Cowen analyst referencing NDFI concerns as the “topic du jour.” This too shall pass… 😊

 
A bit of a deeper dive here as “open banking is dead…  Long live open banking…” but from an aggregator context as a Consumer Reporting Agency:
 

• Plaid announced the launch of LendScore credit risk scoring model (1-99 score) utilizing real-time cash flow data and unique financial account connection insights to supplement traditional underwriting / credit scores. Targeting cashflow analytics for subprime and near-prime “drove a10-20% relative risk reduction” without reducing originations.
  • The big takeaway here (to me anyway) is the inclusion of network insights, “which provides context on the types of apps someone is connected to on the Plaid Network, within a certain time period, and how long they’re active on each service.” Stating that the model picks up on early indicators of changing financial habits and emerging risk.
    • Recall where Plaid already provides Consumer Report powered by Plaid Check, which is Plaid’s Consumer Reporting Agency, allowing lenders to integrate cash flow data into their lending workflows via secure API and no-code dashboard.

 

• ICYMI last week… Yodlee also entered the Consumer Reporting Agency arena with the launch of Yodlee Credit, LLC.

 

• For more info on cashflow analytics, check out Jason Mikula of Fintech Business Weekly recorded episode How Modern Lenders Leverage Cashflow Analytics featuring EDGE and MX (emphasis on sizeable data lake, maintenance, and innovation – with credit bureaus providing look-back data while cash flow analytics is more real-time designed as a supplement; as well as credentialed versus non-credentialed data and some good op-ed at the end regarding open banking). 👍
  • Food for thought… I know this is a little bit of a different spin, but does anyone else remember the launch of Chase Media Solutions by JPMorgan back in early April 2024….??? 🤔

 
And now back to the rest of the Update 😊:
 

• Galileo (Sofi’s tech platform) joins the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Partner Network. Businesses across industries can now leverage Galileo’s platform on AWS to build, launch, and scale modern financial experiences.
  • Sandy Weil Chief Revenue Officer at Galileo stated, "By joining the AWS Partner Network, we’re meeting businesses where they already are, making it faster and easier for them to access our financial technology and bring new financial products to their customers." Galileo’s API-based platform handles everything from card issuance and real-time transactions to fraud prevention and embedded payment capabilities. 💥

 

• 👉 Circle K (yes, the nationwide convenience store) leans into embedded finance with their strategic partnership with Car IQ (vehicle-based payment technology) to launch Circle K Pro Digital+, a digital fleet fuel spend platform with virtual cards all accessible from the mobile app (instant driver onboarding and offboarding). Accepted at Circle K, other major fuel brands, toll networks, and anywhere Visa is accepted. 🚚
  • Check it out at Digital+ | Circle K Pro.

 

• More payments headlines… And the flex 💪 of the week… The RTP® network, instant payments system operated by The Clearing House, set a new single-day record by processing 1.8M transactions valued at $5.2B on Oct. 3 reflecting “the growing adoption of instant payments by financial institutions, businesses, and consumers who are seeking faster, more reliable money movement.” 🚀

 

• First Internet Bank of Indiana (FDIC 34607; total assets $6B) partners with Parlay Finance to deploy Parlay’s AI-native Loan Intelligence System allowing the bank’s SBA lending operations to eliminate manual tasks and gain deeper insights for loan decisioning. 👏

 

• BankJoy (digital banking provider for CU’s, banks, and neobanks) partners with InvestiFi to provide digital investing opportunities for BankJoy’s FI customers to offer to their members.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Nova Credit (credit infrastructure and analytics) raised $35M in Series D funding round.
  • Telcoin (seeking to become the first federally regulated digital assets bank in the U.S.) raised $25M as part of an ongoing pre-series A round. The funding enables Telcoin to meet capital requirements for its conditionally approved Nebraska Digital Asset Depository Institution charter (ref Feb 2025 article - Telcoin Granted Approval to Open Nebraska’s First Digital Asset Bank).
  • Upgrade (responsible consumer credit and banking products) raised $165M in Series G at a $7.3B valuation. The company has been focusing on home improvement and auto financing, areas that surpassed $2B and $1B, respectively, in total cumulative loan originations earlier this year.
  • Deel (global HR and payroll platform) raised $300M in Series E at a whopping $17.3B valuation marking “the company’s third straight year of profitability and its first $100 million revenue month. Earlier this year, the company surpassed $1 billion in annual recurring revenue. Deel now serves 37,000+ businesses and 1.5 million workers across 150+ countries, processing $22 billion in payroll annually.”

