Money movement: Rain expands global payouts to more than 80 countries in 50 currencies. The funds start as stablecoins, but arrive in local currencies.
Paying people and businesses around the world is still harder than it should be. That’s why Rain built Global Payouts. “The service is live today, with plans to reach 95 countries and more than 60 currencies by the end of the year.” – according to the press release.
With Rain’s newly expanded global payout capabilities, partners can offer international payment services to every kind of customer. From a single stablecoin balance, businesses and consumers can send money to recipients in 50 currencies across more than 80 countries. A company in Germany can send a supplier in South Africa their payment in rand. A marketplace in Mexico can send a seller in the Philippines their earnings in pesos. An individual in the US can send a relative in India remittance payments in rupees.
“The funds start as stablecoins, but arrive in local currencies. The recipient never touches stablecoins, and doesn’t have to know they are involved at all.” – the company said.
“The mechanics are simple. Rather than prefunding accounts in every local currency, partners cover every market they support from a single stablecoin balance. When a payment is initiated, Rain returns a locked quote with the exchange rate, the cost, and the exact amount that will land in the recipient’s account. Once that quote is accepted, Rain returns a deposit address, and the sender funds it with stablecoins. Who that sender is, is the partner’s decision. It can be their end user, or it can be the partner itself. The funds then go out as local currency into the recipient’s bank account, and status updates flow back through Rain’s API at every step.” – Rain explained.
Traditionally, making these types of payments requires a patchwork of providers. International wire transfers come with intermediary banks and layers of processing fees. These charges are not always locked in ahead of time, so the amount that is received isn’t what was expected, even when the foreign exchange rate was guaranteed.
“With global payouts from Rain, we have done the hard work of aggregating licensed providers in each market, so the sender can know precisely how much will land before they make the payment. No surprises, no hidden fees.” – stated the press release.
Businesses that issue international payments typically need to partner with a different payout provider in every market, each requiring its own prefunded account or a local entity. Rain’s global payout infrastructure is different. Instead of prefunding local currency accounts all over the world, partners hold one USDC balance that covers every destination the partner wants to support, so they don’t have to hold capital idle in multiple local currencies.
Global Payouts builds off of Rain’s existing products. Stablecoin cards make stablecoins spendable at more than 175 million merchant locations around the world. Virtual accounts add an onramp layer, letting partners move seamlessly between fiat currencies and stablecoins through named USD accounts. Global Payouts extend that stack by letting partners deliver those funds as local currency around the world.
