Nonprofit foundation also now accepting applications for its food security grant program

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., March 4, 2026 — To address Florida’s maternal health crisis, the Florida Blue Foundation, the philanthropic affiliate of Florida Blue and part of the GuideWell portfolio of companies, is investing $3.5 million to expand access to doula care, in-home visits, mental health services, and chronic condition support for mothers and families statewide.

Why it matters: High rates of preterm birth and infant mortality across Florida, particularly among women with chronic conditions and limited access to care, underscore the need for stronger, community-based maternal health support to improve outcomes for mothers and babies.

The details: This latest round of grants supports organizations improving maternal health outcomes for women with chronic conditions, as well as those that provide perinatal and postpartum mental health services.

“These organizations are meeting mothers where they are — in clinics, in their homes, in early learning centers, and in places that are comfortable and convenient for them,” said Susan Towler, executive director of Florida Blue Foundation. “Every program we support helps close gaps in access, improve maternal and infant health outcomes, and strengthen families across the state.”

2026 Maternal Health Grant Recipients

Improving Maternal Health Outcomes for Chronic Conditions:

• Lakeland Regional Medical Center (Central/West Florida) — The Innovative Support for Maternal Health Outcomes program provides nurse navigation, doula support, education, and monitoring tools to help high-risk pregnant women manage chronic conditions and reduce complications.‑risk pregnant women manage chronic conditions and reduce complications.
• March of Dimes – South Florida Chapter (South Florida) — The Green Cars for Kids initiative provides free electric transportation to prenatal, postpartum, and specialty care appointments, helping mothers with chronic conditions maintain consistent care.
• Pasco Kids First (West Florida) — The Thrive Well: Maternal Health & Wellness program expands home visiting services to include maternal health monitoring, chronic condition education, and referrals for at-risk mothers.
• Collier Health Services / Healthcare Network of SWFL (Southwest Florida) — The Transitions of Care for High-Risk Pregnancies program coordinates care across home, hospital, and postpartum settings using monitoring, follow-up support, and AI enabled nutrition tools.

Perinatal and Postpartum Maternal Mental Health Support:

• Primary Care Medical Services of Poinciana / Osceola Community Health Services (Central Florida) — The Maternal Mental Health Integration Program embeds mental health screening, counseling, and peer support into routine OB/GYN care to strengthen perinatal and postpartum outcomes in Osceola County.
• University of North Florida Foundation (Northeast Florida) — The Osprey Psych Telehealth Maternal Mental Health Initiative expands access to perinatal and postpartum behavioral health care through telehealth, bilingual technology support, and AI enabled tools.
• Capital Area Healthy Start Coalition (Northwest Florida) — The C.O.A.S.T. Through Pregnancy program uses perinatal navigators and licensed clinical social workers to coordinate medical, mental health, and social services for mothers.
• Indian River County Healthy Start Coalition (Treasure Coast) — The Postpartum & Bereavement Community Doula Program offers emotional, mental health, and practical support to families navigating postpartum recovery or loss.
• The Children’s Movement of Florida (Statewide) — The Early Motherhood Support Groups program creates safe, peer supported spaces in early learning centers where pregnant women and new mothers can strengthen their mental well-being.

“To truly make progress for the youngest Floridians, we must impact the adults — in the family and community — who help shape children’s lives,” said Madeleine Thakur, president & CEO of The Children’s Movement of Florida. “We are grateful for the support from Florida Blue Foundation, which is helping to bridge gaps in care and services for new mothers and families.”

These programs will serve families across Florida, including those living in rural areas and in communities with limited access to maternal health services and support.

Food Security Grant Program Applications also now open

In addition to announcing maternal health funding, the Florida Blue Foundation is now accepting applications for the 2026 funding cycle of its food security grant program. The Foundation will award approximately $3.2 million in grants and is seeking proposals that address the following topic areas:

Focus 1: Transforming Health through Food
Healthy eating is a crucial component of overall well-being, and access to nutritious food can play a significant role in preventing and managing chronic health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and obesity which are prevalent in Florida. This funding focus supports programs that apply Food is Medicine principles to deliver effective interventions that improve health outcomes and quality of life. Funding will support initiatives that provide nutrition prescriptions, education, counseling, and medical nutrition therapy to individuals and communities. Programs that provide fresh produce and healthy food to support lifestyle changes and improve overall community well-being are a priority. Partnerships between health care providers, grocery stores, food banks, and community organizations that address food insecurity as a social determinant of health are encouraged.