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• 🎃 It’s that time of the year!!!  Congrats to Brandon Dawson of Santa Rosa, CA for winning the 52nd World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off with a gourd weighing in at 2,346 pounds!  Gonna’ need a chainsaw to carve up that jack-o-lantern!!! 😊
• Okay – let’s wrap it up with some Dad / Bad Jokes:
  • Here lately, my daily exercise routine consists of running out of patience. 🤠🏃‍♂️‍➡️
  • Parmesan cheese is really just spaghetti confetti! 🍝 😋
  • For my daughter, Claire 🫶…  The best place for learning is the hippocampus… 🧠👩‍🎓😅
  • And last but not least a shout out to my IT and developer friends… 
    • “DevOps reality” - no matter how hard you try to make something idiot proof, eventually a better idiot will come along (I feel personally attacked)!!! 😂🤣

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 
FedFis, LLC disclaimer – The views and opinions of Uncle Sean are of his own and may not necessarily represent the views, endorsements, and/or opinions of FedFis, LLC – we all know he’s a little bit different; but that’s why we love him.
 

Happy Friday!!!
 
Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 10/10/25 (click here to subscribe for FREE):
 

• “Wreck ‘Em!!!” 🤠  Shoutout to E.W. & J. D. Williams Institute for Community Banking at Texas Tech as they renew their Friends of BHB Sponsorship!!! 👏
  • "By renewing our commitment as a Friends of BHB sponsor, we’re further aligning with BHB’s vision to equip future leaders with the knowledge and resources they need to address the challenges and opportunities facing community banks," said Jeff Mercer, Executive Director of the Williams Institute and Executive Director of the Texas Tech School of Banking at Texas Tech. "Our ongoing collaboration is a perfect example of how education and real-world solutions can come together to drive transformation within community banking."  Uncle Sean love’s this!!! 😊🎉

 

• 👀 Another Texas bank gets acquired…  Huge bank merger announcement this week with Fifth Third (FDIC 6672; total assets $209B) to acquire Texas-based Comerica Bank (FDIC 983; total assets $78B) in an all-stock transaction valued at $10.9 billion – WOWZA!!! 💰
  • This  Fifth Third Investor Presentation deck is well done showing the combined entity footprint in 17 of the 20 fastest-growing markets in the country.

 

• 👉 I have written about Charlie before regarding their target niche banking solution which is pretty cool (fintech banking platform targeting the 62+ age group – banking services provided by Sutton Bank).  Now they are definitely stepping up their game.  Check out their new page (https://ai.charlie.com/) that allows you to show your loved ones how easy it is for fraudsters to create a deepfake scam (raising awareness) – by creating your own AI-generated video message.  Very nice!!! 👍

 

• And so it begins…  Bank of North Dakota (the Nation’s only state-owned bank, so no FDIC cert, but listed as $10B in total assets) partners with Fiserv’s (NYSE: FI) digital assets platform (announced in June along with a new white-label stablecoin, FIUSD) to launch the "Roughrider Coin", North Dakota’s first stablecoin.  Fully backed by U.S. dollars, the Roughrider coin will be the first U.S. state stablecoin to launch on the Fiserv digital asset platform. 🚀

 

• FIS (NYSE: FIS) announced a strategic partnership with Glia (AI-powered banking interactions) to deliver “advanced AI-powered customer engagement capabilities across FIS' Digital One suite of retail and business banking products.”

 

• East West Bank (FDIC 31628; total assets $78B) and Worldpay sign a long-term agreement to give East West Bank commercial and business clients access to “Worldpay’s industry-leading payment tools — including point-of-sale, smart terminals, omnichannel, eCommerce, and loyalty solutions — designed to help businesses grow with confidence and operate more efficiently.”

 

• Bud Financial (AI platform that turns banking data into actionable insights) announced the launch of Bud Model Context Protocol (MCP) Server enabling banks to “rapidly deploy AI internal and customer facing systems while leveraging their core customer data.”

 

• Live Oak Banking Company (FDIC 58665; total assets $13.7B) partners with infinant’s embedded finance solution to “deliver an elevated standard for managing partner programs on a bank-grade ledgering platform to meet regulatory and compliance demands.” 👏

 

• West Virginia Central FCU (charter 24888; total assets $316M) teams up with InvestiFi to bring digital investing solutions to its 23,000+ members across West Virginia and Ohio.

 

• Credit Union of America (charter 60062; total assets $1.7B) partnered with equipifi to bring  BNPL to its suite of digital products for its 100,000 members.

 

• Imprint (modern co-branded credit card platform) to power the new Crate & Barrel and CB2 Visa Signature® Card issued by First Bank & Trust (FDIC 3973; total assets $4.7B).

