CAD to NGN: funding and paying out in Nigeria
Canadian providers collect by Interac e-Transfer or AFT and move funding over Lynx on business days, and a CBN-licensed IMTO converts at the prevailing NFEM rate and pays beneficiaries in naira only, to a bank account (required above the US$200 equivalent), a PSB wallet or as cash, with NIP delivering bank payouts 24/7. The main prefunding constraint is that IMTOs cannot buy foreign exchange in Nigeria for settlement, so naira capacity depends on funds sent ahead through Lynx, which closes at 19:00 ET and on federal statutory holidays.
| Origin | Canada (CAD) |
| Destination | Nigeria (NGN) |
| Instant rails in Nigeria | NIP (NIBSS Instant Payment) |
| Holiday calendar | Nigeria bank holidays 2026 and 2027 |
The market
- Nigeria received US$22.79 billion in personal remittances in 2025, up from US$22.13 billion in 2024 (World Bank data, last updated 8 October 2026). source
- The CBN's 2024 balance of payments report put inflows through IMTOs at US$4.73 billion, up 43.5% from US$3.30 billion in 2023. source
- CBN data published by Nigeria's statistics bureau attributes US$1.18 billion of 2021 inward personal transfers to Canada as country of origin, third after the United Kingdom and the United States. The table gives each country the same share of the total in every year from 2016 to 2021 (Canada 6.1%). source
- Sending CAD 200 from Canada to Nigeria cost 3.15% on average in Q3 2025 (average fee CAD 3.91, exchange rate margin 1.20%), with bank account and cash payout options. source
- Personal remittances paid from Canada totalled US$15.11 billion in 2025 (World Bank data). source
- The CBN's licensed IMTO list includes Canada-addressed operators such as Kredete Technology (Toronto), Brails Financial (Vancouver), Fincra Technologies (Scarborough, Ontario), Raenest Inc (Toronto) and Banffpay (Calgary). source
How recipients get paid
| Method | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| bank account | All inbound IMTO transfers are paid in naira. Amounts above the equivalent of US$200 must go to a bank account, and where the beneficiary banks elsewhere the IMTO's agent bank credits that other bank. | source |
| cash pickup | Cash payouts in naira are allowed up to the equivalent of US$200, against an acceptable means of identification. | source |
| mobile wallet | Wallets at payment service banks receive international transfers: MTN's MoMo PSB customers receive funds instantly from markets including the USA, UK and Canada through Thunes (November 2025). | source |
Payout rails in Nigeria
| Rail | Operator | Hours | Runs on holidays | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NIP (NIBSS Instant Payment) | Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) | 24 hours a day, 7 days a week | yes | source |
| CBN RTGS | Central Bank of Nigeria | Business days only. Bank cut-offs apply: via FCMB, payments initiated before 12:00 settle the same day and later ones the next working day. | no | source |
Funding from Canada
| Rail | Operator | Hours and cut-offs | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lynx | Payments Canada | 00:30 to 19:00 ET on weekdays that are not federal statutory holidays. Regular payments run in Settlement Window 1, 00:30 to 18:00 ET. | source |
| ACSS / AFT (retail batch) | Payments Canada | Business days only. Net balances settle on the books of the Bank of Canada the morning of the next business day. | source |
| Interac e-Transfer | Interac Corp. | Interac says money can be sent anytime; funds typically arrive within minutes, with timing varying by financial institution. | source |
| Real-Time Rail (RTR) | Payments Canada | Scheduled to launch in Q4 2026 for 24/7/365 operation, with participants going live in a sequenced onboarding. | source |
FX and conversion
- The CBN unified the official FX market in 2023 under a willing buyer, willing seller model, collapsing the old segments into the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM). source
- Interbank NFEM pricing runs on the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS) on Bloomberg BMatch, under CBN guidelines of 25 November 2024. EFEMS covers USD/NGN spot only, with a US$100,000 minimum trade and US$50,000 increments. source
- All NFEM transactions must be concluded with an Authorised Dealer. Customer trades outside EFEMS are priced off the prevailing NFEM rate, and negotiating rates outside the market is prohibited. source
- IMTOs pay beneficiaries at the prevailing NFEM rate on the day the transfer is received. source
Who pays out in Nigeria
| Provider | What they offer here | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Thunes | Thunes says MoMo PSB wallet holders in Nigeria receive international funds instantly through its Direct Global Network, from markets including the USA, UK and Canada. | source |
| TerraPay | TerraPay's network page lists Nigeria (NGN) with both wallet payout and bank payout available. | source |
| MoMo PSB (MTN) | MoMo PSB says its inbound international transfers let customers receive money directly in their wallets, delivered with partners MFS Africa and Saana Capital LLC. | source |
Stablecoin routes
| Provider | Route | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow Card | Yellow Card's stablecoin payments API sends NGN to Nigerian bank accounts by instant bank transfer. | source |
| Yellow Card (regulatory status) | Yellow Card Financial Nigeria Limited was admitted on 14 August 2026 to the SEC Nigeria Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Programme on a conditional approval-in-principle basis, which is not a final licence. Yellow Card's Canadian company is registered on the Bank of Canada's PSP registry and provides fiat currency services only. | source |
Prefunding this corridor
- IMTOs are barred from buying foreign exchange in Nigeria's domestic market for settlement, and must file weekly returns of their FX sales in the NFEM. source
- Customer funds meant for remittance must sit in a designated account with the IMTO's agent Authorised Dealer Bank, separate from all its other accounts. source
- NIP runs 24/7, so instant bank payouts continue at weekends and on holidays, while CBN RTGS runs on business days only. source
- ACSS and AFT items settle on the books of the Bank of Canada the morning of the next business day, so CAD collected by batch reaches settlement a day later. source
- Since 8 September 2025, PSPs under the Retail Payment Activities Act must have frameworks to safeguard end-user funds, which governs how CAD collections are held before funding the corridor. source
Size the balance you hold in Nigeria for payouts during your top-up lead time plus local closures. Check this corridor's runway and the Nigeria holiday calendar.
