Mobile Banks to Open Account for Your Small Business in Nigeria

 Digital Banks to Open Account for Your Small Business in Nigeria 

 

Bank account is one the things you have to get as a business owner, and choosing the right bank to open account(s) is very important because it affects day-to-day running of your business and critical business decision making.

Digital Banking

 

Digital or mobile banks are financial institutions that offer banking services virtually via the internet platforms, mobile apps and USSD.

Digital banks primarily operate online. They may have headquarters, but do not operate branches. Most of them are licensed as microfinance banks and such are prohibited from having branches beyond the state where they are headquartered.

The technological innovations in the financial sector has made account opening for businesses very much easier — no more cumbersome paperwork and providing guarantors. It has also made business financial transactions easier.

 

Why You Should Have Mobile Bank Accounts for Your Business 

 

• Easy Savings
• Easy Payments
• Less bank charges
• Quick access to loans
• Quick access to account statements

 

Easy Savings

The first source and one the best sources of business financial is personal savings. It’s usually somewhat difficult to make consistent savings using traditional banks. But mobile banks have made personal savings very much easier. With fintech apps you can save as little as 500 naira daily, weekly, monthly. You can even automate the savings. Some of these digital banks have different plans where you can lockup funds, save until withdrawal dates, save to meet a target and so on. As a small business owner operating in Nigeria where access to business capital outside personal savings is limited, you need to open account with mobile banking apps to be able to save start or expand your business. Mobile banking platforms also offer high interest rates on savings unlike the commercial banks. Digital banks offers between 10% to 25% interest rates in savings while conventional banks offer blow 5%.

 

Easy Payments

You need digital bank account like OPay to receive payment from your customers. It’s frustrating when you experience glitches when your customers make cash transfers to you and you didn’t receive instant alert. It leads to loss of funds, sales, or customers. These fintech payments apps have 99.9% successful transactions unlike the conventional banks.

Less Bank Charges

As a small business owner you make payments and receive payments daily, as such, fintech apps are for you. Why pay ridiculous charges when technology has solved the problem? Traditional banks will smile at you and still remove transfer fees every time. The deduct SMS charges (even unsolicited SMSs), ATM Card maintenance charges, service charges etc.

But for Fintech banks? They offer Fast transfers, Lower charges, Bonuses and cashbacks, and much more. If you’re sending money daily and still using old systems that drain your balance, you’re not being smart. Smart business people reduce unnecessary costs. That’s how wealth is built. So choose convenience. Choose efficiency. Choose sense. Fintech banks are tools. Use them wisely. Be financially smart.

 

If you run micro and small business in Nigeria here are digital banks you can open business account for your business.

• Moniepoint 
• OPay 
• Renmoney
• FairMoney
• Piggyvest
• Carbon
• PalmPay
• Kuda Bank
• PocketApp
• Paga

Moniepoint

Moniepoint Inc. started as TeamApt and has evolved into a fintech powerhouse since 2015. It achieved unicorn status (valuation over $1 billion) in 2024 after rapid expansion in digital banking, merchant services, and agent banking. Most of small businesses in Nigeria today has Moniepoint account and its point of sale (POS) terminal to enhance their business transactions. 

With Moniepoint account, you get access to digital banking, agent banking and POS solutions, merchant credit, payments infrastructure for your business.

Moniepoint’s inclusion in the list of African unicorns and strong transaction volumes emphasize its reliability and impact on MSMEs.

OPay (OPay Digital Services Limited)

For fast and reliable transfer transactions, Opay should be your number one choice of mobile bank to open account for your small business. once the transfer is done, you receive instant alert. It does not reverse transaction once. These features have earned Opay the number one spot as the best and Nigeria’s most downloaded fintech app with over 50 million downloads.

It offers a wide suite of financial services and stands out as one of the most influential players in Nigeria’s digital finance landscape.

Business Areas

• Mobile payments and transfers

• Utility payments and airtime/data top-ups

• Savings and micro-investment options

• Loans and credit products

• Agent banking and POS services for cash access

Renmoney

Renmoney is a Nigerian digital microfinance bank that provides accessible financial services to individuals and small businesses through technology-driven platforms. Established in 2012 and licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the company offers personal and business loans, savings options, and everyday banking services via its mobile and online channels. By using data-based credit assessment and simplified application processes, Renmoney helps customers access funds more quickly and manage their finances with greater convenience, contributing to improved financial inclusion in Nigeria.

Areas of business:

• Collateral free instant loan
• Savings account 

FairMoney

FairMoney began as a digital micro-lending platform in 2017 and has since expanded into broader banking services, including accounts and prepaid debit cards. It uses advanced data analytics for quick credit decisions.

FairMoney offers:

• Quick digital lending to businesses and individuals. No paper works, and collateral
• Bank account and debit card services
• Utility and bill payments. Pays for all government and other services providers in goodtime.
• Savings and credit score tools. Save money for your business, get a good credit score to be able to qualify for loans.

PiggyVest

PiggyVest (formerly PiggyBank)  is an app that allows you save and invest with convenience in a secured manner. 

PiggyVest  enables you save little amount of money periodically: daily, weekly, monthly. You don’t have to log in every time to save because everything is done automatically once you set up Autosave with the amount you want to save periodically. You also have the option of turning off Autosave. Interest on your savings accrue daily (you see see it on your dashboard) and it is paid at the end of every month. PiggyVest is rated globally as top savings and wealth creation fintech in Nigeria. 

