Together with
Welcome to the October 11, 2026 edition of Money Explored—the essential Sunday briefing to stay ahead in fintech.
Stablecoins are leaving crypto apps for the tools people and companies already use: the phone wallet and the accounts system. At the same time, Europe is deciding which coins are allowed in.
Three signals. One direction: stablecoins will reach users through everyday software, but only on the regulator's terms.
THIS WEEK:
Samsung's USDC wallet: 82 million US Galaxy phones get a stablecoin that can send money to more than 60 countries.
SAP's built-in payments: The software that runs company accounts now pays suppliers itself, including in stablecoins.
EU's stablecoin cutoff: Crypto firms have three months to drop coins that lack EU approval.
Plus: Bank tokens move company cash after hours in Asia and the Gulf, Mastercard makes European cards work in a blackout, and a crypto bank buys a payouts firm.
This edition is published in partnership with Sprinto. See how operators are getting audit-ready for SOC 2 in 14 days, with AI agents doing the evidence work, below.
Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe here to join 9,200+ founders, allocators, and executive operators staying ahead in fintech every Sunday.
🌎 Major Stories
Samsung Wallet will add USDC, a dollar stablecoin, from the last week of October. It reaches eligible users on 82 million Galaxy devices in the US. Users can send it to wallets and bank accounts in more than 60 countries. There is no separate app, no new account and no private keys to manage. Coinbase holds the coins on behalf of Bastion, a licensed stablecoin custodian, and Borderless runs the transfers abroad.
Strategic Takeaway: The stablecoin race has moved from who issues the coin to who puts it in front of people. A phone maker now holds that spot, not a bank or an exchange. Cross-border transfers come first, which aims straight at remittance firms. Samsung is also weighing tap-to-pay in stores, but has not committed. For operators in remittances, the new rival is the wallet already on the customer's phone.
SAP has launched SAP Pay inside SAP Cloud ERP, the system many large companies use to run their accounts. It pays an invoice when it falls due and matches the payment in the same place. It sends bank transfers, wires and cheques, plus stablecoin payments for cross-border transfers. Circle's USDC and EURC are the stablecoins on offer, through Tereina, an SAP company. SAP Pay is live in the US and the UK.
Strategic Takeaway: Until now, the accounts system told the bank what to pay, and the bank paid. SAP now wants to make the payment itself. That pulls business payments away from bank portals and payment fintechs. Oracle and Microsoft are adding payment features to their own systems too. For operators, the bank becomes a rail behind the software, not the place where a payment starts.
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU's markets regulator, set out its position on 8 October. Licensed crypto firms must stop letting EU customers buy, trade or add to stablecoins that lack approval under MiCA, the EU's crypto law. Any holdings left must be cleared within three months, which CoinDesk puts at 8 January 2027. Until then, firms may only help users sell, convert or withdraw. ESMA names no coins, but CoinDesk reported that Tether's USDT and PayPal's PYUSD are the largest affected.
Strategic Takeaway: MiCA's stablecoin rules have applied since 2024, yet unapproved coins kept trading on EU platforms. ESMA has now closed that gap. The world's biggest stablecoin is set to lose its EU shelf space. Issuers with EU approval, such as Circle for USDC and EURC, stand to gain. For founders, EU access now depends on the coin's licence, not just the platform's.
SPONSORED CONTENT: SPRINTO
Your SOC 2, handled end to end with AI agents.
Enterprise buyers won’t put your product near their customer data without a SOC 2 report. Twenty-one state privacy laws now hold them accountable for the vendors they share data with, so their diligence lands on you.
Sprinto gets you audit ready in 14 days, across three working sessions. AI agents connect your stack, collect the evidence auditors ask for, and close the gaps as they appear. You approve, they execute.
Sprinto also answers the security questionnaires your buyers send, using the same evidence base, so security reviews stop holding up deals.
No compliance hire. No consultant. Your auditor signs off.
