Thunes and GCash launch innovative, cross-border digital wallet top-up solution

GCash's new top-up solution enables direct funding from overseas within digital wallets

MANILA, Philippines and LONDON, Nov. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Thunes, the Smart Superhighway to move money around the world, today announced a new collaboration with GCash, the leading digital wallet in the Philippines. This ground-breaking initiative enables GCash users to top up their wallet balances directly within the app using funds from their U.K. and European bank accounts. This collaboration makes cross-border top-ups real-time and more cost efficient, offering GCash users in Europe more convenience and financial control.

About 2 million Filipino expatriates live and work in Europe and maintain ties to the Philippines. Those who own a GCash digital wallet can now better support their relatives back home by topping up their wallet instantly, and by ensuring that the money is used as intended, whether for education, healthcare, or household expenses. This innovative initiative highlights the importance that Thunes and GCash place on financial inclusion and community empowerment by helping people improve financial oversight and spending management.

As a Member of Thunes' proprietary Direct Global Network, leveraging its SmartX Treasury System and Fortress Compliance Platform, GCash enjoys unrivaled speed, control, visibility, protection, and cost efficiencies for their customers' cross-border account top-ups within their GCash account.

Paul Albano, General Manager of GCash International, said, "We are delighted to be a Member of Thunes' Direct Global Network, to enable GCash users to top up their accounts instantly from their overseas bank accounts. This service will support hundreds of thousands of Filipinos in the U.K. and Europe by improving how they move money across borders into their digital wallets with better control over their finances. In this way, Filipinos living abroad can better utilize GCash to maintain ties with their home communities."

Floris de Kort, CEO of Thunes, added, "We are expanding our collaboration with GCash, a long-standing valued Member of our Direct Global Network, to transform digital wallet top-ups. Through Thunes' Direct Global Network, we are now delivering an instant top-up service that simplifies cross-border transactions. Our alliance with GCash is a testament to our passion for innovation, the versatility of our proprietary network, and our dedication to financial inclusion through money movement around the world."

Notes to Editors:
Many Filipinos have strong family ties and business relationships back in the Philippines. Filipinos utilize GCash to pay bills, goods and services, friends and family, and obtain financing. The wallet facilitates purpose-driven payments to pay medical bills, housing costs and education.
GCash has helped enable unbanked and underbanked Filipinos take part in the internet and gig economy, spurring financial inclusion.

According to the World Bank, the Philippines has the fourth largest market worldwide for inbound remittances, with $39 billion sent in 2024. In 2024, Europe sent $3.8 billion to the Philippines.

About Thunes:
Thunes is the Smart Superhighway to move money around the world. Thunes' proprietary Direct Global Network allows Members to make payments in real-time in over 130 countries and more than 80 currencies. Thunes' Network connects directly to over 7 billion mobile wallets and bank accounts worldwide, as well as 15 billion cards via more than 320 different payment methods, such as GCash, M-Pesa, Airtel, MTN, Orange, JazzCash, Easypaisa, AliPay, WeChat Pay and many more. Thunes' Direct Global Network differentiates itself through its worldwide reach, in-house SmartX Treasury System and Fortress Compliance Platform, ensuring Members of the Network receive unrivaled speed, control, visibility, protection, and cost efficiencies when making real-time payments, globally. Members of Thunes' Direct Global Network include gig economy giants like Uber and Deliveroo, super-apps like Grab and WeChat, MTOs, fintechs, PSPs and banks. Headquartered in Singapore, Thunes has offices in 15 locations, including Abidjan, Barcelona, Beijing, Dubai, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, London, Manila, Nairobi, Paris, Riyadh, San Francisco, Sao Paulo and Shanghai. For more information, visit: https://www.thunes.com/

About GCash

GCash is the Philippines' #1 Finance Super App and Largest Cashless Ecosystem. Through the GCash App, users can easily purchase prepaid airtime; pay bills via partner billers nationwide; send and receive money anywhere in the Philippines, even to other bank accounts; purchase from over 6 million partner merchants and social sellers; and get access to savings, credit, loans, insurance and invest money, and so much more, all at the convenience of their smartphones. Its mobile wallet operations are handled by G-Xchange, Inc. (GXI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mynt, the first and only $5 billion unicorn in the Philippines.

GCash is a staunch supporter of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly UN SDGs 5,8,10, and 13, which focus on safety & security, financial inclusion, diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts, respectively.