Gemini. (2026, August 24). Gemini and Apex Fintech Solutions partner to bring Gemini's regulated crypto prediction markets to Apex's brokerage network. https://www.gemini.com/blog/gemini-and-apex-fintech-solutions-partner-to-bring-geminis-regulated-crypto-prediction-markets-to-apexs-brokerage-network The Winklevoss' Gemini and Apex Fintech Solutions have signed a letter of intent under which Gemini Titan, a Gemini subsidiary, would become the exclusive regulated venue for crypto event contracts distributed through Apex's Futures Commission Merchant to Apex's brokerage customers. Brokerages offering crypto event contracts through Apex's FCM will use Gemini for execution and clearing, with flexibility to collaborate on additional contract categories including sports, economics, and financial markets on a non-exclusive basis. In April, Gemini subsidiary Gemini Olympus obtained a CFTC Derivatives Clearing Organization license, bringing derivatives clearing and settlement for Gemini Titan in-house. In December 2025, Gemini Titan secured a Designated Contract Market license from the CFTC, enabling Gemini to launch predictions trading. Gemini CEO Tyler Winklevoss said the company deliberately built its predictions platform in-house and believes predictions are the future of markets. In July, Gemini launched stock trading with 0% commissions for certain US customers, with Apex Clearing Corporation, a wholly owned Apex subsidiary, acting as custodian and clearing broker. The letter of intent is non-binding, and the companies expect to finalize details of the strategic collaboration in the coming weeks. Knote: I'm not sure if this is aggressive offense or vigorous defense, but this is the second predictions market announcement out of Apex in two weeks. Also, they are announcing this before the final agreement is in place, which seems somewhat unusual (and a little risky). This suggests to us that timing is of the essence.

DBS. (2026, August 22). DBS records near-threefold growth in millennial affluent clients as wealth advice and investments gain ground in Singapore. https://www.dbs.com/newsroom/DBS_records_near_threefold_growth_in_millennial_affluent_clients_as_wealth_advice_and_investments_gain_ground_in_Singapore The number of millennial retail customers who moved to DBS Treasures tripled in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period last year. The overall number of DBS retail customers progressing to Treasures rose 180% year-on-year in the first half of 2026. Seven in 10 clients who progressed to DBS Treasures in the first half of 2026 first banked with DBS as retail customers. Investment balances of clients who moved into DBS Treasures in 2025 have since grown nearly sixfold. DBS plans to hire more than 600 additional relationship managers, frontline advisors and platform engineers by the end of 2028. The bank will open 18 new wealth centers and upgrade 36 existing centers across the region by end-2027, increasing its Singapore Treasures wealth center footprint by 50%. AI-enabled tools have reduced turnaround time for onboarding new-to-bank wealth clients by 50%. Knote: Not strictly WealthTech, but tangential evidence of the WealthTech growth we are seeing in the East. And the DBS Treasures platform is probably one of the most digitally advanced of the majors.

On August 17, 2026 VastAdvisor announced that it has closed a $1 million SAFE round. The financing was led by three wealth management industry figures investing individually: Dani Fava, chief strategy officer at Carson Group; Jason Pereira, CFP, senior partner at Woodgate Financial; and Sally George, partner at Convergency Partners. The company markets what it calls an Organic Growth OS, an AI based platform that combines audience intelligence, campaign automation, compliance monitoring and continuous optimization in one system. It is aimed at registered investment advisors, broker dealers and wealth platforms looking to generate their own client demand. VastAdvisor was co-founded by chief executive Ian Karnell and chief operating officer Phil Gale, and its leadership team also includes chief technology officer Eli Gassert and acting chief data officer Dr. Edoardo M. Airoldi. Proceeds will go toward accelerating the product roadmap and supporting go to market efforts. Karnell said the investment was validating because it came from operators inside the industry and not only from financial backers, while Pereira said the platform's capabilities are what the wealth management industry has needed. For advisors and platforms, the round is a modest but notable data point in a crowded advisor marketing category, where compliance review often slows the release of content and campaigns. Whether one integrated system can replace the set of point solutions most firms use today is the question this funding is meant to answer. MMnote: From what I can tell, what’s different about this firm than previous organic growth platforms is the robust intelligence layer that runs on top of campaigns. Link to Article