When you open PigyVest account, you will have 5 wallets — PiggyBank, Target savings, SafeLock, Flex Naira, Flex Dollar and Investify wallets etc.

Piggybank: Is a core savings wallet where you save periodically in an automated manner. You can only withdraw from your Piggybank wallet on free withdrawal dates which are the last days of every quarter of the year. Withdrawal outside the free dates attract 3%. You also have a choice of setting your own quarterly withdrawal dates. You get 17% per annum interest.

Target Savings: It allows you to save consistently to meet a particular financial need. Interest rate is 10% per annum.

SafeLock: is a fixed savings which enables you lock up funds for a specific period of time (10 days minimum)  without access to the funds till maturity. You earn 15 – 19.5% per annum interest, prorated accordingly, and depending on the duration you set. 

Flex Naira: Is a savings account that you can save money in at your convenience, receive money from any other commercial banks. To receive money from other banks, select Pocketapp during the transfer transaction. You can withdraw from your Flex Naira wallet at will but once in 10 hours. You get 12% interest on your Flex Naira savings. 

Flex Dollar: It enables you save, invest and transfer funds in Dollar. You can fund your Flex Dollar Wallet from your Flex Naira Wallet or from your bank card. You can save minimum of $1. You can withdraw your dollar savings in Naira into your local bank at prevailing buy price at the parallel market. You also get  5% interest on your dollar savings. You can also Dollar into your Dollar denominated domiciliary account.

Savelock Dollar:  This is a fixed dollar savings option that allows to save money in dollar for a specific period of time between 10 days to 365 days without access to it until maturity date. You get interest of 4.5% to 7% on your savings depending on the duration of your savings. You can lock a minimum of 2$. 

Investify: It is a PiggyVest feature which enables users to invest their savings in pre-vetted and low-medium risk, primary and secondary investment opportunities to earn more money. Investors earn up 25% interest per annum on their investments. 

Interest Rate: PiggyVest offers 4.5-19.5% interest per annum on savings, depending on the product you choose, making it the highest interest paying savings app in Nigeria.

Carbon

Carbon is a leading Nigerian financial technology company that provides digital banking and lending services through a mobile app. Founded in 2012 (originally as Paylater), the company evolved from a simple online lending platform into a fully licensed microfinance bank regulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria. Carbon allows users to access instant loans, transfer money, pay bills, and earn interest on savings directly from their smartphones. By removing the traditional barriers associated with conventional banking, the platform has helped expand access to financial services for individuals and small businesses across Nigeria.

Over the years, Carbon has expanded its offerings beyond personal loans to include savings products, investment options, and tools designed to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Its digital-first approach focuses on speed, transparency, and user convenience, making financial services more accessible to underserved communities. By leveraging technology and data-driven credit assessment, Carbon continues to contribute to financial inclusion and innovation within Nigeria’s growing fintech ecosystem

Palmcredit

Palmcredit is the lending arm of PalmPay (often integrated with its wallet). It offers short-term personal loans digitally, focusing on flexible terms for underserved users.

Palmcredit offerings

• Instant digital loans
• High-speed disbursement
• Linked with PalmPay ecosystem

Palmcredit is often ranked among high-volume download fintech credit apps for Nigeria.

Kuda Bank

Kuda — formally Kuda Technologies Limited — is a Nigerian-born digital bank founded in 2019 by Babs Ogundeyi and Musty Mustapha. It operates as a licensed microfinance bank in Nigeria and also serves customers in the UK.

Kuda Bank will offer you the following services to help grow your business:

• Digital account for your business
• No maintenance fee banking
• Free transfers and debit card issuance
• Budgeting and automated savings tools
• Loan access and investment features

PocketApp

PocketApp is a Nigerian digital wallet platform that enables users to send money, receive payments, and manage everyday financial activities through a mobile application. The service provides features such as instant transfers, bill payments, and card services designed to simplify personal and small-business transactions. Operating under the oversight of the Central Bank of Nigeria, PocketApp focuses on secure and convenient payment experiences while helping expand access to digital financial tools. Its user-friendly platform supports Nigeria’s growing shift toward cashless and mobile-based financial services. You can use your Pocket app account number or wallet to fund or receive money into your PiggyVest account.

Paga

Paga is a mobile payment processing company in Nigeria. The company is building an ecosystem to enable Nigerian to digitally send and receive money, and creating simple financial access and drive financial inclusion.

Paga wallets can also be used to pay local bills, school fees and other goods and services at retailers.

Paga basically process mobile payment in Nigeria and in Naira, which means Paga Money has only naira account. Can only be used to send and receive money and pay bills in Nigeria in the local currency.

Founded in 2009, Paga also allows users to receive instant international money transfers directly on their mobile devices through a Paga mobile money wallet. To facilitate cross border sending and receiving money, Paga is partnering with WorldRemit and PayPal to make it possible. With WorldRemit, you can send and receive mobile money to and from Nigeria. While with PayPal you can withdraw payments made to your PayPal account via. So, if you offer international services where you are required to receive money via PayPal and WorldRemitt, you need Paga account.

For over 2 decades, PayPal blacklisted Nigerians from creating account on its platform and using same to receive foreign payments. Just in January 2026, Paga and PayPal signed partnership agreement for Paga to integrate PayPal on its app, allowing Nigerian to receive and withdraw PayPal payments.