 

• Copper Banking (teen banking platform) rebrands as GenAspire after being acquired by Black Dragon Capital and is now focused on partnering with credit unions as a white-label solution for pioneering financial education for the next generation. 🤙
  • In a separate announcement, Open Banking Solutions (OBS), also a Black Dragon Capital company, announced its partnership with GenAspire to provide white-labeled financial education solution to CU’s that are utilizing the OBS next generation core platform featuring integrated digital banking, account opening capabilities, workflow engines, management dashboards, and reporting tools, designed to grow with its users.

 

• Some big personnel moves this week:
  • ICBA promotes Wayne Miller to Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation Officer – Congrats!!!! 🎉
  • The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced that Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano will also serve as Chief Executive Officer of the Internal Revenue Service, a newly created position reporting directly to Treasury Secretary and Acting IRS Commissioner Scott Bessent.
    • Frank was previously President and CEO at Fiserv before being nominated as Social Security Commissioner.
  • Congratulations to Andres Pasantes and his promotion to President and CEO of Engage fi succeeding Jenn Addabbo (co-founder and CEO) as she transitions to Executive Chair of the Board.

 

• Yendo (secured credit card based on automobile equity as collateral – issued by Cross River Bank) raised $50M in Series B round to “accelerate Yendo’s expansion beyond secured lending as it builds an AI-powered digital bank for the millions of Americans underserved by traditional financial institutions.”  The company is preparing for a wave of launches in 4Q2025 as they build out an inclusive digital bank platform.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• 🏈🏈🏈 College football at its finest…  It’s OU vs Texas weekend with gametime set for 2:30PM CDT on Saturday, Oct 11 on ABC / ESPN!!!  The rivals face off for the 121st time in the Red River Rivalry.  The game has been held at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas during the Texas State Fair since the 1930s.  UT leads the series 64-51-5, but OU has a 17-9 record in the 21st century.  Check out these video clips to bring goosebumps (the player POV coming out of the tunnel is awesome)!  BOOMER SOONER!!!!

• PSA (the accountant in me had to bring this up) alert…  The IRS released the 2026 tax inflation adjustments including tax tables, limits on deductions and credits, and amendments from the One, Big, Beautiful Bill.
  • Speaking of the IRS….  If you filed an extension for your 2024 taxes, the extension deadline of 10/15/25 is fast approaching…  😬
• Okay – let’s wrap it up with some Dad / Bad jokes for the weekend:
  • Remember – the only thing worse than a bucket full of snakes… is a bucket that was supposed to be full of snakes… 🐍😮
  • Bologna is just hot dog pancakes. 🌭😅
  • For a song called “Piano Man” someone really should tell the guy with the harmonica to chill… 🎹🤠
  • And last but not least….
    • I was staring at my naked body in the mirror and thought. “I’m gonna get kicked out of this IKEA pretty soon.” 😂🤣

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 
FedFis, LLC disclaimer – The views and opinions of Uncle Sean are of his own and may not necessarily represent the views, endorsements, and/or opinions of FedFis, LLC – we all know he’s a little bit different; but that’s why we love him.
 

​Happy Friday!!!
 
There is a lot going on this week, so let’s jump right in!!!  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 10/3/25 (click here to subscribe):
 

• Kicking off with a HUGE shoutout 🎉 and lots of love 🫶 to my friends at DCI as they renew their sponsorship of Bankers Helping Bankers (BHB)!!!
  • “DCI is woven into the history of community banking innovation,” said Matthew Smith, CEO of Bankers Helping Bankers. “Their renewal with BHB is more than sponsorship—it’s a signal that the champions of community banking are all-in on this movement.”  🚀

 

• On the macroeconomic side…  Well…  The government shutdown is in full effect…  So, no Sept Jobs Report from the BLS…  🙄  However, had there been one – the expectations were +43,000 expected, +22,000 previously (prior to revisions); Unemployment rate 4.3% expected, 4.3% previously.

 

• 🤔 Coming to America (not unexpected, but certainly newsworthy)…  Nubank (NYSE: NU) applies for U.S. National Bank charter with the OCC. 
  • Founded in 2013 and headquartered in São Paulo, Nubank has rapidly grown to become one of the world’s largest digital financial services platforms, serving nearly 123 million customers across Brazil, Mexico and Colombia.

 

• 👀 More big news in embedded finance as Core Processors continue with acquisitions!  Jack Henry (Nasdaq: JKHY) just announced they have acquired Victor (the embedded finance / BaaS subsidiary of MVB Bank focused on direct-to-core embedded payments solutions).
  • “This acquisition advances our technology modernization strategy to help banks and credit unions compete and win through innovative, cloud-native solutions,” says Jack Henry President and CEO Greg Adelson. “Offering a proven, high-volume embedded payments platform that is highly scalable creates diverse revenue streams, enhances our capabilities, and provides more immediate opportunities to deliver emerging services like stablecoin.”
    • The article goes on to state that, “The PaaS market is expected to grow from $19.1 billion in 2025 to $43.9 billion in 2029 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.1%, according to Research and Markets.”

