As we all know that Apple Pay is not currently supported in Nigeria. So, Nigerians banks and accounts cannot directly use or receive money from Apple Pay. In addition to that, you cannot add Nigerian bank cards directly to the Apple Pay Wallet for use with Apple Pay.
Apple’s official list of participating banks for Apple Pay in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East does not include any Nigerian banks. Supported African countries for Apple Pay are limited to Egypt, Morocco, and South Africa.
The bank the digital payment provides direct supports for are Banque Misr and National Bank of Egypt in Egypt, and Nedbank, Absa, and others in South Africa.
However, Nigerians are not completely eliminated from the ecosystem. The fun fact is that Apple Pay is integrated directly into payment gateway providers like Paystack, allowing Nigerian businesses and entrepreneurs to accept payment sent directly from Apple Pay Wallet.
Paystack is a payment gateway that accept Apple Pay payments (Pay with Apple Pay) from international customers in over 60 countries where Apple Pay is active. Even with that, Nigerian bank accounts can be linked to Apple Pay for personal use, but it allows merchants to process Apple Pay transactions from users with foreign cards.
Related: How to Setup and Use Apple Pay in Nigeria.
Linking Virtual Card with Apple Pay
Another method that works in Nigeria is by linking a virtual dollar card to Apple Pay Wallet. Platforms like Geegpay, Grey.co, Chipper Cash, and Cardtonic offer USD virtual cards to Nigerians. If you're really concerned about using Apple Pay in Nigeria, you can request a virtual card from any of the fintech platforms.
These USD virtual cards work for Apple Pay because they're issued by a U.S. bank through non-Nigerian financial companies. So, you can easily link it to your Apple Pay in Nigeria, and the cards can also be used to make payments for Apple services like iCloud or Apple Music. However, this is not a direct solution involving Nigerian banks.
For Apple ID purchases (e.g., App Store, iCloud, Apple Music), most banks' debit cards issued in Nigeria can be used, provided the billing address matches the Apple ID address. The Nigerian authorities have lifted ban on Nigerian debit cards for international transactions.
So, banks like UBA, Zenith Bank, First Bank, Ecobank, Wema Bank, Fidelity Bank, FCMB and other issuing Visa and MasterCard support Apple Pay payment. In addition to that, Apple also supports adding funds to an Apple Account balance for payments using these banks debit cards.
Conclusion
No Nigerian banks currently support Apple Pay for adding cards to the Wallet app. You can only use Nigeria banks debit cards that's Visa or MasterCard to make payments for Apple services like Apple ID, iCloud, and Apple Music.
If you’re in Nigeria and want to use Apple Pay, you'll need to explore virtual dollar cards issued by a U.S. bank through Nigerian fintech companies. These cards are international cards that support Apple Pay, but these are not tied to Nigerian bank accounts.
For Apple services, try to add your Nigerian-issued bank's debit (ATM) card to your Apple ID or contact your bank to confirm their compatibility and relationship with Apple services. In conclusion, it's wise to always confirm with your bank for the latest information with Apple Pay because Apple hasn't stopped expanding its services to more African banks.
