If you have been wondering how you can buy the United States dollar in Nigeria at a cheap rate, this post will help you tremendously.
As you may be aware, Nigeria has multiple foreign exchange window, this means that there are different rates for buying foreign currencies in the country.
We have the official rate and the parallel rate (also known as the dollar to naira today black market). The official rate is the cheaper conversion rate while the parallel rate is the higher conversion rate.
It is always very difficult to buy dollars at the official rate in Nigeria given that the official rate was made for certain class of business people and importers. This is why almost anybody that wants to buy dollars in Nigeria will likely buy at the parallel market’s rate.
Why does Nigeria has two exchange rates?
The multiple exchange rate window was adopted by Nigeria with the aim of avoiding a straight devaluation of the naira. This was to be achieved by keeping a weaker exchange rate for non-governmental financial transactions and keeping a stronger exchange rate for official transactions.
In simple terms, the weaker exchange rate is for the parallel market rate which is also known as the black market, while the stronger exchange rate is the official rate.
How to buy US dollars in Nigeria at a cheap rate
There are just a few ways you can buy U.S. dollars in Nigeria at a cheap rate, most of these ways depend on the purpose you are buying the dollars for. If you are buying the dollars for online payments or to send to people abroad, you can buy through Paypal, Payoneer, etc. But if you are buying for other purposes, below are some of the ways you can buy cheap dollars in Nigeria.
One thing that must be established here is that these ways stated below are not with 100% guarantee, but with luck on your side, you can get dollars at a cheap rate through these ways.
1. Online
Buying dollars online is one of the best ways you can buy dollars at a cheap rate.
- Paypal: If you need dollars for online transactions or to send abroad, you can easily buy it online and if you are lucky, a friend of yours can sell it at a cheap rate for you. Paypal is one of the most popular platforms that people use in receiving online payments for services rendered or goods sold. Many Nigerians are doing online businesses and receiving their payments through paypal. Most of the times, they can sell their dollars to you even below the official rate. All you need to do is to first of all open a paypal account which will be used to receive the money. Like I said earlier, it depends on the purpose you are buying the dollars for, the paypal method is very suitable for people who want to buy dollars for online payments or to send to people outside the country
- Payoneer: This is another platform you can easily buy dollars from at a cheap rate. Just like Paypal, several Nigerians are getting paid for their online services through Payoneer. Lots of Nigerian freelancers get their payments through Payoneer. You need to open a Payoneer account to be able to receive the dollars. Unlike Paypal, you can withdraw your dollars from any ATM that disburses dollars in Nigeria through the use of your Payoneer card. However, you should know that you will wait for many weeks for your Payoneer Credit Card to arrive after you may have had more than $50 dollars in the account. Buying dollars from freelancers through Payoneer is one of the cheapest ways to buy dollars in Nigeria.
2. Commercial Banks
It is always safe and cheaper to buy dollars from commercial banks, this is because their rates may not really be as high as the rate at the parallel market. Many banks may give you lower rates depending on how much dollars you are buying, this method is more suitable for people who wish to buy dollars in large quantity.
Simply walk into any of the commercial banks in Nigeria like Zenith Bank, Guarantee Trust Bank, Access Bank, First Bank, Fidelity Bank, Union Bank, and United Bank of Africa. Go straight to their customer services and request that you want to buy dollars.
Some banks may not have enough dollars if you want to buy in large quantity, you may need to buy little quantities from other banks to add up.
3. Open A Dollar Account and Buy Directly From Another Customer or Friend
This is one of the most effective ways of buying United States dollar in Nigeria at a cheap rate. Once you open dollar account in Nigeria which is also known as a domiciliary account, may be lucky to find a friend or another customer who has a dollar account in your bank and has dollars to sell. Through negotiations, you can buy dollars at a cheap rate from the person.
Please understand that this post is to help you buy dollars in Nigeria at a cheap rate, there are several ways you can buy dollars in Nigeria but they will not be as cheap as you can get through the ways listed above.