LemFi launches multi-currency (USD and GBP) accounts available to users in Nigeria

LemFi, a leading Africa-focused cross-border fintech startup, has today announced Global Accounts for freelancers and digital entrepreneurs on the continent.

Through the app, Africans, starting with Nigerians, can create USD and GBP accounts to receive funds, hold the funds, convert or transact locally or internationally.

LemFi Co-founder and CEO, Ridwan Olalere, explains: “With Global Accounts, we’re giving them what they’ve always deserved: direct access to the global financial system, no more asking friends abroad for help, no more feeling left out of global moments. Global Accounts gives you a financial identity that is as global as your ambitions.”

In 2020, LemFi first launched in Canada to provide low-cost remittance to African countries. Today, it serves over 2 million customers and can send from at least 27 countries in Europe, the UK, and the US.

The company has since expanded beyond that to provide credit and savings capabilities to immigrants. In May 2025, it acquired Pillar, a UK-based credit fintech. Subsequently, it launched a credit card in the country and followed that up with a Send Now, Pay Later (SNPL) offering.

Last month, it announced a savings product that could pay interest of up to 3.92%, tracking the Bank of England’s base rate. As an EMI, LemFi cannot pay interest on customer funds in its possession. So, it has leveraged its long-standing relationship with ClearBank, a UK bank, to hold the funds in an instant access savings account. These funds with ClearBank are subject to the deposit protection under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), which has now been increased to £120,000 per depositor.

Before now, Nigerians in Nigeria could not download the LemFi app. So, this move opens up a new market for the fledgling fintech, which raised a $53 million Series B. Simultaneously, this move intensifies competition to bank Africa’s digital entrepreneurs in a space dominated by Raenest, Grey and Cleva, with more players clamouring to enter the space.