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MyPadi AI, launched in May 2026 by Nigerian entrepreneur Yakubu Quadri, is turning WhatsApp into a crypto-to-cash gateway, letting users convert Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT into naira through a chat interface without downloading a separate trading app.
The idea behind MyPadi AI is straightforward: rather than requiring users to navigate a conventional cryptocurrency exchange, create orders and move between multiple applications, the platform puts key crypto functions inside WhatsApp.
According to the company’s website, users can begin by sending “Hi MyPadi” on WhatsApp. Following identity verification, personal crypto wallets are created, allowing users to deposit assets, check balances, convert currencies and withdraw funds directly to a bank account through chat.
“Our mission is to make financial access as simple as sending a message. We are building MyPadi AI to remove the barriers and complexity many Africans face when trying to convert their digital assets,” said Yakubu Quadri, founder of MyPadi AI.
At the centre of MyPadi AI is its WhatsApp-based interface. The company says users can access functions including crypto deposits and withdrawals, balance checks, currency conversion, transaction history, QR-code generation and real-time transaction tracking without leaving the messaging environment.
The platform currently supports Bitcoin, Ethereum and Tether’s USDT for conversion into Nigerian naira and South African rand, according to its website and launch coverage.
This model addresses one of the persistent challenges surrounding crypto adoption: owning digital assets is only part of the process. Users also need practical ways to convert those assets into money they can spend through the traditional financial system.
MyPadi AI is targeting that conversion point, commonly referred to as a crypto off-ramp. Instead of asking users to navigate an exchange before transferring proceeds to a bank account, the startup aims to make the process resemble an ordinary WhatsApp conversation.
The company says users can send crypto and receive naira or rand in their bank accounts, with the service designed around a simplified chat-based flow.
While convenience is a major part of the product, MyPadi AI is also placing security at the centre of its positioning.
The company lists end-to-end encryption, dedicated wallet security, PIN verification and 24/7 monitoring among its security features.
At launch, Quadri’s platform was also reported to incorporate multi-layer authentication, transaction validation protocols, secure API integrations and blockchain-level verification processes.
The security focus is particularly relevant for a service operating through WhatsApp, where the convenience of a familiar messaging environment must be balanced against the risks associated with digital-asset transactions.
Rather than describing WhatsApp itself as a crypto exchange, MyPadi AI uses the messaging platform as the interface through which users interact with its underlying financial infrastructure.
That distinction is important: the crypto wallets, verification systems and conversion mechanisms sit behind the conversational layer.
The company’s website also says identity verification is required before users receive their personal wallets, indicating that onboarding is designed to incorporate verification and compliance processes.
The platform’s intended audience extends beyond active cryptocurrency traders. MyPadi AI highlights use cases involving business owners, students and freelancers, particularly people who receive or accept crypto and need to convert it into local currency.
That positioning reflects a broader shift in how cryptocurrency is being used in Nigeria. Digital assets, particularly dollar-linked stablecoins such as USDT, are increasingly used for payments, savings, working capital and peer-to-peer transactions, rather than solely for speculative trading.
For these users, the most important feature may not be sophisticated trading charts or advanced order types. It may simply be the ability to receive digital assets and convert them into naira with fewer technical steps.
This is where MyPadi AI is attempting to differentiate itself. By meeting users on WhatsApp, the startup is building around an application that is already familiar to a large number of Nigerians rather than requiring customers to learn an entirely new interface.
Quadri’s long-term ambition is broader than a crypto off-ramp. The Nation reported that he wants to develop MyPadi AI into a pan-African financial assistant capable of making financial services accessible through simple messaging technology.
MyPadi AI’s emergence comes as artificial intelligence, blockchain infrastructure and mobile payments increasingly converge across Africa’s financial technology sector.
The startup was founded by Quadri, whose technology background includes a National Diploma in Computer Science from Yaba College of Technology. His previous ventures included Akube NG, a gadget classifieds platform launched in 2016, and a pension-insurance platform developed in 2017.
The platform’s May 2026 launch followed a growing push to make cryptocurrency services more accessible to mainstream users. By August, coverage from African technology publications had highlighted its WhatsApp-based approach as a way of simplifying crypto withdrawals in Nigeria.
The model also arrives as Nigeria’s virtual-asset ecosystem moves toward a more formal regulatory framework. On July 17, 2026, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed an executive order establishing a Virtual Asset Council intended to coordinate oversight of digital assets across relevant government institutions.
That evolving environment makes security, identity verification and transaction controls increasingly important for platforms seeking to connect crypto with traditional financial services.
MyPadi AI’s proposition is ultimately less about teaching Nigerians how to trade cryptocurrency and more about simplifying what happens after they already have it. By putting crypto conversion inside WhatsApp, the startup is betting that the next stage of adoption will be driven not only by exchanges and trading platforms, but by financial tools that fit into everyday digital behaviour.
The company is now positioning MyPadi AI as an always-available crypto companion, with its broader ambition centred on making financial access as simple as sending a message.
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