Uncle Sean's Update - 6/19/26

Happy Friday!!!
 
It’s a double holiday weekend with Happy Juneteenth and Happy Father’s Day 💪 wishes to all the Dad’s out there getting it done week after week and year after year 🫡!!!  Here is the Uncle Sean Update for 6/19/26 (subscribe here for free to join 17,000+ weekly subscribers):
 

• It’s Fed Week and we get our first look at how new Fed Chairman Warsh intends on running the show (focus on brevity and drops forward guidance).  As expected, the FOMC unanimously voted  keep interest rates at their current range of 3.5% - 3.75%.  Some key points:
  • Inflation and price stability seems to be the key driver going forward.
  • Chairman Warsh is appointing a task force in each of 5 areas that are central to the broad conduct of monetary policy.  Work is expected to begin in the next couple of weeks with most (if not all) hopefully concluding by year end:
    • Fed communications
    • The Fed Balance Sheet
    • Use and reliance on existing data sources
    • Productivity and jobs (in an era of transformation)
    • The Feds inflation frameworks
  • Here is the Summary of Economic Projections (which of course is not policy but a best guess on where things are headed based on information available today) – note that Chairman Warsh abstained from giving an estimate himself.  And here is the Transcript of Chairman Warsh's Press Conference (21 pages) and the Press Conference Video (YouTube 42:37).

 

• Shoutout to my friends at DCI 🫶 as they partner with Finosec as their preferred cybersecurity partner giving “community banks a practical, modern way to address critical governance needs, including third-party risk management, access management, and cybersecurity oversight.” 👏
  • You can join DCI and Finosec for an informative webinar and demonstration next Thursday, June 25, at 12 pm CT. Click here to register.

 

• Texas Bank (headquartered just down the road from me in beautiful Henderson, TX 👍; FDIC 21074; total assets $953M) selects Narmi for both consumer and business digital account opening (Narmi Grow).
  • 👉 Hey Ramon Cocolan Jr, CTP – let’s grab lunch sometime (my treat), we are practically neighbors!!! 😊

 

• Blend (NYSE: BLND) announced their expanded partnership with MeridainLink by integrating with MeridianLink Consumer, MeridianLink Mortgage, and DecisionLender – enabling lenders to “more efficiently and securely share data between Blend’s solutions and MeridianLink to drive quality and efficiency in the loan origination process.”

 

• 💥 Mercury announced the launch of Mercury Command enabling customers to chat with their Mercury account and complete financial tasks via AI.  “With Command, customers can tell Mercury what to do in natural language, and the work gets done with their approval — check your cash position, change your auto-transfer rules, categorize transactions, send an invoice — all from a single conversation without navigating menus or switching between tools.”  WOW!!!!!
  • Recall recently where Mercury raised $200M in series D (5/20/26) at a $5.2B valuation and has received OCC conditional approval (4/27/26) to establish Mercury Bank, N.A.
    • 👉 Indeed, the new world of treasury services / business banking and consumer banking is evolving rapidly!!! 🚀
      • Eric Cook, MBA – I am thinking of you as I write this!!!

 

• Thredd (AI-first issuer processor) announced a strategic partnership with Sutton Bank (BaaS sponsor bank; FDIC 5962; total assets $1.7B) where Sutton Bank will serve as BIN sponsor (issuing bank partner) for Thredd clients seeking to launch and scale prepaid and debit card programs in the U.S.; and Thredd will provide the issuer processing platform and program infrastructure.

 

• WebBank (BaaS sponsor bank; FDIC 34404; total assets $2.6B) selects Sedric’s AI-powered compliance platform to accelerate the review and approval of marketing materials across its fintech partner ecosystem, ensuring faster time to approval while maintaining regulatory standards and creating a reliable audit trail.

