Tap, pay, go: Mastercard and Interswitch bring Google Pay to Nigeria

Mastercard and Interswitch have collaborated to introduce Google Pay to eligible Mastercard cardholders in Nigeria, enabling customers to make contactless payments using their Android smartphones. This partnership allows users to add supported bank cards to Google Wallet and complete transactions at compatible point-of-sale (PoS) terminals without needing to physically present their cards.

Mastercard's tokenisation technology ensures that sensitive card information is protected by replacing it with unique digital credentials during transactions. Interswitch, the infrastructure provider, connects participating banks to the tokenisation and payment processing systems. Nigeria's digital payments market has been growing rapidly, with instant payment transactions reaching ₦284.9 trillion ($212 billion) in the first quarter of 2025, a 21.5% increase from the previous year.

The country now has over 5.9 million PoS terminals, with transaction values soaring to ₦10.51 trillion ($7.8 billion) in the same period. Google Pay offers a unique payment experience, enabling customers to tap their phones to complete supported purchases at PoS terminals. This integration builds upon Interswitch's existing partnership with Google to accept Google Pay payments on its online payment gateway, now expanded to include locally issued Mastercard cards from major Nigerian banks.

To make contactless payments with Google Pay, customers need compatible Android devices with NFC technology. The launch of Google Pay in Nigeria is part of Interswitch's ongoing expansion of its tokenised payment infrastructure and the growing reliance on real-time bank transfers and PoS infrastructure in the country's digital payments ecosystem.