Stripe Funds Fintech Startup Ramp at $1.6b Valuation

Perfios.ai, India’s leading B2B SaaS TechFin company, today announced the appointment of Veena Rao as its Chief Operating Officer (COO). In this pivotal role, Veena will lead Perfios’ global operations, to transform customer experience, run strategic growth initiatives and strengthen the operational foundation for the company’s growth plans.

New quarterly data from V12 Retail Finance shows that UK consumers continued to turn to point-of-sale finance for high-value purchases in the first three months of 2026, with total finance values across the platform growing 4% between January and March, compared to Q1 2025.

Acuity Trading has launched Pattern Recognition within its AnalysisIQ tool, adding automated chart pattern detection to its intelligence platform for brokers and trading platforms.

City Week is returning for its 16th annual edition. Held in-person at the Royal Garden Hotel between 18 and 19 May, this year’s edition will take place at a time when the financial services are undergoing profound change. Geopolitics – particularly the Iran war - are reshaping trade and investment flows. Technology, especially AI, is transforming business models. Regulatory regimes are having to pivot toward a pro-growth stance amid a widespread cost-of-living crisis. The role of the financial services industry in combating climate change is under challenge. Crypto, digital assets and blockchain have finally achieved acceptance in mainstream finance. No financial institution can afford to stand still in the face of such change.

ITC Europe today announced the return of the Challenge Lab, the competition platform connecting pioneering startups with insurance industry leaders to tackle the sector's most pressing challenges. Following its successful inaugural edition at ITC London earlier this year, Generali returns as industry partner for the ITC Europe edition, setting the challenge: "AI Liability: Insuring Intelligence at Scale."

The fifth edition of the FinTech Roadmap conference will take place on May 14, 2026, at the Czech National Bank Congress Centre in Prague. The event will feature panel discussions, keynote presentations and workshops focused on financial technology innovation, fintech business models, international expansion and current regulatory developments in the Czech Republic and the European Union.