Economy
Things You Need to Become A Mobile Money Agent in Nigeria
By Adedapo Adesanya
In pursuit of expanding financial services and capturing more people into the banking net, a new venture was carved out by financial institutions in Nigeria, which is spreading by the day.
This new business is called agent banking and it has made transacting financial services easier because most people do not need to go to the banking hall or any bank to make payment, withdraw or deposit or transfer money to anyone anymore.
If you look around you these days, you will see people having small kiosks working as mobile money agents, who perform some of the things done in the banking halls.
Who is a Mobile Money Agent?
A mobile money agent is an person approved by a licensed financial institution to offer mobile money services like cash-in and out payment, airtime, service, and bill payments to customers.
Becoming a mobile agent is a great business consideration, and following these easy steps can make one start the business easily without stress.
Registration
To become a mobile money agent, the first step is opening a bank account with the bank of your choice or have an existing bank account (this is better because your transaction history helps in determining your saving level and qualifies you). That is, if you want to be a mobile agent for UBA, you must have an account with them. Some recommendations offered by existing mobile agents are: UBA, Access Bank, First Bank, and GTBank.
Take into consideration that some of these banks give the intending agent optional targets which may be daily or weekly, ranging from N50,000 daily to about N1,000,000 weekly, while some simply do not. One of such banks that give target to their agents is GTBank.
If you have either a savings or current account or both, you can have them linked to the Point of Sale (POS) machine, which is the major tool for the mobile money agent business.
To get a POS machine, you have to go your bank, meet the customer care service, and request for the agency banking, which attracts a fee between N5,000 and N10,000. This money must be paid to get a pin.
This form is where you will provide all the necessary information to qualify you to own a POS as an agent.
The data you must provide include your name, date of birth, state of origin, mobile number, your Bank Verification Number (BVN), Guarantors, Tax Identification Number (TIN) – if you don’t have this, you are given a form to get one. You will also be required to present a valid ID card (voters’ card, national ID card, national identification number [NIN]), and the PIN gotten from paying the fee, among others so they process your application. This generally takes between five working days to three weeks.
Criteria Consideration
If you meet certain criteria, you are given a POS linked to your account.
One of the criteria considered is having a physical store or shop where people can meet to perform financial transactions. People who have shops qualify to be approved to be made a certified mobile money agent than those who don’t. Note that a having kiosk also qualifies you.
The location where the shop is located is also a key factor that will help. The presence of the shop in an area where businesses are situated is an added advantage on the side of the prospective agent.
Literacy is also considered, if the agent can read, write, and do basic calculations which is necessary in balancing accounts, it is a credible criteria that qualifies him or her.
Another thing you must have is a phone, preferably an Internet enabled phone so that you can get alerts. This will make balancing both credit and debit transactions made daily or weekly very easy.
Charges
On the part of the bank, for every transaction of less than N10,000, the bank gets 0.5 percent while transactions from N10,000 upwards to a limit set by the bank (varies from bank from bank), they charge 0.75 percent. These charges are inclusive Value Added Tax (VAT) because of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) policy.
As a mobile money agent, charges on transactions vary, depending on how much the transactor wants to send or receive. Between N1,000 – N3,000, a charge of N100 is applied but N4,000 upward attract a N200 charge. Whether you are sending or receiving. Some agents also fix their charges but standard procedure should not attract more than N200.
Other Services
Also, note that as a mobile money agent, you are not only restricted to pure banking transactions. You can also do other side payments like airtime recharge for mobile networks, bills payment or settlement such as PHCN bills, waste bills, DSTV, GoTV, Startimes, Local Government levies and permits, and even open accounts for banks.
By Dipo Olowookere
The bulls regained control of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Friday after surrendering power to the bears a day earlier as a result of mild selling pressure.
Yesterday, the Nigerian bourse rebounded by 0.54 per cent, mainly due to the gains recorded by First Holdco and others.
Data harvested by Business Post indicated that the industrial goods and energy sectors were flat, while the banking index chalked up 3.13 per cent. The insurance space expanded by 1.08 per cent, and the consumer goods counter rose by 0.21 per cent.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 1,316.52 points to 243,462.13 points from 242,145.61 points, and the market capitalisation grew by N850 billion to N157.057 trillion from N156.207 trillion.
The market breadth index was bullish during the last trading session of this week, printing 31 appreciating stocks and 23 depreciating stocks, representing strong investor sentiment.
First Holdco led the advancers’ log after it climbed 9.97 per cent to N95.95, Haldane McCall appreciated by 9.94 per cent to N3.65, LivingTrust Mortgage Bank soared by 9.73 per cent to N3.72, LASACO Assurance jumped by 5.26 per cent to N2.00, and Thomas Wyatt gained 5.10 per cent to quote at N3.09.
On the flip side, Red Star Express declined by 9.50 per cent to N20.00, Omatek slipped by 6.08 per cent to N1.70, C&I Leasing shrank by 5.93 per cent to N5.55, Jaiz Bank crashed by 5.03 per cent to N8.50, and Livestock Feed fell by 3.89 per cent to N8.65.
