Disrupt 2026: Inside the New Smart Money Stage
Industry pioneers from Circle, Robinhood, and American Express will gather at San Francisco’s Moscone Center from October 13–15, 2026, for TechCrunch Disrupt’s new Smart Money Stage to analyze how artificial intelligence and stablecoins are reshaping global financial infrastructure. This dedicated track will explore the rapid evolution of money movement, the deployment of autonomous AI agents in finance, and the creation of highly regulated systems built for a globalized market.
The Evolution of Money Movement: Stablecoins and Instant Payments
The global financial landscape is experiencing a paradigm shift as stablecoins and instant payment networks challenge legacy banking systems. This session examines the real-world performance of these emerging rails compared to traditional infrastructure, analyzing where private networks and public initiatives like FedNow intersect. Experts will discuss current adoption patterns, regulatory hurdles, and market dynamics driving the next generation of transactional technology.
Featuring Nikhil Chandhok (Chief Product & Technology Officer, Circle), Rodney Robinson (Co-founder and CEO, TabaPay, Inc.), and Lotti Siniscalco (General Partner, Emergence).
Winning the Modern Financial Consumer: Robinhood’s Multi-Product Strategy
As consumer expectations shift, financial platforms must adapt rapidly to retain user trust. Robinhood, which currently holds a market capitalization exceeding $90 billion, has successfully transitioned from a simplified trading application into an expansive financial ecosystem offering investing, banking, credit, crypto, and prediction markets. This session will dissect how modern technology enables platforms to scale securely while meeting the demands of the modern retail investor.
Featuring Abhishek Fatehpuria (Head of Product, Robinhood).
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AI, Trust, and Identity Verification in Modern Fintech
As artificial intelligence transitions from generative content creation to autonomous execution, financial institutions face unprecedented security and compliance challenges. Industry leaders will discuss how AI agents are transforming backend workflows, the critical importance of human-in-the-loop oversight, and the latest methodologies for fraud prevention, data privacy, and identity verification in an automated environment.
Featuring Hannah Bozian (VP, Agentic Partnerships & Strategy, American Express), Pedro Sanzovo (Head of Fraud and Identity, Plaid), and Victoria Zuo (Partner, QED Investors).
Building AI-Native Infrastructure for Global Commerce
Legacy financial systems remain fundamentally unequipped to support the complexities of borderless digital businesses. Airwallex, valued by investors at $11 billion, is addressing this bottleneck by developing an AI-native financial operating system designed to streamline cross-border transactions and embed financial services directly into third-party platforms. This discussion will highlight the complexities of building compliant, scalable global infrastructure powered by machine learning.
Featuring Jack Zhang (Founder & CEO, Airwallex).
A Dedicated Space for High-Signal Fintech Insights
The Smart Money Stage is specifically curated for founders, developers, and operators who require actionable insights rather than industry hype. The programming offers a deep dive into next-generation payment rails, AI integration, fraud mitigation, and the macroeconomic trends defining the future of consumer and enterprise finance.
