The Monday Roundup: what we are watching this week | Nov 2nd

By Puja Sharma

The Monday Roundup sets the scene for the week’s biggest news stories, industry deals, and upcoming events. For Prime subscribers only.

AI-native payment hub

DCS DeCard, a card and payments infrastructure platform powered by DCS Group, became a Mastercard issuer in Hong Kong, expanding its card issuing capabilities and strengthening its presence in the corporate payments market. 

The company launched DeCard Business Account, a corporate card and spend management solution designed to help businesses gain greater visibility and control over company spending.

Initially launching in Hong Kong, the platform enables mid-market and enterprise businesses to issue Mastercard corporate cards while managing spending through a centralised platform. The solution combines card issuance and spend management capabilities into a single offering, simplifying the way businesses oversee corporate expenses. 

The solution is designed to support both employee and operational expenses, allowing businesses to manage spending, billing, invoices and statements across a range of use cases. These include business travel, employee expenses, advertising, media buying and procurement activities.  At launch, DeCard Business Account offers USD-denominated corporate cards funded in US dollars. Combined with Mastercard’s global acceptance network, businesses can use a single USD balance to make payments across multiple markets. The company said it plans to expand the offering into additional markets and introduce new capabilities over time, including treasury account management services. 

I&M Bank, a Kenya-based commercial bank, has partnered with Otoma, a US-based PayTech, to enhance its payment capabilities and modernise its payments infrastructure. 

The collaboration will see I&M Bank adopt Otoma’s AI-native payment hub, replacing legacy systems and enabling the bank to develop, test and launch new payment products more efficiently.  Through the platform, I&M Bank aims to improve operational flexibility and respond more quickly to evolving customer demands, market developments and changes across payment ecosystems. 

Founded in 2016, Otoma provides financial institutions with infrastructure that allows them to develop, test and deploy payment products in near real time.  The company’s technology addresses challenges associated with legacy payment systems, including the cost, complexity and lengthy timelines involved in implementing change.  The initial rollout will begin in Kenya, with plans to expand beyond the market over time. 

AI capabilities for fraud prevention

Just over a year after raising its Series A, FinTech dispute resolution specialist Casap has secured $56 million in a Series B round, bringing its total funding to about $90 million. The investment will support the company’s next phase of growth, focusing on enhancing its AI-powered platform and expanding its reach across the financial services ecosystem.

Founded in 2023, Casap provides banks, credit unions, payment processors and FinTech firms with technology that automates the complex and often resource-intensive disputes and chargebacks process. Its AI-driven platform handles a range of functions, including dispute intake, evidence collection, investigations, decision-making, recovery management and customer communications. The company also helps institutions combat first-party fraud more effectively.

Base10 Partners led the funding round, with new investors Experian and Synchrony joining existing backers Emergence Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners.

According to Casap, the business has achieved a tenfold increase in revenue since its previous funding round and now serves more than 100 financial institutions and payments companies. Looking ahead, the firm plans to extend its AI capabilities beyond disputes into adjacent areas such as fraud prevention, claims management and collections. The company will also invest in product development and engineering talent as it aims to strengthen its position in the rapidly evolving financial operations technology market.

Kipp, a US FinTech focused on reducing payment declines at checkout, was acquired by a group of investors led by Lifetime Value Company (LTVCo).  The company said the acquisition provides substantial long-term financial backing and supports its plans to invest further in technology, expand its issuer and merchant network, and strengthen its presence across the US market. 

Kipp operates a platform that connects online merchants with banks to help reduce transaction declines caused by insufficient funds or exceeded credit limits. 

Kipp describes its platform as a real-time decisioning and collaboration layer between merchants and card issuers. The company claims its technology has delivered transaction recovery, or “save rates”, ranging between 20% and 50%.  Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.  LTVCo’s portfolio includes businesses such as BeenVerified, Ownerly, and Bumper, which operate across consumer information, real estate data and automotive intelligence markets. Alongside the acquisition, the company strengthened its leadership team with several industry veterans joining in advisory and governance roles. Randy Christofferson was appointed as a board member, Adam Coyle joined as a strategic advisor, and Jeff Stiefler was named executive chairman. 

What is the Buzz

The European Central Bank (ECB) has selected two network service providers to support connectivity for its proposed digital euro project, marking another step in the preparation phase for a pilot programme and potential future launch of the central bank digital currency.

One of the selected consortiums comprises Nexi and Deutsche Telekom, whose contract became effective on 28 September 2026. The partnership will initially provide network connectivity services required for the digital euro pilot, enabling participating payment service providers and national central banks to connect with the digital euro platform.

The second consortium includes Telefónica de España, Telefónica Global Solutions and Indra Soluciones Tecnologías de la Información, with its contract scheduled to begin in May 2027. Together, the two providers will facilitate secure communication across the platform’s different components and ensure seamless connections between market participants and the ECB’s infrastructure.

Under the current roadmap, both network providers are expected to be ready by 2029 to support a potential issuance of the digital euro, subject to approval from the ECB Governing Council. Payment service providers offering digital euro services will be able to connect through either network partner. The agreements have also been designed with flexibility in mind, allowing the ECB to adapt service requirements as the project evolves through pilot testing and future implementation phases.