 

• But wait, there’s more 😊...  Next up is Fiserv (NYSE: FI) announcing a definitive agreement to acquire StoneCastle Cash Management (deposit network platform for enhanced deposit insurance for individual, commercial, and government depositors; and a stable funding solution for FI’s).
  • “Acquiring StoneCastle is an important step forward in our strategy to help financial institutions optimize their balance sheets, which will enable them to do more in the communities they serve,” said Andrew Gelb, Head of Financial Solutions at Fiserv.  The PR also states “Fiserv plans to leverage StoneCastle’s platform to help financial institutions retain funds associated with FIUSD stablecoin issuance…”
    • This comes on the heels of these additional Fiserv acquisition announcements:
      • 9/25 - Fiserv Expands Advisory Services for Financial Institutions with Acquisition of Smith Consulting Group.
      • 9/4 - Fiserv Expands Clover Offerings for Hospitality with CardFree Acquisition.

 

• Circling back to MVB…  MVB Bank (FDIC 34603; total assets $3.2B) partnered with Aeropay (pay-by-bank provider) to enhance Aeropay’s payment infrastructure by integrating MVB Bank's expertise in managing complex ACH and Real-Time Payments (RTP).

 

• 👉 Worldpay leans into BaaS infrastructure and announced the launch of their Embedded Finance Engine to help software companies deliver seamless business banking products to their users.  The new platform includes embedded lending, banking, and commercial card issuing with plans to expand capabilities over the coming months.  Check it out at Embedded finance | Worldpay for Platforms. 💥

 

• Checkout.com becomes the latest to apply for a Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Bank (MALPB) charter through the State of Georgia Department of Banking and Finance.  The charter would give Checkout.com direct access to US card networks allowing it to act as its own acquirer.
  • If approved, Checkout.com would join the ranks of Fiserv and Stripe with the Georgia limited purpose charter.  This Payments Dive article has a good summary.

 

• Linker Finance announced a strategic partnership with Advanced Fraud Solutions (AFS) to integrate consortium-powered fraud intelligence into Linker Finance’s business banking solution. 👏

 

• Fruitful announced their launch of Money Map, the first automated financial product that transforms personal advice into action with a single click.  Money Map automatically sets up accounts, funds routing rules, and automated transfers across bills, spending, saving, and investing.  Nice!!!

 

• Stripe teams up with Open AI to help launch a new commerce experience called Instant Checkout in ChatGPT.  “Starting today, ChatGPT users in the US can buy goods from US-based Etsy businesses—and, coming soon, over a million Shopify merchants, like Glossier, Vuori, Spanx, and SKIMS—directly in the chat” via the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP), a new, merchant-friendly open standard codeveloped by Stripe and OpenAI.

 

• InvestiFi partners with Horizon Utah Federal Credit Union (charter 24746; total assets $180M) to bring InvestiFi’s full suite of digital investing solutions to HCU’s 12,000 members.

 

• Wealthfront makes their S-1 public for their upcoming IPO which the company intends to list on Nasdaq under the ticker “WLTH.”
  • Per the filing, Wealthfront had $88.2B in assets on its platform and served 1.3M customers as of July 31.  Additionally, the company posted a very strong $194.4M in net income on $308.9M in revenue during in fiscal 2025 (which ended on Jan. 31).
  • This CNBC article is a pretty good summary.

 

