rewrite this title Tracking the Top Fintech Trends at FinovateSpring 2026 – Finovate

FinovateSpring 2026 comes to sunny San Diego, California, from May 5 to 7. Tickets are on sale and going fast. Save your spot, book your room, and get ready for a full-court press on many of the biggest issues in fintech today: from AI and embedded finance to stablecoins and hyperpersonalization in the customer experience.

Today we highlight eight top fintech trends that will dominate the conversation at FinovateSpring this year—from main stage plenary keynotes to executive briefings and special spotlight sessions. We’re also showcasing where on the agenda you can find presentations and panel discussions on each theme.

It’s All About Agentic AI

AI is undeniably the most compelling and in-demand technology in banking and financial services today—and the innovation in AI that is attracting the most attention is agentic AI. Agentic AI systems are designed with a degree of autonomy and decision-making ability that allows them to complete an expanding range of tasks independently without requiring human intervention. In a relatively short time, this technology has evolved from pilot projects to powering e-commerce, fraud prevention, automated investment, credit risk assessment, and more.

Agentic AI sessions at FinovateSpring

Getting Serious about Stablecoins in Financial Services

With growing use cases in financial services and increasing regulatory clarity, stablecoins have become the most constructive innovation to emerge from the DeFi movement. From cross-border payments and remittances to serving as a stable medium of exchange, store of value, and hedge against volatility for cryptocurrency users, stablecoins enable banks and other financial institutions to leverage blockchain innovation while benefitting from price stability.

Stablecoin sessions at FinovateSpring

Making Embedded Finance Work for Banks

While much of the conversation about embedded finance focuses on how it empowers non-financial entities to offer financial services, it is also true that embedded finance offers banks and other financial services providers a way to scale and diversify their offerings while reaching new markets, customers, and members.

Embedded finance sessions at FinovateSpring

A Heat Check on the Open Banking Opportunity in the US

Open banking and finance are thriving in many places around the world, and while there have been gains in the US, it still lags behind peers in Europe and Australia. The absence of a regulatory mandate makes open banking in the US largely a market-driven phenomenon, but the continued debate over Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act (which ensures consumers can access their financial data upon request) creates uncertainties and challenges for banks and fintechs regarding data sharing and the extent of customer control over their data.

Open banking sessions at FinovateSpring

Fighting Financial Crime: New Challenges, New Solutions

Using AI to stay ahead of AI-wielding fraudsters and financial criminals has been a key strategy for fintechs and financial institutions aiming to protect themselves and their customers. At the same time, a growing number of companies are recognizing that, beyond technological solutions, collaborating to fight common fraud threats offers significant benefits compared to firms relying solely on their own resources.

Financial crime and cybersecurity sessions at FinovateSpring

Leveraging Data, Analytics, and AI to Enhance the Customer Experience

With more data than ever before at their disposal and powerful new analytical capabilities—including AI—at hand, financial institutions are looking at ways to better serve their customers and members with increasingly personalized products and services. In many ways, the ability to meet customers where they are—at home, on the go, or in the middle of a transaction—is increasingly seen as an opportunity for financial institutions to differentiate their offerings, as well as learn from and compete more effectively against non-financial rivals.

Hyperpersonalization sessions at FinovateSpring

Third-Party Risk and Building Better Partnerships in the Post-SVB Era

How are banks and fintechs addressing partnership and third-party risk in the post-SVB era? As regulators sharpen their focus on the risks in bank-fintech partnerships—and a growing number of fintechs decide to “cut out the middleman” and become banks themselves—it remains critical that banks and fintechs understand what it takes to build constructive alliances and collaborations that benefit all stakeholders—including regulatory bodies.

Third-party risk/Bank-fintech partnership sessions at FinovateSpring

Customers Still Count on Credit Unions and Community Banks

Large national banks may have the lion’s share of customer money, but with 73% of Americans having favorable views of credit unions compared to 56% of Americans having favorable views of national banks, it is hard not to see an opportunity for smaller financial institutions to leverage that trust into bigger customer bases, memberships, and deposits. Credit unions and community banks that embrace modernization and fintech innovation will be best positioned to offer the kind of services and products that often attract customers to national brands.

Community banks and credit union sessions at FinovateSpring

Views: 12