5 Best APIs for Webhook Events in Nigeria

Anchor is a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) and embedded finance platform headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, purpose-built for African businesses and developers who want to launch financial products without building core banking infrastructure from scratch. Founded and Y Combinator-backed, Anchor has become one of Nigeria's most important fintech infrastructure companies — serving clients including Wema Bank, Mono, Squad, and SeamlessHR across SaaS, digital health, e-commerce, and enterprise sectors. At its core, Anchor provides a suite of RESTful APIs covering five major product pillars: Accounts, Payments, Cards, Credit, and Savings & Investment. Each pillar is designed to be modular — developers can adopt one or all, depending on what their product needs. This modularity makes Anchor equally suitable for a single-purpose wallet app and a full-scale neobank. **Accounts API** The Accounts API allows developers to create and manage deposit accounts, savings accounts, and virtual accounts for both individual and business customers. These accounts operate on Nigerian banking rails, giving end users real Nigerian bank account numbers that can receive NIP transfers from any bank in Nigeria. Developers can manage balances, retrieve transaction histories, and generate account statements programmatically. Sub-ledger and sub-account functionality is also available for platforms that need to manage multiple customer accounts within a single ledger system. **Payments API** Anchor's Payments API handles instant NIP bank transfers — the Nigerian Inter-Bank Settlement System standard for real-time money movement between Nigerian banks. The API supports single transfers, account-to-account transfers within the Anchor ecosystem, and bulk transfer operations for payroll, disbursements, or vendor payments. The Bill Payments module extends this further, enabling developers to integrate airtime top-up, mobile data purchases, cable TV subscriptions (DSTV, GOtv), and electricity prepaid token purchases directly into their applications using a single set of API endpoints. **Cards API** The Cards API enables businesses to issue both physical and virtual debit cards under their own brand. Virtual cards can be issued instantly for digital spending, while physical cards can be dispatched to cardholders via courier. Card controls — freezing, unfreezing, setting spend limits — are all available via API, giving product teams full programmatic control over the card lifecycle. **Credit API** For companies building lending products, Anchor's Credit API handles the full loan lifecycle: origination, disbursement, repayment scheduling, and delinquency tracking. Combined with the KYC/KYB customer verification capabilities, this makes it possible to build a complete loan origination system in Nigeria without needing separate infrastructure for identity, disbursement, and collections. **Savings & Investment API** Anchor allows developers to build savings products with customizable interest rates, lock periods, and contribution schedules. This is ideal for savings-focused fintech apps, target savings groups (like ajo/esusu), or employer benefit platforms that want to offer automated saving features. **Authentication & API Security** Anchor uses API key-based authentication with Bearer token delivery. API keys are created through the Anchor Dashboard under the Developers section and must have explicit permissions assigned at creation time — Anchor follows a least-privilege model where keys only access the endpoints you explicitly authorize. Developers are strongly encouraged to use environment variables rather than hardcoding API keys and to rotate keys on a regular schedule. Two environments are available: the Sandbox environment (api.sandbox.getanchor.co) for testing and the Live environment (api.getanchor.co) for production transactions. **Sandbox Environment** Anchor's sandbox environment is a full-fidelity replica of the production system. Developers can test account creation, simulate incoming payments, test transfers, trigger webhook events, and validate KYC flows without touching real money or real customer data. This makes it significantly easier to build and QA financial products before going live. **Compliance & CBN Regulation** Anchor is not itself a bank — it is a technology infrastructure provider. Banking services delivered through the platform are provided by CBN-licensed Nigerian partner banks, which means end users benefit from regulated deposit-taking and payment services. This structure allows Anchor's business customers to offer banking products under a compliance umbrella without obtaining their own banking or PSSP license from the CBN. For customer-facing products, Anchor handles individual KYC verification (identity, BVN, liveness checks) and business KYB verification (CAC registration, director identity, beneficial ownership) through its API. **Pricing** Anchor uses a custom, volume-based pricing model negotiated based on the type of financial products deployed and the transaction volumes involved. No publicly listed free tier or flat-rate pricing exists — businesses are encouraged to contact the sales team for a tailored quote. This model is typical for BaaS platforms where the pricing reflects the regulatory overhead and compliance infrastructure being provided. **Rate Limits** Specific rate limits are not publicly documented. Developers should contact Anchor support or consult the enterprise agreement for rate limit policies. **Challenges & Considerations for Nigerian Developers** One common challenge is that Anchor's platform is designed for businesses launching financial products — not