Coinbase has agreed a partnership with Singapore-based payments network Thunes to connect stablecoin transfers with payouts to billions of bank accounts and mobile wallets.
The arrangement is intended to widen access to local payment systems, including in areas where banking infrastructure is limited. It was announced on Oct. 19 at Money20/20 USA in Las Vegas.
Under the agreement, Coinbase will integrate Thunes’ Direct Global Network. That will give the cryptocurrency exchange access to local clearing systems and alternative payment methods in markets around the world.
Thunes will manage the “last-mile” stage of payments – the process of delivering funds into a recipient’s bank account or mobile wallet. The company says those payouts can be completed in real time, including in regions with limited banking infrastructure.
In return, Coinbase will provide stablecoin infrastructure to help Thunes expand the use of digital tokens across its operations. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies designed to follow the value of an external reference, often the U.S. dollar, while allowing money to be transferred through blockchain networks.
The companies plan to use the combined service for payments to overseas suppliers, gig worker earnings and international remittances. Stablecoins can be used for cross-border transfers and settlement, while Thunes connects those transactions to the local financial systems used by recipients.
Thunes says its wider network reaches more than 12 billion mobile wallets, stablecoin wallets and bank accounts. It supports more than 220 payment methods, including Kenya’s M-Pesa mobile money service, the Gcash mobile wallet in the Philippines and Wechat Pay HK, a Hong Kong-dollar wallet.
The deal follows Coinbase’s Sept. 28 expansion of its collaboration with Citi. That service allows corporate customers to accept stablecoins without directly handling the tokens. Coinbase converts incoming digital currency into traditional money, after which Citi settles the funds.
Coinbase also announced a stablecoin payments partnership with Moov on Sept. 10. The planned integration would enable more than 1,000 community banks and credit unions to provide merchant acceptance, custody, disbursements and real-time funding through their existing technology.
Thunes has continued to add further stablecoin payment links. Its collaboration with Mastercard Move, announced Nov. 13, 2025, includes Thunes’ Pay-to-Stablecoin-Wallets solution. The service gives banks and payment providers another destination for transfers, alongside bank accounts, cards and cash.
On March 17, Thunes began offering the same Pay-to-Stablecoin-Wallets service through its existing Swift connections. The company said the 11,500 institutions on the Swift network could then send real-time payments in USDC or USDT to more than 500 million stablecoin wallets without requiring additional integration.
