Free tools Windows power users keep installed
One-click scans. No signup required.
Some links on this page are affiliate links: if you buy through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
Thunes agreed to acquire Tilia LLC on April 23, 2024, and the transition appears to have been completed by June 2025. Tilia was Linden Research’s payments company, used by Second Life for payment processing and payouts. Thunes did not buy Linden Lab or Second Life: it acquired the payments business, then identified it as Thunes Financial Services LLC. Linden Lab retained a five-year exclusive payments partnership with Thunes. The purchase price was not disclosed.
What Thunes acquired
Tilia LLC provided payment infrastructure for digital platforms, including payment acceptance, stored-value services and payouts. Its business was associated with virtual worlds, online games and creator economies—settings where users may buy virtual currency or goods and creators may need to receive real-money payouts.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
Visa Physical Gift Card $200 (plus $6.95 Purchase Fee) | $206.95 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
|
Visa Physical Gift Card $100 (plus $5.95 Purchase Fee) | $105.95 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
|
Visa Virtual eGift Card | $206.95 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
|
Amazon eGift Card - Congratulations | $50.00 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
|
Visa Physical Gift Card $50 (plus $4.95 Purchase Fee) | $54.95 | Buy on Amazon |
Linden Research, Inc.—the legal corporate name behind the public-facing name Linden Lab—was identified in Thunes’ announcement as Tilia’s majority owner. That does not establish that it was Tilia’s only shareholder. The deal was for Tilia, not for Linden Lab or Second Life.
Crashes, No Sound, or Screen Glitches?
Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteWindows Errors? Fix Them Before They Spread
Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallThunes described itself in the announcement as a Singapore-headquartered cross-border payments infrastructure company. Its services connect payment systems for money coming into and going out of platforms. The companies said Tilia would add U.S. payment acceptance and expertise in virtual economies to Thunes’ international network. Those were strategic claims at announcement, not proof of subsequent growth or a guarantee that every Thunes payment route became available to every Tilia customer.
#1 Best Overall
- Gift Cards are shipped active and ready for use.
- This card is non-reloadable. No cash or ATM access. Funds do not expire. If available funds remain on your card after the valid thru date has passed, please call customer service for a replacement card. A one-time purchase fee applies at the time of checkout. No fees after purchase.
- To access your card information safely, type the complete website address shown on your Gift Card (MyGift.GiftCardMall.com) directly into your browser's address bar. Don't use search engines or shortened versions of the website address, as these may lead you to fake or fraudulent sites. Do not provide any Gift Card details (example: Card Number) to someone you do not know or trust. If you believe you've reached an illegitimate website, contact cardholder service at 1-888-524-1283. Be cautious of phishing sites, there are a variety of scams in which fraudsters try to trick others into paying with gift cards.
- To report your Lost or Stolen Physical Visa Card, call Customer Service 24/7 at 1 (888) 524-1283 to cancel your Gift Card as soon as you can. You will be asked to provide the Gift Card number and other identifying information.
- Use your Visa Gift Card in the U.S. everywhere Visa debit cards are accepted, including online.
Thunes’ acquisition announcement set out the transaction rationale and five-year partnership. It described Tilia as licensed in 48 U.S. states and territories at that time. The deal value was not disclosed; no reliable public figure in the cited coverage establishes a price.
Why Thunes wanted the business
Thunes said the acquisition would expand its U.S. presence and strengthen its position in online gaming and digital economies. Tilia brought experience with virtual worlds, creator payments and token-based systems, as well as U.S. payment acceptance capabilities. The announcement also referred to acceptance across major card networks, including Visa, Mastercard, American Express, JCB and UnionPay.
For a platform, combining payment acceptance with payouts can address both sides of a marketplace: collecting money from users and paying creators or other account holders. But a provider’s network reach is not the same as a promise that every method works for every user. Country, currency, account eligibility, compliance checks and platform configuration can affect actual availability.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Why Linden Lab sold Tilia
The acquisition announcement did not give a detailed account of Linden Lab’s financial or operational reasons for selling. One reasonable interpretation is that transferring ownership moved the burden of running a regulated payments operation to a specialist while the five-year agreement preserved payment services for Second Life. That is an inference, not a confirmed statement of Linden Lab’s motive.
