Author: DigitalEuroNews

Paytech firm Viva Payments has launched Alipay acceptance in Greece through a strategic partnership with Alipay, extending mobile payment access for Chinese visitors to the country. Under the agreement, Alipay users can make payments for the first time while visiting Greece, with transactions routed through merchants using Viva Payments’ cloud-based platform, Viva Wallet. Acceptance is focused on touristic locations, reflecting Greece’s reliance on international travel and seasonal spending. Panos Tsakos, chief marketing officer at Viva Payments, said the partnership reflects the company’s internationally oriented strategy and responds directly to changing visitor demand. Greece was expecting more than 150,000 visitors from…

Germany’s DZ Bank has joined QIValis, a European consortium of banks developing a shared tokenised euro settlement asset, adding fresh momentum to bank-led alternatives to global stablecoins and public digital currencies. The move underlines how large European lenders are positioning themselves ahead of key decisions on the digital euro and the future structure of wholesale payments in the euro area. DZ Bank, the central institution for Germany’s cooperative banking sector, becomes the latest major player to back QIValis, a project designed to create a regulated, bank-issued digital settlement instrument for use between financial institutions. According to reporting by Ledger Insights,…

bunq has filed for a US de novo banking license, a major step in its plan to operate as a full-service digital bank across both Europe and the United States. The move reflects rising demand from globally mobile customers who want simple, secure banking that works seamlessly across borders. The application, submitted to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, would allow bunq to offer regulated retail banking services in the US. If approved, it would place the European challenger among a small group of foreign neobanks attempting to enter the tightly controlled American banking market. bunq has built…

The prospect of impeachment has re-entered the US political debate after Donald Trump warned Republican lawmakers that losing the midterm elections could expose him to renewed efforts to impeach him. Speaking to party members, Trump argued that a Democratic victory would almost certainly lead to another impeachment attempt. In remarks highlighted by PBS NewsHour, Trump told Republicans that Democrats would “find a reason” to impeach him if they regain control of the House of Representatives. He framed the midterms as a high-stakes contest not only for party power but also for his own political survival. Trump has already been impeached…

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has partnered with Mastercard to launch a mobile-first virtual corporate card solution for businesses in the UAE, as demand grows for faster and more digital B2B payment tools, according to FF News. The new offering allows companies and government entities to issue virtual corporate cards instantly and provision them directly into mobile wallets, removing the need for physical cards. The cards can be used for both online and in-store payments across Mastercard’s acceptance network, supporting contactless transactions and real-time spend management. For corporates, the key benefit is control. Virtual cards can be created for specific…

A securities class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States against Klarna Group plc, accusing the buy now, pay later provider of misleading investors during its 2025 stock market debut. The case centres on alleged shortcomings in Klarna’s IPO disclosures, and adds fresh pressure on the European fintech sector as public markets grow less tolerant of opaque credit risk. According to notices circulated by several US law firms, the complaint alleges that Klarna’s registration statement and prospectus understated the scale and likelihood of future credit losses in its consumer lending business. Investors argue that the documents did not…

The euro has officially entered circulation in Bulgaria, marking the country’s full accession to the euro area and a major step in its economic integration with the European Union. From 1 January 2026, euro banknotes and coins replace the Bulgarian lev at the irrevocably fixed conversion rate of 1.95583 leva per euro. The move makes Bulgaria the 21st member of the euro area and brings its central bank into the core of euro area monetary policymaking. The transition follows years of preparation under Bulgaria’s currency board arrangement, which had already pegged the lev to the euro for more than two…

A temporary outage in online banking services at Deutsche Bank and its retail subsidiary Postbank has drawn renewed attention to the resilience of Europe’s private payment infrastructure. The disruption, which lasted several hours, prevented many customers from logging in or accessing account information before services were restored later the same day. According to a Deutsche Bank spokesperson, the incident was caused by a technical fault affecting shared IT systems across the group. The bank said the problem was resolved over the course of the afternoon and stressed that customer funds and data were not compromised. Users were asked for patience…

Italian asset manager Azimut Holding has extended its agreement with private equity fund FSI to develop its planned fintech bank, pushing the deadline to June 2026, according to Reuters. The project, known as TNB, was due to lapse at the end of December. Under the revised terms, the agreement runs until June 20, 2026, with a possible further extension to December if required. Azimut has said it expects regulatory approval in the second quarter of 2026, after Italy’s banking supervisor Bank of Italy identified governance and organisational weaknesses at one of the group’s units. The extension signals additional time to…

Crypto market leadership has shifted markedly in 2025, with real-world asset tokenisation emerging as the strongest performing narrative so far this year, according to new data from CoinGecko. The findings point to a cooling of last year’s speculative themes and a rotation toward sectors more closely linked to regulation and institutional adoption. CoinGecko’s research shows that tokens associated with real-world assets, including projects focused on tokenised bonds, funds, and payment-linked instruments, have delivered the highest average returns year to date. By contrast, narratives that dominated 2024, notably artificial intelligence and memecoins, have posted negative performance on average in 2025. Rotation…