In 2020, if you passed through the small roadside kiosk where Grace worked, you probably wouldn’t have stopped to look twice.

There was nothing remarkable about it.

One plastic table.

One umbrella.

One POS machine.

A notebook.

And a folding chair.

Like thousands of other agents across Nigeria, she earned money from withdrawals, transfers, and deposits.

Most days were predictable.

Customers withdrew cash.

Some transferred money.

A few paid bills.

The commissions were small.

The workload was repetitive.

And although the business generated activity, it didn’t generate much wealth.

On a typical day, she processed between ₦80,000 and ₦150,000 in transactions.