Rank #2
- Gift Cards are shipped active and ready for use.
- This card is non-reloadable. No cash or ATM access. Funds do not expire. If available funds remain on your card after the valid thru date has passed, please call customer service for a replacement card. A one-time purchase fee applies at the time of checkout. No fees after purchase.
- To access your card information safely, type the complete website address shown on your Gift Card (MyGift.GiftCardMall.com) directly into your browser's address bar. Don't use search engines or shortened versions of the website address, as these may lead you to fake or fraudulent sites. Do not provide any Gift Card details (example: Card Number) to someone you do not know or trust. If you believe you've reached an illegitimate website, contact cardholder service at 1-888-524-1283. Be cautious of phishing sites, there are a variety of scams in which fraudsters try to trick others into paying with gift cards.
- To report your Lost or Stolen Physical Visa Card, call Customer Service 24/7 at 1 (888) 524-1283 to cancel your Gift Card as soon as you can. You will be asked to provide the Gift Card number and other identifying information.
- Use your Visa Gift Card in the U.S. everywhere Visa debit cards are accepted, including online.
The arrangement also separated the virtual world from the company handling some of its money movement. Linden Lab continued to operate Second Life; Thunes became the payments provider through the acquired business and the agreed partnership.
Announcement, transition and current identity
- April 23, 2024: Thunes announced an agreement to acquire Tilia, subject to regulatory approval.
- June 4, 2025: Thunes announced that Thunes Financial Services LLC had secured 50 U.S. money-transmitter licenses.
- Current public identity: Thunes says Tilia was acquired and renamed Thunes Financial Services LLC.
The public material supports saying the acquisition was completed by the 2025 transition, but the exact legal closing date should be treated cautiously: the Thunes materials cited here do not provide a separate closing notice. Specialist Second Life coverage reported a June 4, 2025 changeover, while Thunes’ own licensing announcement on that date is the clearest corporate milestone. See Thunes’ Tilia page and its U.S. licensing announcement.
The licensing figures refer to different points in the transition. Thunes’ 2024 announcement described Tilia as licensed in 48 states and territories; its June 2025 announcement said the new U.S. entity had secured 50 licenses. They should not be read as simultaneous counts or necessarily as directly comparable descriptions of the same entity at the same stage. Thunes’ entity table identifies its U.S. entity as registered with FinCEN and licensed as a money transmitter in all 50 states. Registration and state licensing are distinct regulatory matters.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesWhat the deal means for Second Life users and creators
The stated aim was continuity: Thunes and Linden Lab announced an exclusive five-year partnership for payment processing and payouts after the acquisition. That gives Second Life a continuing payments relationship; it does not mean that the virtual world itself changed owners.
Rank #3
- Visa Virtual eGift Cards are designed for online use only. Gift Cards are subject to Terms and Conditions: a.co/5bw3qXJ
- When you access your Visa Virtual eGift Card for the first time, you’ll need to register your name, address, phone number, and email address via activationspot.com. These details should also be used as your billing address for online purchases, as many merchants require address verification for purchase authorization.
- This Visa Virtual eGift Card is non-reloadable. No cash or ATM access. Visa Virtual eGift Cards are emailed active.
- Funds do not expire but your Visa Virtual eGift Card has a ‘valid thru’ date (9 years from date of purchase). If funds remain after this date has passed, please call the Toll Free number found on your Visa Virtual eGift Card for a replacement card. A one-time purchase fee applies at the time of checkout.
- This item is not eligible for refund, resale, or return. Available for sale within the United States only. Not available to residents of Puerto Rico, Hawaii, New Mexico, South Dakota, West Virginia and the US Virgin Islands.
For users, buying Linden dollars or cashing out may look much as it did before, even if the legal entity, notices or back-end provider changed. Specialist coverage of the transition reported that Tilia references on Second Life pages were expected to be replaced with Thunes Financial Services LLC references. A quiet change to a legal name does not rule out changes to privacy disclosures, verification processes, support routing or the payout options available in a particular location.
Do not assume the acquisition automatically lowered fees, made all payouts instant, or added every Thunes-supported payment method to Second Life. The companies used promotional language about real-time movement, efficiency and transparency, but those phrases are not universal service guarantees. Fees, limits, settlement times, supported currencies and payout routes can vary by method, country and account status. Identity checks, fraud reviews, chargebacks or other compliance checks can also delay a transaction.
