The amount of money people send into Nigeria is estimated to go up to $36.8 billion annually by 2023. Whether for school fees, black tax, or just December flex, people outside Nigeria send a lot of money in. Cryptocurrencies make this normally difficult process a lot easier and that’s why we developed the Quidax API.
Financial technology companies in Nigeria are building really cool systems in which crypto does all the background work. One of such companies is RapidPay.
In the Beginning…
RapidPay was created by Paul Akubo, a tech entrepreneur, to help anyone send money from the US to Nigeria. According to Akubo, the idea came from the frustration he faced while trying to receive money from his parents in the United States. He eventually bought Bitcoin after trying several methods that were long and expensive.
Bitcoin was created in 2008 as a way to send money from one place to another securely, easily, and affordably. So it’s not surprising that Paul Akubo eventually chose it. But it’s more impressive that he decided to bring this solution to so many other people.
Paul Akubo was suddenly a man on a mission. He dropped everything else and dedicated his time to creating a solution that anyone, not just the tech-savvy could use. On a hot Lagos afternoon in May 2020, RapidPay was born.
The aim was simple: help people send and receive money around the world, starting from US to Nigeria transfers. At first, this was easy enough to do manually. But 2 months later, RapidPay needed an automated system to handle their new requests.
Enter the Quidax API…
A payment system like the one Paul Akubo set out to build would need to some key features. These include a way to instantly buy, sell, and withdraw cryptocurrency to the Nigerian bank account of the recipient. The API would handle all the underlying processes and make everything work faster.
How the RapidPay System works
Let’s say Tunde is based in Houston, Texas and wants to send money to his sister, Tola, in Nigeria. He also wants her to receive it directly in her Nigerian bank account. So he goes to the RapidPay site and buys Bitcoin with the dollars he wants to send. If the money is in the form of Bitcoin already, he can move on to the next step.
He enters the name of Tola’s bank and her account number before depositing the Bitcoin on the site. While processing the request, RapidPay creates a Bitcoin wallet for Tola’s account using the wallet generator the Quidax API provides. Next, the system automatically sells the Bitcoin for Naira and instantly withdraws the money, crediting Tola’s bank account.
Tunde has now sent money to Tola right from the comfort of his home.
With growing popularity and a system that works, RapidPay processed ₦40 million in its first month of operation. When asked what comes next, Akubo hinted at some new products coming to the platform. We’re excited to see how rapidly the platform can find new ways to use the API.
