Using your First bank Naira Mastercard to shop on Aliexpress

Posted by Felix Okoli on Sunday January 4, 2015 at 13:26:54:

Have you ever tried to buy things online using a Naira Mastercard issued by First bank? Well, I decided to try mine today and it worked.

Since it's a Mastercard and it's backed by your bank, it can be used to make payments online at international shopping websites that accept Mastercard payments.

A Naira Mastercard is one of the card products issued to customers of First Bank in Nigeria and it's mostly issued to people that already have existing bank accounts wit the bank so that they may have easy access to their money through platforms such as ATMs. Most Naira Mastercard products issued by Nigerian banks such as First bank used to be mostly limited as ATM debit cards and so were only good for withdrawing money from ATMs. Lately however, they have now been activated for online use and can be used for making online payments at global shopping sites like Aliexpress and AMazon.

I have to admit that in the past, it wasn't working for me when I tried to make payment using the Naira Mastercard but lately however, it is now working as Aliexpress has accepted my card.

The only main issue with using a Naira Mastercard to shop on Aliexpress from Nigeria is that of exchange rate. This is because items listed on Aliexpress are listed in terms of US dollars while Naira Mastercard holds funds in Naira. So, each time you want to make payment on Aliexpress using a First bank Naira Mastercard, your bank funds will have to be converted to US dollars in order to pay for your purchase cost. The exchange rate normally varies depending on which rate the banks are using at that particular time and so don't be surprised if you get billed at a particular rate at one time and get a different rate at another time or day.

I guess the only way to try if your card will be working on Aliexpress is to try placing an order first. Just add the items you want to buy to your cart and choose to checkout. Select Mastercard as your card type, enter the First and Last name printed on your card, enter the card number that begins with a 5, enter the expiry date, enter the 3 digit CVV code printed at the back and submit the details. If it was successful, the payment will be accepted and your bank account will be debited with the Naira equivalent within 24 to 48 hrs.

If your First bank Naira Mastercard is not working on Aliexpress, you may have to just inform your bank so that they can tell you what the problem is and then solve it. If you don't also have enough money in your account, the transaction will also not be successful.

What I can now say in summary is that First Bank Naira Mastercard works in Aliexpress and you can pay for anything you want on that website using the Naira in your bank account.

Shop on Aliexpress and Pay in Naira