If a payment or payout is delayed, check the current Second Life account and transaction guidance and use the current support route shown there. Confirm that the payout method is supported for your country and account, and review any request for identity or other documentation through the official service. Avoid relying on an old Tilia contact or assuming a delay means the acquisition changed your balance or payment rights. The applicable entity, rules and available consumer protections depend on your location and the service involved.
Privacy and personal information
A change in provider or legal entity makes current privacy information worth checking, especially for users whose identity or financial details are involved. Thunes’ Tilia privacy notice names Thunes Financial Services LLC and describes international data transfers. Read the current notice and relevant Second Life terms to understand which entities handle information, why it is processed and where it may be transferred. The acquisition announcement alone does not specify every user’s data-handling arrangements.
Rank #4
- Amazon.com Gift Cards never expire and carry no fees.
- Multiple gift card designs and denominations to choose from.
- Redeemable towards millions of items store-wide at Amazon.com or certain affiliated websites.
- Available for immediate delivery. Gift cards sent by email can be scheduled up to a year in advance.
- No returns and no refunds on Gift Cards.
What remains unknown
- The purchase price and full transaction structure.
- The complete commercial terms of the five-year exclusive partnership.
- Whether and how the acquisition changed Second Life fees, limits or payout availability for particular countries.
- Any quantified effect on Thunes’ revenue, customer base or growth.
Those gaps matter because an acquisition announcement explains corporate intent, not an individual user’s exact payment terms. For a specific transaction, the current fee schedule, account notices and supported-method information are more useful than general claims about the provider’s global network.
Why the deal matters beyond Second Life
The transaction illustrates how virtual economies depend on conventional financial infrastructure. A game or creator platform may have its own virtual currency, but accepting card payments, holding value and paying users across borders involve regulated money movement and operational risks. A provider with experience in both payouts and digital economies may appeal to larger platforms that need those systems integrated.
That does not make Thunes the right choice for every platform. A business evaluating a payments provider should compare licensing by jurisdiction, local payment methods, creator payout coverage, onboarding and verification duties, fraud and chargeback handling, settlement currencies and timing, reserves, data transfers, API support and the full contract pricing. Headline country counts alone do not establish that a provider supports a particular business model or user base.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Thunes buy Second Life?
No. Thunes acquired Tilia, the payments company associated with Second Life. Linden Lab continued to operate Second Life and retained a five-year exclusive payments partnership with Thunes.
Best Value
- Gift Cards are shipped active and ready for use.
- This card is non-reloadable. No cash or ATM access. Funds do not expire. If available funds remain on your card after the valid thru date has passed, please call customer service for a replacement card. A one-time purchase fee applies at the time of checkout. No fees after purchase.
- To access your card information safely, type the complete website address shown on your Gift Card (MyGift.GiftCardMall.com) directly into your browser's address bar. Don't use search engines or shortened versions of the website address, as these may lead you to fake or fraudulent sites. Do not provide any Gift Card details (example: Card Number) to someone you do not know or trust. If you believe you've reached an illegitimate website, contact cardholder service at 1-888-524-1283. Be cautious of phishing sites, there are a variety of scams in which fraudsters try to trick others into paying with gift cards.
- To report your Lost or Stolen Physical Visa Card, call Customer Service 24/7 at 1 (888) 524-1283 to cancel your Gift Card as soon as you can. You will be asked to provide the Gift Card number and other identifying information.
- Use your Visa Gift Card in the U.S. everywhere Visa debit cards are accepted, including online.
Is Tilia still a separate company?
Thunes identifies the acquired business as Thunes Financial Services LLC. Tilia may still appear in legacy references or privacy materials, so check the current legal notices for the service you use.
Will Second Life payouts be faster or cheaper now?
The acquisition announcement does not establish that fees fell or that every payout became faster. Timing and charges can depend on route, location, account status and compliance checks.
Who should I contact about a delayed Second Life payout?
Use the current payment or support guidance in your Second Life account and verify any requested documentation through official channels. The correct route may depend on the payment method and issue.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
