For majority of Nigerians, PayPal has been a huge Name that brings about mixed feelings. On one hand, it os one of the most biggest and most trustworthy form of online payments platforms in the world.
On the other hand, for years now it felt like a door that has been half opened to the users in Nigeria.
If you try to receive money from a foreign client or family member using PayPal and couldn’t receive it, you are not alone. But it has changed recently with the introduction of local partnership paga.
This article explains everything clearly from how PayPal started to why Nigerians couldn’t receive their money for years and to how people managed with cards and to how the PayPal – paga partnership is going to be a gamechanger.
Table of Contents
A Short History of PayPal
PayPal was established in 1998 in the United states and it became popular in the early 2000s as digital shopping and online businesses started to grow. It’s major goal was to allow people to be able to send and receive money safely over the internet without showing sensitive banking details.
Over the years, PayPal expanded globally and it became the default payment option for platforms like Shopify, Upwork, fiverr and even international online stores. As of today, PayPal operates in over 200 countries and they support all kind of currencies.Whatsoever, not all the countries enjoys the same levels of access.
Why Nigerians Were Not Allowed To Receive Money on PayPal
For a very long time now, PayPal accounts that were created in Nigeria were send-only accounts, they couldn’t receive. This means that Nigerians could only pay or send funds but could not receive funds into their PayPal balance.
The major reasons behind this restrictions are listed below:
1. High Fraud Risk Perception
PayPal like most global financial organisations restricted Nigeria because of its high risk region due to the past cases of online chargebacks and fraudulent activities.
2. Regulatory and Compliance challenges.
Most international payments are expected to comply with the strict anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) rules. PayPal was very cautious about fully opening its services in Nigeria without a very strong local partnership.
3. Lack of Local settlement structure.
PayPal required a reliable and trusted local partners so as to handle withdrawals, compliance and even currency conversion in Nigeria.With these issues on ground, Nigerians were stuck in a limited system for years now.
How Nigerians Used PayPal Despite the Restrictions
Despite the limitations and restrictions, some Nigerians still found ways to use PayPal for their online payments.
1. Linking Cards to PayPal
Nigerians could link their debit card (especially visa card provide by GTbank and UBA) to PayPal. This allowed them to be able to pay for goods online, send money to other PayPal users and also subscribe to international platforms. However receiving of funds directly into your PayPal was not possible.
2. Using Foreign PayPal Accounts (Very Risky Option).
Majority of individuals opened PayPal accounts accounts using foreign details or their family abroads.
While this worked for some, it came with a huge risks such as account limitations, frozen funds and loss of access without appeal. PayPal system is an expert at detecting inconsistencies, so this method was never truly a safe method.
The Turning Point: PayPal’s Partnership with Paga.
Everything began to change when PayPal started exploring local fintechs in Africa. In Nigeria, one of the most important developments was it’s partnership and collaboration with paga.
Paga is a Nigerian fintech organisation which was founded in 2009, designed to make money transfers and payments very easy for Nigerians.
For the past years, paga has developed into a trustworthy platform with millions of users with them offering services like local and international money transfers, mobile wallet services, bill payments and enterprise payments solutions.
Because of paga understands Nigeria financial regulations and systems. It has become a strong bridge between PayPal and Nigerian users.
If you would prefer to watch a video instead of reading the article, then the video below is for you.
What the PayPal–Paga Partnership Means.
The PayPal and paga partnership will enable Nigerians to be able to receive money from PayPal and withdraw it through paga, providing solutions to an ongoing problem for years.With this partnership, Nigerians would be able to receive PayPal payments legally, freelancers and remote workers would benefit greatly from this, funds would be withdrawn locally through paga. This is very essential and big news for people earning in dollars from international clients and organisations.
How to Set Up Paga for PayPal in Nigeria.
Setting up an account is very simple and straightforward, but you must follow this steps carefully
STEP
1: Create a Paga account1. Download the paga app or visit their online website
2. Sign-up using your correct Nigerian details
3. Verify your phone number and email4. Complete your KYC by providing valid identification.
Ensure the name on your paga account matches your PayPal account so as to avoid issues.
STEP 2:
Create or Log Into Your PayPal Account
1. If you already have own a PayPal account, log in.
2. If you don’t, create one using your Nigerian detailsMake sure your PayPal account is an active one and not limited.
STEP 3:
Link Paga to PayPalInside your paga app dashboard
1. Navigate to the international payments or PayPal integration section
2. Choose link PayPal account
3. Login to your PayPal account when prompted
4. Allow it authorize paga to access your PayPal for withdrawals. This process will allow PayPal to recognise paga as your withdrawal channel.
STEP 4: Receiving Money On PayPal After linked.
1. You can be able to receive payments from family, clients and even platforms like freelancing sites.
2. The money will reflect in your PayPal balance.
3. From PayPal, you would be able to transfer funds and money into your wallet.
STEP 5: Withdrawing Into Your Bank Account after the funds has been received into your paga wallet.
1. You can transfer to your Nigerian bank account
2. Or can use it to pay for bills, airtime and other services.
Withdrawals are mostly processed swiftly compared to normal or traditional international transfers.
PayPal still remains as one of the most powerful and important digital payment platforms in the world, and Nigeria’s journey with them has been very complicated and long.
From the years of limitations to restrictions and to creative workaround and now with a legitimate local solution, the landscape has changed significantly.
With the help of paga, Nigerians would be able to participate more fully in the global digital economy very safe, Legal and with fewer restrictions and barriers.
If you want to earn online or already earns online, understanding and setting up PayPal with paga is no longer a solution or optional, it’s the best and smartest move now.
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