How to buy bitcoin in Nigeria

Nigeria is not only Africa’s largest economy; its population and a weak currency are turning into a powerhouse for buying and selling cryptocurrency. It has the most Google searches for bitcoin of any country outside of the United States and the highest volume of peer-to-peer crypto trading. If you want to join this African crypto revolution, we have brought together the best ways to buy bitcoin in Nigeria.

We shouldn’t be surprised at the demand for buying and selling bitcoin in Nigeria, given the country’s socio-economic issues.

We highlighted in a previous article the importance of cryptocurrency in Nigeria, given how the government has devalued the Naira four times within the space of fifteen months.

The problems this has posed for the typical Nigerian transacting with their global partners has spurred the demand for a more reliable alternative currency that requires no permission. And despite attempts by the government to crack down on crypto, youthful Nigerians are showing their ingenuity in finding ways to access this financial lifeline.

So how exactly are Nigerians buying and selling bitcoin even with stringent regulations?

If you’re considering whether to buy or sell bitcoin in Nigeria, there are broadly two options for you. You either use a cryptocurrency exchange or a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) platform.

Both, of course, have their advantages and disadvantages. Exchanges have a better user experience and a much broader selection of coins to trade, but being centralised find it harder to avoid government intervention.

P2P platforms have a different model, allowing you to transact directly with the buyer or seller where both of you decide on the price instead of what the exchange sets for you, but you assume a little more counterparty risk. The P2P option doesn’t offer the simple conversion user experience of an exchange and is limited in terms of the coins you can trade.

Read our blog article on the importance of Bitcoin to Nigeria

Buying & selling bitcoin through cryptocurrency exchanges in Nigeria

Let’s analyse some of the best top cryptocurrency exchanges to buy and sell bitcoin in Nigeria.

Paxful

Paxful is one of the leading exchanges to buy and sell bitcoin in Nigeria. It has integrated many payment options for traders. Even with the revoking of buying bitcoins with a debit card in Nigeria by the authorities, Paxful has made it extremely easy to purchase using bank transfer, through mobile money like telecommunications wallet solutions such as MTN Mobile Money, fintech wallets like Chipper Cash, gift cards, or even international money transfer like Western Union.

In fact, Paxful boasts of over 300 payment options, by far the highest of any crypto exchange in Nigeria.

Paxful's presence in Nigeria is growing, and its CEO even made recent headlines when he challenged Agustin Carstens, the head of the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), who claimed in a Bloomberg interview that crypto had lost the argument as an alternative to fiar currency and that “technology doesn’t make for trusted money”.

Ray Youssef, CEO of Paxful, himself a known Bitcoin maximalist, said: “We must focus on the battles in the global south and fight for every inch and every eyeball. What is happening in Nigeria now is vital for us all.“

Paxful does not charge you for buying bitcoins using its platform; only sellers are charged between 0.5 - 5% fees depending on the payment medium. Both buyers and sellers must pass KYC verification. Paxful has hands down one of the best support systems for its customers with a strict anti-money laundering compliance policy.

Website: Paxful.com
Trading Fee: 0%
BTC Withdrawal Fee: 0.5 - 5%
Deposit options: Cash deposit, Mobile Money, Bank Transfer, Chipper cash etc
Minimum Transaction Value: N12,000

Quidax

Quidax is one of Nigeria’s indigenous exchanges servicing a significant number of local bitcoin buyers and sellers. Like Paxful, it also mandates users to pass KYC before they can withdraw from the exchange.

Quidax comes with an extremely easy to use interface. And even if you don’t know how to trade, Quidax comes with the Instant Buy/Sell feature that allows you to buy bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies instantly.

Like many crypto-related businesses all over the world, Quidax was impacted by the current crypto bear market, laying off a reported 20% of its staff in Nigeria. Business, it would appear, continues as normal.

Quidax charges based on maker or taker fees on its platform, i.e. if you exchanged Naira for Bitcoin, you would be charged a maker or taker fee in Bitcoin. But, if you exchange Bitcoin for Naira, you will be charged fees in Naira. Check here for a full schedule of trading fees on Quidax.

Website: Quidax.com
Trading Fee: 0%
BTC Withdrawal Fee: 0.3 - 1%
Deposit options: Bank deposit, Card deposit, Bank Transfer, USSD
Minimum Transaction Value: Not stated

Bundle Africa

Bundle is one of the fast-rising social payment apps that allows Nigerians to buy and sell cryptos like bitcoin, BUSD, BNB, etc., or even save in dollars.

Its mobile-first solution comes with an intuitive interface that allows you to add cash using third-party solutions like Cashlink or BUSD with Onramper. Bundle even connects you directly with Bitrefill, so you can easily purchase gift cards to make payments for items like recharge cards, movie tickets, or even book a ride and pay in cryptos.

Website: Bundle.africa
Trading Fee: 0%
BTC Withdrawal Fee: Not stated
Deposit options: Cashlink, Crypto, P2P
Minimum Transaction Value: N505

Yellow Card

Yellow Card is championing buying and selling bitcoins and cryptos with the most straightforward means possible. With Yellow Card, you buy and sell Bitcoin with bank transfer online or cash in a store near you. You can even deposit into your Yellow Card wallet by purchasing recharge pins from any authorised seller around you. Its mobile wallet is light and easy to use.

Website: Yellowcard.io
Trading Fee: 0%
BTC Withdrawal Fee: Free fees via Cash Voucher
Deposit options: PIN
Minimum Transaction Value: Not stated

Patricia

Patricia is one of the most popular wallets in Nigeria to buy and sell bitcoin. They have worked harder than any brand to push crypto trading to the average Nigerian who may not have heard of cryptocurrency before. With an easy to use web and mobile interface, you can buy BTC or sell based on Patricia’s rates.

Website: mypatricia.co
Trading Fee: Dynamic
BTC Withdrawal Fee: N100
Deposit options: Bank transfer, Gift Cards, Airtime to cash
Minimum Transaction Value: N1,000

Buying & selling bitcoin through P2P in Nigeria

And if you’re thinking of using a purely P2P approach, Binance P2P is easily your best solution, where you transact directly with sellers, and Binance help acts as escrow for the security of funds.

Payment options include direct bank transfer, PayPal, Chipper Cash, or the recently added NGN FIAT/NGN pair. With FIAT/NGN pair, you can now BUY and SELL the NGN FIAT balance on Binance with zero transaction fees for Nigerian Naira (NGN) using Bank Transfer and other payment methods.

Though the official stance on buying and selling bitcoin in Nigeria is uncertain, it hasn’t discouraged a growing number of local unicorns from satisfying the huge demand for young Nigerians to buy crypto. This looks certain to continue, so if you want an alternative to the Naira, choose the exchange or P2P platform that is right for you.