• Some personnel moves:
  • LawFi named Doug Hathaway as Co-Founder and CTO/CPO.
  • ModernFi reappoints Rodney E. Hood to its Board of Directors following Mr. Hood’s service as Acting Comptroller of the Currency.
  • DailyPay named existing Chairman Nelson Chai as CEO.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Baselane (banking and financial platform for RE investors) raised $20M in Series B following their previously unannounced $14.4M series A.
  • Notable (pay-at-close financing for home sale prep) raised $6M in Series A funding round.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• So here’s some cool news.  I am heading down to the greater Austin area to hang out with my brother Davey and his family this weekend!!!  On the agenda is college football, campfires, food (maybe even some adult beverages), and plenty of stories… 
  • Speaking of stories…  When we were younger (until I was about 5 or so), Dave and I shared a bedroom while our older brother had his own room.  Well, we got some bunk beds and (even though Dave was older) I absolutely HAD to have the top bunk – because of course at 5 years old it was absolutely imperative that I establish my dominance as a man (LOL) to my brother who was 9 years older than me. 😅  Dave eventually conceded and let me have the top bunk…  And naturally I was too much of a man at the ripe age of 5 to keep that sissy protection railing on there….  Yep, you guessed it…  I fell out of that top bunk.  Not just once, but on a nightly basis for a long, long time due to an already abundance of stubbornness and hard-headedness (it’s a family tradition – and the hard-headed part may be the only thing that kept me alive 🤣).  In case you are wondering, YES, that is a terrifying way to wake up as you feel yourself going over the side (dreams of falling are nothing compared to the reality of waking up while falling – I am literally crying laughing as I am writing this 😂🤣)!!!  After the first handful of times, this became such a nightly occurrence that the shock and trauma eventually wore off; and literally became a nightly ritual.  I think I remember that we ended up putting some pillows on the floor to soften the blow.  I begged him not to tell Mom because I knew she would freak out and not let me sleep on the top bunk anymore LMAO!!!  Of course Dave confided in keeping my secret safe (gee – thanks??? HAHAHA!).  And he would simply give me a blanket (while I was lying on the floor) and I would go back to sleep.  Ahhh, boys will be boys and brothers will always be brothers. 😊✌️
• Thought I would mix it up a bit this week and focus on the perks, drawback, and not-so-subtle signs of aging…  So, here are the “aging” themed Dad / Bad jokes:
  • In a hostage situation, you are likely to be released first… 👍
  • People no longer view you as a hypochondriac… 😅
  • Kidnappers are not very interested in you… 😊
  • There is nothing left to learn the hard way… (I feel targeted by this one) 🤠
  • Carpe diem = Seize the day…  Imodium = Don’t sneeze today!!! 😬😲😆
  • And last but not least…  One of the best signs of aging is if you have ever had to ask yourself, “why am I the only naked person at this gender reveal party???” 🤷‍♂️🤣

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 
FedFis, LLC disclaimer – The views and opinions of Uncle Sean are of his own and may not necessarily represent the views, endorsements, and/or opinions of FedFis, LLC – we all know he’s a little bit different; but that’s why we love him.
 

Happy Friday!!!
 
Celebrating the first week of Fall and some cooler temps finally!!! 🎃🍂  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 9/26/25 (click here to subscribe):
 
Some quick economic data:
 

• 3rd (and final) estimate of 2Q25 GDP jumped up to 3.8% (estimate was 3.3%) with a big jump in real final sales to private domestic purchasers (kind of like “core GDP’) to 2.9% - all buoyed by consumer spending.

 

• The BLS August PCE came in as expected across the board at 2.7% YoY (2.6% last month) and 0.3% for the month with Core PCE at 2.9% YoY (same as last month) and 0.2% for the month.  This CNBC article states that the report further indicates that President Trump’s tariffs have had only a limited pass-through effect so far on consumer prices.

 

• Government shutdown?  Yep – here we are again…  Congress has just days left to pass a stopgap bill to keep the government fully funded past Tuesday, 9/30. 🙄

 

• Uncle Sean’s take (not that anyone asked 😊)… 
  • With all of the above (especially Congress not getting their job done 😠) – keep an eye on 9/30 closing in the bond market as this will be the new measuring stick (post FOMC rate cut) for unrealized losses in securities for 3Q reporting.

 
Back to the rest of the Update:
 

• FIS (NYSE: FIS) acquires Amount strengthening FIS’ account origination position for banks and CU’s “with a market-leading unified solution with embedded AI functionality for deposits, lending, and card solutions to support consumers and small and midsize businesses (SMBs).”
  • Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The PR stated that the “acquisition aligns with FIS’ strategy to add innovative, cloud-native and modular solutions to drive greater value for its clients across the money lifecycle.”
  • 👉 Recall last week where we talked about FIS’ Bank Modernization Framework (labeled as “core-agnostic”) and associated core banking modernization whitepaper.

 

• Fiserv (NYSE: FI) acquires Smith Consulting Group (SMG) expanding on its’ advisory services for banks and CU’s that are seeking guidance on their strategic direction and investment related to core processing and surrounding solutions.
  • “The addition of SCG reinforces Fiserv’s position as a leading provider of core banking and advisory services, enhancing the firm’s ability to deliver end-to-end transformation for community banks and credit unions.  SCG consulting services will span DNA, Signature, Bank Intelligence and other Fiserv banking platforms.” (bold emphasis added by Uncle Sean)
    • “SCG supports banking software system conversions and implementations, as well as consulting services focused on core, teller, customer service and call center platforms, online and mobile banking, and various other interfaces. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

 

• Finastra announced the launch of its modern ACH payment solution enabling them to now support all US payment clearings – ACH, wires, and real-time payments, within a unified payment hub, Finastra’s Global PAYplus.
  • The Finastra ACH Module includes “same-day ACH, early pay, and late return handling, while offering rich APIs for operational control and integration. Its user-friendly interface, enhanced scalability, and the ability to handle large-scale transaction volumes make the solution easily adaptable to meet the unique needs of both large and small financial institutions.”

