Mobile money users in Nigeria increased their use of savings features by over 20 percent between 2023 and 2024, according to new research conducted by Africa Finance Corporation’s (AFC), indicating a notable increase in digital savings activity.
The Africa Finance Corporation’s State of Africa’s Infrastructure Report 2025 emphasised the expanded contribution of mobile financial services to formalising the continent’s sizable informal economy and mobilising local funds for development.
Rapid adoption of digital savings in Nigeria
Users of digital mobile savings can deposit funds into mobile wallets, where they can be stored as a balance or transferred to specific savings plans.
Nigeria is seeing an increase in the use of this strategy, particularly as more financial technology platforms incorporate automated savings tools.
Smartphone apps like PiggyVest, Cowrywise, Kuda, ALAT by Wema, and Nearpays provide a variety of features that enable users to open savings accounts, create customised savings objectives, lock money to prevent early withdrawals, and earn competitive interest rates.
According to the AFC report, Nigeria is one of several African nations that are rapidly embracing mobile money platforms for savings. Nowadays, services include more complex financial products like credit, insurance, and wealth management in addition to payments.
Mobile money’s growth, according to the report, makes it a vital tool for capital formation and financial inclusion throughout the continent.
“Between 2023 and 2024, the number of mobile money users saving via these platforms grew by over 20 percentage points in countries such as Ethiopia and Nigeria,” it noted.
Rise in digital savings among underserved groups
Nigeria’s attempts to direct household savings into the official financial system are thought to have reached a turning point with the rise in digital savings.
With little involvement in the banking industry, most Nigerians have historically saved through unofficial channels like commodities, livestock, or rotating savings and credit associations.
However, the quick adoption of mobile savings platforms is assisting in closing that gap by increasing the accessibility of financial services for low-income households, traders, and informal workers who were previously shut out of formal financial channels.
Nigeria’s performance was highlighted in the AFC report as an illustration of how digital public infrastructure, such as e-identification systems and mobile payments, can be used to increase household resilience, expand financial inclusion, and open up new sources of investable domestic capital.
“Mobile money usage is not just transforming payments; it is increasingly being used to save, invest, and access credit. In Nigeria, the growing role of mobile platforms in savings reflects both improved trust in digital systems and the expansion of fintech solutions targeting the mass market,” the report stated.
Africa taking the lead in mobile financial services
Africa is now home to almost half of all mobile money accounts worldwide, making it a leader in mobile financial services.
With authorised mobile money providers like Paga, Opay, and MTN MoMo playing a key role in reaching underbanked populations, fintech innovation has exploded in Nigeria in particular over the last five years.
The AFC warned that additional policy changes are required to maximise the developmental impact of mobile money, notwithstanding these advancements.
It demanded better consumer protection, more digital infrastructure, and closer ties between national financial systems and fintech platforms.
“Financial inclusion through mobile money must be matched by policies that allow savings to be channelled into productive investment. Otherwise, the long-term capital needed to fund infrastructure, housing, and industrial development will remain out of reach,” the report warned.
The AFC also suggested that governments fund complementary reforms to strengthen digital identification systems, formalise informal employment, and encourage the use of formal savings products.