Coinbase: ChatGPT's Shopify integration to transform online shopping ; Coinbase & PayPal unite to reshape payments with stables ; AI allows smaller FinTechs to punch above their weight

👋 Hey, Linas here! Welcome back to a 🔓 weekly free edition 🔓 of my daily newsletter. Each day, I focus on 3 stories that are making a difference in the financial technology space. Coupled with things worth watching & most important money movements, it's the only newsletter you need for all things when Finance meets Tech. If you're not a subscriber, here's what you missed this week: The Ultimate List of Resources about AI Agents 🤖 [unlock the power of AI Agents: your gateway to the future of autonomous agentic systems] AI Must-Reads: The Essential Guide to Winning in the Age of Intelligent Transformation 📚🤖 [360+ pages of must-read AI reports transforming today's leaders into tomorrow's visionaries] The Ultimate List of Stablecoin Use Cases 🪙 [discover how stablecoins are quietly revolutionizing finance, business, and daily life across industries] Agentic AI Playbook for Finance 🤖💸 [ a field‑ready reference for product, engineering, and risk teams building autonomous agents in FinTech 📚 ] Revolut's profit machine reaches escape velocity with 72% revenue surge and 149% profit growth in 2024 🤯🚀 [deep dive into their 2024 annual report, breaking down the most important numbers, what they mean & why you should be bullish on Revolut + lots of bonus reads inside] Circle wants to revolutionize global money transfers with its stablecoin payment network 👀🪙 [what it's all about here & what's the USP + bonus deep dives into Circle's IPO & a list of 110+ real-world use cases of stablecoins] Crypto giants are pursuing banking charters in major financial system integration play 😳🏦 [what's the rationale here for Circle, Coinbase, BitGo, etc., what it means for the future of FinTech + bonus deep dives into BoA, JPMorgan, Circle, and others] Bank of America Delivers robust Q1 2025 growth amid economic uncertainty 📈🏦 [unpacking the most important numbers, what they mean & what's next for BoA + bonus deep dive into JPMorgan & their latest financials] Citi's transformation bearing fruit: strong Q1 performance signals turnaround progress despite global uncertainty 📈🏦 [deep dive into their Q1 2025 financials unpacking the most important numbers, what they mean & what's next for Citi + bonus deep dives into JPMorgan, Bank of America & co] Europe's Top 1,400+ VC & PE Firms to Accelerate Your Startup Funding 🇪🇺💶 [your ultimate directory to high-impact investors, tailored funding, and explosive growth opportunities ] Global 6,200+ Investor Database to Fast-Track Your Funding in 2025 💸 [shorten your fundraising time, find your perfect investors, and close rounds faster] As for today, here are the 3 fascinating FinTech stories that are changing the world of financial technology as we know it. This was yet another wild week in the financial technology space, so make sure to check all the above stories. From Chat to Cart: ChatGPT's Shopify integration set to transform online shopping 🤖🛍️ The news 🗞️ Multiple independent code analyses have recently revealed that OpenAI appears to be on the verge of introducing native Shopify -powered shopping directly within ChatGPT conversations. Code strings discovered in ChatGPT's production bundle include elements like "buy_now," "price," "shipping," "product_offer_ratings," and most tellingly, "shopify_checkout_url," indicating a formal partnership between the two companies. Let's take a closer look at this, see why it could be huge, and what's next for Shopify, e-commerce, and FinTech as a whole. More on this 👉 Unlike the 2023 Shop plugin, which merely provided catalog links, the new integration would enable users to complete purchases entirely within ChatGPT through Shopify's SHOP 0.00%↑ Shop Pay checkout system. This transforms the AI assistant from a product discovery tool into a comprehensive shopping channel with integrated payment processing. And that's a match made in heaven 👏 For Shopify's 2.2 million merchants, this integration represents instant access to ChatGPT's estimated 800 million monthly users without requiring additional technical work. For OpenAI, it offers revenue diversification through potential commissions and a more engaging user experience. Consumers would benefit from a streamlined "one-sentence shopping" experience, allowing them to describe exactly what they need and complete purchases without leaving the conversation. Zoom out 🔎 We may see a limited rollout to ChatGPT Plus and Team subscribers as early as May-June 2025, with broader implementation following later in the year. The feature would likely appear alongside recently added modules like weather and market data in ChatGPT's answer panel. This development follows similar moves by competitors, with Microsoft MSFT 0.00%↑ launching its Copilot Merchant Program on April 18, 2025, and Perplexity introducing its "Buy with Pro" feature last November. What's next? 