 

• Virtual high-five 🙌 to R&T Deposit Solutions as they entered into an agreement with Citizens Bank, N.A. (FDIC 57957; total assets $218B), which will serve as their new custodian and settlement bank for the DDM® and CDMX℠ Programs per this LinkedIn post from their CEO, Susan Cosgrove.  Nice!!! 😊

 

• And a shout-out to our friends at InvestiFi…  Remember back in late July where Illiana Financial Credit Union partnered with InvestiFi for a full suite of investing tools for its members?  Well, this LinkedIn post states that Illiana Financial CU is now live with all three of InvestiFi’s digital investing products (securities, guided investing, and crypto) through their CU*Answers platform.  Congrats on a quick and successful implementation!!! 👍

 

• Congrats to the Vine Team as Crest Savings Bank (FDIC 28818; total assets $568M) selects Vine Financial and their AI-powered platform to support the banks entire commercial lending platform streamlining the full commercial loan lifecycle. 💥

 

• Axos Bank (NYSE: AX; FDIC 35546; total assets $24B) acquires Verdant Commercial Capital for $43.5M enhancing the banks existing equipment leasing business; and provides additional cross-sell opportunities for commercial deposits and floorplan lending in several diversified industry verticals.

 

• Flex of the week 💪 goes to Klarna as they announce 1 million US signups in just 11 weeks for their debit-first Klarna Card.  “Americans are signing up for the card at a rate of 13,000 a day, hitting a peak of 50,000 sign-ups on 23 September.”  Wow!!!!

 

• 👉 Speaking of flexing and BNPL…  equipifi (a direct FI solution as opposed to third-party leakage out of the FI) continues their impressive FI market expansion in the BNPL space with a pair of Texas announcements this week.  equipifi’s BNPL solution is available for both online and mobile for qualifying debit purchases to be split into installments for both pre- and post-purchase flexibility.  Be sure to check them out at equipifi.com and tell them Uncle Sean sent you! 🚀
  • Gulf Coast Educators FCU (charter 5648; total assets $1.2B) selects equipifi for their in-house BNPL solution for their 60,000 members.
  • Education First FCU (charter 24470; total assets $600M) selects equipifi in-house BNPL solution for their 32,000 members.
  • And congratulations 🎉 to my friend Joe Swint (okay, he’s pretty much everyone’s friend – LOL) as a new Account Executive at equipifi!  Let us know if there is anything we can help you with here at FedFis, Joe.  And happy belated birthday too!!! 🤠🎂

 

• Fold Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: FLD) announced the upcoming launch of the Fold Bitcoin Rewards Credit Card (Visa) powered by Stripe.  This adds to Fold’s fintech offerings including the Fold App, Gift Card, and Visa Prepaid Debit Card issued by Sutton Bank.

 

• Bolt (checkout, identity, and payments platform) announced the official launch of its all-in-one SuperApp bridging the fiat-crypto gap and giving users a unified way to shop, spend, save, earn and invest.
  • Banking services provided by Midland States Bank.  Crypto infrastructure is powered by Zero Hash.

 

• Couple of odd headlines for my counterparty / third-party risk superfreaks (like me 😊):
  • Ridin’ The Storm Out (yes, that’s a nod to REO Speedwagon)…  Keep an eye on storms in the Atlantic as Imelda could dump heavy rain early next week over the Southeastern coastline.
  • This is not good…  Air Force cyber leader warns threats against US operational technology networks are growing – emphasizing US military concerns about the vulnerability of critical infrastructure to China-backed actors (particularly Volt Typhoon and Salt Typhoon) that have had persistent access in critical information, key resources (CIKR) for five years.

 

• Some personnel moves:
  • Pipe named Vijay Vachani as Chief Revenue Officer.
  • Ncontracts appoints Sonja Tsiridis as Chief Technology Officer.
  • Lendio hires Joanna Fankhauser as Chief Operations Officer.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Cardless raised $60M in Series C funding round.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• A new species of bird in San Antonio region?  Indeed.  While no “official” name has been assigned, it is being informally referred to as a “Grue Jay” – a cross between a male Blue Jay and a female Green Jay.  Per this University of Texas research report, the new hybrid species is unique as it “may be among the first examples of a hybrid animal that exists because of recent changing patterns in the climate. The two different parent species are separated by 7 million years of evolution, and their ranges didn’t overlap as recently as a few decades ago.”
• Say it isn’t so!!! 😭 Long-term local “watering hole” in New Braunfels is set to close….  After27 years, Faust Brewing Co. will permanently close on October 31, 2025. 🍺
• Here are the Dad / Bad Jokes 😊:
  • Every salad can be a Caesar salad if you stab it enough… 😲😅
  • I bought a new boomerang…  But how exactly do I throw the old one out? 🪃🤷‍♂️
  • It doesn’t matter what temperature the room is…  It’s always room temperature. 🙄
  • And last but certainly not least…..
    • Redneck (or FinTech Cowboy) word of the day is “Twerk.”  As in, “Imma have two more beers, then it’s back twerk.” 🤣🤠❤️

