Five platforms offering virtual dollar accounts in Nigeria in 2024
Samson Akintaro
For today’s global workforce, especially freelancers, remote workers, content creators, and global entrepreneurs, receiving USD payments can be a major headache.
High fees and complex international banking procedures are all hurdles to maximizing earned foreign income from completed gigs/jobs or rendered services.
Despite these challenges, some platforms have consistently provided this important service of facilitating foreign transactions by issuing virtual USD accounts.
A virtual USD account is a digital account denominated in US dollars that you can use to manage your finances online. It’s a safe and convenient way to receive payments, make transactions, and store your funds.
In emerging markets, particularly in Nigeria, several platforms are standing out in providing seamless USD financial services. Here are 5 companies still actively offering virtual USD account services in 2024:
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Cleva (YC W24)
Cleva offers a seamless way to manage money across borders, making it an essential tool for those looking to earn dollars and grow their wealth. With Cleva, you can easily open a USD account in your name, allowing you to receive payments from clients, employers, and platforms like Fiverr, Upwork, PayPal, and Payoneer.
Additionally, Cleva stands out in the crowded field of virtual USD accounts by providing a comprehensive suite of services tailored to the modern global workforce. Cleva’s virtual USD account allows you to bypass traditional banking hurdles and tap into the global market effortlessly.
Cleva offers capped fees on transactions, ensuring that you get the best value for your money. With an ACH deposit fee of only 0.9% and a flat wire deposit fee of $10, you can rest assured that your transactions are not only seamless but also cost-effective.
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Also, Cleva offers free transfers to other Cleva users as well as a virtual USD card for easy spending, plus competitive exchange rates. Sign up here and experience the future of online USD banking.
Bitnob
Bitnob is a money transfer app that helps users send and receive money within African countries and globally.
Furthermore, users can easily buy, sell, and autosave bitcoin on the app, while it also facilitates remittance, and cross-border transactions with the ability to send and receive money across eight African countries including Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Benin Republic, and Togo.
Specifically, Bitnob says its customers can make unlimited online payments using its virtual dollar card.
ALAT by Wema
ALAT is a digital-only brand operated by Wema Bank, a commercial bank active in all of Nigeria. It offers a complete banking package, with a bank account, physical debit card, savings, and loans, and it currently offers one of the prominent virtual card services in Nigeria.
Users on ALAT can create a new account in less than five minutes, enabling them to access loans and an automated savings platform.
It also offers an array of cards facilitating local and international payments. Its dollar credit card and virtual dollar cards help its users make payments for subscriptions, including YouTube while paying for services on international websites.
Eversend
Eversend facilitates cross-border payments across Nigeria, Uganda, Ghana, South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda, the United Kingdom, and Europe.
The app’s multi-currency wallets and currency exchange offers the users money exchange rates between USD, EUR, ZAR, GBP, NGN, UGX, GHS, KES, and RWF. Pay your bills using online banking or move money to a mobile money or bank account.
Eversend’s virtual dollar card allows users to make international payments for services across several global platforms.
Chipper Cash
Chipper Cash is a cross-border payments app, where over 4 million people send and receive money in and between Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, the United States of America, Ghana, Uganda, Rwanda, and the UK.
Chipper Cash provides a reloadable virtual visa card that can be used anywhere online for payment. Getting a virtual card first requires you to have a Chipper Cash account and the card works in the same way your local bank card works online.
The platform is growing in popularity due to its simplicity and efficiency in sending and receiving money globally.