About Karen Joy
Karen Joy Bacudo
Finance Editor
Karen wears two hats at TechDay, balancing her role as an editor while assisting with finance tasks. She bridges writing content and reconciling numbers to support the team, with the same level of accuracy and precision.
Stories by Karen Joy
Ideally raises AUD $13.4m to expand US market research
Today
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saas
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data analytics
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digital transformation
Ideally's AUD $13.4 million raise backs US growth and a new subscription product as brands seek faster, cheaper consumer insights.
Accounting software faces AI rivals in bookkeeping shift
Yesterday
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data analytics
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digital transformation
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fintech
Intuit's QuickBooks is under pressure as AI start-ups push automated bookkeeping, forcing accounting software to prove it can do more than digitise ledgers.
Xero launches AI-native operating system for small firms
Yesterday
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digital transformation
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fintech
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financial systems
Xero unveils AI-native finance platform and JAX assistant to cut admin for small firms, with accountants and bookkeepers also in line for gains.
Mastercard & Lobster.cash team up for AI agent payments
Last week
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crypto
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fintech
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risk & compliance
Mastercard and Lobster.cash to let OpenClaw users authorise AI agents to spend on existing cards, backed by Verifiable Intent.
Companies change incentive plans faster, report finds
Last week
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data analytics
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digital transformation
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planning
CaptivateIQ survey finds 91% of firms changed incentive strategy in the past year as AI, budget pressure and wider plan use speed up redesigns.
CIQ launches Linux compliance platform ahead of deadlines
Last week
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hybrid cloud
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digital transformation
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application security
CIQ rolls out Enterprise Linux compliance stack as federal cryptography, defence contractor and post-quantum rules tighten from 2026.
spektr raises USD $20 million to expand AI compliance
Last week
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digital transformation
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fintech
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rpa
Spektr lands USD $20 million Series A from NEA as Copenhagen AI compliance platform targets manual checks at banks and fintechs.
Tether backs Drift Protocol relaunch with GBP £150m
Last week
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crypto
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blockchain
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risk & compliance
Tether leads USD $150 million recovery plan as Drift Protocol seeks to restore user balances and restart trading after April exploit.
Blackhawk launches digital wallet for unified stored value
Last week
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crypto
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fintech
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cx
Blackhawk Network has unveiled a Digital Wallet API that lets brands pool gift cards, refunds, loyalty rewards and promo credit into one spendable balance.
Global study finds 78% use AI for investment insights
Last week
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digital transformation
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fintech
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genai
Study finds AI now shapes investment research for 78.3% of users, with strongest enthusiasm in the Middle East and Latin America.
Paymentology enters Australia with local payments ties
Last week
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dr
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fintech
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blockchain
Paymentology launches in Australia with Cuscal and Constantinople alliances, tapping the nation's fast-growing digital payments market and domestic rails.
Gr4vy launches toolkit for ChatGPT agentic payments
Last week
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crypto
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fintech
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cx
Gr4vy unveils Agentic Development Kit to help merchants sell inside ChatGPT and other AI platforms without overhauling their payment systems.
Aryza acquires Umbrella Tech in AI collections push
Last week
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saas
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uc
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devops
Aryza buys Toronto-based Umbrella Tech to add voice AI, speech analytics and autonomous agents to its collections and recoveries software.
Banks test stablecoins for faster cross-border payments
Last week
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crypto
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fintech
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supply chain
Banks and multinationals trial tokens to slash cross-border settlement times, as clearer rules and backing bolster wider business use.
Tether backs USD $134 million Stablecoin Development
Last week
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crypto
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fintech
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blockchain
Tether invests USD $134 million in listed stablecoin platform as stablecoin use surges past USD $300 billion and eyes public market access.
Visa launches Tempo validator node in blockchain push
Last week
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firewalls
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network security
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crypto
Visa takes a direct stake in Tempo's blockchain operations, joining an early group of outside validators as it deepens its stablecoin and payments push.
Backbase, Ninth Wave unlock ERP banking connections
Last week
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dr
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digital transformation
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fintech
Backbase and Ninth Wave have teamed up to let banks plug corporate clients' ERP and accounting systems straight into account data and payments.
Scotiabank launches Scotia Intelligence for bank-wide AI
Last week
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uc
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digital transformation
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fintech
Scotiabank puts AI under one roof as new enterprise platform rolls out for staff, with commercial email routing and client tools already delivering gains.
US AI megadeals drive global VC to USD $331 billion
Last week
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semiconductors
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hyperscale
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dc
US AI megadeals push global venture capital to a record USD $330.9 billion as OpenAI, Anthropic and xAI dominate first-quarter funding.
L&G Asset Management launches tokenised liquidity funds
Last week
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crypto
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fintech
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blockchain
L&G Asset Management puts £50 billion liquidity fund range on Calastone's tokenised network for blockchain-based access on Ethereum and other EVM chains.