The Dutch Are At It Again. Zerohash Secures EMI License

Hey Payments Fanatic!

News keeps hitting close to home. Dutch FinTech zerohash has just secured an EMI License.

As the first MiCAR-licensed firm to also obtain an E-Money License, zerohash can now fully support stablecoin-powered financial flows under Europe's evolving regulatory framework.

Together, the MiCAR and EMI licenses position zerohash to serve banks, brokerages, FinTechs, payment providers, and enterprise platforms operating across the European market with end-to-end compliant digital asset infrastructure.

Keep scrolling for the rest of today's Payments’ stories. 👇 See you tomorrow!

Cheers,

Marcel

INSIGHTS

🇪🇸 How Getnet and Zig are transforming stadium payments at UD Almería by integrating digital sales software with smart payment terminals. The system speeds up food and beverage transactions, reduces checkout errors, and improves operational efficiency, reflecting both companies’ broader strategy to expand payment infrastructure solutions across sports and entertainment venues.

➡️ Affirm 🆚 Klarna

Two BNPL giants. Same category. Very different scale. Here’s the FY2025 snapshot👇

NEWS

🇯🇴 Network International – Jordan launches Click to Pay through Mastercard Merchant Cloud, expanding access to secure digital payments. Through this collaboration, Network International – Jordan will enable licensed banks, payment service providers, money exchange houses, and FinTechs to offer secure and convenient cross-border payment solutions.

🇧🇭 stc Bahrain, a digital enabler, has announced the launch of Mastercard’s Click to Pay, becoming the first telecommunications provider in Bahrain to introduce this secure and seamless online payment solution. Mastercard’s Click to Pay offers a fast, frictionless, and secure online checkout experience by eliminating the need for manual card entry during transactions.

🇺🇸 The new Shell Performance Elite World Mastercard. The Shell Performance Elite World Mastercard is designed to maximize value from how customers already spend, helping them earn more across fuel, EV charging, groceries, dining, and all other purchases.

🌍 zerohash receives EMI license from Dutch Central Bank, strengthening stablecoin payment capabilities across the European Economic Area. By securing the EMI license, zerohash further solidifies its ability to support stablecoin-powered financial flows under Europe’s evolving regulatory framework.

🇮🇳 Paytm introduces Pocket Money to enable UPI payments for teenagers without having their own bank account. The feature is designed to support real-time payments for everyday spending while giving parents and trusted family members controls within the Paytm app. 

🇮🇳 Apple Pay India launch delayed as banks drive a hard bargain over commissions. Apple is reportedly seeking higher commission rates from major Indian banks for the launch of Apple Pay, arguing that its premium market positioning justifies a larger revenue share despite Android’s dominance in the country.

🌍 Ivorian FinTech Cauridor banks Series A funding and includes $2m from Proparco. The funding will support Cauridor in strengthening its operational and technical capacities, notably through the expansion of its engineering, operations, and commercial teams, and will accelerate the company’s geographic expansion into West and Central Africa.

🇨🇭 Sygnum completes first live AI-agent-driven digital asset transactions by a regulated Swiss Bank. Built using Anthropic’s Claude model and an in-house Model Context Protocol infrastructure, the system can autonomously prepare and assess complex blockchain transactions while maintaining client security and self-custody protections.

🇬🇧 Tether invests in LemFi to promote stablecoin-powered remittances across emerging markets. This investment aims to promote financial inclusion and expand access to efficient, borderless financial systems, while accelerating the use of stablecoin-powered solutions in emerging markets. 

🇳🇬 FirstBank and Visa launch multi-currency premium cards to boost digital payments in Nigeria. The Visa Signature Card is tailored for affluent customers and comes with multi-currency functionality, allowing automatic switching between the naira, US dollar, British pound, and euro depending on location and transaction needs. 

🌎 Visa and Jason Sudeikis turn the simplest goal in football into the biggest fan moments at the FIFA World Cup 2026™. Featuring celebrities and football stars, the campaign offers Visa cardholders exclusive promotions, prizes, and fan experiences across the United States, Canada, and Mexico throughout the tournament.

🇺🇸 Stripe-backed Tempo taps $7.5 billion DeFi lender Morpho to expand beyond payments. The launch gives Tempo users access to one of DeFi’s largest lending protocols, allowing FinTechs and enterprises building on the chain to tap crypto-native borrowing and yield products alongside payments infrastructure.

GOLDEN NUGGET

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐄𝐱𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬? — 𝐛𝐲 Noah 👇Created by Arthur Bedel 💳 ♻️

Everyone is watching the agents.

The real play is in the infrastructure.

Agentic payments are software agents that pay, route, and settle on behalf of users and businesses — at machine speed, within explicit rules.

By 2030, agentic transaction volume is projected to exceed $1 trillion. Execution time: 10 milliseconds. 24/7. Sub-cent microtransactions. No traditional bank login required.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝟑 𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐟𝐭

→ Agent Assisted: human-led, AI helps route and validate

→ Agent Directed: AI prepares, human approves

→ Agent Autonomous: AI decides and pays within hard-coded rules

Think of it like issuing a trusted employee a corporate card with carefully defined limits.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦 𝐧𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭

Legacy API keys give AI a "blank check." No spending limits. No merchant filters. Binary all-or-nothing access.

That is not a payment system. That is a liability.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 — 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭

Cryptographic guardrails enforce rules at the protocol level:

→ Identity — verify the agent

→ Intent — hard-code caps and vendor whitelists

→ Action — execute only within defined parameters

An un-hackable, mathematically enforced corporate expense policy.

𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐠𝐚𝐩

Agents operate natively in stablecoins. The real economy still runs on local fiat.

That gap is where most agentic commerce will break.

Noah is building the infrastructure that closes it — instantly translating stablecoin payments into compliant local fiat payouts via ACH, SEPA, FPS, PIX, M-Pesa, and more.

The agents are ready. The legacy financial system is not.

The companies that win the next decade will not be the ones building the smartest AI agents. They will be the ones building the rails underneath them.

Are you watching the agents — or the infrastructure?

Source: Noah

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