Thunes, the global B2B payment infrastructure platform, has announced the addition of Visa, Singapore’s EDBI, and Endeavor Catalyst, to its Series C funding round, in a move to address the inefficiencies of moving money internationally and create a next-generation payment system that is secure, instant and transparent.
This investment brings the total Series C funding to USD $72m, coming shortly after Thunes announced an investment of $60m led by London-based hedge fund Marshall Wace with support from Bessemer Venture Partners and Southeast Asian private equity firm 01Fintech.
“We’re proud to close Series C with such a strong roster of influential investors. Support from Visa, EDBI and Endeavor is a powerful endorsement of our strategy and capabilities, providing us with additional resources to develop innovative solutions to face industry challenges.
By leveraging the insights and support of our investors, we will expand our network and offer businesses and consumers an unparalleled cross-border payments experience. I’m delighted to see an even deeper collaboration with Visa. Together, we will pave the way towards a global payment ecosystem that is inclusive, efficient and ubiquitous.” said Peter De Caluwe, CEO, Thunes.
Thunes already has an ongoing global partnership with Visa. In October 2022, Visa and Thunes announced a strategic collaboration to extend Visa Direct’s reach to 1.5 billion digital wallets. Through this partnership, Thunes B2B payments platform offers a send-to-wallet capability to 78 digital wallet providers globally. Using an API integration with Visa Direct, Visa’s customers – financial institutions, governments, neobanks and money transfer operators – can enable consumers and small businesses to send funds to eligible digital wallets in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, powered by the Thunes global network.
In 2020, Thunes announced a Series B funding round of US$60 million investment led by Africa-focused Helios Investment Partners with participation from Checkout.com as well as existing investors GGV Capital and Future Shape.
“Digital wallets play a key role in providing underserved communities with greater economic empowerment and financial inclusion by penetrating previously unreached regions. Visa is proud to take part in Thunes’ Series C investment round and we look forward to continuing our collaboration aimed at providing more customers around the world with quick and simple access to the financial system through digital wallets.” said Ruben Salazar Genovez, Global Head of Visa Direct.
Founded in 2016, Thunes is a global B2B payment infrastructure platform that powers payments for the world’s fastest-growing businesses – from gig economy giants such as Uber and Deliveroo and Southeast Asia’s super-app Grab to global fintech leaders such as PayPal, Remitly, Finastra and Revolut.
Thunes currently supports 80 currencies, enables payments to 132 countries and helps to accept 300 payment methods. In April 2022, Thunes acquired a controlling stake in a leading anti-money laundering and compliance platform company Tookitaki, which now enables the company’s advanced compliance, anti-fraud and anti-money laundering capabilities, setting an international benchmark for sustainable compliance. The company is headquartered in Singapore, with regional offices in London, Paris, Shanghai, Beijing, Dubai, Hong Kong, Barcelona, Miami and Nairobi.
Current investors include Visa, EDBI, Endeavor Catalyst, Marshall Wace, Bessemer Venture Partners, 01Fintech, Future Shape, Insight Partners, Checkout.com, Helios Investment Partners and GGV Capital.
“Thunes’ commitment to addressing the business challenges of international money movement aligns well with our mission to strengthen Singapore’s position as a global innovation and financial hub. As strategic investors, we deeply appreciate the significance of nurturing Singapore-based companies like Thunes throughout their growth journey, and we are excited to provide our support in expanding their local and regional presence. We anticipate a close collaboration with Peter and his team as we work together to achieve even greater milestones.” said Paul Ng, CEO of EDBI.