Focus 2: Growing Access, Growing Capacity
Vulnerable populations in Florida, including children, families, and seniors, often face significant barriers to accessing healthy food, particularly in food desert communities. This funding focus supports organizations that provide essential services to address food access gaps and promote community resilience. Funding will support food distribution programs, including food banks, delivery services, pantries, and mobile markets, as well as urban agriculture and collaborative solutions that increase access to nutritious food. Effective organizations with strong foundations are best positioned to drive lasting change; therefore, support for operational needs is a critical component of this funding focus, enabling them to sustain and grow their efforts over time.

The application window closes on April 22 and details are available via this food security grant application link.

Go deeper: To learn more about Florida Blue Foundation’s impact across the state, including its commitment to improving maternal health outcomes, read GuideWell’s latest impact report. 

About Florida Blue Foundation  

Florida Blue Foundation enables healthy communities by making grants, building coalitions, and embracing solutions that create a meaningful impact in communities across the state. An average of 10 million Floridians receive services each year as a result of its community investments. Founded in 2001, Florida Blue Foundation is committed to improving health by impacting food security, advancing mental well-being, growing healthy communities, and addressing health disparities. Florida Blue Foundation is a trade name of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida Foundation, Inc., an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information, please visit FloridaBlueFoundation.com. 

About Florida Blue  

Driven by its mission of helping people and communities achieve better health, Florida Blue is the leading health insurer in Florida, and part of GuideWell, a not-for-profit health services company.  Florida Blue offers a range of health plans and personalized care programs for individuals, families, businesses of all sizes, and Medicare beneficiaries. For over 80 years, the organization has been member centric and committed to making health care as accessible and affordable as possible. Serving more than six million members across all 67 Florida counties, Florida Blue has more than 8,000 employees and is headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., is owned by its policyholders, and is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. 

For additional information visit FloridaBlue.com. For the latest news and content, visit the Florida Blue Newsroom, and follow Florida Blue on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram @Florida.Blue; and X (formerly Twitter) @FLBlue. 

SOURCE Florida Blue Foundation

Strategic partnership with Tradeweb to provide institutional spot crypto liquidity to global clients, reflecting the rapid convergence of traditional finance and digital assets

Additional participating investors include DRW Venture Capital, Illuminate Financial, Ripple, Virtu Financial, Wintermute Ventures, and XTX Markets

WILMINGTON, Del., March 4, 2026 — Crossover Markets (“Crossover”), the institutional digital asset trading technology firm behind CROSSx, one of the industry’s first execution-only cryptocurrency electronic communication networks (“ECN”), today announced the successful completion of its $31 million Series B financing round. The round values Crossover at $200 million and was led by Tradeweb Markets (Nasdaq: TW), a global leader in electronic trading across asset classes, with participation from industry leaders including DRW Venture Capital, Ripple, Virtu Financial, Wintermute Ventures, XTX Markets, and Illuminate Financial.

“We are pleased to announce our Series B financing and are grateful to both our existing and new investors, whose support is a testament to the transformative role CROSSx is playing in the digital asset ecosystem,” said Brandon Mulvihill, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Crossover Markets. “Institutions are demanding the same speed, transparency, and efficiency they rely on in traditional markets, and few Wall Street leaders understand those standards better than Tradeweb, one of the world’s leading multi-asset marketplaces. Combining CROSSx’s single-digit microsecond matching performance with Tradeweb’s global distribution will mark a significant step forward for institutional crypto trading. Clear separation of duties is fundamental to market structure, and Crossover is purpose-built to serve as the industry’s execution layer and principal market.”

In addition to the investment, Tradeweb plans to provide its global clients with access to Crossover’s institutional spot crypto liquidity through Tradeweb’s algorithmic order-routing technology. Crossover’s bespoke anonymous and disclosed bilateral liquidity pools are designed to deliver higher-quality liquidity and improved execution outcomes for institutional investors compared to transacting on centralized exchanges. The collaboration reinforces Tradeweb’s role in modernizing market structure through innovative trading protocols, embedded analytics and technology infrastructure that bridges traditional and digitally native financial markets.

“This collaboration marks Tradeweb’s entry into institutional crypto, a natural next step in our multi-asset strategy,” said Billy Hult, CEO of Tradeweb. “Institutional investors are increasingly turning to crypto to express macro views and manage risk in a 24/7 global market. As adoption grows, the market needs trusted, institutional-grade infrastructure. Through this planned integration with Crossover, our goal is to extend Tradeweb’s electronic execution standards into crypto — with the liquidity, transparency and discipline our clients expect.”