Regulators
- Central Bank of Nigeria (Trade and Exchange Department): Licenses IMTOs under the January 2024 guidelines: inbound transfers only, minimum share capital of US$1 million (or naira equivalent), a N10 million application fee and N10 million annual renewal. Banks are prohibited from operating IMTO services but can act as agents, and the guidelines extend that prohibition to financial technology companies without defining the term. source
- Central Bank of Nigeria (circular of 24 March 2026): Requires every IMTO to open designated naira settlement accounts with Authorised Dealer Banks and to run all beneficiary payments and settlements through them. IMTOs can hold several such accounts with different banks. source
- Securities and Exchange Commission, Nigeria: Registers and regulates virtual and digital asset exchanges under the Investments and Securities Act, 2025. source
- FINTRAC (origin side): Money services businesses operating in Canada, and foreign MSBs that direct and provide services to clients in Canada, must register with FINTRAC before they begin to operate, even if licensed by a province. source
- Bank of Canada, Retail Payment Activities Act (origin side): Payment service providers register with the Bank of Canada (the first window ran 1 to 15 November 2024). Risk management and end-user funds safeguarding requirements came into force on 8 September 2025. source
Seeing this corridor in Polynopsis
Polynopsis shows the balance at each Nigeria payout partner, bank and wallet next to your CAD funding accounts and the transfers in flight between them, and warns before the CAD to NGN corridor runs dry.
Frequently asked questions
Which Canadian registrations does a remitter to Nigeria need?
FINTRAC registration as a money services business (or foreign MSB) before operating, and registration with the Bank of Canada under the Retail Payment Activities Act, whose safeguarding and risk management rules apply from 8 September 2025.
When can CAD funding move?
Lynx runs 00:30 to 19:00 ET on weekdays that are not federal statutory holidays. AFT batches settle the next business morning. The Real-Time Rail is scheduled for Q4 2026 with phased onboarding.
How are Nigerian beneficiaries paid?
In naira only, at the prevailing NFEM rate on the day received, to a bank account above the US$200 equivalent, or in cash against identification for smaller amounts.
Other corridors
Sources
- Personal remittances, received (current US$): Nigeria · World Bank
- Personal remittances hit $20.93bn in 2024: CBN · Punch
- Demographic Statistics Bulletin 2022, Table 1: inward personal transfers by country of origin (CBN data) · National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria
- Remittance Prices Worldwide: Canada to Nigeria · World Bank
- Personal remittances, paid (current US$): Canada · World Bank
- International Money Transfer Operators (licensed list) · Central Bank of Nigeria
- Reviewed Guidelines of International Money Transfer Services in Nigeria (31 January 2024) · Central Bank of Nigeria
- Thunes and MoMo PSB bring real-time cross-border payments to millions of Nigerians · Thunes
- NIBSS Instant Payments (NIP): the game changer · NIBSS
- Nigeria payment system overview · Verto
- High-value payment system: Lynx · Payments Canada
- Retail batch payment system (ACSS) · Payments Canada
- Interac e-Transfer 101 · Interac Corp.
- Real-Time Rail: testing and launch · Payments Canada
- Foreign Exchange Market in Nigeria · Central Bank of Nigeria
- Reforms and Initiatives: key milestones · Central Bank of Nigeria
- Revised Guidelines for the Nigeria Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), 29 November 2024 · Central Bank of Nigeria
- Investments and Securities Act, 2025 · Securities and Exchange Commission, Nigeria
- Register your money services business or foreign money services business · FINTRAC
- Retail payments supervision: key milestones · Bank of Canada
- TerraPay network coverage · TerraPay
- Agent banking: receive and make payments to your Nigerian customers · Onafriq
- International Transfers on MoMo PSB · MTN MoMo
- Yellow Card API: Africa coverage (receives and sends) · Yellow Card
- Licenses and registrations · Yellow Card
Know where all your money is.
Polynopsis gives cross-border payment teams one live position across every bank, payout partner, exchange and wallet, including money in flight, and warns before a corridor runs dry.