Nigeria Surpasses $59B in Crypto Inflows Amid Naira Devaluation

Nigeria has emerged as a hub for cryptocurrency adoption in sub-Saharan Africa, accounting for roughly 60 percent of all stablecoin inflows into the region since 2019. This influx is driven primarily by households and small businesses rather than institutional trading.

The country received approximately $59 billion in crypto asset inflows between July 2023 and June 2024, according to a report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The surge in cryptocurrency adoption can be attributed to the naira's significant devaluation against the dollar in 2024, with a loss of over 40 percent. Additionally, conventional remittance corridors into Nigeria charge high fees, ranging from 5 to 8 percent per transfer on average.

To address this gap, Bitget Wallet launched a direct bank transfer feature in Nigeria in November 2025, allowing users to convert stablecoins such as USDT and USDC into naira instantly across multiple partner banks. This move marked one of the initial attempts by a global crypto wallet to connect stablecoin payments directly into a country's banking system at scale.

Bitget Wallet has reported significant growth in Nigeria, with over 100 million users worldwide, surpassing 150,000 issued Bitget Wallet Cards, and $31 million in global card spending in the first half of 2026. The company's Chief Operating Officer, Alvin Kan, stated that 'the next wave of users in markets like Nigeria doesn't think of this as crypto.' They view their balance in dollars as a routine account for everyday finance, rather than a trading habit.

The data suggests that card spend in emerging markets grew 416 percent over the same period, more than twice the global rate. Cardholders average 10 payments per month at roughly $28 each, demonstrating a frequency similar to routine debit card use.