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 
FedFis, LLC disclaimer – The views and opinions of Uncle Sean are of his own and may not necessarily represent the views, endorsements, and/or opinions of FedFis, LLC – we all know he’s a little bit different; but that’s why we love him.
 

Happy Friday!!!
 
It was certainly an exciting week – but first…  Don’t forget to tell your friends to sign up here for FREE to join over 18,000 of their peers in having the Uncle Sean Update delivered straight to their inbox every week! 🤠 Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 9/19/25:
 

• It’s Fed Week!!!  As widely expected, the FOMC voted to reduce rates by 25 basis points to 4.0% - 4.25%.  For me, it was kind of a benign meeting since this was so widely expected.  However, I did find this CNBC full interview with Fed Governor Stephen Miran (20:22) related to his dissent and outlier on SEP to be very interesting (and very professional and respectful).  Fed Governor Miran noted that he will be giving a speech this coming Monday describing a full accounting of his economic outlook.
  • For more info, here is:
    • Chairman Powell’s press conference transcript (26 pages)
    • The always entertaining Summary of Economic Projections
    • Full video of the FOMC Press Conference September 17, 2025 (52:14)

 

• 👉 Thread Bank (FDIC 9499; total assets $800M) partners with LoanPro to enhance lending operations with LoanPro’s API-first modern lending and credit platform.
  • Per the PR, “The LoanPro system of record will standardize both internal community bank lending programs and external embedded finance lending programs, making this partnership the first of its kind for sponsor banking data allowing Thread to innovate faster while ensuring compliance” 💥 (bold emphasis added by Uncle Sean).  Check out LoanPro’s impressive API-first platform here - Loan Management Software | LoanPro.
  • 👀 Bankers Helping Bankers (BHB) played a pivotal role in facilitating this partnership, bringing together aligned institutions and helping to identify the right technology fit to support long-term growth.
    • This comes just a few weeks after Thread Bank selects Finxact from Fiserv to power embedded banking strategies; where BHB also played an instrumental role in fostering the expansion of the relationship and formalizing the shared vision between Thread Bank, Fiserv, and Infinant. 🚀

 

• Speaking of Bankers Helping Bankers…  Uncle Sean gives a HUGE shout-out to InvestiFi as BHB's newest Premier Sponsor supporting community banks!!! 🙌🎉 Be sure to check out InvestiFi’s InvestTech platform at https://investifi.co/ - allowing for trading to and from deposit accounts, enabling community banks and CU’s to retain more assets and attract new account holders.

 

• Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) raises U.S. Minimum Hourly Wage to $25, increasing starting salaries to more than $50K – making good on their 2017 pledge to hit $25 by 2025.
  • With the increase to $25, starting salary for full-time U.S. employees at the bank will have gone up by more than $20,000 since 2017.

 

• 🤔 JPMorgan Chase (JPMC) and Plaid announced an extension to their data access agreement for sharing of consumer permissioned data…  Details of the agreement or the fee structure was not disclosed.
  • This Banking Dive article (Plaid to pay for JPMorgan data) reiterated that many in the fintech space were (and still are) quite alarmed back in July when JPMC informed them of substantial new fees to access consumer data the bank had previously transmitted without cost.
    • Just speculating here, but I would expect to see similar agreements with the other top banks and fintech firms needing to access customer data…

 

• 💪 Flex time…  This week it is Zelle® Hits New Highs in the First Half of 2025 with 2 billion transactions (a 19% increase) and a dollar volume of nearly $600B (up by 23%).

 

• Another Texas bank acquisition…  National Bank Holdings Corporation (NYSE: NBHC, FR 3973888), bank subsidiary is NBH Bank (FDIC 59052; total assets $10B), to acquire Vista Bancshares, Inc. (PCO FR 1135897), bank subsidiary is Vista Bank (FDIC 1210; total assets $2.4B) for approximately $369.1M in a mixed deal of cash and stock.
  • A quick sort in the FedFis M&A database shows 10 announced deals in Texas since June 1, 2025 – with half of those deals coming from out of state suitors.

