Nigerians beware, money app OPay not giving out N150,000 grants

IN SHORT: Many OPay customers would welcome a N150,000 bonus in their account. But the claim that the mobile bank is handing out cash is false.

Several posts on Facebook claim that OPay is giving away N150,000 "grants" to its customers in Nigeria.

OPay is a Nigeria-based mobile bank.

One post, dated 28 July 2024, reads: "₦150,000 grant by OPay. Offer is ending this week."

It also encourages users to apply via the link attached.

The same claim has been posted here and here. (Note: See more instances listed at the end of this report.)

But is this true? We checked.

Engagement bait scam

Africa Check searched for news of the company giving away N150,000 grants, but came up empty. This is a red flag, as such a claim would have made headlines if true.

The link in the posts took us to a blog post about "U.S Visa Sponsorship Opportunities". We found it suspicious that the link didn't take users to the OPay website where they could apply for the grant. This is another indication that the grant doesn't exist.

Such posts are a classic example of engagement bait. They encourage users to like, comment or share, boosting the post's reach without offering any reward. They also drive traffic to the website about visas, potentially increasing advertising revenue.

We scoured OPay's social media pages, including Facebook and X, and found that it had never offered grants to its customers.

OPay has also warned its customers not to click on suspicious links, share their one-time passwords or answer any calls, emails or text messages asking for personal information. They also asked their customers to report fraudulent or suspicious activities.

To protect yourself, read our guide on how to spot scams on Facebook.

The same claim can be found here, here, here, here and here.