The digital bank will launch a blockchain-powered international money transfer service this year
SoFi Technologies is preparing to make history as the first US bank to integrate the Bitcoin network and Universal Money Address (UMA) into its services, expanding its reach in the global remittance market. The digital bank announced a partnership with Lightspark, a Bitcoin payments infrastructure company, to launch a blockchain-powered international money transfer service later this year, beginning in Mexico.
SoFi + Lightspark = instant global payments. 🌍⚡
Send money abroad in seconds, right from the @sofi app, powered by UMA.
Coming soon for 🇺🇸→ 🇲🇽 with more countries to follow.
The future of global payments is here: https://t.co/MxAA5o9k2Z pic.twitter.com/GFVq4KhoxF
— Lightspark (@lightspark) August 19, 2025
The service will allow SoFi customers to convert US dollars into Bitcoin in real time, send the funds through the Bitcoin Lightning Network, and have them delivered directly into the recipient’s local bank account in their national currency. UMA technology simplifies this process by enabling transfers to function like sending an email, using an address format while operating on Lightning’s rails. Lightspark, founded in 2022 by former PayPal president David Marcus, has been working to bring the technology to mainstream financial institutions.
SoFi CEO Anthony Noto emphasized that international transfers are often costly and slow, and that this solution would provide members with a faster and more affordable option. According to the bank, fees will fall below the national average, with all charges and exchange rates displayed upfront for full transparency. The service will be available around the clock for SoFi’s 11.7 million members.
The move positions SoFi directly in the $740.5 billion global remittance market while distinguishing it from traditional banks and fintech competitors. The Lightning integration also comes at a time when cryptocurrency payment infrastructure is seeing broader adoption. Coinbase, for example, integrated Lightspark’s Bitcoin Lightning solution in 2024 and reported that 15% of its Bitcoin transactions now run on Lightning.
Regional adoption is also growing. Brazilian neobank Nubank partnered with Lightspark in 2024, although it has yet to fully roll out Lightning-powered payments for its more than 100 million customers. With SoFi now stepping in, the US could see broader institutional use of Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, creating new competition in the cross-border payments space.
