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The short answer
A Nigerian USD domiciliary account holds dollars only, so pounds sent to it by SWIFT cannot be credited as pounds: the receiving bank either converts them into dollars at its own GBP/USD rate, with its margin and charges, or returns the payment, losing fees both ways. Nigerian banks typically run separate GBP, USD and EUR dom accounts (FirstBank lists all three), so send pounds to a GBP dom or send dollars to the USD one.
It happens more often than people admit: you have your brother's dom account number, you send £2,000 from your UK bank in sterling, and the account turns out to be a dollar account. Or you did it deliberately, assuming the bank would sort it out. Here is what actually happens to the money and how to stop it happening again.
A dom account holds one currency
A domiciliary account in Nigeria is a foreign-currency account opened in one currency. FirstBank's FAQs, for example, list domiciliary accounts in pounds sterling, US dollars and euros, each with its own minimum balance (checked October 2026). A USD dom account cannot hold sterling. When a sterling SWIFT payment arrives for it, the bank has two choices.
What the Nigerian bank can do
| Outcome | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| Convert GBP to USD and credit the account | The recipient gets dollars at the bank's own GBP/USD rate, after its margin and any inward charge |
| Return the payment | The pounds travel back, often less correspondent charges both ways, and you may be hit by a rate change if your UK bank converts anything on the return |
| Hold it and ask the account holder | Some banks contact the customer to confirm or to open a GBP account; the money waits meanwhile |
Which one happens is the receiving bank's policy, and Nigerian banks do not publish it in detail. FirstBank's FAQs, for example, do not cover cross-currency inward payments; they point customers to the bank's contact centre for conversion questions. Ask the recipient's bank before you send. Account providers abroad behave in both ways: Wise, for instance, says its USD account details accept only US dollars and that other currencies are returned, while UK banks such as Lloyds convert incoming foreign currency into pounds on the day it is paid in, at their standard rate with a margin.
Why it costs more than sending dollars
If the Nigerian bank converts, you pay for a currency exchange you did not choose, at a rate you did not see. The bank's GBP/USD rate will include its margin, and an inward SWIFT payment can carry charges from intermediary banks on the way. If instead your UK bank had sent US dollars, it would have converted pounds to dollars at its own published rate, which you could see and compare before you approved. Barclays, for example, says it converts at its reference rate plus a charge of no more than 2.75% for personal customers. Either way someone converts; the difference is whether you see the price first.
Worked example (illustrative only)
Example: You send £2,000 in sterling to a USD dom account. The Nigerian bank converts at a GBP/USD rate that, after its margin, is 1.5% below the market rate, and takes an inward charge equivalent to $20. If the market rate were $1.30 per pound, the market value would be $2,600; at the bank's rate (about $1.2805) the conversion gives $2,561, less $20, so $2,541 is credited, $59 less than the market value. Had the payment been returned instead, you would lose your outgoing fee and any charges on the way back, and receive nothing in Nigeria. The rates and charges are examples only; check the actual figures with both banks.
Money transfer apps will not do this
Remittance apps generally pay Nigerian recipients in naira into a naira account, wallet or as cash, not into a dom account. Sendwave's Nigeria page says USD remittances are no longer permitted on its service, for example. If you want the money to arrive in foreign currency, it normally has to go bank to bank by SWIFT. Our guides to sending pounds to a GBP dom account and sending dollars from the UK walk through the correct instructions for each.
If it has already happened
- Ask your UK bank for the payment's SWIFT confirmation (the MT103 or tracking reference) so the Nigerian bank can find it.
- Ask the recipient to contact their bank, quoting the amount, date and reference, and ask whether it will convert or return.
- If it converts, ask for the rate used and any charges in writing.
- If it returns, ask your UK bank when to expect the money back and in what currency.
What to check before sending next time
- The currency of the receiving account, from the recipient's statement or bank app, not memory.
- The bank's own SWIFT instructions for that currency; banks publish different correspondent details for USD, GBP and EUR.
- Whether the recipient also has a GBP dom account, which avoids conversion.
- If the recipient plans to send the money on, ask the bank about current limits: TheCable's June 2026 report on the CBN's FX Manual cites a $10,000 daily figure for domiciliary telegraphic transfers, and reports differ on exactly what it covers.
For the bigger picture, see the Nigeria library's guide to domiciliary versus multicurrency accounts.
Where Pryme fits
One Pryme account holds NGN, USD, GBP and EUR side by side, with local account details for each. Money stays in the currency it arrived in, and Swap converts only when you choose, with the rate shown first and the fee on its own line before you approve.
Questions people ask
Can I send pounds to a dollar domiciliary account in Nigeria?
The payment cannot be credited as pounds. The bank either converts it to dollars at its own rate or returns it.
What rate will my Nigerian bank use to convert GBP to USD?
Its own rate, including its margin. Banks do not publish it in advance in detail, so ask before you send.
Will the money be lost if I sent it to the wrong currency account?
Not usually. It is converted or returned, but charges and rate differences can reduce it.
Can Remitly or WorldRemit pay into a dom account?
Apps generally pay Nigerian recipients in naira. Sendwave, for example, says USD remittances are no longer permitted.
Sources
- FirstBank Nigeria: FAQs (domiciliary and diaspora accounts) · accessed Oct 2026
- Wise Help: How do I receive money with my USD account details · accessed Oct 2026
- Lloyds Bank: Receiving an international payment · accessed Oct 2026
- Barclays: International payments · accessed Oct 2026
- Sendwave: Send money from the UK to Nigeria · accessed Oct 2026
- TheCable: CBN FX Manual 2026 explained (3 Jun 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.