Grey has secured regulatory approval from the Central Bank of Nigeria to operate as an International Money Transfer Operator. The San Francisco-based fintech can now facilitate inbound international money transfers directly into Nigeria. It will cover person-to-person, business-to-person, and business-to-business transactions.
Approval terms
The central bank's IMTO rules require naira-only payouts for inbound remittances. Operators are also barred from conducting outbound transfers or holding domestic deposits. The application fee for foreign entities is US$1 million.
Company scale
Grey has spent six years building cross-border payments for African freelancers and remote workers. It is backed by Y Combinator and is based in San Francisco. The company has surpassed three million users and processed almost US$5 billion in payments.
Salary product and payouts
Grey recently launched Paycheck, a salary account for professionals earning dollars, pounds, and euros. It offers a 3% introductory savings yield and higher transaction limits. Operating the regulated inbound rail helps Grey reduce payout friction when users convert earnings into naira.
Grey also holds money services registrations in the United States and Canada. In the United States, it is registered with FinCEN. In Canada, it is registered with FINTRAC and as a payment service provider under the Retail Payment Activities Act.
Read more: technext24.com