Proceeds from the financing will be used to enhance CROSSx’s technology stack, expand global operations, and deepen integrations with institutional partners. Since its launch, CROSSx has matched more than $50 billion in notional trading volume across 12 million trades and supports nearly 100 live participants. As one of the industry’s first execution-only crypto ECNs, CROSSx is designed to eliminate conflicts of interest by focusing solely on execution, providing a neutral platform where institutions can trade anonymously and efficiently without the bundled services typical of other platforms.

Participation from other leading financial institutions including DRW Venture Capital, Illuminate Financial, Virtu Financial, and XTX Markets reflects traditional finance’s growing role in shaping digital asset market structure. Collectively, these firms contribute regulatory expertise, disciplined risk management, and global distribution networks that will help bridge traditional capital markets and cryptocurrency trading.

Crossover Markets and CROSSx operate at the forefront of this evolution, serving as a primary venue for institutional crypto trading by offering low-latency execution, advanced order types, and seamless connectivity via FIX protocols — capabilities recognized by crypto-native market leaders such as Ripple and Wintermute Ventures. With this financing, Crossover Markets is well-positioned to further solidify CROSSx as the venue of choice for institutional digital asset trading, driving liquidity and continued innovation across an increasingly interconnected financial ecosystem.

About Crossover Markets
Crossover Markets is a digital asset technology firm dedicated to meeting the unique liquidity requirements of institutional clients. Its flagship platform, CROSSx, is the world’s first execution-only crypto ECN, delivering ultra-low latency matching, anonymous trading, and advanced tools designed for high-frequency and algorithmic strategies. Founded by industry veterans, Crossover Markets is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, with operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.crossovermarkets.com.

About Tradeweb Markets
Tradeweb Markets Inc. (Nasdaq: TW) is a leading, global operator of electronic marketplaces for rates, credit, equities, and money markets. Founded in 1996, Tradeweb provides access to markets, data and analytics, electronic trading, straight-through-processing, and reporting for more than 50 products to clients in the institutional, wholesale, retail, and corporates markets. Advanced technologies developed by Tradeweb enhance price discovery, order execution and trade workflows while allowing for greater scale and helping to reduce risks in client trading operations. Tradeweb serves more than 3,000 clients in more than 85 countries. On average, Tradeweb facilitated more than $2.6 trillion in notional value traded per day over the past four fiscal quarters. For more information, please go to www.tradeweb.com.

Media Contacts
For Crossover Markets:
[email protected]

For Tradeweb:
Daniel Noonan, Tradeweb
+1 646 767 4677
[email protected]
Savannah Steele
+1 646 767 4941
[email protected]

Forward-Looking Statements 
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Statements related to, among other things, our outlook and future performance, the industry, and markets in which we operate, our expectations, beliefs, plans, strategies, objectives, prospects and assumptions and future events are forward-looking statements. 

We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections. While we believe these expectations, assumptions, estimates, and projections are reasonable, such forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control. These and other important factors, including those discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in the documents of Tradeweb Markets Inc. on file with or furnished to the SEC, may cause our actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this release are not guarantees of future events or performance and future events, our actual results of operations, financial condition or liquidity, and the development of the industry and markets in which we operate, may differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this release. In addition, even if future events, our results of operations, financial condition or liquidity, and events in the industry and markets in which we operate, are consistent with the forward-looking statements contained in this release, they may not be predictive of events, results, or developments in future periods.

Any forward-looking statement that we make in this release speaks only as of the date of such statement. Except as required by law, we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise, or to publicly announce any update or revision to, any of the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this release.

SOURCE Crossover Markets

Long Journey Ventures and Copec WIND Ventures co‑lead; AI platform lets contractors design, sell, and finance solar projects in seconds; former Shell Ventures investor Alexander Urban joins as CFO

HOUSTON, March 4, 2026 — Artemis (formerly Monalee) today announced it has closed a $6 million financing round co‑led by Long Journey and Copec WIND Ventures and joining Ludlow Ventures, Shrug Capital, Coalition Operators, Plug and Play Ventures, FJ Labs, Tribeca Ventures, Palm Tree Crew, and Scott Banister.