Ascensus has announced a new ownership structure under which Stone Point Capital and Genstar Capital will each make new investments and hold equal stakes in the savings and retirement technology firm. Stone Point continues as an owner, Genstar returns as one, and existing investor GIC will remain invested. The transaction is expected to close in the coming months, subject to regulatory approvals, at which point Stone Point and Genstar will assume joint governance. Ascensus provides tax-advantaged savings solutions and technology, including qualified and nonqualified retirement plans, third-party plan administration, 529 education and ABLE savings program administration, and fiduciary services. The company supports more than 16 million savers and oversees more than $1.3 trillion in assets under administration. Its recent acquisition of AmericanTCS added trust, custody, and pooled employer plan capabilities. The deal lands squarely in the Peak 65 zone. In 2026, more Americans turn 65 than in any year before or after, intensifying demand for retirement income solutions and the fight for 401(k) rollovers. For advisors, platforms, and integrators, continued private equity conviction behind a recordkeeper of Ascensus's scale signals sustained investment in the savings infrastructure serving the historic wave of retirees. MMNote: We would have thought Asensus would sell to one of the large incumbents (like Empower or PCS) or one of the rapid builders (like Schwab or the wirehouses), but we agree with the notion that there is a lot of growth ahead for Asensus. Link to Article

CFP Board. (2026, August 14). CFP Board response to House Financial Services Committee Democrats' request for information on artificial intelligence. https://www.cfp.net/-/media/2026/miscellaneous/cfp-board-ai-rfi-response.pdf CFP Board, which certifies more than 109,000 CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER professionals representing approximately one-third of retail financial professionals, submitted this response on August 14, 2026 to the House Financial Services Committee Democrats' request for information on artificial intelligence. The response states that AI in financial services should augment rather than replace human financial planners in consumer-facing advice. CFP Board recommends that firms using AI maintain appropriate human oversight and disclose AI's role in advice delivery. The letter identifies governance safeguards for the sensitive consumer financial data that AI planning tools collect and process, including protocols for error detection and escalation and management of model risk from inaccurate or biased outputs. CFP Board urges Congress and regulators to consider how AI governance frameworks interact with existing financial services regulations. The response asks policymakers to create a flexible, risk-based framework that supports innovation while protecting investors, grounded in transparency, fairness, accountability, and oversight of high-impact AI uses. Accountability is anchored in CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct, supported by its Generative AI Ethics Guide and Guide to CFP Board's Technology Standard, alongside commitments to enhanced continuing education and updated practice standards. Knote: We think AI governance will emerge as a big roadmap item during the 2027 planning cycle. If we are wrong, we think we are only wrong by a year.

Ricketts, D. (2026, August 16). Amundi Technology has been growing fast. Now it faces a leadership challenge. Financial News. https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/amundi-technology-has-been-growing-fast-now-it-faces-a-leadership-challenge-a8fcd886 Amundi Technology, the platform business built around ALTO after Amundi cut ties with BlackRock's Aladdin following its acquisition of Pioneer Investments, posted revenue of €63m in the six months to the end of June, up 23% year on year on two new client wins. The division signed 10 new clients last year, added Denmark and Singapore to the countries where it operates, and grew revenue by 45%, and Amundi has set a target of doubling technology revenue by 2028. Ben Lucas, recruited from KPMG in 2023 to lead and expand Amundi Technology, left in July to head private markets services provider Aztec Group, and former group chief operating officer and deputy CEO Guillaume Lesage stepped down earlier this year to become an adviser to Amundi. Claire Cornil, promoted to chief operating officer earlier this year, is overseeing Amundi Technology on an interim basis while the firm recruits a successor to Lucas. Deutsche Bank Research analyst Sharath Kumar noted that Amundi Technology accounts for roughly 3% of group revenue, against Aladdin's share of approximately 8% of BlackRock's $24.4bn in 2025, and that technology and servicing revenue is often valued more highly by investors because it is more recurring and more deeply embedded in client workflows. Amundi missed out on acquiring Axa Investment Managers, which BNP Paribas Asset Management bought last year for €5bn, and failed to complete a deal for Allianz Global Investors, prompting questions about its growth path absent large inorganic transactions. Amundi is targeting more than €150bn of net inflows in Asia over the three years to the end of 2028, up from €84bn over the three years to the end of 2025, with client group head Fannie Wurtz also serving as chair of Asia.

