Nikolas Sargeant
Digital banking pioneer SoFi Technologies is making cryptocurrency history by becoming the first US bank to integrate Bitcoin's Lightning Network for international money transfers. The San Francisco-based financial institution has partnered with Bitcoin payments infrastructure company Lightspark to launch a blockchain-powered remittance service that will initially connect the United States and Mexico, with plans to expand to additional countries in the future.
The innovative service will allow SoFi's 11.7 million members to send money internationally directly through the SoFi mobile app using Universal Money Address (UMA) technology. The system converts US dollars to Bitcoin in real-time, routes the funds across borders via the Lightning Network, and delivers them directly to recipients' bank accounts in their local currency. CEO Anthony Noto emphasized that for SoFi members who regularly send money to loved ones internationally, the ability to quickly transfer funds at low cost represents a meaningful improvement to their everyday financial lives.
SoFi promises costs "below the current national average" with full transparency on exchange rates and fees displayed before transactions. The service will be available 24/7, positioning SoFi to compete in the massive global remittance market valued at $740.5 billion in 2024. This launch follows successful implementations by other major platforms, including Coinbase's integration of Lightspark's Lightning solution in April 2024, which saw 15% of Bitcoin transactions on the platform move through Lightning rails.
The partnership with Lightspark, founded by former PayPal president David Marcus in 2022, represents a significant step toward mainstream adoption of Bitcoin's Lightning Network for cross-border payments. The move comes as major cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance have also completed Lightning Network integrations, signaling growing institutional adoption of the technology. While Brazilian neobank Nubank partnered with Lightspark in 2024 for similar services across Latin America, SoFi's integration marks the first time a US-regulated bank has committed to leveraging Bitcoin infrastructure for international transfers, potentially setting a precedent for the broader banking industry.