Accelerating Energy Deployment – From Bottlenecks to One OS

Residential solar, battery, and home‑energy projects still take days to quote and more than 100 days to fulfill, with costly design software and fragmented workflows that slow deals and squeeze margins. Artemis eliminates that friction by unifying AI‑powered design, embedded financing, and compliance automation in a single operating system, shrinking cycle times from days to seconds. Customers report up to 72% lower software costs and 98% faster turnaround, often seeing 5× higher conversion rates than legacy tools.

“Installers shouldn’t need six tools and a week of back-and-forth to sell a project,” said Walid Halty, co-founder and CEO of Artemis. “This funding gives us the fuel to scale our mission to compress design, financing, and compliance into a single flow so every installer can operate like a modern energy company. We’re not just speeding up deals, we’re modernizing how distributed energy gets built.”

From hardware to digital infrastructure

Founded as Monalee in 2019 as a vertically integrated solar‑and‑battery installer, the team mapped utility and permitting rules nationwide and built advanced AI design tools to power its own operations. In 2024, those internal systems became Artemis, a standalone software platform that powers installers rather than competing with them.

“The rebrand marks our evolution from a tech-enabled construction business to the digital backbone for distributed energy,” added Halty. “We chose the name Artemis, twin sister of Apollo and protector of the earth, to reflect our mission to harness the sun and modernize the grid.”

Market and differentiation

Artemis, which is available in the US and will soon launch internationally, is designed to be used by home improvement contractors (+1m domestically), solar companies (+10k domestically, +40k internationally), energy financiers, and utilities to more easily adapt to the changing energy landscape, which is becoming more distributed and challenging to manage. The enablement of these partners to roll out solar faster and more cost-effectively at a global scale represents a +$200b market opportunity. Unlike design-only point solutions, Artemis integrates design, sales, financing, and O&M into one platform and is ~75% cheaper and up to 10 times faster at design generation, according to customer-reported and internal data. Customers, including GoodLeap, Empower Home Services, and Dynamic SLR are already seeing the impact: GoodLeap’s direct sales team cut design-to-sale times from seven days to 1 minute, and Dynamic SLR reduced costs by 72%.

“Artemis is transforming the complexity of distributed energy into elegant simplicity,” said Arielle Zuckerberg, General Partner at Long Journey.  “It’s the kind of magically weird company we love at Long Journey — technically ambitious, deeply grounded in real-world operations, and building the invisible software that makes the energy transition actually move.”

“Artemis is building the software backbone for distributed energy, and we’re excited to help bring that to Latin America,” said Brian Walsh of Copec WIND Ventures. “Together with Copec, we see an opportunity to accelerate solar and storage adoption and deliver a faster, more modern experience for homeowners and partners.”

Company Adds Former Shell Ventures Investor Alexander Urban as CFO

The company has hired Alexander Urban as Chief Financial Officer. Urban has spent the last 11 years at Shell where he worked in Trading, M&A, and most recently in Shell’s Venture Capital team. During his time with Shell Ventures, he deployed hundreds of millions of dollars across dozens of portfolio companies engaged in the energy transition (many in distributed energy).  He will bring rigorous capital allocation and operating discipline to Artemis as it builds on 27× growth over the last nine months. As CFO, he will lead financial strategy and operations and deploy the funding to grow engineering, customer support, and sales to advance Artemis’ roadmap toward becoming the de facto OS for solar, battery storage, and home‑improvement contractors.

Strategic collaboration in Latin America

Through WIND Ventures (the corporate venture arm of Copec), Artemis and Copec, one of the largest energy companies in Latin America, are launching pilots across Copec’s residential customer and partner networks in Chile and Colombia to digitize distributed-energy workflows.

Fueling Expansion and Product Growth

The new funding will be used to accelerate product development, expand customer support, and scale go-to-market operations as Artemis cements its position as the operating system for distributed energy. The company is actively hiring full-stack engineers, support engineers, and AI researchers to enhance platform capabilities and customer experience. Artemis also plans to deepen integrations with financing and permitting partners and broaden its footprint across the U.S. and Latin America, enabling every installer to operate at software speed and bring clean, affordable energy to millions of homes faster.

About Artemis
Artemis is redefining how the distributed energy industry operates. The platform enables solar and battery companies to design, sell, and finance projects in seconds—up to 72% cheaper and 10× faster than legacy tools. Powered by proprietary AI and integrated financing infrastructure, Artemis helps installers transform into modern energy providers. Learn more at artemispower.com

Media Contact
Mary Magnani, CodePR
[email protected]

SOURCE Artemis

This round was led by Shakti VC

Company to establish Austin, Texas as U.S. headquarters

AUSTIN, Texas, March 4, 2026 — NextWork, a platform helping people learn practical AI skills by building real projects and publishing proof-of-work portfolios, today announced a $4.45M Seed round led by Shakti VC with participation from Cake Ventures. Repeat investors GD1 VC, Blackbird Ventures, Icehouse Ventures, Phase One Ventures and angel investors also participated in this round, reinforcing their continued confidence in NextWork’s mission.