 

• Jack Henry (Nasdaq: JKHY) gets a 2fer this week:
  • CorTrust Bank (FDIC 6063; total assets $1.6B) selects JKHY for core and Banno for digital banking including JHA Card Processing Solutions™ to unify debit and credit card services, creating a more consistent experience across channels and devices.
  • First American Bank and Trust (FDIC 8149; total assets $1.4B) selects JKHY for core processing and digital (via Banno) as well as JKHY’s Tap2Local™ platform to will support the bank's goal of growing its small business portfolio.

 

• 👀 Deluxe (NYSE: DLX) to acquire Celero Commerce, a financial technology company focused on optimized payment solutions for small to mid-sized businesses and strategic partners, for $625M. 
  • The transaction advances the ongoing Deluxe transformation strategy to shift the revenue mix towards higher growth Payments and Data segments. Post-closing (expected 3Q2026), the combined Payments and Data businesses are expected to increase to 57% of 2026 revenues on a proforma basis, compared to 31% in 2020.

 

• Widely rumored last week but confirmed this week…  Nuvei to acquire Payoneer (Nasdaq: PAYO) for approximately $2.75B with closing expected in mid-2027.

 

• Payfinia (CUSO delivering embedded instant payments and digital wallet solutions) has been selected for The Circuit Accelerator Program, a fintech accelerator designed to help forward-thinking technology companies validate solutions, launch pilot programs, and build strategic partnerships within the credit union ecosystem.

 

• CheckAlt has joined the U.S. Bank Connected Partnership Network, an online marketplace of fintech and third-party payment and treasury solutions that are fully integrated with U.S. Bank (FDIC 6548, total assets $683B).  The network helps corporate treasury teams easily identify and integrate technology already connected with the bank.

 

• Zelle goes international and announces ZLUSD stablecoin with India being the first country where U.S. consumers can use Zelle to send money to family and friends overseas (expected by the end of this year).  The ZelleUSD (ZLUSD) stablecoin will support future international payment capabilities in other markets.

 

• Some personnel moves:
  • Fiserv promotes Takis Georgakopoulos to CEO as exiting CEO Michael P. Lyons heads to Truist as their new President and CEO.
  • impactFI welcomes Jana Graff as Strategic Partner and “advisor to community banks, helping them use their core technology more intentionally, turning a system they’re often just managing into one that’s actively working for them.”

 

• Notable FinTech funding for the week:
  • Interchecks (instant payments platform) raised $50M in Series C funding round sporting “triple-digit net revenue growth year-over-year for the past seven years” and also announced the launch of Account Funding Transactions that “enables businesses to fund eligible accounts using debit credentials, with transaction processing designed to support fast, secure funding experiences.”

 
 
Random Uncle Sean stuff:

• Congrats to the New York Knicks for winning the 2026 NBA championship 🏀🏆 – their first since 1973!  These pics from the NYC celebration parade are very cool!!!
• It’s early, but we had our first named storm of the hurricane season with tropical storm Arthur spawning up the Texas coast.  I was talking to Matthew Smith earlier this week about living in Houston when I was younger and recalling so many storms and floods.  One of the most cementing (and terrifying) memories I have is of the floating fire ant balls during floods – YES, it’s a thing 😲 🫣!!! Here is some proof to fuel your nightmares - Floating Fire Ant Rafts Are Horrifying, Dangerous, Really Cool | HowStuffWorks.
• Yessir – here are the Dad / Bad Jokes to close out the week:
  • When you put on western wear clothing, you are ranch dressing… 🤠
  • If you come across a snakeskin it means the snake shed it to grow bigger.  It’s the same thing if you come across my clothes at Goodwill… 😅
  • Why is it called a “sell by date” and not a “spoiler alert”…??? 🤔😄
  • And my favorite for the week:
    • I told my psychiatrist that I’ve been hearing voices…  He told me that I don’t have a psychiatrist. 😲🙃🤣

 
 
“The world needs good people - be one of them.”
 
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 and its affiliates – we all know he’s a little bit different; but that’s why we love him.