Uncle Sean's Update - 6/13/25

Happy Friday the 13th 😬!!!
 
Hey, hey, hey – it’s Happy Father’s Day weekend 🙏 to all the Dad’s out there getting it done week after week, month after month, and decade after decade 💪♥️!!!  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 6/13/25:
 

• In a bit of good news (hey – I’ll take it), consumer prices (while still increasing) actually came in a little less than expected.  The BLS May CPI Report came in at 0.1% for the month putting the annual rate at 2.4% (last month was 0.2% and 2.3%, estimate was 0.2% and 2.4%) with Core CPI at 0.1% and 2.8% (estimate was 0.3% and 2.9%).  CNBC has a good summary ahead of the FOMC meeting next week.

 

• 👉 UFS announced they have acquired Quest Analytics.  “With the combination of Quest Analytics and UFS’s leading technology and best-in-class service delivery organization, banks now have a single partner to power their entire customer engagement and banking operations platform. Offered through nine flexible modules, Quest Analytics provides a complete suite of customer success solutions including marketing, lead generation, prospecting, cross-selling, servicing, customer profitability, data analytics, and much more.”  Nice combination!!! 👏

 

• 👀 Yessir – Uncle Sean is watching Kotapay’s Kavinu bank-direct BaaS platform (a bank-first approach to embedded payments), a division of First International Bank & Trust (FIBT; FDIC 10248; total assets $5.5B), as FIBT named service bank for Raisin’s global savings and investment platform.
  • Peter Stenehjem, CEO of FIBT, added, “We’ve been a proud partner since June 2024 and are excited to see our Kavinu platform come to life as Raisin’s new service bank. By reclaiming embedded payments from fractured middleware models, we're ensuring financial innovators like Raisin have the stability, efficiency, and speed they need for long term success.” (bold emphasis added by Uncle Sean)  Love this!!!! 😊

 

• WaveCX (personalized, digital product engagement solutions for FI’s) announced a partnership with CSI with full implementation coming Fall 2025.   By integrating with CSI NuPoint® and Meridian® core platforms, CSI clients can access the WaveCX platform to increase customer engagement within digital banking channels.

 

• Pretty sure everyone saw this one coming as It was just a matter of time after the Capital One breakup…  OnePay (Walmart’s fintech arm) and Synchrony to launch a new credit card program this fall with the credit card experience embedded inside the OnePay app.  The card offering includes two options: a general-purpose (open-loop) credit card that can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted and a store card (closed-loop) that will only allow Walmart purchases.

 

• Cross River Bank (FDIC 58410; total assets $8.5B) announced the launch of Request for Payment (RfP) on the Real-Time Payments (RTP)® network.  Plaid will be the first to implement RfP (through its bank payments platform, Plaid Transfer) to power instant car purchases for Carvana customers.

 

• Velera adds real-time account validation (for both personal and business accounts) to its suite of digital channels, enabling Velera credit unions to process payments across the ACH network in real time.
  • “This will enable credit unions to immediately confirm account status and ownership by eliminating the traditional five-day wait period when a new account is added or updated, significantly reducing the time between account setup and transaction initiation to provide a more seamless member experience.”

 

• Shout-out to Arise Community Credit Union set to officially launch on Juneteenth as Minnesota’s first Black-led community credit union!
  • Be sure to visit the Arise booth at the Juneteenth Family Celebration at the Minnesota State Capitol on Saturday, June 21, 2025, from 12 PM to 6 PM.

 

• Treasury Prime announced that People Trust Community FCU (charter 24940; total assets $2.6M) has joined the Treasury Prime Bank Network as Treasury Prime’s first credit union partner.

 

• Plaid leverages their market presence and launched Plaid Protect to proactively identify suspicious activity using machine earning. 
  • “A real-time fraud intelligence system that helps detect and prevent fraud from the moment a user first interacts with your app or service. By drawing on fraud signals across a billion devices in the Plaid network, Protect goes beyond what any single company can see – surfacing fraud patterns that exist between linked bank accounts, connections to financial apps and services and more.” 👍

 

• Affirm (BNPL) gets the flex award 💪 this week as they have reached 2 million debit cards issued, an increase of about 600,000 cards (or 43%) since January! 💥

 

• 🪙 A new bitcoin rewards card coming soon…  Check out the Coinbase One Card with up to 4% bitcoin rewards (coming Fall 2025) – an American Express credit card issued by First Electronic Bank and powered by Cardless.

 

• Congrats to Chime as CHYM shares peaked at $45 and closed at $37 in their first day of trading yesterday, finishing well above their initial public offering (IPO) price of $27, resulting in a market cap of $13.5B at the close. 💰

 

• Some personnel moves:
  • Travillian hires Amber Buker as its first-ever Chief Research Officer.
  • ACI Worldwide appointed Robert (“Bobby”) Leibrock as Chief Financial Officer effective July 1, 2025.
  • Imprint hires Will Larson as its new Chief Technology Officer.
  • Better hires Leah Price as Vice President to lead its Tinman™ AI Platform.
  • Corpay names Peter Walker as Chief Financial Officer effective July 21, 2025.

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Parlay Finance (AI-powered loan intelligence system) raised $2M Seed round.
  • GrailPay (ML risk analytics infrastructure for ACH) raised $6.7M in Seed round.
  • Piston (cardless payments platform for fleets and gas stations) raised $6.1M in Seed round.
  • Congratulations to Vine Financial (AI-powered commercial loan platform; and a Bankers Helping Bankers Fund company) as they have secured Seed Funding and finalized its Board of Directors - check out the impressive team of industry investors and the BoD.  Good things are happening at Vine Financial!!! 🚀

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• Ah - Father’s Day!!!  Looking forward to backyard grilling, ample family time, and maybe even some key lime pie this weekend!!!! 😊 😋
• 🏀 The Indiana Pacers continue to give the OKC Thunder all they want as they now lead the series 2-1 despite their underdog status coming into the series.  Game 4 of the NBA Finals is tonight at 7:30 CDT.
• And here are the Dad / Bad Jokes for the week:
  • I love board games.  My favorite is the one where people put meat and cheese on a board, maybe some fruit and crackers, and definitely some wine…  I win every time!!! 🤠
  • At my age, running is a great way to meet new people.  Today I met two EMTs, three nurses, and a cardiologist!!! 🏃‍♂️‍➡️😅
  • Very few things upset my wife, so it makes me feel very special to be one of them! 🏆😉
  • Looking back at all the successes and failures in my life, I can’t help but be proud that at least the potty training thing has stuck!!! 😂🤣

 
 
Have a GREAT Father’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.