Uncle Sean's Update - 2/27/26

​Happy Friday!!!
 
Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 2/27/26 (subscribe here for free to join over 17,000 of your peers):
 

• 👉 Headlining the Uncle Sean Update this week is a shout-out to my friend Mr. Chris Davis with his new role as EVP / Chief Operations Officer at DCI per this LinkedIn post – congrats!!! 🎉

 

• 👀 Brinks (NYSE: BCO) announced an agreement to acquire NCR Atleos (NYSE: NATL – the ATM side of NCR) in a cash and stock deal valued at approximately $6.6B. 💰

 

• 💪 I love seeing these two well respected companies collaborate together!!!  LoanPro and NXTMOVES have partnered together to enable fintech companies and modern businesses to launch and operate credit card programs with integrated credit servicing, issuing infrastructure, and program management to power compliant, scalable credit card programs. 💥

 

• Another ILC bank!!!  This week, the FDIC has approved Edward Jones Bank Application for federal deposit insurance as a proposed Utah-chartered industrial bank (contingent upon full approval of a charter by the Utah Department of Financial Institutions).  Some points worth noting:
  • Initial capital requirement of $330M, maintain a minimum of 9% tier 1 leverage ratio.
  • Edward Jones Bank will originate and service securities-based loans to existing clients of Edward Jones; and will offer insured-sweep deposits and certificates of deposit to existing Edward Jones clients.
    • Currently, Edward Jones provides deposit services (including Visa debit card) via US Bank as their sponsor bank.

 

• WOW 😲 – the folks at Array have been busy on the acquisition trail!  Less than two weeks from their announcement to acquire Chimney, Array is at it again with a pair of acquisition announcements as they continue to expand their embedded finance platform and infrastructure 🚀!!!  This week they announced the acquisition of Penny Finance (2/23) and the acquisition of EarnUp (2/25).
  • “Penny Finance provides interactive tools that help consumers better understand their spending, build savings, plan for future goals, and improve financial confidence through accessible education. By combining behavioral insights with practical guidance, Penny supports consumers across key stages of their financial journey—from day-to-day money management to longer-term planning.”
  • “EarnUp’s platform enables consumers to break large, inflexible monthly payments—such as mortgages, student loans, auto loans, and personal loans—into smaller, paycheck-aligned contributions. Funds are set aside as income is received and remitted once the full payment amount is reached, helping consumers reduce financial stress and avoid late payments. EarnUp also permits users to easily accelerate their debt payments, which can save interest, build equity faster, and pay off loans years faster.”

 

• The FDIC released its Quarterly Banking Profile report for 4Q2025.  Key points include:
  • Strong earnings – full-year net income of $295.6B, a 10.2% increase from 2024 with ROA increasing 8bps to 1.20%
    • Earnings increase was driven by higher net interest income and higher noninterest income, which offset higher noninterest expense
    • NIM increases were due to cost of funds falling at a faster rate than yield on earning assets
  • Loan growth accelerated to 2.0% from the prior quarter, and annual growth increased to 5.9%
  • Deposit growth as domestic deposits grew 1.8%, the sixth consecutive quarterly increase
  • Unrealized losses on securities dropped to $306.1 billion – the lowest level since Q1 2022 (although I am amazed we are still in this bad of a position)
  • Asset quality remained generally favorable, though some CRE and consumer portfolios (auto and credit card) have elevated delinquency rates (particularly with larger institutions which hold lower percentages of concentrations – and have a greater ability to absorb losses if necessary).
  • Number of Problem Banks increased by a net of three in the 4th quarter to 60 banks (represents 1.4% of all banks which is in the normal range of 1% - 2%).
    • For comparison purposes, FedFis is tracking 65 banks with a FedFis Rating© of 3.88 or worse (scale of 1.00 – 5.00) which is the bottom 1% of all banks in the US.  Shoutout to that FedFis Financial Analysis Team!!! 😊

 

• MANTL is partnering with MeridianLink to offer an optional integrated point-of-sale (POS) solution to mutual clients.  “This modern, application programming interface (API)-driven loan application experience connects MANTL’s digital front end with MeridianLink’s underwriting engine and LOS workflows. The solution allows for instant approvals, automated Know Your Customer (KYC) checks, seamless application transfers, and a unified experience across loans and deposits.”