individual developers experimenting for personal use. Getting full production access typically requires completing KYB verification with a registered Nigerian company (CAC registration) and meeting Anchor's partner onboarding requirements. The platform is not self-serve in the same way smaller payment gateways are. Additionally, pricing is not transparent, which can make budgeting difficult at the early exploration stage. However, for serious fintech builders, the depth of capabilities — especially card issuance and credit — is unmatched in the Nigerian BaaS market. **Frequently Asked Questions** Q: Can I use Anchor without a CBN banking license? A: Yes. Anchor's banking services are provided by CBN-licensed partner banks, so you do not need your own banking license to offer deposit accounts, transfers, or card products to your users. Q: Does Anchor support both individual and business customers? A: Yes. The API handles individual customer KYC and business KYB as separate flows with distinct verification requirements. Q: Is there a sandbox environment for testing? A: Yes — the sandbox at api.sandbox.getanchor.co has full feature parity with production, allowing you to simulate all transaction types. Q: Does Anchor support international transfers or foreign currency accounts? A: Anchor is primarily focused on Nigerian Naira (NGN) banking rails. International SWIFT transfers and multi-currency accounts are not currently supported. Q: Who are Anchor's partner banks? A: Anchor works with CBN-licensed Nigerian partner banks but does not publicly disclose all partner names. Contact the Anchor team for details relevant to your use case.

Saleor is an open source, API-first headless e-commerce platform that exposes all commerce functionality through a GraphQL API. Unlike traditional e-commerce platforms that bundle a frontend and backend together, Saleor separates the commerce engine (API) from the presentation layer — enabling developers to build custom storefronts with any technology while the API handles all the complex commerce logic: products, inventory, pricing, discounts, orders, customers, payments, and fulfillment. The GraphQL API provides a typed, self-documenting interface to all commerce operations. Products and their variants (by size, color, or other attributes) are fully managed through the API, along with structured product metadata, category hierarchies, collection groupings, and media management. The inventory system tracks stock levels across multiple warehouses and automatically handles stock reservation during checkout. Order management through the API covers the full order lifecycle — from cart creation and checkout through payment capture, fulfillment assignment, shipping, and returns. The order events system provides a complete audit trail of every state change in an order, which is important for compliance and customer service in Nigerian e-commerce operations. The payment system is gateway-agnostic and plugin-based, allowing integration with any payment provider through a standard interface. For Nigerian e-commerce platforms, this means integrating Paystack, Flutterwave, or other Nigerian payment gateways through Saleor's payment plugin system — maintaining a unified order and payment record regardless of the payment provider used. Multi-channel commerce support enables a single Saleor instance to serve multiple sales channels (website, mobile app, marketplace) with different pricing, availability, and currency settings per channel. This is valuable for Nigerian retailers operating both domestic and export channels, or serving different customer segments with different pricing structures. For Nigerian technology companies building custom e-commerce solutions for clients — rather than deploying off-the-shelf platforms — Saleor provides a production-ready commerce API foundation that eliminates months of custom backend development. The MIT open source license means there are no licensing costs for self-hosted deployments, making it commercially viable for agencies building for Nigerian clients. Nigerian marketplaces and multi-vendor platforms can leverage Saleor's vendor management capabilities to manage multiple seller catalogs, configure commission structures, and route orders to the appropriate fulfillment party — all through the GraphQL API. Saleor Cloud offers a managed hosting option for teams that prefer not to run their own infrastructure, with a free development tier suitable for prototyping and a paid tier for production deployments. The self-hosted option via Docker is fully supported and provides complete control over the infrastructure. Saleor's storefront starter templates and SDKs for React, Next.js, and other frameworks accelerate the frontend development that sits on top of the GraphQL API. Nigerian agencies building custom e-commerce storefronts for clients can start from battle-tested starter code rather than building from scratch, focusing customization effort on the brand-specific design and functionality rather than boilerplate commerce logic. The permission system in Saleor uses fine-grained permissions for dashboard and API access — allowing Nigerian e-commerce operators to give warehouse staff access to order fulfillment features without exposing product pricing or customer data. This role-based access is important for Nigerian businesses with diverse staff roles accessing the same platform. Saleor's channel system supports multi-currency commerce natively, enabling Nigerian e-commerce businesses selling internationally to manage NGN pricing for domestic customers and USD or GBP pricing for export and diaspora markets through a single backend — with automatic currency-appropriate display based on the customer's channel.

