Raiz Finance Brings Direct Cross-Border Payments to Lagos Traders in Five-Day Market Activation

Ten brand agents engaged business owners directly, walking many through their first transaction on the Raiz Finance app, which lets users fund an account in naira and pay suppliers in China instantly through Alipay or WeChat Pay. The activation went beyond conversations and app downloads, recording real transactions as several traders funded accounts and completed supplier payments on the spot.

The activation also marked the official unveiling of Raiz Finance's direct payment rail to China. In the 45 days leading up to the market push, the platform processed more than 600,000 RMB in supplier payments through Alipay and WeChat Pay, a volume that shows the infrastructure traders saw demonstrated live in the markets was already carrying real transactions before the campaign began.

For many Nigerian importers, paying suppliers overseas has long meant routing funds through agents, a process marked by delays, added costs and, for some, direct experience with fraud. The activation offered traders a clear alternative: the ability to pay suppliers straight from their phones at fair exchange rates, without passing funds through a third party they cannot fully verify.

Mr Okoye Humphrey, Managing Director of Success Injectors Nigeria Limited, a company dealing in injector spare parts and components, has transacted with Raiz Finance on several occasions. He shared his experience with the platform:

"I have related with Raiz Finance on several occasions, so far so good. I have not had any bad experience with Raiz Finance, as it used to be with other vendors, because of money that is not genuine. I had issues with my suppliers because of this, they said it was street money. But since I started dealing with Raiz Finance, I have made transactions with them and I have not had such complaints. So far so good," he said.

Mr Humphrey had previously faced supplier disputes over funds that could not be verified. His ability to pay directly through Raiz Finance, without such complaints arising, reflects the kind of trust the activation set out to build.

Trust was a recurring theme across the five days. Traders who have been let down by informal payment channels before asked pointed questions, foremost among them whether Raiz Finance is properly licensed and regulated. Brand agents addressed this at every stop, confirming the company's registration with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in the United States, a detail that matters to importers whose payments touch markets where US-regulated payment rails and partners are involved.

Several traders who stopped out of curiosity stayed to ask about licensing, data security and how their money is protected once it leaves their Raiz Finance account, a sign that the market is ready to move beyond informal payment methods.

Commenting on the activation, Raiz Finance CEO Segun Oyedele said the response in the markets validated why the company built trade infrastructure in the first place.

"The activation validated our thesis that provided the right trade infrastructure built on trust, efficiency, speed and transparency is made available, African businesses can scale significantly. What interested me most about these five days was how fast traders moved," said Segun Oyedele, CEO of Raiz Finance. "Some completed onboarding within minutes of meeting a brand agent. That kind of response tells me we are solving a real problem, not just introducing a new app. Balogun, Progressive, Tyre Village and ASPAMDA, all within Trade Fair Complex, and Alaba, five markets in five days, and this is only the start for us in Africa's trading communities. For us, this brought us closer to the traders more than ever before and we are looking at expanding our physical reach across all five markets in this next quarter."

Raiz Finance says the activation marks the start of a broader push into Nigeria's trading communities, with plans to build on the relationships formed across the five markets and reach more trading hubs in the months ahead. The choice of Balogun Market, Progressive, Tyre Village and ASPAMDA, all within Trade Fair Complex, and Alaba International was deliberate. Each market carries its own community of traders who move goods, and money, across borders every day, and reaching all five in one push put the Raiz Finance brand in front of the trading community in a single, sustained wave rather than scattered visits.

Raiz Finance is a trade payment platform built for African businesses that transact across borders. Its Raiz Business and Raiz Checkout products let users fund accounts in naira and pay international suppliers directly through built-in payment rails, including Alipay and WeChat Pay, removing the need for informal agents and giving traders more control, transparency and security over cross-border payments.

Raiz Finance is registered with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in the United States, and has two offices in Lagos, located at Zone DR1, Nnewi Building, ASPAMDA Trade Fair Complex, Lagos, Nigeria, and 13, Thornborn, Yaba, Lagos, Nigeria.