 

• BOND.AI and OMNICOMMANDER have partnered together to offer BOND.AI’s Autopilot platform to OMNICOMMANDER’s clients, pairing together best-in-class digital experiences with AI-driven customer intelligence.  Nice!!!! 🤙

 

• First Fidelity Bank (FDIC 23473; total assets $2.9B) has successfully gone live with Bud Financial’s Enrich and Engage solutions enabling the bank to “transform raw transaction data into clear insights that equip the bank with actionable data to personalize engagement, strengthen relationships, and support financial wellness while helping customers better understand their spending.”

 

• Stablecore (digital asset core for banks and credit unions) has joined the Jack Henry™ Fintech Integration Network (FIN) to bring stablecoins and digital assets to FI’s.
  • “…Stablecore will be able to provide secure, direct connectivity to the SilverLake System® via jXchange™ and Symitar® via SymXchange™, enabling a seamless digital asset experience within the Banno Digital Platform™ and other leading digital banking platforms without requiring institutions to change their underlying core technology.”

 

• Alloy (identity and fraud prevention platform provider behind over 800 fintechs and financial institutions) announced the launch of Alloy AI Assistant to help organizations make faster and more confident decisions.
  • “The AI Assistant is embedded directly within Alloy’s risk and identity infrastructure and is able to understand and synthesize data to recommend a decision that a human can approve or configure to automatically accept.”

 

• MetaMask and Mastercard partner to launch the MetaMask Debit Card in the US, powered by Baanx and issued by Cross River Bank.

 

• Heartland Credit Union (charter 66710; total assets $636M) has selected InvestiFi to enable its members to have a modern, accessible investing experience directly within their existing digital banking ecosystem.

 

• My friends at equipifi (the BNPL platform built specifically for financial institutions) have been busy with a couple of announcements this week 👏:
  • Prime Financial Credit Union (charter 66449; total assets $159M) is launching FlexPay Plans, their internal BNPL solution that allows for both pre-purchase and post-purchase financing options on qualified transactions with no credit check (based entirely on the member transaction history and relationship).  Available 24/7 within the PFCU mobile app and powered by equipifi.
  • America’s Credit Union (charter 9373; total assets $706M) launched a new in-house BNPL solution embedded within its existing digital banking platform – powered by equipifi.

 

• Ocean State Credit Union (charter 66595; total assets $342M) selects Synergent (JKHY Symitar) for core processing as well as “integrated managed services, including debit card services, check processing, statement processing, and check printing.”

 

• ICYMI (but I don’t know how you could as it has been covered ad nauseam)… Block (NYSE: SQ), formerly known as Square and parent company of Square Financial Services, Inc. (FDIC 59177; total assets $1.7B) announced they are laying off about 4,000 employees - almost half of its workforce; and will operate “with smaller, highly talented teams using AI to automate more work…”
  • 🤔 First off – I feel bad for the employees that have built Block.  Secondly, call me skeptical, but I also recall the Klarna AI debacle…  It just ‘smells a little off’ when you have to suddenly terminate half of your company in the name of AI efficiencies.  Time will tell…

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Yendo (vehicle-secured credit card platform) announced a $200M funding commitment to support new credit card originations.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• Hard to believe it’s been 4 years since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. 🙏
• At the risk of irritating my friends in the Northeast that are still buried in snow, it is a lovely 79 degrees here today in the Upper East Texas Pineywoods with a humidity of 22% and winds at 5 mph!!!
• And of course here are the Dad / Bad jokes to close out the month of February:
  • Me: These extra-large Cheerios are delicious, and you don’t even need milk!  Aunt Patty: Umm - those are called donuts… 🤷‍♂️😜
  • If time is money, are ATM’s time machines? 🤔😅
  • When I eat Doritos, I tell people I’m “doing crunches!” 🤠
  • (embracing the entirety of my immaturity on this one; and dedicating it to my brother Dave because I haven’t been fired in several weeks 😊)…  Clown farts smell funny!!! 🤡🤦‍♂️🤣

 
 
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 and its affiliates – we all know he’s a little bit different; but that’s why we love him.