“The age of AI promises a new Renaissance where human potential is no longer siloed by specialization. In the AI age every person can be a Michelangelo because AI will provide abundant tools to do anything we want in the digital or physical domain,” said Keval Desai, founder and managing director of Shakti VC. “Achieving this future requires only two things: imagination and the mastery of AI. While the imagination is up to us, NextWork provides the mastery. This is Amber’s vision and we have never been more excited to invest in a founder and the future that she is building.”

AI is reshaping the workforce faster than people can adapt, exposing a widening skills gap and a hiring system still reliant on credentials that don’t always reflect real ability. NextWork closes this trust gap by serving as the verification layer for AI skills, shifting hiring and learning from inferred qualifications to proven outcomes. Through hands-on projects, authenticated skills and public portfolios, NextWork turns learning into verifiable proof of work, enabling individuals and employers to move at the pace AI demands with confidence.

“For most of history, learning existed to solve real problems. Somewhere along the way, we replaced that with credentials and titles that don’t tell you who can build anymore,” said Amber Winton, founder and CEO of NextWork. “As AI reshapes how work is done, the world needs systems that reward what people can actually build. NextWork exists to realign learning, work and value around solving real problems again.”

Since launching in 2024, more than 190,000 learners across 190+ countries have used NextWork to build practical AI projects, such as AI chatbots and automated workflows. One in five projects (22%) are completed by U.S. learners, who are typically between the ages of 25-35 and using their portfolios to pursue a career switch or promotion.

“Since we launched, I’ve been fortunate to lead the project writing team, turning user feedback into skills that directly reflect market demand,” said Natasha Ong, Chief of Staff at NextWork. “Watching learners complete projects and leverage their portfolios to unlock new jobs and opportunities has reaffirmed why this work matters so deeply.”

The new capital will support NextWork’s expansion in the U.S., including establishing its headquarters in Austin, Texas and continued investment in engineering and growth hiring to scale the platform and accelerate learner adoption.

“After completing an intensive cybersecurity training program, I still struggled to find a job because I didn’t have concrete proof of what I could actually do,” said Shane Brown, a NextWork learner in Arizona. “To make ends meet, I worked a custodial job while building my portfolio on NextWork, and it worked! The skills I showed in my portfolio were what helped me move from school custodian to the IT department, opening new doors in my career.” 

About NextWork
NextWork helps people learn practical AI skills by building hands-on projects and publishing proof-of-work portfolios. The platform is used globally by learners who want job-relevant skills and tangible outputs they can share with employers, teams, and communities.
Learn more at https://www.nextwork.org/.

Media Contact
Alexa Borislow
[email protected]

SOURCE NextWork

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., March 4, 2026 — Lotus Domaine Fund III, LP, a private equity fund focused on founder-led enterprise technology companies, today announced that it has entered into a finalized strategic investment relationship with OPENVC Unicorn Fund I, LP, a platform providing institutional-grade access to late-stage private technology companies.

The agreement, effective January 23, 2026, provides Lotus Domaine Fund III, LP with enhanced access to select late-stage private companies, including leading unicorn and decacorn enterprises, on terms designed to align with the Fund’s existing governance and investment framework. The relationship is intended to broaden Lotus Domaine’s visibility into the evolving enterprise technology landscape, including artificial intelligence, SaaS, and next-generation software platforms, while supporting informed decision-making across its remaining portfolio investments.

Through this relationship, Lotus Domaine Fund III, LP expects to gain exposure to often difficult to access shares in U.S. high-growth private companies at attractive pricing and terms, insight into emerging technology and operational trends, and connectivity to a network of experienced technology operators and innovators across the United States. The arrangement also supports the broader development of investment platforms designed to responsibly expand access to private companies that are remaining private longer, subject to applicable regulatory and structural constraints.

“This strategic relationship reinforces our long-term commitment to the future of enterprise software, AI, and next-generation technology platforms,” said Ridaa Murad, Managing Director of Lotus Domaine. “By aligning with OPENVC, we are enhancing our ability to evaluate transformative companies at scale while maintaining a disciplined, investor-first approach that reflects our fiduciary responsibilities to our limited partners.”