🤔 First and foremost, this partnership represents a significant strategic shift in e-commerce, positioning conversational AI as a primary shopping channel rather than just a discovery tool. For Shopify, it aligns brilliantly with CEO Tobi Lütke's recently leaked April 7 memo directing staff to "hire an AI before you hire a human," underscoring the company's commitment to AI-driven commerce. Looking at the bigger picture, as AI shopping assistants become more prevalent, we may see fundamental changes in the financial technology sector. Here's what you need to start thinking about: Payment Processing : The integration of AI with payment systems will likely only accelerate, creating demand for more sophisticated fraud prevention and authentication methods specifically designed for conversational commerce. Consumer Data Analytics : The convergence of shopping intent data with conversational context will create new opportunities for personalization but also heighten privacy concerns, potentially driving innovation in privacy-preserving analytics. Merchant Acquisition Strategy : Financial service providers may need to recalibrate their approach to merchant acquisition, as visibility in AI interfaces becomes as crucial as SEO has been for web commerce. Looking ahead, we could see rapid development of a specialized ecosystem of services designed to optimize merchant performance in AI shopping channels, similar to what occurred with social commerce. That said, financial institutions should prepare for this shift by developing AI-native payment solutions and exploring partnerships with conversational AI platforms to ensure they remain relevant in this emerging paradigm of commerce. ICYMI : Shopify's Q4 2024: a commerce & FinTech powerhouse is hitting its profitable stride while maintaining hypergrowth 😤🛍️ [deep dive into their latest financials, breaking down key numbers, what they mean & why you should be bullish on Shopify in 2025] Coinbase and PayPal unite to reshape digital payments with stablecoins 🤝🪙 The news 🗞️ Two finance titans Coinbase COIN 0.00%↑ and PayPal PYPL 0.00%↑ just announced a significant expansion of their partnership, aiming to accelerate the adoption of cryptocurrency-based payments through PayPal's stablecoin, PYUSD. This strategic alliance represents another major push to bring blockchain technology into everyday financial transactions. Let's take a quick look at this and why it matters. More on this 👉 Coinbase will eliminate fees for conversions between USD and PYUSD for both retail and institutional customers. Additionally, Coinbase users will now be able to redeem PYUSD directly for USD on the platform, a capability previously requiring transfer to PayPal or Venmo. The integration will extend stablecoin infrastructure support to PayPal's extensive merchant network, potentially allowing businesses to settle transactions directly in PYUSD rather than through traditional banking channels. Zoom out 🔎 Despite launching in 2023, PYUSD has secured less than 1% of the stablecoin market with a market capitalization of approximately $860 million. The stablecoin landscape remains dominated by Tether's USDT (66.5%) and Circle's USDC (28.3%). However, the overall stablecoin market has demonstrated remarkable growth, with transaction volumes surging from $6.2 trillion in 2023 to $22 trillion in 2024. Analysts at Standard Chartered project the sector could reach $2 trillion in market capitalization by 2028, up from the current $238 billion. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong highlighted that PayPal's network of more than 430 million consumers and merchants "offers an unprecedented opportunity to increase stablecoin adoption globally." Both companies emphasize their commitment to exploring innovative applications for PYUSD in decentralized finance and other blockchain platforms. What's next? 🤔 At the core, this partnership represents another significant milestone in the mainstreamification of cryptocurrency-based payment systems. As regulatory frameworks for stablecoins advance in the U.S., with Congress expected to enact legislation by Q3 2025, established financial institutions are strategically positioning themselves in this evolving landscape. The elimination of conversion fees could thus substantially accelerate PYUSD adoption, potentially challenging the dominance of USDT and USDC. For PayPal, this initiative complements its recent introduction of a 3.7% annual yield on PYUSD holdings and demonstrates its commitment to remaining competitive in the evolving payments sector. Looking at the bigger picture, this collaboration signals that the line between traditional fintech and cryptocurrency infrastructure continues to blur. As major financial institutions embrace blockchain-based payment rails, we can expect increased competition among stablecoin issuers, with potential benefits for consumers in the form of reduced fees, faster settlements, and enhanced cross-border payment capabilities. Of course, the success of this initiative may ultimately hinge on regulatory developments and merchant adoption. If PayPal can leverage its