Fingerprint Pro (formerly FingerprintJS Pro) is a browser and device fingerprinting API that generates a unique, persistent visitor identifier (visitorId) for each browser or device that loads a webpage or app. Unlike cookies that can be deleted, browser fingerprints are derived from device characteristics — browser version, OS, fonts, screen resolution, hardware identifiers, network parameters, and dozens of other signals — producing a stable ID that remains consistent even when a user browses in incognito mode, uses a VPN, clears cookies, or switches browser profiles. For Nigerian fintech and e-commerce applications, Fingerprint Pro provides the device intelligence layer for fraud prevention, bot detection, and account security. Nigeria's digital economy faces significant fraud challenges: credit card fraud, account takeover attacks, identity theft, and promotional abuse are common threats that cost Nigerian businesses millions of naira annually. Traditional security measures like IP blocking and cookie-based tracking are easily circumvented by sophisticated fraudsters who use VPNs, proxy networks, and private browsing. Fingerprint Pro provides a more durable identification layer that is significantly harder to evade, enabling Nigerian applications to identify suspicious patterns even when fraudsters try to appear as new visitors. The fingerprinting process works in two parts. A small JavaScript snippet loaded in the browser (or a mobile SDK loaded in the app) collects device signals and communicates with Fingerprint's servers to generate the visitorId. This process is transparent to the user and adds minimal page load time (typically under 100ms). On the server side, the application validates the visitorId using the secret API key and retrieves associated data: visit history, geolocation, IP intelligence (VPN/proxy/Tor detection), browser tamper signals, and bot detection results. Bot detection is a critical capability for Nigerian applications under automated attack. Fingerprint Pro analyzes traffic patterns and browser behavior to identify automated browsers (headless Chrome, Selenium-driven browsers, and other automation tools) with high accuracy. Nigerian fintech applications that receive automated login attempts or account creation bots can use this signal to block non-human traffic before it reaches authentication logic. VPN and proxy detection identifies visitors using VPN services or proxy networks to hide their real IP address. While VPN usage is not inherently fraudulent, it is a risk signal worth incorporating into fraud scoring — a Nigerian banking app that has never seen a user's device and detects VPN usage on a login attempt has reason to require additional verification. IP reputation data identifies IP addresses associated with data centers, known proxies, and Tor exit nodes. The server-side Events API provides the full request history for any visitorId: when did this device first visit? How many times? What IP addresses? What geolocation data? This historical context powers sophisticated fraud rules: a device with 50 failed login attempts in the past hour is likely a brute-force attack; a device that has successfully logged into 20 different accounts is likely an account takeover tool. The free tier provides 20,000 API calls per month, sufficient for Nigerian development and small-scale production use. The Plus plan at $99/month provides 100,000 calls monthly. All plans include bot detection, VPN detection, and historical visit data. Fingerprint Pro's Smart Signals extend beyond device fingerprinting to provide additional risk signals: VPN detection, TOR exit node detection, bot detection, browser tampering detection, and IP geolocation. These layered signals give Nigerian fraud detection systems multiple independent evidence points for evaluating session risk without relying on any single indicator.

