| Route | Fees on $500 | Typical timing | What the receiver actually gets |
|---|---|---|---|
| USDT → Monica.cash | 0% platform fee — only the network fee (~$1 on TRC-20) | Seconds to a few minutes on-chain, then under 60 seconds to the bank | ≈ ₦810,000 at the live market rate, full amount, any Nigerian bank |
| Western Union | 5%–8% + exchange-rate markup | Minutes to days | Agent or bank payout at a marked-down rate |
| MoneyGram | 4%–7% + rate markup | Minutes to days | Cash pickup limits apply ($200 per IMTO payout rules) |
| Bank wire (SWIFT) | $25–$50 flat + correspondent fees | 2–5 business days | Lands in a domiciliary account at the official rate |
| Fintech remitters (Remitly, WorldRemit, etc.) | 1%–4% + rate spread | Minutes to 2 days | Rate is set by the app, usually below the open market |
The sender buys $500 of USDT on their local exchange (Coinbase, Kraken, Binance — whichever operates where they live), withdraws it to the receiver's Monica address on TRC-20, and the receiver converts at the live rate and withdraws to any Nigerian bank. First time on the route? Send $10 as a test before the $500.
Your family member (or you, on the Nigeria side) downloads Monica from Google Play or the App Store and completes KYC — BVN or NIN plus a selfie, about 4 minutes.
Inside the app, choose USDT and pick a network — TRC-20 is the popular choice for remittance because the network fee is about $1 and confirmation takes seconds to a couple of minutes.
From any exchange or wallet abroad — Coinbase, Kraken, Binance, Bybit, or a self-custody wallet — send USDT to the Monica address. The blockchain doesn't care about borders, weekends, or banking hours.
Once the deposit confirms on-chain, naira credits the Monica balance at the live rate. Bank withdrawal completes in under 60 seconds — Opay, Kuda, GTBank, Zenith, all Nigerian banks.
At a reference rate of ₦1,620 per dollar, $500 is about ₦810,000. The live USDT/NGN rate in the Monica app updates continuously — always check it at conversion time.
As USDT: about $1 in network fees regardless of amount, 0% on the Nigeria side. A traditional remitter at the 8.8% regional average consumes about $40 of a $500 transfer once the rate markup is counted.
The amount doesn't change the clock: TRC-20 confirmation in seconds to a couple of minutes, then under 60 seconds from conversion to bank alert. Door to door: usually under 10 minutes.
No practical ones at this size — verified Monica accounts handle ₦50,000,000 per 24 hours by default (roughly $30,000+), with higher limits on request.
The live USDT/NGN market rate, displayed before the receiver confirms. No remitter markup — on this amount the rate difference versus app payouts is often worth more than every fee combined.
Live market rate, every Nigerian bank, minutes door to door. Set up once, use forever.
Download Monica