Category: Analysis
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Canada vs. U.S. MSB Regulation: One Federal Register vs. a Federal-State Licensing Patchwork
The key difference is structural: Canada’s MSB framework is administered through a centralized federal supervisor (FINTRAC), while the U.S. model layers federal Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) obligations (FinCEN) on top of state-by-state money transmission…
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Fed Floats “Payment Account” Prototype—Limited Fed Access for Payments-Only Institutions
The Federal Reserve Board on Dec. 19, 2025 asked for public comment on a proposed new Reserve Bank “payment account”—a special-purpose Fed account intended only for clearing and settling the accountholder’s payments, with tighter…
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Cross-Border Payments Hit a 2025 “Pivot” — And MSBs Feel the Whiplash
In a new FedMSB analysis, Chief Advisor Michael Mynn argues this was a pivot year for cross-border payments — not because one shiny tech “won,” but because multiple tracks moved forward at the same…
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EU Council Sets Its Stance on the Digital Euro — Online, Offline, and “High Privacy”
On Friday, Dec. 19, the Council of the EU approved its negotiating mandate for legislation that would establish the legal framework for a potential digital euro — a central-bank-backed digital form of cash —…
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Digital Wallets Are Booming — and Regulators Are Playing Catch-Up
Digital wallets have moved way beyond “tap to pay” into multi-function consumer finance hubs (IDs, tickets, crypto, investing, lending, paycheck deposit, virtual cards, rewards, etc.). The article frames this as the latest chapter in…
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Appeals court saves CTA — but BOI rule’s still narrowed
A federal appeals court just handed a major win to the government in the long-running fight over the Corporate Transparency Act — the anti-money-laundering law meant to smoke out the real people hiding behind…
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Missouri GOP Takes Aim At Overseas Money Wires — MSBs Could Face 25% Hit
Missouri’s treasurer and Republican lawmakers want remittance providers to verify a sender’s legal work status before sending money overseas — or face penalties tied to the transfer amount.
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FDIC Releases GENIUS Act “How-To” for Bank Stablecoins and Invites Public Comment
The FDIC is officially getting into the stablecoin rulebook business. The agency’s Board of Directors voted Tuesday (Dec 16, 2025, EST) to greenlight a notice of proposed rulemaking that would spell out how FDIC-supervised…
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2025’s Big MSB Key Word: “Institutionalization”
A new industry article by Michael Mynn, the FedMSB’s chief advisor, says 2025 marked a turning point where the MSB ecosystem shifted into a tougher, more durable phase of “institutionalization” — with lawmakers, regulators…
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Banks Get Fresh Green Light to Broker Crypto Trades for Everyday Customers
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on Dec. 9, 2025 issued Interpretive Letter 1188, confirming that national banks may engage in “riskless principal” crypto-asset transactions as part of the business of banking.