Coinbase to Connect with Thunes Network for Cross-Border Payments in Stablecoins

Coinbase (Nasdaq: COIN) and Singapore-based payment network Thunes announced an agreement to expand access for companies and consumers to cross-border payments. The partnership was announced on October 19 at the Money20/20 USA conference in Las Vegas. Coinbase will integrate Thunes' Direct Global Network, gaining access to local clearing systems and alternative payment methods. Thunes will provide last-mile delivery, meaning the final stage of crediting funds to recipients' bank accounts and mobile wallets in real-time, including regions with limited banking infrastructure. Alek Lovett, Head of Infrastructure Products at Coinbase, stated that last-mile connectivity is a key part of the process, and partnering with Thunes allows for an end-to-end payment process with faster and smoother payouts in more countries and currencies than ever before.

In exchange for international reach, Coinbase will provide stablecoin infrastructure to help Thunes further integrate tokens into its operations. Stablecoins are pegged to an external benchmark, most often the US dollar, allowing funds to be transferred through blockchain networks. The companies intend to use these capabilities for paying overseas suppliers, distributing freelancer earnings, and sending international remittances. Stablecoins will support cross-border transfers and settlements, while Thunes will provide access to local financial systems used by recipients. Thunes describes its network as connecting over 12 billion mobile wallets, stablecoin wallets, and bank accounts. The company also lists over 220 payment methods, including M-Pesa in Kenya, GCash in the Philippines, and WeChat Pay HK in Hong Kong dollars.

The agreement with Thunes follows the expansion on September 28 of Coinbase's collaboration with Citi. Corporate clients can accept stablecoins without directly handling tokens: Coinbase converts incoming digital currency into traditional money, and Citi handles the settlements. A similar approach underpins Coinbase's partnership with Moov for stablecoin payments, established on September 10. The planned integration will allow more than 1,000 local banks and credit unions to offer services for accepting payments from merchants, storing, disbursing, and financing in real-time using existing technologies. Thunes itself is expanding its operations: on November 13, 2025, it announced a collaboration with Mastercard Move, and on March 17, it began offering a Pay-to-Stablecoin-Wallets service through SWIFT connections. The company reported that 11,500 institutions connected to Swift can now send real-time payments in USDC or USDT to over 500 million stablecoin wallets without additional integration.