Business Wire. (2026, August 19). Stash and Capitalize announce new rollover partnership. Yahoo Finance. https://finance.yahoo.com/small-business/articles/stash-capitalize-announce-rollover-partnership-130000061.html Stash, a digital financial advisor, and Capitalize, a retirement account transfer platform, announced a partnership enabling Stash customers to consolidate legacy 401(k) accounts into Individual Retirement Accounts directly within the Stash app. The integration is built on Capitalize's Embedded Rollover API, which allows users to search for old 401(k) accounts, initiate transfer requests digitally, and receive guided support without leaving the Stash platform. The offering became available to eligible U.S. Stash customers on August 19, 2026. Stash CEO Brandon Krieg stated that too many Americans leave retirement savings behind when they change jobs because rolling over an old 401(k) is harder than it should be. Capitalize CEO Gaurav Sharma stated that the partnership gives Stash customers a simpler way to transfer and consolidate their retirement savings while reducing friction in the process. The release cites a May 2024 Goldman Sachs report indicating that 60% of Gen Z and 67% of Millennials report having personalized retirement plans. Capitalize's technology has supported billions of dollars in retirement account transfers, and the company has been recognized among TIME's 100 Best Inventions and Forbes' Top 50 Fintech companies. Knote: As younger workers bounce from job to job, they scatter small 401(k)s around like Johnny Appleseed. This tool can help consolidate them into something coherent.

Southall, B. (2026, August 19). Charles Schwab & Co. took out full-page WSJ ad promising to 'hire thousands more financial consultants' last week; this week it said RIAs will no longer receive sub-$5-million referrals in 2027 -- an implied toll bridge collapses, says one analyst. RIABiz. https://riabiz.com/a/2026/8/20/charles-schwab-co-took-out-full-page-wsj-ad-promising-to-hire-thousands-more-financial-consultants-last-week-this-week-it-said-rias-will-no-longer-receive-sub-5-million-referrals-in-2027-an-implied-toll-bridge-collapses-says-one-analyst Charles Schwab & Co. notified RIA principals in the Schwab Advisor Network (SAN) in an Aug. 18 memo that, effective Jan. 5, 2027, it will retain all referral leads of $5 million or less, a 150% increase from the current $2 million cut-off. The memo followed an Aug. 13 full-page Wall Street Journal advertisement signed by founder and chairman Charles Schwab announcing that the firm is hiring "thousands" of financial consultants to add to its existing 3,000. Schwab told Citywire that SAN recorded total net flows of $18.2 billion in the first half of the year, up 15% year over year, and that more than half of those flows came from clients with $10 million or more in investable assets. The $10 million-plus and $25 million-plus segments now account for half of SAN net flows and are the program's fastest-growing client segments, with net flows up 54% and 45% respectively. Tim Welsh, president of Nexus Strategy, published a white paper titled "The Toll Bridge Collapses" stating that the two-decade custody-for-referrals arrangement built on SAN since 2002 is being unwound at a speed that should alarm every RIA still counting on it. Welsh attributes the shift to Schwab's need to reduce dependence on cash-spread revenue, which is exposed to regulators, AI cash sorters, and a slowing economy that could prompt Federal Reserve rate cuts. On a July 21 analysts' call, CEO Rick Wurster said only 5% of Schwab retail households are in fee-based advice and described the 31% who want advice as an "unmatched conversion funnel." Knote: It's not technically a WealthTech story, but anything Schwab does is worth watching in WealthTech.

Siebert Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: SIEB) announced an additional investment in FusionIQ, a cloud-native wealth technology company, alongside a strategic partnership intended to expand the two companies' relationship across technology, distribution, and product development. The move builds on their original partnership from June 2025, under which Siebert had already begun integrating FusionIQ's platform to support hybrid advice, self-directed investing, and multi-custodian workflows. Subject to definitive agreements, the deal contemplates a ten-year strategic transformation partnership spanning three platforms: (1) wealth and advisory services for financial advisors, banks, credit unions, and individual investors; (2) broker-dealer and institutional distribution infrastructure; and (3) digital assets and financial infrastructure tied to Siebert's broader crypto strategy. CEO John Gebbia said the added investment reflects the progress of the relationship and Siebert's belief in what the two firms can build together, combining FusionIQ's technology with Siebert's regulated infrastructure and public company platform. For Siebert, the arrangement offers eyes-on access to FusionIQ's roadmap and a head start shaping product direction, while FusionIQ gains capital and distribution scale. As more incumbents look to secure strategic technology relationships through direct investment rather than vendor contracts alone, this deal offers a template for how corporate capital can accelerate roadmap alignment and speed to market. Knote: These co-development partnerships can be immensely powerful, when done right. I also applaud the all-in commitment here. I don't think I have ever seen such a partnership that explicitly states a 10-year relationship.

