Shift4 Powers Crypto in Space, EBANX Brings Pix to Stripe
Hey Payments Fanatic!
Shift4 and Blue Origin have made crypto payments a reality in space. Travelers aboard the New Shepard rocket can now pay with BTC, ETH, SOL, USDT, and USDC to cross the Kármán Line.
Now back on land, Stripe users can accept Pix via EBANX, letting businesses process Pix payments in Brazilian Reais with settlement in the merchant’s currency.
“Working together with Stripe ultimately empowers Brazilian consumers and businesses to participate more fully in the global economy,” said João Del Valle, CEO and Co-founder of EBANX.
Scroll down to explore these out-of-this-world payment updates and get your daily Payments fix. 👇
Cheers,
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INSIGHTS
🇵🇹 Cards and MBWAY dominate digital payments in Portugal. The report highlights a rapid change in habits among Portuguese consumers, who are abandoning physical cash in favor of more agile and integrated methods. Only 8% of banked Portuguese choose cash as their primary method of in-person payment.
NEWS
🇪🇸 PagoNxt simplifies payment reconciliation for UAX and Beyond. UAX Group, which handles over 20,000 tuition payments annually, faces challenges matching incoming payments to the correct student accounts. PagoNxt’s Digital Paying solution streamlines this process, enabling automated, error-free reconciliation with no coding needed.
🇺🇸 ACI Worldwide was named to CNBC’s World’s Top FinTech Companies and TIME’s America’s Best Mid-Size Companies 2025 Lists. ACI Worldwide recently held its FinTech Awards, celebrating innovation and excellence in the global payments industry. The event honored financial institutions and technology partners that have delivered impactful, real-time payment solutions using ACI’s platforms.
🇺🇸 Blue Origin Spaceflights aboard New Shepard can now be purchased with crypto and stablecoins. Powered by Shift4’s seamless payments technology, consumers can pay with popular cryptocurrencies and stablecoins such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, USDT, and USDC for trips to space aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard.
🇧🇷 Stripe users can now accept Pix in Brazil via EBANX. Businesses on Stripe can now offer Pix, the popular instant payment method developed by the Central Bank of Brazil. They are now able to process Pix payments from Brazilian customers, with settlements available in the merchant's domestic currency.
🌍 Papaya becomes one of the first EMIs in Europe with direct SEPA access. This move places Papaya at the forefront of European payments innovation, eliminating reliance on intermediary banks and unlocking full control over euro transactions (both standard and instant) directly from its infrastructure.
🇺🇸 FunnelFox launches the industry’s first unified web billing solution. Designed to help growth teams navigate the complexity of Web2App monetization and overcome infrastructure blockers, FunnelFox Billing unifies the entire web payment flow into a single interface, from checkout to chargeback protection.
🇮🇳 BharatPe set to raise a $80-100 Mn pre-IPO round led by Coatue. The round will also see participation from some new and existing investors. This is aimed at strengthening the company’s financial position and setting the stage for an eventual public listing.
🇺🇸 Western Union to acquire International Money Express, Inc. This acquisition strengthens Western Union’s retail offering in the U.S., expands market coverage in high-potential geographies, and is expected to accelerate digital new customer acquisition.
🇲🇽 Finsus acquires Anticipa Tech to boost SME liquidity in Mexico. This acquisition strengthens Finsus’ commitment to providing SMEs with digital-first, tailored financial products that support growth and enable faster, more transparent access to capital.
🇪🇺 RedotPay launches instant fiat-to-stablecoin Onramps in the UK and the European Union. The new feature enables zero-fee stablecoin purchases using Euro and British Pound deposits, now live across all supported regions. The fiat deposit feature enhances the user experience by offering a more cost-efficient alternative with faster processing time and a safer approach.
🇺🇸 Ontop and Thredd partner to deliver a more modern, frictionless payroll and payments experience for global workers. The collaboration will give Ontop’s global workforce and clients a faster, more flexible, and modern way to access and use their earnings, delivering a more frictionless payroll and payments experience.
