UPI Fee Shake-Up (India): India’s payments authority is consulting banks and payment firms on how charges could work for large UPI payments after the government barred fees on UPI and RuPay debit card transactions up to ₹2,000—sources say the likely direction is around 0.4% for higher-value merchant flows, with peer-to-peer staying free. Cyber & Fintech Fallout (UK): Revolut notified 680 customers after fraudsters used a legitimate government email domain to request sensitive identity, banking and Bitcoin records, prompting an ICO investigation. Rates Watch (US/Europe): Morgan Stanley turned more hawkish, forecasting two Fed hikes this year and another ECB move as inflation proves sticky, while European shares slipped as oil and bond yields pressured risk appetite. Sanctions & Banking Links (US/Russia): The US Treasury sanctioned VTB Bank over alleged Iran sanctions evasion, targeting correspondent relationships with sanctioned Iranian institutions. UAE Operational Resilience: The UAE Central Bank’s new Operational Risk Management Regulation took effect, tightening rules around tech failures, cyberattacks, fraud and third-party disruptions. Crypto Policy Crossroads (US): The House Financial Services Committee scheduled a markup for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve bill, while markets also brace for the CLARITY Act vote amid renewed ethics and stablecoin-reward disputes. Crypto Compliance (Bulgaria): Bulgaria approved final rules requiring crypto service providers to report detailed customer and transaction data to tax authorities. Banking Product Push (Qatar/HSBC): HSBC launched WorldTrader in Qatar, a digital wealth trading platform for eligible Premier customers to access up to 25 markets across 77 exchanges via one account. Market Sentiment (Australia/Europe): ASX and European markets weighed oil-driven inflation fears and higher yields, with banks among the biggest drags. Retail Investing Drive (Nigeria): Dangote Refinery’s N2.15tn IPO is being distributed through banks and fintech channels to target millions of retail subscribers. New Cash Deposit Flow (India): AePS expanded with a three-party cash deposit use case, letting customers deposit cash into another person’s bank account using Aadhaar-based beneficiary verification. Agentic Payments (Europe/Worldline): Worldline launched a payment handler for agentic commerce via Universal Commerce Protocol, aiming to let merchants accept AI-initiated purchases across platforms with one setup.