Uncle Sean's Update - 5/9/25

​Happy Friday!!!
 
❤️❤️❤️ Happy Mother’s Day wishes to all the Mom’s this weekend ❤️❤️❤️!!!  Keeping this week short and sweet so we can begin the weekend celebrations!  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 5/9/25:
 

• It’s Fed Week!!!  As expected, the FOMC unanimously voted to maintain the fed funds rate at 4.25% - 4.50% as the hard data continues to show an economy that is in a solid position, plus continued uncertainty over tariff policies.  Powell stated, “The risks of higher unemployment and higher inflation appear to have risen, and we believe that the current stance of monetary policy leaves us well positioned to respond in a timely way to potential economic developments.”
  • If you want more info – here is Chairman Powell’s Press Conference Transcript (25 pages); as well as the video (47:46).

 

• 💪 Check out my friends over at FIntegrate Technology as they reported nearly 80% revenue growth in the first quarter of 2025 compared to 1Q2024 helping FI’s manage credit and collections, dispute management, and data migration (FusionCRS, FusionDMS, and Fusion LRS solutions).  Congrats!!!! 🚀

 

• OakNorth Bank (London, England) announced they have surpassed $1 Billion in lending to US businesses since July 2023, marking another major milestone in its US expansion.
  • Keep in mind that OakNorth recently announced the acquisition of Community Unity Bank (FDIC 59305; total assets $67M) to further expand their US presence.
    • Okay – I admit it…  I was going to say something like “the British are coming!” – but I felt it would be in poor taste (see what I did there!)….  😅😬

 

• Santander Bank (FDIC 29950; total assets $105B) is closing 18 US branches by August as part of its ongoing digital strategy.  Recall back in early February where we talked about Santander’s new Direct Digital Bank, OpenBank, had hit $2B in deposits after only opening a few months prior in October!!! 💥
  • Ahh – but this whole internet thing is just a fad… 😂🤣

 

• 👉 Congratulations to Autobooks as they have acquired Allied Payment Network adding business bill pay to their existing suite of invoicing, bill pay, and accounting in one seamless platform.
  • Per this Autobooks blog post, “With the acquisition of Allied Payment Network, Autobooks gains a robust bill pay infrastructure that currently supports over 500 financial institutions, 150,000 customers, and processes more than $5 billion in payments each year. But this move is about more than scale — it’s about creating the first true all-in-one platform for small businesses. By integrating receivables, payables, accounting, and cash flow management directly into digital banking, we’re delivering a more seamless and complete financial experience for both institutions and their business customers.”
    • Also worth noting that Autobooks picked up $40M in fresh capital to support its continued expansion, including the acquisition of Allied Payment Network.

 

• CPI Card Goup announced the acquisition of Arroweye Solutions, Inc. for $45.55M in an all-cash transaction.  Per the PR, “The addition of Arroweye’s on-demand payment card solutions to CPI’s portfolio of payment card production, personalization, instant issuance, prepaid, and digital solutions will allow CPI to offer more choices to a larger combined base of thousands of customers. In addition, CPI anticipates leveraging its resources and market position to increase Arroweye’s share and expand penetration of its solutions to new customers. Arroweye’s revenues are expected to be in the mid-$50 million range in 2025, on an annualized basis.”

 

• Numerica Credit Union (charter 66841; total assets $4.1B) partners with MANTL for business and consumer account opening with full integration with its Jack Henry Symitar core.

 

• Blend Labs (NYSE: BLND) announced a new integration with Glia embedding Glia’s chat, voice, video and AI tools directly into Blend’s Digital Banking platform for FI’s.
  • “This seamless, in-application support is powered by Glia’s ChannelLess® Architecture, which unifies voice, digital service and AI into a single experience—eliminating data silos and preserving context across every interaction. Financial institutions can engage customers across devices, personalize support at scale and maximize both efficiency and satisfaction. For example, if a borrower encounters a question about required documentation, clicking the 'Let's Talk!' icon instantly opens a chat window with a loan specialist, all without navigating away from their application.”  Nice!!! 👍

 

• Perpay selects Marqeta to power the Perpay Credit Card (issued by Celtic Bank), a leading unsecured credit card designed to help people build or improve their credit by automating payments directly from a paycheck.

 

• Freedom Bank (FDIC 58010; total assets $140M) selects Vine Financial’s commercial lending technology allowing its bankers and borrowers to collaborate more effectively (including automation of many manual tasks) from application to close via AI-powered financial spreading, customer loan workflows, and document generation capabilities.

 

• Samsung is adding a new Tap to Transfer feature, as part of the Samsung Wallet and powered by Green Dot Arc, to enable fast peer-to-peer (P2P) payments to other digital wallets or contactless debit cards, with additional features and functionality planned.

 

• Verifone and Stripe announced a strategic partnership where “Stripe services will natively run on Verifone payment devices, offering Stripe customers even more flexibility and choice in deploying durable and performant in-person payments. The partnership will also expand Verifone’s reach to a new base of modern, fast-growing businesses seeking enterprise-grade hardware and global payment capabilities.”

 

• 👀 Upstart (Nasdaq: UPST; an AI lending marketplace) has signed a 1-yr deal with OnePay (Walmart Fintech arm)  Per this Upstart 8-K, “…Upstart and OnePay will collaborate on co-branded offerings, including co-branded direct mail campaigns.  Upstart does not expect the partnership to have a material impact on its financial condition or results of operations for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2025.”

 

• Some interesting personnel moves:
  • It’s official…  Fiserv (NYSE: FI) announced Michael P. Lyons has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Fiserv after the confirmation of Frank Bisignano, Fiserv’s prior CEO, as Commissioner of the Social Security Administration.
  • BILL (NYSE: BILL) appointed Mike Cieri as EVP, GM of Software Solutions to lead and drive software strategy across the BILL platform, reporting directly to CEO and Founder, René Lacerte.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Rippling (global workforce management solution) raised a massive $450M in Series G funding round at an incredible $16.8B valuation.  CHA-CHING!!!! 💰💰💰
  • Agree.com (AI-powered e-signature platform that includes invoicing and payment processing) raised $7.2M Seed Round to compete in the e-signature and B2B payments space as a differentiator.
  • Glide (embedded finance infrastructure for FI’s) $15M Series A to expand its product roadmap, scale its AI capabilities, and expand its world-class team.

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, 69, was elected as the 267th leader of the Catholic Church as Pope Leo XIV — the first-ever American pope (although he has lived abroad most of his life in service of others and holds dual citizenship)!!!  Pope Leo XIV has a fascinating story (check out this CBS Report), and apparently per his brother’s clarification – is actually a Chicago White Sox fan. ⚾  It’s okay pontiff – nobody’s perfect! 😲😬😅🙏

• Okay, let’s close this week out and kick Mother’s Day weekend into high gear!!! 🍷🎉❤️  Here are the Dad / Bad Jokes:
  • Sometimes, just to annoy my therapist, I ask: “So, how does my lack of progress make you feel?” 😂🤪
  • I had a dream I was at work…  So when I woke up I called in sick…  Ain’t no way I’m working twice in one day!!! 🚫😊
  • We used to just have village idiots…  But now with the internet, they’ve gone global! 🌎🤷‍♂️😅
  • And last but not least…  ChatGPT asks Chuck Norris questions… 🤠

 
Have a WONDERFUL Mother’s Day 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.