With more than three months left in the year, Nigeria is just a few million dollars away from achieving the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) ambitious target of attracting $1 billion in diaspora remittances every month.
The July 2026 figure of $947 million indicates that the country is edging closer to the historic milestone set by CBN governor Olayemi Cardoso, as part of efforts to strengthen foreign exchange liquidity, deepen financial inclusion, and bring more diaspora inflows into the formal financial system.
Cardoso had set the target in 2024, a goal many considered ambitious given the low level of formal remittance inflows at the time and the widespread preference among Nigerians abroad to use unofficial channels to send money home.
The doubts were not without reason. In the first three months of 2024, data from the CBN website showed that Nigeria recorded total direct foreign exchange remittances of only $282.61 million. The low figure, however, was not necessarily a reflection of Nigerians abroad’s willingness or ability to support families and businesses back home.
Rather, a significant portion of the funds was believed to have been moving through unofficial channels. Nigerians returning home sometimes acted as couriers, carrying foreign currency in their bags for individuals seeking to send funds to family members or finance investments and projects in the country.
It was against this backdrop that the apex bank began implementing a series of measures to make formal channels more attractive, accessible, and efficient.
The results have been significant. At the beginning of the reforms, monthly remittance inflows stood at about $250 million. By September, the figure had climbed to $600 million, following reforms and the resolution of challenges affecting International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs).
According to Cardoso, the CBN’s objective was to create an enabling environment that would allow Nigerians in the diaspora to send money through the banking system seamlessly. “The target is $1 billion per month by the end of the year.”
To achieve this, the CBN had embarked on the groundwork needed to enable the banking system to capture more of the funds sent to Nigeria by citizens abroad.
“We are not a retail bank; we are a central bank. So, all we have tried to do is create that enabling environment, take out the bottlenecks that will ensure that the diasporans can work through the system seamlessly,” Cardoso said.
One of the major areas of intervention has been engaging IMTOs, which play a critical role in moving money across borders. The CBN has worked with the operators through virtual meetings and physical engagements, including discussions held during the World Bank and International Monetary Fund meetings.
The engagements were designed to address concerns around pricing, commissions and exchange rates, issues that had affected the attractiveness and efficiency of formal remittance channels.
The apex bank also created a task force reporting directly to the governor to ensure progress towards its objective of doubling remittance flows within a year.
In another move aimed at increasing competition and reducing transaction costs, the CBN granted approval in principle to 14 new IMTOs. The policy direction was also reinforced by measures allowing eligible IMTOs to access naira liquidity at the CBN window, either directly or through authorised dealer banks.
According to the apex bank, the policy was designed to widen access to local-currency liquidity for the settlement of diaspora remittances and to improve the flow of funds through formal channels.
Under the new framework, IMTOs became more active participants in the country’s foreign exchange market, while transactions executed before 12 noon on a trading date were subjected to the same-day settlement guidelines.
Earlier, the CBN had mandated that IMTOs make naira payments to recipients in Nigeria and removed limits on foreign-exchange rates for such transactions, measures aimed at improving transparency and competitiveness.
The importance of the remittance market to the Nigerian economy cannot be overstated. Cardoso said remittances account for about six per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product, making the sector a critical component of the country’s foreign exchange inflows.
“We have identified, of course, this is a very critical element of the inflows coming into the country. It is estimated to represent about 6 percent of our GDP. And so, we felt that it was important from the central bank perspective to have a strategy to engage this sector,” he said.
The strategy has also involved stronger engagement with Nigerians in the diaspora. During President Bola Tinubu’s official visit to the United Kingdom, the CBN engaged extensively with the Nigerian diaspora, recognising London as a major concentration point for Nigerians abroad.
The CBN had also undertaken engagements in the United States, while commercial banks with a presence in major diaspora markets were being encouraged to develop products specifically targeted at Nigerians abroad. “We are encouraging the banks to come up with products. Some of these banks have presence in the UK, in the US. They know who the diasporas are,” he said.
The apex bank’s approach has increasingly shifted from simply encouraging remittances to building financial infrastructure that can connect Nigerians abroad directly to the domestic financial system. A major step in this direction is the Non-Resident BVN (NRBVN), a digital initiative developed in partnership with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS).
The initiative allows Nigerians abroad to obtain a Bank Verification Number remotely via digital verification, eliminating the need for physical verification and expanding access to banking and investment services.
Cardoso described the NRBVN as a “bridge between Nigeria and its global citizens.”
Noting that Nigerians in diaspora had faced steep hurdles such as verification, limited access, and high transaction costs, Cardoso said: “With the NRBVN, we will eliminate those barriers and give every Nigerian abroad the chance to participate meaningfully in our economy.”
The NRBVN works alongside the Non-Resident Ordinary Account and the Non-Resident Nigerian Investment Account.
Together, the platforms are designed to provide channels through which diaspora funds can move beyond consumption and into productive investments, including capital markets, mortgages, insurance, and pensions.
The CBN has also encouraged banks to develop tailored financial products for Nigerians abroad. “We must move beyond viewing remittances solely as consumption support. These flows can be transformative if properly harnessed,” Cardoso said.
The progress recorded so far suggests that the reforms are beginning to change the remittance landscape. In 2024, Nigeria recorded a 43 per cent increase in remittances through formal channels, rising from $3.3 billion to $4.73 billion.
Cardoso attributed the improvement to reforms including the adoption of the willing buyer, willing seller foreign exchange regime, the licensing of additional IMTOs and greater currency convergence. The increase in monthly inflows from $250 million to $600 million, and the subsequent July 2026 figure of $947 million, further demonstrated the scale of the progress.
Nigeria and Kenya remain among the largest recipients of diaspora remittances in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2023, Nigeria accounted for 38 per cent of the region’s $58 billion remittance flows, recording a two per cent growth, while Ghana and Kenya recorded estimated gains of 5.6 per cent and 3.8 per cent, respectively.
For the CBN, however, the ultimate objective goes beyond hitting a monthly dollar figure. The reforms are intended to rebuild trust in formal channels, reduce the cost of sending money home and ensure that more of the funds sent by Nigerians abroad enter the country’s formal financial system.
The journey from $250 million monthly inflows to $947 million in July 2026 represents a sharp increase in formal remittance flows and suggests that the CBN’s strategy of combining regulatory reforms, greater IMTO participation, improved foreign exchange access, digital identification and diaspora engagement is beginning to yield results.
With the $1 billion monthly threshold now within reach, the next challenge will be to sustain the momentum, deepen the formalisation of remittance flows and ensure that the growing pool of diaspora funds is channelled not only into household consumption but also into productive investment capable of supporting Nigeria’s long-term economic growth.
