2025 Year in Review: Fintech, Web3, Sustainability and A New World Order
I can’t believe we’ve reached the end of the year and like many people, I find myself asking: Where did the time go?
2025 was a big year for fintech, Web3 and sustainability.
Some developments were positive, others rather questionable and a few disastrously wrong. From rapid innovation and global expansion to political U-turns and a backlash against Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), this year revealed a lot about the state of progress and what still needs to change.
For the most part, I felt as though I spent the year living on a plane, constantly offsetting my carbon footprint while travelling to conferences that seemed increasingly far-flung. Markets that had barely been on my radar a few years ago suddenly became major engines of opportunity for Ecology Media.
As we scaled our team, we welcomed clients from across the world. The UK - once the epicentre of fintech - plateaued in 2025, while opportunities flourished in the US, Argentina, Eastern Europe, India, Korea, Scandinavia, Switzerland, Africa and the Middle East.
Web3’s Evolution: Convergence Is Here
Across continents and conferences, one trend stood out above all: the merging of two once-opposing forces.
Web3 continued to mature, attracting new talent from traditional finance into senior leadership roles for companies that, in years past, would never have imagined being run by anyone outside the crypto brotherhood.
From Paris Blockchain Week to Token2049, Korea Blockchain Week and Consensus Toronto, one overwhelming message rang out loudly and clearly: convergence is happening.
Two worlds - traditional finance and decentralised finance - are finally recognising that they need each other. And we need to talk more openly about the projects shaping the future of finance for the better.
Move over crypto bros… The hedge boys and gals have arrived and are taking charge.
The Rise of Stablecoins in the Global South
One of the most important DeFi developments this year was the explosive rise of stablecoins in the global south.
Stablecoins are providing a lifeline to ordinary people who simply need a reliable way to get through the day - a viable means of saving, paying and surviving economic volatility.
It took time to convince some top-tier journalists of their value, particularly those who couldn’t shift their mindset about the digital dollars. Many assumed stablecoins - especially Tether - existed only for criminals. But a few changed their tune after meeting Paolo Ardoino at conferences, seeing Tether’s operations firsthand and understanding the impact on millions of unbanked people who literally cannot live without it.
As one client put it to me:
“I can determine the privilege of an individual by how they feel about stablecoins. If you live in the West, you don’t have to think about stablecoins because your financial system works for you. For billions of others, they represent dignity, access and possibility.”
Web3 Support: A New Political Drumbeat
We also can’t ignore the Trump factor and what he did for the fortunes of Web3.
His unabashed support for the crypto industry - particularly through the Genius Act - shifted sentiment dramatically in a sector desperate for regulatory clarity.
This gave Ecology Media the opportunity to support some of the biggest names in US crypto this year - and see what incredible things can be achieved when a proper framework is in place.
A Big Win: Recharge’s Exit
It wasn’t all about Web3 and crypto in 2025. Fintech was still a big contributor to Ecology Media’s growth.
A major highlight this year was seeing our long-term fintech client, Recharge, complete the largest fintech exit in Dutch history. After years of partnership, we are deeply grateful for the opportunity to have played a part in their growth journey.
We will truly miss working with the team but who knows? Perhaps in a different setting, at a different company or even in a different country, our paths will cross again. We certainly hope so!
Agentic AI and a More Mature Fintech Market
2025 also saw the ubiquitous rise of agentic AI, systems capable of autonomous decision-making and executing complex tasks with little human prompting.
Our work with FintechOS really helped us to understand how these agents are transforming underwriting, fraud detection and compliance, while driving huge efficiency improvements.
The results have been hard to ignore:
One regional bank increased developer output by 40% through agentic AI
Fintechs adopting “AI-first” strategies enjoyed significant productivity gains
Beyond Agentic AI, the fintech industry itself continued its transition from “growth at all costs” to sustainable, profitable business models. Highlights included:
Major IPOs such as Chime and Circle, signalling real market maturity and renewed investor confidence
Embedded finance becoming the backbone of digital commerce
A renewed focus on cybersecurity and RegTech, especially as deepfakes and AI-enabled fraud surged
Mollie‘s billion dollar acquisition of UK’s GoCardless and other major M&As
The ESG Backlash And Why We Can’t Afford to Look Away
Still, it wasn’t all progress this year. One of the most disappointing trends of 2025 was the growing global backlash against ESG and sustainability, a movement that once felt unstoppable.
We saw ESG, once a unifying force for corporate responsibility, become a political lightning rod.
Nothing captured this year’s dramatic shift in sentiment around sustainability more than Mark Carney’s U-turn in Canada.
This is the man who, in 2015 as Governor of the Bank of England, delivered the landmark “tragedy of the horizon” speech that jolted global finance into taking climate risk seriously. He went on to spearhead the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, channel billions into renewable investments, and become one of the world’s most influential voices on climate-aligned finance.
And yet, within a year of becoming Prime Minister, Carney dismantled much of what he once championed. He scrapped Canada’s consumer carbon tax, courted the oil and gas sector, doubled LNG output, approved an additional one million barrels of crude a day, and paused or rolled back key climate regulations. His own Environment Minister resigned in protest, along with members of Canada’s Net Zero advisory body. Climate leaders who once stood beside him have been left bewildered.
All of this speaks to a deeper global problem: ESG is becoming a toxic political subject and too many leaders are turning their backs on sustainability at the exact moment the science, technology and economic arguments demand the opposite.
This is precisely why we must double down, communicate better, and champion the innovators still doing the essential work.
Companies like Mantle 8, pioneers in natural hydrogen who are committed to creating clean, scalable energy solutions are not only possible but urgently needed.
These are the stories that matter. These are the efforts that need amplification. The planet does not care about political cycles and the climate crisis does not pause for elections.
New World Order: Abu Dhabi’s Rising Web3 Ecosystem
I’ll close with a note of excitement about Abu Dhabi and its fast-growing Web3 ecosystem.
We had the privilege of attending Abu Dhabi Finance Week and seeing firsthand the extraordinary work the ADGM is doing to attract, retain and champion some of the brightest minds in global finance and digital assets.
We’re delighted to be opening a new Ecology Media office in the city next year and supporting the brilliant people we’ve met on the ground.
A Moment to Rest and Prepare for 2026!
Until then, it’s time for a pause. I’ve pulled Virginia Woolf’s The Years off my bookshelf - her most commercially successful novel - and plan to reread it over the holidays. It’s a multigenerational story about family politics, class and shifting fortunes set in my beloved adopted country.
One line always stays with me:
“Thinking was torment; why not give up thinking, and drift and dream?”
That’s my plan for this holiday season: to rest, to stop working, to get my head in the clouds and to spend time with family and friends.
Thank you for reading and thank you for being part of our PR journey.
Here’s to an even brighter and hopefully greener 2026.
