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backSo you want to send money. You already know who it is going to. You type in the account number and pause for a second to check it again. Every digit looks right. You look at the amount and count the zeros just to be sure. Everything is set. You are one step away from entering your PIN. Then your eyes land on the field that says “narration (optional).”
And in that moment, a choice appears. You can type something quick so that you can move on. Or you can write exactly what the money is for because clarity matters to you. Whatever you choose, you have just joined millions of people around the world who face the same decision every day. Use it. Or ignore it.
But it raises a simple question. What is the point of the narration field? I spoke with Moniepoint’s Chief Compliance Officer, Ugonna, to bring us some much-needed clarity.
Narration #1: A brief history lesson
Let’s start with the core rule of double-entry accounting: every debit must have a corresponding credit, and the total of both sides must always balance. That foundation of modern bookkeeping is why a tiny box was designed to explain each debit and credit. (back in the day, it was often labelled “particulars” or “description”).
As banking transitioned from ledgers to mobile screens, different regions developed their own versions of this description field. In India, the term used is remarks. In Kenya, M-Pesa calls it a 'reason'. In the UK, banks refer to it as a payment reference. In social payment apps like Venmo and Cash App, it’s informally known as a note. In the United States and Europe, wire transfers include a mandatory note field called remittance information or payment reference.
Narration #2: A lesson on the limits
These different banking systems also impose different limits. Nigerian banking apps typically allow you to enter 12 to 40 characters on average. Some are stricter. Some allow more. UK banks often cap references at 18 characters. US wire transfers allow up to 140 characters in their structured message fields. Venmo allows 2,000 characters because it treats payment notes like social posts. Cash App sits somewhere in the middle. M-Pesa typically limits messages to 20-40 characters.
The limit can also sometimes shape the tone. In traditional banking, notes were strictly functional. When peer-to-peer apps appeared, everything changed. People saw friends reading their payment notes in public feeds, so they turned these little fields into a place for personality. That is how emojis, memes, and inside jokes became normal. Short fields force blunt descriptions. Longer fields invite slang, jokes, inside references, and emojis. That’s how a pizza emoji came to mean dinner.
Narration #3: A look at what the law says
In my chat with Ugonna, I learnt that the CBN’s Instant EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) regulation places the responsibility on financial institutions.
Essentially, it’s a requirement for the sending bank to send the narration, the sender’s name, BVN, account number, and the beneficiary's name and account number to the receiving bank. Likewise, receiving banks must print the “transaction narration information” on the beneficiary’s statement exactly as sent. This ensures customers can reconcile inbound payments.
Before speaking with Ugonna, I analysed the top ten transfer narratives used by Moniepoint customers over the last 12 months, and the list was a mix of practical and humorous. Food was among the top three narrations. People pay for everything from groceries to restaurant orders, and they simply call it food. The goal, Ugonna says, is clarity. The label you choose affects how the system understands your transactions.
So, what’s the point of narrations?
Protects you in friendships and relationships
People often lend money to one another. Without documentation, misunderstandings come quickly. If you lend someone money and type 'gift' in the narration, you have already shifted the burden of proof. If they refuse to pay back, you have little ground to stand on. If you type loan, you create a trail. You make your intention clear. They may still argue, but the record is no longer in their favour.
Strengthens small businesses
Many small business owners rely on digital transfers without formal invoices. Their narration becomes part of their accounting. If a customer claims a refund, the narration helps both the business owner and the bank understand what service was paid for.
Evidence in disputes
In some cases, for example, banks often review transaction details to understand what the sender thought they were paying for. The narration does not solve everything, but it gives investigators direction. It also helps when a customer is trying to prove that they did not do a transfer. Sometimes, a narration written in a tone or style different from the customer’s habits can be a clue.
Tracks your own spending patterns
If you label money randomly, your bank app becomes a confusing diary. If you are trying to understand how much you spend on transport, food or data, but your narrations are full of jokes or unrelated words, you lose clarity. Straightforward narrations help you understand your financial behaviour.
Compliance
When you want to apply for visas, loans, grants, or investment opportunities, you often have to present bank statements. Clean narrations make you look credible. Messy narrations make you look disorganised. So think of it as giving a name to financial happiness. But most importantly, the narration may be short, but the meaning always has to be taller, larger than the space it sits in.
If you’re the kind of person who notices the little things, like what goes into a payment narration, Moniepoint is the place to put that curiosity to work. See opportunities at https://moniepoint.com/careers.