As for the activity chart, market participants bought and sold 685.9 million equities for N42.7 billion in 44,134 deals on Friday versus the 498.5 million equities worth N34.9 billion traded in 39,484 deals on Thursday, implying a rise in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 37.59 per cent, 22.35 per cent, and 11.78 per cent, respectively.
Investors’ darling for the day was First Holdco, with a turnover of 225.9 billion units valued at N21.0 billion, Guinea Insurance sold 53.4 million units for N45.2 million, Zenith Bank traded 41.5 million units worth N4.7 billion, Access Holdings exchanged 29.1 million units valued at N720.6 million, and UBA exchanged 27.5 million units for N1.2 billion.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Africa Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria (APFFLON) has appealed to the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to deepen its sensitisation on the newly introduced Green Tax Surcharge Policy.
The chairman of APFFLON, Mr Akeem Ayobiojo, made this plea on behalf of his colleagues on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, at the Customs House in Abuja, during a stakeholders’ engagement with the agency.
He also called for improvements in the administration of Pre-Arrival Assessment Reports and Post Clearance Audit and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Mr Ayobiojo stated that freight forwarders were happy to work with the customs, commending the organisation for implementing Chapter 99, describing it as a major relief for manufacturers.
He, however, emphasised that a deeper understanding of the new tax was necessary for his members, saying more predictable procedures would reduce delays and unexpected costs for importers and freight forwarders.
In his remarks, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, assured manufacturers, freight forwarders and other players in the nation’s trade sector that the NCS would continue to engage them on fiscal policies affecting their businesses, saying sustained dialogue remains key to resolving implementation challenges and improving the country’s trading environment.
He also promised them the service’s resolve to enhance and facilitate trade, acknowledging that, “Your feedback is important because it helps us understand what is happening in the field, and where necessary, we will take your concerns to the Federal Ministry of Finance and other relevant government institutions.”
Speaking about Authorised Economic Operator (AEO), Mr Adeniyi further explained that Nigeria would not lower the standards required under the Authorised Economic Operator Programme as the initiative is guided by global benchmarks established by the World Customs Organisation (WCO).
On her part, the Deputy Comptroller-General of Customs for Tariff and Trade, Ms Caroline Niagwan, clarified that electric vehicles can be imported without payment of duty only by holders of Import Duty Exemption Certificate (IDEC) issued by the Federal Ministry of Finance.
She also urged importers facing classification disputes to take advantage of the Advance Ruling system, noting, “Once an Advance Ruling is issued based on genuine documentation, importers have certainty on classification, valuation or origin before the goods arrive, thereby reducing unnecessary disputes during clearance.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, July 17, by N1.35 or 0.07 per cent to N1,380.18/$1 from N1,381.53/$1.
It also improved its value against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment during the session by N11.75 to trade at N1,854.42/£1 compared with the previous day’s N1,866.17/£1, and gained N5.69 against the Euro to sell at N1,576.99/€1 versus Thursday’s closing price of N1,582.68/€1.
In the same vein, the Naira chalked up N1 against the United States currency yesterday at the GTBank forex desk to quote at N1,388/$1, in contrast to the preceding day’s N1,389/$1, but closed flat at the black market at N1,405/$1.
The appreciation of the Nigerian currency on Friday came amid fresh signals that Nigeria is building its external reserves for protection against shocks and excessive currency volatility.
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Yemi Cardoso, said the country’s gross reserves had risen above approximately $52 billion by 15 July, while net reserves had increased from about $3 billion when the current CBN leadership took office to more than $40 billion.
Mr Cardoso linked the increase in reserves to reforms that had restored greater confidence in the foreign exchange system. He also pointed to efforts to diversify foreign currency inflows, including policies designed to increase remittances through official channels.
He noted that monthly diaspora remittances had risen above $600 million and the CBN expected them to reach approximately $1 billion by the end of 2026. The target is part of a broader effort to grow reserves through recurring inflows rather than temporary measures.
The improvement, he argued, had strengthened Nigeria’s capacity to respond when unexpected events threatened market stability.
The apex bank has also launched a new digital platform that will track every foreign exchange transaction involving Bureau De Change (BDC) operators, marking a major step in its efforts to improve transparency and strengthen oversight of Nigeria’s retail forex market.
As for the crypto market, prices were up as markets overlooked geopolitical developments and macro forces weighing on the whole market ecosystem rather than anything crypto-specific, with Cardano (ADA) up by 4.6 per cent to $0.1661.
Bitcoin (BTC) jumped by 1.8 per cent to $63,968.32, Ethereum (ETH) improved by 0.9 per cent to $1,843.88, Dogecoin (DOGE) also rose by 0.9 per cent to $0.0723, Solana (SOL) soared by 0.6 per cent to $74.90, Ripple (XRP) also appreciated by 0.6 per cent to $1.08, and Binance Coin (BNB) advanced by 0.1 per cent to $567.32.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 0.2 per cent to close at $0.3218, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
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