CNBC. (2026, August 19). Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev: Tokenization will take over the entire financial system. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/video/2026/08/19/robinhood-ceo-vlad-tenev-tokenization-will-take-over-the-entire-financial-system.html Tenev stated that tokenization is at the beginning of a super cycle and will take over the entire financial system. Robinhood launched Robinhood Chain, its crypto blockchain, outside the United States a month prior to the interview, with stock tokens included as a primitive giving tokenized exposure to US stocks. The stock token offering started at 90 tokens and has grown to 190, which trade 24/7, can be moved around the blockchain like Bitcoin or any other crypto asset, and provide exposure to US stocks for people in over 120 countries. Tenev described the US tokenization debate as split into two camps, enthusiasts asking when the capability arrives domestically and skeptics who point to existing access through products like Robinhood that already offer fractional shares and 24/5 trading. The infrastructure supporting 24/7 trading, portability, and instant settlement becomes more advantageous than traditional financial services when extended to asset classes where liquidity and access are more challenging, with private companies as the main example. Tenev identified the absence of good exchanges and market infrastructure for private companies as a problem tokenization can address by moving that activity onto a blockchain where a liquid global market already exists. Tenev said innovation must be balanced with investor protection, argued that the economic value created by private AI companies and firms such as SpaceX has largely accrued without ordinary individual investors being able to participate, and cited Robinhood's tokenization initiatives outside the US and Robinhood Ventures within the US as its responses. Knote: I'm not sure that tokenization of public equity is solving a major pain point right now (but perhaps a minor one), but I am 100% behind tokenization of private assets.

Centricity, an India-based wealth management technology firm, has raised $20 million in a seed round led by Lightspeed at a valuation of $125 million. Investors joining the round include the Burman Family Office, Paramark VC, the MS Dhoni Family Office, NB Ventures Family Office, MMG Group Family Office, Action Tesa Family Office, Ritesh Agarwal of OYO, Vishal Dhupar of Nvidia, Aakash Chaudhry and Shantanu Agarwal. Founded in 2022 by Manu Awasthy, Gaurav Tiwari, Manish Sharma, Pushpendra Singh and Aditya Shankar, Centricity runs two platforms, Invictus and OneDigital, that let financial advisors access and transact financial products while simplifying how clients understand their portfolios. The company serves financial product distributors, single family offices and end investors, and reports more than 4,500 distributors across 12 states and 26 cities along with roughly 10,000 clients onboarded. Revenue in fiscal 2024 grew three times over the prior year. Centricity plans to use the proceeds to scale Invictus and OneDigital, expand private banking services, pursue strategic acquisitions and double its technology team from 75 to more than 150 specialists focused on generative AI, insurance technology, and investing technology. Founder and chief executive Manu Awasthy said end investors in wealth management are tech-starved and crave simple, sincere solutions. For platforms, integrators and advisors, the round shows investor appetite for distributor-facing infrastructure in fast-growing wealth markets outside the United States. Knote: We continue to believe that D2C advice and investing market in India is one of the hottest WealthTech opportunities globally. Link to Article

Dalloo, R. (2026, August 12). Nitrogen Wealth rolls out insurance-focused AI tools for advisors. Connect Money. https://www.connectmoney.com/stories/nitrogen-wealth-rolls-out-insurance-focused-ai-tools-for-advisors/ Nitrogen Wealth, an artificial intelligence-backed wealthtech platform founded in 2011 and formerly known as Riskalyze before its 2023 rebrand, has launched Insurance Center, a product giving advisors expanded access to tools for addressing client coverage concerns. Insurance Center is part of Nitrogen's Coverage Number and gathers client data to generate a score in which results below 100 indicate a coverage gap, results above 100 could suggest excess coverage, and results between 80 and 120 are considered on track. Independent broker-dealer LPL Financial is an approved user of Insurance Center, which Nitrogen aims to sell as an independent service or as an add-on to advisors' existing plans. Insurance Center is powered by Nucleus, an AI agent created by Nitrogen that launched in February. The release comes close to three months after Nitrogen launched Legacy Center, an AI-powered wealth transfer tool that helps advisors build relationships with clients and their beneficiaries before wealth transfers begin. Justin Boatman, chief marketing officer and head of Product Strategy at Nitrogen Wealth, said tens of thousands of advisors use the firm's existing products and about 80% use them for insurance purposes. Citing Choice Mutual data, the article reports that an average of more than 100 million Americans were without coverage or lacked adequate coverage as of last year. Knote: Insurance should be an easy win for holistic advisors, but it was only a hard win 5 years ago. Technology is changing that.