The agreement is fully executed, with no remaining conditions precedent, other than the satisfaction of final side letter objectives customary to the Fund’s governance and investment processes.

About Lotus Domaine

Lotus Domaine is a mid-size private equity firm specializing in the lower middle market, with a focus on founder-led enterprise technology companies experiencing accelerated growth. The firm invests across AI-as-a-Service, SaaS, cybersecurity, and related technology sectors. Lotus Domaine’s deep domain expertise, extensive network of industry talent and prospective customers, and collaborative partnership model enable portfolio companies to scale effectively and realize their full potential.

About OPENVC

OPENVC is revolutionizing index investing in the late-stage venture capital space by providing improved access to the world’s leading private unicorn companies. OPENVC’s mission is to democratize venture capital investment through low-cost, institutional-grade products that leverage the principles of index investing. By reducing fees and expanding access, OPENVC aims to make private market opportunities more accessible to a broader range of investors. For more information, visit www.openvc.com.

Important Disclosure

This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. Interests in Lotus Domaine Fund III, LP are offered only to accredited and institutional investors pursuant to applicable exemptions under U.S. securities laws and only through definitive offering documents.

Media Contact:
Jeff Luzzi
949-338-1113
[email protected]

SOURCE Lotus Domaine

Repeat founders spent the last four years building crypto and stablecoin products for a payments company.

MIAMI, March 4, 2026 — Cyclops announces $8M strategic investment from Castle Island Ventures, F-Prime and Shift4 Payments to build the stablecoin and crypto platform exclusively for the payments industry. Created by repeat founders Pat Duffy, Alex Wilson and David Johnson, the new platform enables payment service providers (PSPs) to offer crypto and stablecoin capabilities through a single partner, replacing the fragmented multi-vendor approach that has prevented widespread adoption of digital assets across the payments industry.

The founders are known for building purpose-built crypto platforms. Prior to Cyclops, they created The Giving Block, the leading crypto donations solution for nonprofits. After selling the business to Shift4, they spent the last three years building out Shift4’s stablecoin and crypto solutions. Dissatisfaction with the incumbents led them to found Cyclops, running their same purpose-built playbook but, this time, for payments companies.

“Using a patchwork of existing solutions, we built products for pay-with-crypto, stablecoin settlement and stablecoin payouts at Shift4,” said Alex Wilson, Co-Founder of Cyclops. “It was so much harder than it needed to be. We shouldn’t have needed multiple vendors and dedicated engineering and product teams to bring those products to market. Cyclops is the first platform where everything comes out of the box ready for a payments company.”

The platform enables payments companies to offer stablecoin settlement, crypto payments and digital asset capabilities to merchants without building or maintaining blockchain infrastructure. By focusing on one industry, the company tailors their onboarding, compliance and technical offerings to form-fit traditional and agentic payments use cases. By eliminating the need for intensive integrations across multiple partners, Cyclops aims to accelerate stablecoin adoption in the payments industry.

“Payments companies see the potential for crypto and stablecoin products. Merchants are asking for them. But they’ve been prohibitively difficult and expensive to bring to market. We like Cyclops because we don’t think a payments company should need to become a crypto company just to offer these products to their customers,” said Luke Thomas, Chief Strategy Officer at Shift4.

MiCA and GENIUS have created the legal clarity necessary for payments companies to leverage their distribution to capitalize on the stablecoin boom. Stablecoins help PSPs move money more quickly, grow their margins and build stickier relationships with merchants.

“The Cyclops team spent years building stablecoins and crypto products inside of a large company. Their products are unique because they had to do it the hard way. No one knows the pain points better than they do,” said Sean Judge, General Partner at Castle Island Ventures.

Starting today, Cyclops will be commercially available. Learn more about Cyclops here.

About Cyclops

Cyclops is the first stablecoin and crypto infrastructure platform built exclusively for the payments industry. With low and no code solutions, Cyclops is the fastest way for payments companies to bring crypto and stablecoin offerings to market. Founded by crypto and payments industry veterans who built crypto solutions for Shift4, Cyclops enables crypto acceptance, stablecoin settlement and stablecoin payouts for payments companies.

Cyclops is backed by Castle Island, F-Prime and Shift4. Additional information is available at cyclops.io.

SOURCE Cyclops

HERNDON, Va., March 4, 2026 — HawkEye 360, the global leader in signals intelligence data and analytics, today announced an additional close of its Series E financing, raising approximately $23 million in new capital. The second close includes participation from new investors Ghisallo, Principia Growth, and Sixty Degree Capital, as well as continued participation from existing investor Strategic Development Fund (SDF).

