Thunes has switched on real-time payment capabilities in the United States, plugging directly into a Tier 1 financial institution and gaining access to ACH, Same-Day ACH, and every real-time payment rail in the country. The move, backed by an expanded partnership with Ripple that dates to September 2025, gives XRP a direct lane into Tier 1 US banking — and positions Thunes as a rare bridge between crypto rails and the traditional financial system.
50 state licenses, 140 countries
Thunes holds 50 Money Transmitter Licenses, enough to operate in every US state and territory. Its global network spans 140 countries, supports 90 currencies, and connects to more than 12 billion endpoints — bank accounts, mobile wallets, and stablecoin wallets alike. That reach means a sender in Lagos or London can now push money to a US bank account in seconds, routed through Thunes' direct connection rather than a string of correspondent banks.
What the Ripple deal unlocked
Thunes integrated blockchain and digital asset tech into its direct global network after expanding its partnership with Ripple last September. The integration powers Thunes' SmartX Treasury System, and it means over 140 countries can now send money to the US using payment rails built on Ripple technology. Ripple payments, which already cover more than 90 payout markets and have processed over $70 billion in volume, provide the underlying liquidity and settlement layer.
For XRP, the setup is a concrete on-ramp into regulated US finance — not through a speculative listing but through a licensed, multi-state payments company that regulators already know.
RWA milestone hits $3 billion
The XRP Ledger real-world asset (RWA) ecosystem surpassed $3 billion in tokenized value back in April. That milestone came from a highly diversified mix of assets, not just stablecoins or real estate. The next wave of growth, according to the vision Thunes and Ripple share, is expected to center on cash and cash-equivalent assets — money market funds, US Treasury bills — alongside tokenized equities.
What happens now
The broader bet is a globally distributed financial system where regulated assets trade seamlessly across asset classes on a unified order book. Thunes, with its Tier 1 bank connection and its blockchain layer, is one of the few firms that can actually start building that today. The question is how fast the cash-equivalent wave arrives — and whether the same regulators who licensed Thunes in 50 states are ready for what comes next.
