Responsible AI in Banking: Malaysia’s banking leaders say the next phase of AI success will be judged by maturity and accountability, not speed—trust, governance, and workforce readiness are the differentiators at AICB’s Malaysian Banking and Bank Audit conferences. Interest-Rate Pass-Through: New Zealand’s RBNZ lifted the OCR to 2.50%, and banks are starting to reprice—Westpac and Kiwibank moved floating home loan rates up, with more changes expected. AML Rule Update: The US Fed proposed tighter anti-money laundering requirements, pushing banks to tailor AML resources by risk and align with FinCEN priorities. Scam Warning: South Africa’s “money mule” and fake-bank-account-pin scams show how fraud can still drain funds even after court fights—readers are urged to scrutinize payment details and bank alerts. Banking Dealmaking: UniCredit is nearing control of Germany’s Commerzbank, pushing a €45bn hostile bid as the endgame enters a decisive phase. Cross-Border Finance: Absa CIB backed Newlyn Group with R5bn for logistics expansion along South Africa’s freight corridors. SME Push (Pakistan): Pakistan targets SME financing of Rs1.5tn and 750,000 borrowers by June 2028, urging banks to launch dedicated SME products. Stablecoins in Real Estate (UAE): A UAE exec predicts stablecoins could be used for rent payments within 6–9 months if coordination among developers and agents improves. Market Pulse (Singapore): DBS, OCBC and UOB hit record highs as institutional inflows build ahead of earnings season.