“The continued participation from both new and existing investors underscores confidence in our strategy and the progress we’re making as we scale the business,” said John Serafini, CEO of HawkEye 360. “We are advancing our capabilities through the integration of ISA and continued investment in our platform, supporting the signals intelligence our partners rely on to inform their missions.”

HawkEye 360 will use capital to strengthen its balance sheet and continue executing its strategic growth priorities, including the integration of Innovative Signal Analysis (ISA).

“This additional close reflects our disciplined approach to capital formation,” said Craig Searle, CFO of HawkEye 360. “It strengthens our balance sheet and provides flexibility as we continue integrating ISA, advancing our platform, and managing growth in a thoughtful and deliberate way.”

About HawkEye 360
HawkEye 360 is equipping defense, intelligence, and national security leaders with mission-critical signals intelligence to enable faster, better decision-making. By detecting, geolocating, and characterizing radio-frequency emissions worldwide, HawkEye 360 delivers trusted domain awareness and early-warning indicators to the US Government and allied partners. Our space-based collection, proprietary signal processing, and AI-powered analytics transform knowledge of RF spectrum into a strategic advantage. Proven by operational mission success, HawkEye 360 is redefining how signals intelligence strengthens national and global security.

SOURCE HawkEye 360 Inc.

LONDON, March 4, 2026 — Vivox AI, a UK-based technology company building regulator-ready, atomic AI agents for AML, KYB/KYC and financial crime, has raised £1.3 million (€1.5 million) in its first funding round to accelerate product development and scale its enterprise platform.

The round includes backing from Axel Weber, former president of Germany’s central bank and chairman of UBS Group, as well as Dan Cobley, former managing director at Google UK, senior executives from Barclays, the co-founder of Onfido, Kos Stiskin, co-founder of Finom, Startup Wise Guys, James Janis Berdigans, founder & executive chairman at Printify+Printful, Venture Together, alongside a group of strategic fintech and technology investors.

Vivox AI will use the funding to expand its core platform and advance a new class of AI agents designed specifically for highly regulated financial institutions.

Unlike general-purpose AI systems, Vivox AI’s agents operate as independent, auditable units, each responsible for a clearly defined task across onboarding, KYB, due diligence and financial crime workflows. This modular architecture enables financial institutions to deploy AI in production environments while maintaining regulatory control, auditability and operational accountability.

At the heart of the platform is a self-learning AI agent layer, implemented through Vivox AI’s AI agent, Rachel, which continuously improves performance through supervised feedback from experienced human analysts, while preserving explainability and governance controls. The agents securely connect to multiple internal and external data sources, enabling real-time enrichment and decision support across complex compliance processes.

Vivox AI’s platform is already deployed across enterprise customers operating in more than 100 countries, including the UK, Europe, US and Singapore. Clients include TransferMate, Altery, Osome and Telf. Across live deployments, the system has reduced complex compliance case processing times from approximately six hours to around 30 minutes, lowered false-positive screening alerts by up to 86 per cent, and enabled straight-through processing (STP) rates of up to 50 per cent for selected onboarding and due-diligence workflows. The platform also consolidates multiple analyst systems into a single interface.

The company’s proposition centres on what it describes as “atomic” AI agents – independent, auditable AI units designed to perform one clearly defined compliance function, such as corporate registry analysis, UBO identification, sanctions and PEP triage, adverse media reasoning, or enhanced due diligence review. Each agent can be validated, monitored and governed separately.

The system aligns by design with the latest regulatory and supervisory expectations, including recent FCA guidance on AI, the EU AI Act, as well as multiple emerging governance frameworks for AI, including those recently adopted in Singapore.

Axel A. Weber, Former Chairman, UBS; Former President, Deutsche Bundesbank, and investor in Vivox AI, says:
“In today’s environment, transparency, auditability, and regulatory alignment are not optional – they are a must. Vivox AI is building the blueprint for how regulated financial institutions should integrate AI safely and responsibly.”

Kos Stiskin, co-founder of Finom and investor, added:
“Vivox’s atomic agent architecture represents a differentiated and the most superior approach to applying AI across transaction monitoring and KYB operations.”

