J.P. Morgan Payments Expands Cross-Border Reach to 12 Billion Wallets and Bank Accounts.

J.P. Morgan Payments has selected Thunes to expand its Xpedite Remit cross-border payments suite, connecting clients to local bank accounts and mobile wallets across more than 100 corridors. The partnership combines J.P. Morgan Payments’ connectivity to local real-time payment rails with Thunes’ Direct Global Network.

The tie-up is designed to give clients a single account and connection for cross-border payments, rather than requiring separate arrangements for each local market. The combined network gives clients access to more than 12 billion mobile wallets, stablecoin wallets and bank accounts globally, according to the companies, with payouts available in the same currency or through FX conversion.

Xpedite Remit also adds end-to-end traceability and principal protection to those payouts, according to the companies, and extends to instant supplier settlements, bill payments and remittances.

Gayathri Vasudev, global head of high value payments and FX at J.P. Morgan Payments, said the bank was responding to client demand for simpler cross-border transfers. “Our clients want simpler, faster ways to move money across borders and to reach people through the payment methods they prefer,” she said. “Building on milestones, like our recent progress with Swift’s retail payments scheme, we’re helping clients grow in new markets while delivering the faster, more seamless experiences they have come to expect.”

Peter De Caluwe, co-founder and chief executive of Thunes, said the Singapore-based payments network was extending its compliance and security standards to the partnership. “Thunes offers the bank-grade compliance, security and resilience required to move money safely and quickly at global scale,” he said. “Together, we are demonstrating how traditional banking infrastructure can connect with popular local payment methods to make global commerce smoother for everyone involved.”

The Consumer and Community Bank at JPMorganChase is also expected to benefit. JPMorganChase says its Consumer and Community Bank serves around 94 million consumer and small-business customers in the US. The enhanced rails are expected to support faster payout experiences and real-time inbound payments into the US.

Ashish Ajmera, head of banking payments at Chase, said the changes were part of a broader modernisation effort. “These enhancements mark an important step in our efforts to modernise cross-border payments and expand the capabilities available through our broader suite of products and services,” he said.

The initial rollout supports instant supplier settlements, bill payments and remittances, and is being made available in markets including India, Mexico, Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Colombia, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan and the Philippines, among the corridors with the heaviest cross-border remittance flows.

The tie-up builds on J.P. Morgan Payments’ recent work with Swift’s retail payments scheme, according to the release. It is part of a wider push by the bank to widen its real-time cross-border rails, as banks and specialist payment networks compete for the same corridors.