The most confusing questions we encounter when talking to Nigerians living in Europe have to do with money transfers. When is the best time to send money to Nigeria? Where can I find the best Euro/Naira exchange rate? How long does it take to send money to Nigeria? And most recently, we also see questions about the new regulations issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria, and the way these affect remittance possibilities.
As our number one priority at Rewire is to spread financial knowledge and help migrants with their cross-border financial needs, we dug deep into our data and discovered some really interesting information about money transfer habits in 2020. Plus, we have tips!
The best time to send money from Europe to Nigeria
Overall, Rewire serves about 200K users who transfer roughly $560M worldwide, every year. Sifting through our data, we see that Nigerian migrants in Europe share unique commonalities such as spontaneity (only 6% open a money transfer order ahead of time) and the idea that weekends are meant for resting, as only 17% of money transfers are made on either Saturdays or Sundays.
51% of money transfers from across Europe to Nigeria are made on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, which leaves Wednesdays and Fridays as relatively slow days. Moreover, about 98% of money transfers made with Rewire are completed within a short time span of up to 2 hours, regardless of the day the transaction takes place on.
Of course, how fast your money travels from Europe to Nigeria also has to do with the money transfer option you choose. For instance, if you choose to send money via wire transfer, then chances are your money will indeed be transferred within 2 hours and maximum up to 1-business day. If you opt for sending money to a beneficiary who holds a digital Paga wallet, however, your money will arrive on the spot 100% of the time.
This information, combined with the fact that Nigeria and most of Europe share the same time zone, indicates that it doesn’t really matter at what time of the day you choose to send money home.
Pro tip: Send money around 10 am. That way you know that both the bank and your money transfer operator are already at the office (or on Zoom) working and paying attention to your transaction.
What does make a difference? Having money in your balance ahead of time
The real delays in sending money home happen before you instruct your app to send it. You see, in order to send money from Europe to Nigeria, you need to make sure that you actually have money to send.
For instance, if you want to send money from Europe to Nigeria with Rewire, you’ll need to make sure your Rewire account has a sufficient balance. This process is very simple and is done in the Rewire app. However, since you’re adding money from an external source, we cannot ensure that this specific process is instant. In fact, while a wire transfer from a bank account onto your Rewire account might take up to 1-business day, adding money via credit card would be instant.
Pro tip: Open a money transfer order and make sure to add money to your balance ahead of time. That way your money will arrive in Nigeria right when you want it to.
Why delays happen and who can help
As mentioned, 98% of money transfers are completed within 2 hours. So we ask: What about the other 2%? The answer is simple and lies with the receiving bank’s manual compliance checkups. You see, Rewire is an innovative and secure tech platform that works with financial institutions in Nigeria. Meaning that there’s no reason for one money transfer to take longer than the other, unless, a manual process in the receiving bank is issued.
So, how will you know if something is genuinely wrong or if the delay in your money transfer is simply standard procedure? Easy. Remember how we mentioned that Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays are the busiest days to send money? Well, if you send money on either Wednesdays or Fridays, you’d also be sending money on days in which Rewire’s support team is naturally less busy. Don’t worry though, even if you send money on a Monday, for instance, and you find yourself in need of assistance, you’ll always have someone to reach out to who will be there for you and solve all of your money transfer related issues.
Another great way to find tips and tricks about finances and money management is by simply asking fellow Nigerians who also face the same challenges.
Pro tip: A great way of connecting with fellow Nigerians in Europe is through designated social media groups, where you can consult and get advice from an unbias source.
New regulations on money transfer
The latest news about the Central Bank of Nigeria and the directives it issued on international money transfers to Nigeria have gotten everyone a bit confused.
Basically, the new guidelines create additional requirements for money transfer operators seeking to send Naira into Nigeria. This means that in order to send money into Nigeria, the money transfer operators registered with the Central Bank of Nigeria should allow both $US and local currency to reach beneficiaries.
Rewire allows customers to send foreign currencies such as USD, EUR, GBP, and more to domiciliary accounts in Nigeria. Meaning that you can go ahead and send money from Europe to Nigeria as usual.
These are really confusing times and there are a lot of questions, mainly about money management and how the new regulations affect the way you support your family in Nigeria. This is exactly why it is important that you keep yourself educated about new regulations. And above all – trust the data, it never lies.
