Opay Goes into Partnership with WorldRemit to Facilitate Mobile Money Transfers for Nigerians

Leading Lagos-based fintech company, Opay, said it has gone into partnership with WorldRemit. The partnership will see WorldRemit offer international money transfers into OPay mobile wallets, thereby enabling Opay users in Nigeria to receive money from the more than 50 countries where WorldRemit currently operate.

In a statement seen by Business Elites Africa, Opay’s Director of Remittance Service, Kunle Olamuyiwa, was quoted to have said that the partnership would enable Nigerians to experience easy, fast, very affordable way to receive money from different countries.

“The countries include the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. We are very excited about our partnership because our goal is to consistently drive financial inclusion across Nigeria, meeting the demands of the banked and unbanked.

“With this partnership, we will smoothen the process in which Nigerians receive money from friends and families abroad,” Olamuyiwa said.

Also commenting on the partnership was WorldRemit’s Country Manager for Nigeria, Gbenga Okejimi. He said the partnership is expected to disrupt traditional money transfer methods by sending money directly into people’s phones.

“We are proud to play our part in making sure our customers can continue to support their families and friends throughout this challenging time due to the disruption caused by COVID-19,’’ he said.

Recall that Opay announced in July that it would be shutting down most of its business units (for now) to focus only on its fintech services. This, the company said, would enable it to provide payment solutions to Nigerian merchants within the eCommerce space.

The decision came months after the company’s overall business composition was adversely disrupted by the Lagos State Government’s ban on commercial motorcycles across major parts of the Lagos Metropolitan Area.

A Statement From OPay. pic.twitter.com/mjvsKle6yH

— OPay (@OPay_NG) July 2, 2020

Note that WorldRemit is a global leader in the mobile money space. The company expanded its operations to Nigeria in 2019, and had earlier partnered Opay’s competitor – Paga. WorldRemit also announced last month that plans are underway to acquire Sendwave, a remittance firm that helps Africans in the diaspora to send money back home.