Nigeria’s remittance inflows hit record high at $553m in July

BREAKING NEWSAugust 22, 2024 at 7:15 PM UTC

TLDR

Remittance inflows in Nigeria reached a record high of $553 million in July, marking a 130% year-on-year increase.
The surge in remittances is attributed to the Central Bank of Nigeria's efforts to stabilize the forex market through policy reforms.
Reforms include streamlining processes, expanding IMTOs, and boosting foreign currency supply to enhance liquidity.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria reveals that remittance inflows reached a new high of $553 million in July this year, representing a significant 130% year-on-year increase.

This growth in remittances is seen as a positive outcome of the CBN's efforts to stabilize the country's forex market. A raft of policy reforms aimed at boosting liquidity in the foreign exchange market has been issued over the past year.

These have involved streamlining processes, onboarding more International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs), and implementing measures to increase the supply of foreign currencies.

Key Takeaways

The growth in Nigeria’s diaspora remittance figures offers the apex bank more firepower to meet the increasing demand for FX amid the country’s ongoing forex shortage crisis. Beyond that, however, the trend gives credence to several remittance-focused tech startups—like NALA, Chipper Cash, Zazuu, and Sendwave looking to capture some market share from dominant traditional players that control as much as 80% of the market—and Pangea, Daba Finance, and Bantaba, which aim to address help startups source capital by connecting founders with the diaspora wealth through digital infrastructures.

Nigeria

Economic

Diaspora Remittances

CBN

Central Bank of Nigeria

IMTOs

Cross-Border Transfers