Airwallex is a global financial technology platform founded in Melbourne, Australia in 2015, now operating in 60+ countries including Nigeria. The platform provides businesses with multi-currency accounts, international payment infrastructure, FX conversion, and a full-featured API for automating cross-border financial operations. Airwallex is used by over 100,000 businesses globally, ranging from startups to large enterprises, and has raised over $900 million in funding from investors including Tencent, DST Global, and Salesforce Ventures. **What Airwallex Does for Nigerian Businesses** Airwallex entered the Nigerian market as part of its broader Africa expansion strategy. For Nigerian CAC-registered businesses, Airwallex solves one of the most persistent pain points in Nigerian commerce: the difficulty and cost of holding, receiving, and sending international currencies. Through the Airwallex platform and API, Nigerian businesses can open multi-currency accounts that hold USD, GBP, EUR, and 20+ other currencies simultaneously — receiving payments from international clients without forced immediate conversion to NGN. **Core API Products** The Airwallex API is RESTful and organized around four main product areas: 1. **Global Accounts (Multi-currency Wallets)** — Create and manage accounts in multiple currencies. Each currency account comes with local payment details (e.g., a USD account with US routing and account numbers, or a GBP account with UK sort code and account number) enabling international clients to make local transfers to your business. 2. **Payouts API** — Send money to beneficiaries in 150+ countries. For Nigeria specifically, Airwallex supports NGN payout to Nigerian bank accounts via bank transfer. The payout API handles beneficiary management, payment status tracking, and webhook notifications for payment lifecycle events. 3. **FX Conversion API** — Convert between currencies at rates 0.5–1.0% above the interbank mid-market rate — dramatically cheaper than traditional Nigerian commercial bank FX spreads (often 3–5%). The API allows businesses to convert on-demand or set conversion rules programmatically. 4. **Payment Acceptance API** — Accept card payments (Visa, Mastercard, Amex) and local bank transfers from customers in 40+ markets. Card payment fees follow either blended pricing (2.8% + $0.30 per transaction) or interchange++ for high-volume merchants seeking cost transparency. Payment links, hosted payment pages, and direct API integrations are all available. **Authentication** Airwallex uses API Key authentication for server-side API calls. API keys are created through the Airwallex Dashboard and passed as Bearer tokens in the Authorization header. OAuth 2.0 is used for connected account workflows where your platform needs to manage payments on behalf of sub-merchant accounts. All API communication is over HTTPS. **Sandbox Environment** Airwallex provides a full sandbox environment for testing all API features without moving real money. Developers can test FX conversions, simulate payouts, create test beneficiaries, and trigger webhook events. The sandbox environment mirrors production behavior, making it suitable for end-to-end integration testing before going live. **Rate Limits** Specific rate limits are not publicly documented in Airwallex's developer documentation. Rate limits vary by endpoint and plan tier. Contact Airwallex support or your account manager for production rate limit policies. **Pricing for Nigerian Users** - Account opening: Free - Monthly account fee: Free - FX conversion: 0.5–1.0% above mid-market rate - International transfers: $0–$3 per transaction depending on corridor - Card payment collection: 2.8% + $0.30 (blended) or interchange++ (high volume) - Bank transfer collection: Free - NGN payout: Conversion fees apply at standard FX rates **Nigeria-Specific Requirements** To open an Airwallex account as a Nigerian business, you need: a CAC-registered company (Certificate of Incorporation or Business Name Registration), director/owner government ID (international passport or NIN), proof of business address (utility bill or bank statement not older than 3 months), 3–6 months of company bank statements, and a business description. Individual freelancers without formal business registration typically cannot qualify for all platform features. Approval takes 1–3 business days after document submission. **Compliance & Regulation** Airwallex holds licenses in multiple jurisdictions including the UK (FCA), EU, Australia (ASIC), Hong Kong, Singapore, and the US. In Nigeria, Airwallex operates as an international payment service provider serving registered Nigerian businesses. It is not a CBN-licensed Nigerian institution but interfaces with Nigerian banking rails for NGN settlements. **Challenges for Nigerian Developers** The key limitation is that Airwallex does not currently support accepting NGN-denominated payments from local Nigerian customers — it is designed for outbound international payments and inbound foreign currency collection, not domestic Nigerian payment acceptance. For local NGN payment acceptance, Nigerian businesses still need Paystack, Flutterwave, or similar local gateways. Additionally, individual freelancers without a registered company face barriers to access, as Airwallex prioritizes formal business entities. **Frequently Asked Questions** Q: Can Nigerian individuals (non-business) use Airwallex? A: Airwallex primarily serves registered businesses. Individual freelancers without a CAC-registered company may not qualify for all features. Q: Can I accept NGN payments from Nigerian customers through Airwallex? A: No. Airwallex is designed for foreign currency collection and cross-border payouts. Use Paystack or Flutterwave for local NGN payment acceptance. Q: How long does it take to get approved? A: Typically 1–3 business days after submitting all required documents. Q: What currencies can I hold? A: USD, GBP, EUR, AUD, SGD, HKD, CAD, JPY, and 15+ additional currencies depending on your account configuration. Q: Is Airwallex safe for Nigerian businesses? A: Yes — Airwallex is a regulated fintech holding licenses in the UK, EU, Australia, and other jurisdictions, and is backed by major institutional investors.