Nigeria received $1.57 billion in remittances through International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) between April and June 2026, the highest quarterly inflow recorded since 2019, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Q2 2026 Statistical Bulletin.
The figure represents a 33% increase from the $1.18 billion received in the same period last year and surpasses the previous quarterly peak of $1.47 billion recorded in Q3 2024.
May and June drove the surge
Strong inflows in May and June offset a year-on-year decline in April. June alone recorded $580.16 million, the highest monthly total in the quarter, up from $292.25 million in June 2025.
| Month | Q2 2026 inflow | Q2 2025 inflow | Change |
| April | $513.81m | $597.44m | Down |
| May | $472.13m | $288.17m | Up |
| June | $580.16m | $292.25m | Up |
| Total | $1.57bn | $1.18bn | +33% |
The latest quarterly total also exceeded the previous second-quarter high of about $1.26 billion recorded in 2024.
Strong first half of 2026
The Q2 performance followed $1.29 billion in IMTO inflows in the first quarter of 2026, a 45% increase from $888.47 million in Q1 2025. Together, the figures point to a marked recovery after the first half of 2025, when receipts fell by 11.78% year on year.
Historically, second-quarter IMTO inflows rose from about $551.86 million in 2019 to $954.61 million in 2022, before reaching $1.26 billion in 2024 and dipping to $1.18 billion in 2025.
Regulatory backdrop
The record inflows came as the CBN tightened oversight of the remittance market. In March 2026, the bank directed all IMTOs operating in Nigeria to maintain naira settlement accounts with authorised dealer banks, a measure intended to improve transparency in diaspora remittances and the foreign-exchange market.
The CBN had earlier removed the cap on exchange rates quoted by IMTOs in January 2024, replacing the previous requirement that operators quote within 2.5% of the prior day’s closing rate on the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market.
Why it matters
Remittances are a major source of foreign-exchange inflows for Nigeria, supporting household consumption and helping to ease pressure on the naira. The latest data suggest that formal diaspora transfers strengthened significantly in the first half of 2026, with June’s performance providing the clearest sign of momentum.
Nairametrics
