Send Globally is a way to send cash to bank or mobile accounts – via the Bitcoin Lightning Network – and have it delivered as local currency to your recipient (or yourself). It uses Bitcoin as a payments network, rather than just an asset. Check out this article to learn more about Lightning and how it works.

Send Globally is a way to transfer cash value through Bitcoin's Lightning Network. It’s made possible through Strike’s global network of partners and Bitcoin’s 24/7 operations.

How does it work?

When you send cash from your Strike account to your recipient…

1. Your cash is converted to bitcoin
2. Bitcoin is sent to the third-party partner operating in the destination country
3. The partner converts the bitcoin to local currency
4. Local currency is deposited into your recipient’s account

It’s a cash-bitcoin-cash transaction, made programmatically. It uses Bitcoin not as an asset, but as a borderless value transfer network.

The whole process is automated and can be finalized in seconds. Neither you nor your recipient ever owns bitcoin, which lets you avoid any price volatility or tax headaches. It’s just a cash to local currency transaction, made through Bitcoin.

If you happen to live in one of the supported countries, then you can use Send Globally to send funds to yourself. Simply enter your own details as the recipient and initiate your own transaction.

How to use Send Globally

Before you get started, make sure you get your recipient’s details. Depending on which country they live in and how they want to get paid, you’ll need their phone number, and perhaps their bank name, account number, or mobile provider.

Next, you’ll need to have cash in your Strike account. If you don’t have Strike, you can download it, sign up in seconds, and add cash via bank account, debit card or wire transfer, depending on funding availability in your country. Once you have cash in your Strike account and your recipient’s details in hand, you’re good to go.

To use Send Globally in the Strike app, visit your Cash screen and follow these steps:

1. Tap Send
2. Select Send Globally
3. Select your recipient’s country
4. Enter your recipient’s phone number and any other receiving details
5. Enter the amount you wish to send or tap the Switch Currency button to enter the amount in the recipient’s currency
6. Confirm the send

Before you confirm the send, you’ll see the all-in exchange rate of how much your recipient will get, plus the estimated delivery time (which depends on their receiving method).

If your recipient already has an account with Strike’s local 3rd-party partner, then their phone number will be enough to send them cash. If they don’t, then you’ll also need to add their full legal name and their preferred receiving method (bank name and account number, or mobile money network provider).

You can also review and manage your list of Send Globally recipients by tapping on your Account screen, and selecting Contacts. If you want to remove one of your Send Globally contacts, simply swipe left and tap the trash icon to remove.

Let’s go!

Send Globally has super low minimums, which means you can start small and grow from there. You can also send as often as you like and whenever you like. So you can send $5 an hour or $1,000 a week, you choose.

If your recipient doesn’t live in a supported country, you can still send them money. The Strike app is available in countries worldwide, so you can send them cash or bitcoin directly to their Strike account. If Strike isn’t yet in their country, they can use any other Lightning-enabled wallet app to receive payments, as Strike lets you send from your cash balance to any Bitcoin or Lightning wallet.

If you have any troubles or questions, check out these FAQs or feel free to reach out to support@strike.me.

Strike is always looking to add more countries and more ways to send globally. Follow Strike on social media for the latest updates on country availability.

Happy sending.