🇺🇸 SoftBank selects banks for US IPO of payments app PayPay. The banks leading preparations for the listing are Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Mizuho Financial Group, and Morgan Stanley, the sources said. The PayPay offering is expected to raise more than $2 billion from investors when it takes place.
🇺🇸 PayPal has appointed Ben Volk as SVP & GM of PayPal Consumer. He joins from Google, where he served as VP & GM, Google Pay and Google Wallet. Volk also spent 15 years at Amazon, holding various roles over the years, including VP, Payments.
🇸🇦 Shahbandr and Tamara partner to empower over 18,000 online stores with BNPL solutions. Through this partnership, Tamara will provide its BNPL solution to all online stores on the Shahbandr platform, enhancing the shopping experience and increasing conversion rates by offering diverse payment methods and instalment options.
🇮🇳 RazorpayX puts artificial intelligence in the CFO's corner before market debut. The move comes as India’s financial technology giant, valued at $7.5 billion, prepares for a public offering within 18 months and seeks to stand out in the neobanking market.
🇳🇱 payabl. Supercharges growth with Silverflow’s cloud-native processing platform. The collaboration marks a significant shift to more agile, API-first technology, unlocking faster time-to-market, operational reliability, and a shared vision for innovation.
🇵🇹 Akurateco announces new integration with Whitepay to enable crypto payments. This collaboration allows all Akurateco customers, ranging from payment providers to acquirers and enterprise merchants, to start accepting crypto payments from their end users, offering new levels of flexibility at checkout.
🇨🇲 Wave appoints Joël Bertrand Ndjodo to lead Cameroon operations. This move signals Wave’s intention to leverage local expertise to challenge established players like MTN and Orange. Continue reading
🇦🇪 Ant International partners with Abu Dhabi Investment Office and receives IPA from the Central Bank of the UAE to support local digitalisation and FinTech strategy. By leveraging its technological expertise to support the growth of Abu Dhabi's financial technology sector, it empowers local businesses with advanced digital tools and promotes financial inclusion and connectivity.
GOLDEN NUGGET
𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐯𝐬. 𝐔𝐧𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 — A Strategic Choice in Card Issuance by Pomelo 👇 Created by Arthur Bedel 💳 ♻️
In card issuance, some decisions are obvious — network selection, card type, processor. Others are less visible, yet foundational.
One of those is this:
Should you issue named cards, unnamed cards, or both?
It's a seemingly small choice that can have a major impact on:
• User experience
• Operational efficiency
• Regulatory compliance
• Go-to-market speed
• Long-term scalability
𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞
While both named and unnamed cards function identically at a technical level—and can be debit, credit, or prepaid—they serve very different purposes depending on the use case.
🔹 𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 cards include the user's name printed on the card. They're typically tied to individual accounts and offer stronger personalization and KYC alignment.
🔹 𝐔𝐧𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 cards are generic (no name printed), enabling faster issuance, shared usage, and simpler logistics.
𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬:
✔ User Experience
Named cards feel premium and personal. They build trust and ownership—important for consumer-facing products.
✔ Speed & Operational Simplicity
Unnamed cards can be issued instantly and at scale, with fewer dependencies on verified identity or personalization.
✔ Security & Risk
Named cards are easier to track, link to a user, and de-risk from a fraud and compliance standpoint.
✔ Use Case Fit
Unnamed cards are ideal for expense management, gifting, or remittances where personalization isn't required.
Named cards work best for individual spend, credit building, or loyalty-based programs.
There's no universal answer — only the right fit for your business model and customer experience strategy.
Companies working with fintechs, banks, and platforms to design card programs that strike the right balance between personalization, scalability, and operational performance are the right businesses to partner with (i.e. Pomelo)
Whether you're building embedded finance into a product or scaling a standalone financial offering, your choice between named and unnamed cards is more than cosmetic — it's strategic.
Source: Pomelo
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