OPay Expands Financial Access To Nigeria’s Last-Mile Communities

LAGOS — Digital financial services platform OPay is expanding its reach into Nigeria’s last-mile communities, bringing mobile payments, savings products, and digital credit to Nigerians who have historically lacked access to formal banking. Vanguard profiled the company’s expansion strategy on Monday.

OPay operates through a network of agents spread across urban neighbourhoods, peri-urban markets, and increasingly in rural communities. The agent banking model allows people to deposit, withdraw, transfer money, and access basic financial products through local shops and kiosks without needing to visit a traditional bank branch.

The company said it processed over N5 trillion in transactions in 2025 and is on track to exceed that figure in 2026. Its user base has grown significantly as smartphone penetration increases and Nigerians become more comfortable with digital financial transactions following the cashless policy push.

The Inclusion Gap

Nigeria’s CBN estimated that approximately 36 percent of Nigerian adults remain outside the formal financial system. These unbanked citizens rely on cash for all transactions and have no access to credit, insurance, or savings products. Digital platforms like OPay represent the most practical route to closing this gap at scale.

However, OPay and similar platforms face challenges including unreliable internet connectivity in rural areas, low smartphone penetration among the poorest communities, and customer trust issues related to transaction failures and poor dispute resolution. The company said it is investing in offline transaction capabilities and improved customer service infrastructure.

Regulators at the CBN have been supportive of OPay’s expansion while also maintaining oversight through the payment service bank licensing framework. The bank said digital payment platforms must maintain strong Know Your Customer standards and anti-money laundering systems as they scale into underserved communities.