Nigerians have embraced cryptocurrency enthusiastically, pushing the country to rank 2nd twice and 6th globally in the last three years in Chainalysis’ Geography of Cryptocurrency report global adoption index. The country records billions in annual transaction volumes; yet, converting crypto holdings into everyday naira spending remains a major pain point.
Traditional peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms often involve lengthy waits for bank transfers, counterparty risks, scams, price slippage, and high fees. Users frequently encounter unreliable escrow, fluctuating rates, and the hassle of finding trustworthy buyers amid regulatory scrutiny.
Local startups have stepped in to fix this. They built platforms that connect crypto wallets straight to Nigerian banks and offer faster conversions, bill payments, virtual cards, and tools for businesses. The result is simpler ways to pay rent, buy airtime, shop, or send money without the usual P2P headaches.
Here are eight such crypto startups:
1. Bitnob (2017/2018)
Bernard Parah, together with co-founder Edward Amewu, began working on Bitnob’s ideas back in 2017. The company took proper shape shortly after. It serves both regular users and businesses, with a strong push on Bitcoin and stablecoins. The team have raised funding rounds, including backing linked to Tether.
Bitnob lets users save automatically in Bitcoin, access loans against their holdings, handle remittances, and tap into the Lightning Network for quick, cheap transfers. You can convert to Naira or move money across African countries, and virtual cards help turn crypto straight into spending power for daily needs.
2. Quidax (2018)
Founded by Buchi Okoro, Uzo Awili, and Morris Ebieroma in 2018, Quidax stands out as one of the first platforms to earn a provisional Digital Assets Exchange licence from Nigeria’s SEC. The setup is B2B heavy but works well for regular retail users, too.
You can trade popular coins and stablecoins, then send funds directly to local bank accounts. Businesses use the API to add crypto options for their customers. Quidax built its name on security and reliable off-ramps that cut down on P2P risks for everyday cash-outs.
3. Roqqu (2018/2019)
Uchenna Nnodum founded Roqqu in 2018, with public operations starting around 2019. Eseoghene Onomor serves as CEO. The company grew largely on its own steam and later acquired Flitaa to push into more African markets.
The mobile app supports trading a wide range of coins, fast conversion to Naira, and payment features. Users convert crypto to cash for daily expenses, international transfers, or other needs without long delays.
4. Busha (2018/2019)
Michael Adeyeri and Moyo Sodipo started Busha in 2018/2019. They raised $4.2 million in seed funding and got one of the early SEC licences in Nigeria. The platform caters to both B2C and B2B users. Busha provides crypto buying and selling, direct bank withdrawals, bill payments, and merchant tools. It addresses clean, regulated conversions that fall within normal spending patterns for individuals and small businesses.
5. Breet (2019/2021)
Inbretic Technologies launched Breet around 2019–2021. The platform works for individual users through its app and supports businesses with API services.
Breet is specialising in making crypto usable money through instant swaps to cash, bill payments, invoicing and accepting stablecoins. The Breet 3.0 update brought better tools for rent, food, data and other regular expenses, making crypto feel more like real spending money.
6. Spenda (2024/2025)
Spenda emerged as a B2C crypto spend app. The team built it to solve real-time usability for Africans. Users can instantly convert crypto to Naira for bank transfers, airtime top-ups, electricity bills, TV subscriptions and card payments. The whole design is about keeping it simple so people can pay straight from their wallets, without any middlemen or complicated steps.
7 Tapnob (2025)
Tapnob was launched in July 2025 by Fishon Amos and Mubarak Muhammad Aminu. The app is big on B2C and Bitcoin. It’s a successor to an earlier project, promoting one-tap conversions and spending. Users easily convert Bitcoin or USDT into Naira for shopping, bills or transfers.
8. Loaf / Bread Africa (2025)
Iam Etefia and Maven Harry founded Bread Africa in 2025. Months ago, SMC DAO acquired it in a six-figure deal, after which the team moved its focus to Loaf, a bigger Web3 finance platform. Etefia now advises on bread.
Bread Africa offered fast, low-friction crypto-to-fiat swaps without heavy KYC. Loaf expands this into bill payments, airtime, cross-border sends, and other daily features, trying to make crypto work like a regular bank account for everyday use.
Together, these startups have quietly improved how Nigerians handle crypto in real life. By linking wallets to local rails, adding practical tools, and keeping compliance in mind, they help move digital assets from trading screens into daily spending. Their push toward easier off-ramping shows crypto is becoming more useful for day-to-day transactions across Nigeria.
