Equity Group Holdings, Kenya’s second-largest bank, is spinning off its tech subsidiary into a commercial entity, dubbed Finserve.

Innovate Finance is seeking input from UK financial services participants on the establishment of an industry sandbox, creating a neutral space where banks, fintech startups and the wider development community can share and extract data for off-market testing of new applications.

US movie chain Regal is to accept USDC stablecoins through Coinbase wallet as payments for tickets at all of its big screen locations.

Buy now, pay later giant Klarna is to provide shoppers with carbon footprint calculation tools from Mastercard-backed Doconomy to measure the emissions generated by their purchases.

Commerzbank is joining forces with startup incubator Tenity to launch a joint innovation accelerator for sustainable finance.

NatWest Group has opened applications for the second year of its Fintech Programme, targeting startups across the UK that are using AI to help redefine the future of customer experience in financial services.

Business payments outfit Airwallex has raised $330 million in a Series G funding round, led by Addition and with participation from T. Rowe Price, Activant, Lingotto, Robinhood Ventures and TIAA Ventures.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has approved Financial Data Exchange (FDX) as the first standard setting body for the regulator’s new open banking regime.

Fiat Republic, a BaaS startup working to simplify the process of crypto platforms connecting with bank transfer networks, has raised $7 million in a seed funding extension round.

California-based InvestCloud is opening a fintech incubator and accelerator in London, inviting firms to take advantage of its platform in developing digital wealth management tools.

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority is to host an international operational forum aimed at developing tools to tackle the rising tide of greenwashing in financial services.

Canadian startup Beacon has opened the waitlist for its purpose-built digital wallet for immigrants moving to the country.

Alexander Mashinsky, the former CEO of crypto firm Celsius Network, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for commodities fraud and securities fraud.

The Bank of Israel has assembled 14 teams from the private sector, the public sector, and academia to study potential use case for a digital shekel.

JPmorgan Chase is to launch its retail digital bank in Germany next year.