NALA Money alternative for money you hold as USDT
NALA's Global Account is stablecoin-backed but lists no USDT deposit. For USDT you hold, Unigox is a NALA Money alternative: your relative sells it for local money where their currency is open. From a bank or card, NALA is simpler.
When to stay with NALA
You pay from a bank or debit card
NALA takes a bank transfer or a debit card through Apple Pay or Google Pay from the UK, the EU or the US, and says 98% of its transfers arrive within 10 minutes. A Unigox sale starts only from USDT or USDC. Unigox does not currently offer its services in the United States, one of the three places NALA sends from.
A US employer or client pays you
Eligible NALA Global Account users get a US account number and routing number for wires and ACH payments, and can withdraw to mobile money in local currency where NALA offers it. On Unigox, a payment has to arrive as USDT or USDC before it can be sold.
Your relative should not have to open an account
NALA pays a mobile money account by phone number; in Tanzania that is M-Pesa, Tigo Pesa, Airtel Money, Halotel Money or AzamPesa. On Unigox, whoever sells the USDT signs up and verifies their identity before the first sale.
NALA Money vs Unigox for money sent to Africa
| Topic | NALA | Unigox |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A transfer app sending from the UK, the US and EU countries to mobile money and banks in Africa and Asia. Rafiki, its business arm, sells a payouts API. | A place where you sell USDT or USDC for local money; the buyer is an individual P2P merchant or a payment business. |
| Paid in with | A UK, EU or US bank transfer, a debit card through Apple Pay or Google Pay, or a GBP or EUR NALA Wallet balance. | USDT or USDC moved into the seller's Unigox Wallet from an exchange or wallet, on a network Unigox takes. |
| Stablecoins | The Global Account keeps a USD balance backed one to one by stablecoins held with partners. Money comes in from other NALA users, by mobile money top-up or, for eligible users, US account details. NALA describes no USDT or USDC deposit from an outside wallet. | Takes USDT or USDC from outside wallets and exchanges, and lets you send USDT out again before or after a sale. |
| Who needs an account | The sender. The recipient is paid on a mobile money number or a bank account. | The person who sells the USDT, after an identity check that applies from the first sale. |
| Fees | To a bank in Tanzania or Uganda: 5.99 USD, GBP or EUR.
| One rate for the amount, with the Unigox fee already in it, shown before the sale. |
| Regulation | Nala Payments LLC is registered with FinCEN and lists money transmitter licences in nine US states. In the UK, NALA is an EMD agent of Modulr FS Limited (FCA); in the EU, a partner of Modulr Finance B.V. (De Nederlandsche Bank). Nala Payments Canada Inc. is registered with FINTRAC. | Unigox works through two companies: UNIGOX NETWORK CORP. in Canada handles the local-money side and is registered with FINTRAC as a money services business and with the Bank of Canada as a payment service provider; UNIGOX NETWORK CORP. in Panama handles the crypto side, including wallets and escrow. |
UnigoxMove from NALA transfers to USDT in three steps
Your relative at home signs up
They open a Unigox account and pass the photo ID and selfie check before any first sale. With NALA they needed only a mobile money number or bank account.
NALA lists no USDT deposit, so use their Unigox Wallet
A NALA Global Account describes no way to take USDT or USDC from an outside wallet. Send it from your exchange or wallet to the deposit address in your relative's Unigox Wallet instead, on the network the address is for.
They sell it for local money
They choose their currency, add the account they want paid and accept the rate for the amount, with the Unigox fee inside it.
Questions about NALA Money alternatives
Is there an app like NALA Money that takes USDT?
NALA itself lists no way to deposit USDT. On Unigox, send the USDT to your relative's Unigox Wallet; after an identity check they sell it, and the buyer pays their account in local money. For a send paid from a UK, EU or US bank or card, NALA is the direct route.
What is NALA Money?
A money transfer app that sends from the UK, the EU and the US to mobile money and bank accounts in Africa and Asia. Its Global Account holds a USD balance backed one to one by stablecoins, and Tanzania-based users can send from that balance to other countries.
NALA app review: how is the Global Account balance held?
NALA says the USD balance is backed one to one by regulated USD stablecoins held with partners. Money comes in through US account details for eligible users, mobile money top-ups or other NALA users; no USDT or USDC deposit from an outside wallet is described. Removing the wallet in the app is permanent, so NALA asks you to withdraw the balance and contact support first; it says it cannot recover funds left in it.
Does Unigox have a business API like Rafiki by NALA?
Rafiki, NALA's business arm, offers payouts and collections in local currency or stablecoins through one API, with stablecoin settlement in early access. The Unigox Payments API does a similar job: a company funds local bank or mobile money payouts in USDT or USDC and receives collections in them.
See the Unigox Payments APIPrice your payout before you send USDT
NALA shows the amount your recipient gets before you confirm. On Unigox your relative sees the rate for their exact amount, fee included, on the sale screen; a currency page shows a reference rate only.
NALA and other names and logos are trademarks of their respective owners. Unigox is not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by them. Information about other companies comes from public sources, mainly the companies' own websites, and each company can change its products and fees at any time.