Tim Khamzin, founder and CEO of Vivox AI, says:
“We are excited to see Vivox AI beginning to play a meaningful role in the global financial crime compliance ecosystem. The role of the compliance analyst is rapidly evolving into that of a compliance engineer, focused on managing complex investigations and supervising AI agents rather than manual, repetitive processes. Our platform is designed to support this shift, enabling teams to operate with greater control, transparency and regulatory confidence.”

Alex Clements, Global Head of AML at TransferMate Global Payments, commented on implementing Vivox AI’s technology:
“The level of detail in Vivox AI’s AI governance framework is exactly right. It gives us confidence that we can demonstrate that same depth of control and transparency during audits and in any regulatory inspection relating to the use of AI.”

Founded in London, Vivox AI develops specialised AI agents for financial crime, onboarding and regulatory operations, enabling financial institutions to automate complex compliance workflows without compromising regulatory confidence. Following the funding, the company is expanding its engineering and product teams as it rolls out the next generation of its enterprise platform.

Media contact:
Anna Antimiichuk
Head of Marketing, Vivox AI
Phone: +447408812657
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Vivox AI

Driving Economic Growth and Ecosystem Transformation One Year After State Investment

LOS ANGELES, March 4, 2026 — Halogen Ventures, Jesse Draper’s venture capital fund focused on early-stage startups with a woman on the founding team, today announced its first nine investments in Alabama, marking a significant milestone one year after partnering with Innovate Alabama to invest $10 million to drive economic development and transform the founder ecosystem statewide.

Halogen Ventures is the first out-of-state venture capital firm to receive strategic funding from the state through Innovate Alabama for their third fund. Since receiving the funding one year ago, Halogen has been on the ground in Alabama, touring innovation centers and research labs, meeting entrepreneurs and state leaders across Birmingham, Huntsville, Mobile, Tuscaloosa, and Montgomery, and hosting pitch competitions that made national news and put local founders in front of new investment opportunities.

“We came to Alabama not just to invest capital, but to help remove barriers, open doors, and create long-term economic opportunity,” said Jesse Draper, Founding Partner of Halogen Ventures. “We’re seeing real momentum and capital flowing into companies that are hiring, scaling, and putting Alabama on the map as an emerging innovation hub.”

Alabama ranks 50th in the nation for female entrepreneurship, yet its tech sector has surged 50% since 2018 and is projected to double by 2030. Venture capital investment in the state has grown from $3 million a decade ago to $321 million in 2023.

“We are making a calculated bet on one of the most undervalued startup ecosystems in America, and we are just getting started. There is so much opportunity in Alabama and the quality of startups is next level!,” said Draper.

To date, as part of its plan to deploy $10 million across 20 companies over the next two years, Halogen has invested in companies across AI, healthcare, marketplaces, digital finance, workforce technology, robotics, and childcare solutions, including:

• Moxi – A flexible childcare and co-working platform helping working families access quality care and community services.
• Auditocity – An HR technology company automating compliance workflows with AI.
• Croux – An AI-powered staffing marketplace connecting job seekers to flexible, high-paying work opportunities.
• Skyfire AI – Advanced analytics and AI solutions driving enterprise decision-making.
• Nyad AI – An AI-powered operations intelligence platform built for efficiency at scale.
• Doctours – A medical tourism marketplace increasing healthcare access and transparency for patients nationwide.
• Yard – Developer of autonomous robotic workforce solutions for outdoor maintenance.
• KrillPay – A borderless digital wallet delivering affordable, inclusive fintech services across the U.S., Sub-Saharan Africa, and Canada.
• Accelerate Wind – A distributed wind energy company deploying small-scale turbine solutions to deliver affordable, resilient clean power to businesses and communities

These investments expand Halogen’s portfolio of more than 85 female-founded companies, including six unicorns, with a combined market valuation exceeding $15 billion. Notable portfolio companies including parking technology leader Metropolis and Upwards, the largest childcare provider in the U.S., already have a significant presence in Alabama. In the last quarter alone, Halogen Ventures’s businesses have raised over $2 Billion in follow on capital.

About Halogen Ventures
Halogen Ventures is an early stage venture capital fund focused on consumer technology companies with a female in the founding team. The Halogen team brings deep expertise and experience in understanding consumer and B2B trends and behavior and identifying entrepreneurs who will innovate and solve problems at scale. General Partner Jesse Draper is a fourth generation venture capitalist, and advocate for investing in women, one of Marie Claire’s ‘Most networked women in America’. Halogen has invested in over 75 early stage deals, including six unicorns. For more information, please visit www.halogenvc.com.

Media Contact:
Halogen Ventures

SOURCE Halogen Ventures