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UK’s Starling Strikes 10-Year Software Deal with Canada’s Tangerine, Plans 100 New Hires

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British digital lender Starling Group announced on Tuesday a 10-year agreement with Canada’s Tangerine Bank, owned by the Bank of Nova Scotia, to upgrade the bank’s core software systems using its Engine by Starling technology platform. The deal marks Engine’s largest contract to date and represents a major step in Starling’s global expansion.

Under the agreement, Tangerine will migrate its digital banking operations to Engine’s cloud-based Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform. The partnership follows Engine’s recent expansion into North America, with new offices in Toronto and New York, and makes Tangerine its first North American client.

As part of the expansion, Engine plans to hire more than 100 new employees, according to a company spokesperson. Engine by Starling, spun off from Starling Bank in 2022, already serves clients such as Salt Bank in Romania and AMP Bank GO in Australia.

Starling’s customer base has grown from 43,000 in 2017 to 4.6 million in 2025, driven by its innovative digital banking model. However, the bank — like other UK challengers — has faced challenges maintaining revenue growth amid fierce competition. To diversify, Starling has focused on providing its software solutions to other financial institutions worldwide.

The company’s growth has come with regulatory scrutiny. Britain’s financial watchdog fined Starling £29 million last year for weaknesses in financial crime controls, though the bank says it has since addressed the issues and strengthened its governance.

Canada Hits Crypto Firm Xeltox with Record C$176.9 Million Fine for Money Laundering

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Canada’s anti-money laundering watchdog FINTRAC has imposed a record C$176.9 million ($126 million) penalty on Xeltox Enterprises Limited, citing the company’s failure to report suspicious transactions linked to child sexual abuse material, fraud, ransomware, and sanctions evasion.

The fine marks the largest enforcement action in FINTRAC’s history, underscoring Ottawa’s growing crackdown on financial crime in the crypto industry.

Xeltox, also known as Cryptomus and previously operating as Certa Payments Limited, is registered as a money services business in British Columbia. The company could not be reached for comment.

“Given that numerous violations in this case were connected to trafficking in child sexual abuse material, fraud, ransomware payments and sanctions evasion, FINTRAC was compelled to take this unprecedented enforcement action,” the agency said in a statement.

FINTRAC said Xeltox repeatedly failed to submit suspicious transaction reports when there were reasonable grounds to suspect links to criminal activity. The firm also did not report receipts of over C$10,000 in virtual currency as required under Canadian law.

The announcement comes amid a broader national push to combat money laundering. Earlier this week, the federal government unveiled plans for a new agency focused on fraud prevention, anti-money laundering efforts, and asset recovery.

Canada will also undergo an audit by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) next month, a key global body assessing compliance with international standards on financial crime.

Just last month, FINTRAC issued a C$19.6 million penalty against Peken Global Limited, operator of the KuCoin crypto exchange, which had been the largest fine until now. KuCoin has appealed, calling the sanction “excessive and punitive.”

The new penalty against Xeltox signals that Canadian regulators are escalating their enforcement stance, targeting crypto intermediaries that fail to meet anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing obligations.

BlackBerry Lifts Revenue Forecast on Strong Cybersecurity Demand

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BlackBerry raised its fiscal 2026 revenue forecast on Thursday, citing robust demand for its cybersecurity software as businesses step up defenses against rising cyber threats fueled by advances in artificial intelligence.

The Canadian company now expects annual revenue of $519 million to $541 million, up from its previous range of $508 million to $538 million.

BlackBerry reported second-quarter revenue of $129.6 million, topping analysts’ estimates of $122.1 million, according to LSEG data. The company also posted earnings of 2 cents per share, compared with a loss of 3 cents a year earlier.

Enterprises have been investing heavily in cybersecurity software to protect digital infrastructure as hackers exploit new vulnerabilities. This trend has helped BlackBerry’s software business remain resilient even amid a challenging tech spending environment.

Following the announcement, BlackBerry’s U.S.-listed shares rose about 2% in premarket trading.