 

• 👀 FIS (NYSE: FIS) leans into banking modernization by announcing their proprietary Bank Modernization Framework empowering “financial institutions to tailor their modernization journeys to their current needs, allowing them to begin with any part of their technology stack, whether it’s digital channels, data and AI, or open banking integrations.”
  • The solution, labeled as “core-agnostic,” enables banks to bypass traditional “rip and replace” approach and modernize incrementally as desired – anywhere along the tech stack.
    • More info can be found here in this core banking modernization white paper by FIS.

 

• Mercantile Bank (FDIC 34598; total assets $6.1B) selects Jack Henry (Nasdaq: JKHY) core processing platform.

 

• First Fed Bank (FDIC 28405; total assets $2.2B) launches Apiture's Business Banking solution (in the process of being acquired by CSI) for online and mobile banking for its business customers.

 

• Savers Co-operative Bank (FDIC 26455; total assets $788M) partners with Narmi via their Narmi Grow platform to drive new customer acquisition and streamline its digital account opening processes.

 

• Wolf & Company, P.C. (national CPA and advisory firm) announced a strategic partnership with Cable to integrate Cable’s real-time control testing capabilities into Wolf & Company's trusted network of recommended technologies for financial institutions.  👏
  • "Partnering with Wolf & Company was an obvious choice, given our shared customer base and the increased value that we can bring to banks and credit unions by working together to automate compliance testing. We are excited to get our industry-leading technology in the hands of their exceptional team," said Natasha Vernier, Cable CEO.  🙌

 

• And more compliance partnering…  Hummingbird and Thomson Reuters Special Services (TRSS) have partnered together to deliver an integrated compliance solution that accelerates customer screening with AI-enhanced workflows.
  • “By combining TRSS LincsConnect™ AI-powered screening capabilities with Hummingbird’s unified risk and compliance operations platform, teams can reduce manual work, dramatically cut false positives, and focus on the risks that matter most.”  NICE!!!! 😊

 

• Clair and Intuit (Nasdaq: INTU) announced the availability of Clair On-Demand Pay (EWA originated by Pathward®, N.A.) as part of Intuit Enterprise Suite and QuickBooks Payroll on the Intuit platform.

 

• LawFi® announces Cordell & Cordell® as Key Partner for its limited Florida rollout offering a legal fee financing solution.  The partnership will enable Cordell & Cordell to gain early access to the platform and provide valuable feedback to shape the final statewide release.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Stablecore (infrastructure platform enabling banks and CU’s to offer stablecoins, tokenized deposits, and digital asset products) raised $20M in capital.
    • Led by Norwest and with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Curql, BankTech Ventures, Bank of Utah, EJF Ventures, Bankers Helping Bankers (BHB) Fund and the backing of more than 200 limited partner financial institutions and others, this news comes at a crucial time following the passage of the GENIUS Act in July 2025.
  • SEON (AML compliance and fraud prevention platform) raised $80M in Series C funding.
  • Splash Financial (AI-enabled lending marketplace) raised $70M in Series C round.
  • Extend (infrastructure platform enabling banks to offer expense management solutions for their business customers) raised $20M in new capital and hires Francois Horikawa as CFO (was previously Head of Finance for PayPal’s consumer business unit).
  • PayNearMe (payment acceptance and processing platform) raised $50M in Series E and renamed its platform to PayXM™

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• Remembering Robert Redford who passed away this week at the age of 89…  An Oscar-winning actor, director, founder of the Sundance Film Festival and The Redford Center (both of those links have great pics and tributes to Robert Redford) for climate change and the environment – and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama in 2016.
  • My all-time favorite is Jerimiah Johnson (“can you skin Griz, pilgrim?”) followed closely by The Natural, A River Runs Through It (directed by Redford), and Spy Game.
• You made it!!!  Here are the Dad / Bad Jokes 😊:
  • ICYMI (for my mathemagician friends ❤️🤓🏆)….  9/16/25 was Pythagorean Day…  9/16/25 = (3²+ 4²= 5²) or 9+16=25.
  • A guy I went to school with 40 years ago contacted me to complain about the time I put superglue on his pen…  He just can’t let it go… 🤠
  • Dad Law - You’re not really yawn-stretching if you don’t include crazy dinosaur noises… 🦕🦖
  • Contortionists are not good scuba divers…  You know, because of the bends… 🤿🙃

 
 
Have a GREAT weekend and please stay safe!
 
Uncle Sean
 
Sometimes known as Sean Mayo – contact me directly for scope and pricing of custom reports / analysis projects at [email protected] | 214-604-6961 – or you can contact FedFis Sales Team at 512-960-0911 | [email protected] #FedFisHasTheData FedFis
 
FedFis, LLC disclaimer – The views and opinions of Uncle Sean are of his own and may not necessarily represent the views, endorsements, and/or opinions of FedFis, LLC – we all know he’s a little bit different; but that’s why we love him.