Flutterwave CEO tries to save millions of people from Kenya – Africa
The CEO and co-founder of Nigerian fintech Flutterwave, Olugbenga Agboola, reportedly recently visited Kenya, where he tried to persuade the country’s monetary authorities to allow the company access to funds that have been frozen since July 2022. The company “had a Made a number of changes to ensure all internal governance structures are first class.”
money laundering allegations
More than six months after a Kenyan Supreme Court ordered Nigerian fintech unicorn Flutterwave to freeze bank accounts, Olugbenga Agboola, the startup’s co-founder and CEO, is trying to convince the Central Bank of Kenya to end the embargo. Additionally, Agboola reportedly used his recent trip to the East African country to push for his firm’s licensing.
As before by Bitcoin.com News reports, more than 50 Flutterwave bank accounts containing nearly $60 million in funds have been frozen at the behest of the Asset Recovery Agency (ARA). The agency accused Flutterwave of money laundering and violating Kenya’s national payments system laws.
However, according to a Business Daily report, ARA has withdrawn from the court case that got it the lockdown order in December 2022. The report added that ARA’s withdrawal, as well as the recent dismissal of a case brought against Flutterwave by some 2,000 people, which angered Nigerians, increased the startup’s chances of regaining access to the blocked funds.
Meanwhile, Agboola reportedly said in his comments on the Kenya trip:
CBK invited us in December to re-apply for a money transfer and payment service provider license. Kenya is the bedrock of mobile money. We saw the gap and raised capital to invest here. Building a global payment system for mobile money is not possible without Nairobi.
Regarding claims that Flutterwave’s Kenyan operations have not been sanctioned, Agboola insisted that the startup has always tried to comply with the country’s laws. He revealed that the startup is bringing in qualified global experts to strengthen Flutterwave’s processes.
Fintech growth and regulatory challenges
Another report quotes Agboola as saying the accelerated growth of Flutterwave and other Africa-based fintechs often worries regulators. This in turn leads to increased control and distrust.
However, to allay concerns from skeptical regulators, Agboola reportedly said the fintech has “made a number of changes over the past year to ensure all internal governance structures are top-notch.” In addition, Flutterwave has experienced individuals such as Emmanuel Efenure from Mastercard hired to bolster the fintech’s risk and governance, Agboola added.
Sign up your email address here to receive weekly African news update in your inbox:
What do you think of this story? Let us know what you think in the comment section below.
photo credit: Shutterstock, Pixabay, WikiCommons
(function(d, s, id) {
var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];
if (d.getElementById(id)) return;
js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id;
js.src=”
fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);
}(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
Source: Crypto News Deutsch
