Flutterwave has grown from a Lagos startup into one of Africa’s most valuable financial technology companies, processing billions of dollars in transactions each year across multiple continents.
Founded in 2016, the company set out to solve a basic but stubborn problem where moving money across Africa was slow, expensive and usually unreliable.
Businesses struggled with fragmented payment systems, limited interoperability between banks and mobile money operators, and high failure rates on transactions. Cross-border payments were even more difficult.
Nearly a decade later, Flutterwave operates in more than 30 African countries and supports payments in over 150 currencies, serving global enterprises, startups and small businesses.
Founding Vision and the Gap in African Payments (2016)
Flutterwave was co-founded in 2016 by Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, Olugbenga “GB” Agboola and Adeleke Adekoya.
Aboyeji, who had earlier co-founded Andela, experienced repeated payment delays while working with remote talent across borders.
Agboola, a former executive at Google Wallet and PayPal with an MBA from MIT Sloan, had seen how multinational companies struggled to navigate Africa’s disconnected financial infrastructure.
Adekoya brought regulatory and compliance expertise from senior roles in Nigerian banking.
Their assessment showed that Africa’s payment rails were siloed. Card schemes such as Visa, Mastercard and Verve operated separately from mobile money platforms like M-Pesa and MTN MoMo.
National switches functioned independently. Merchants needed multiple integrations to operate across countries.
Flutterwave built a unified API designed to connect these systems. Businesses could accept payments, make payouts and settle in local currencies without building separate infrastructure for each market.
Early Operations in Lagos (2016–2017)
The company began in a modest co-working space in Lekki, Lagos. In the early days, operations were lean.
Agboola initially covered payroll during periods of banking delays. Aboyeji served as the first chief executive, Agboola as chief technology officer, while Adekoya focused on compliance and regulatory engagement.
An early turning point came when Flutterwave partnered with Uber during its launch in Nigeria.
The company powered driver payouts, onboarding thousands of users quickly and demonstrating that its system could handle scale.
Revenue came largely from transaction fees, including charges on card payments and cross-border transfers.
By 2017, Flutterwave had raised about $10 million in seed and Series A funding, enabling expansion beyond Nigeria into other West African markets.
Leadership Change and Continental Growth (2018–2020)
In 2018, Aboyeji stepped down as CEO. Agboola assumed the role and has led the company since.
Between 2018 and 2020, Flutterwave expanded across West, East and Southern Africa, integrating additional payment methods including bank transfers, mobile wallets and alternative rails. Each new market required licensing or regulated partnerships.
The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 accelerated digital adoption. As lockdowns disrupted physical commerce, Flutterwave launched support initiatives to help small and medium-sized businesses move online.
Transaction volumes increased as e-commerce and remittance flows grew.
Unicorn Status and Major Funding (2021–2022)
In March 2021, Flutterwave raised $170 million in a Series C round led by Avenir Growth Capital and Tiger Global, reaching a valuation above $1 billion.
At the time, the company had processed more than 140 million transactions worth over $9 billion.
In February 2022, a $250 million Series D round led by B Capital Group and Lux Capital pushed its valuation above $3 billion. Total funding surpassed $475 million, with participation from investors including Salesforce Ventures.
The capital supported expansion into more African markets and product development, including Send App for diaspora remittances in the United States.
The company also secured enterprise partnerships with firms such as Microsoft, Booking.com and Uber.
Regulatory Scrutiny and Governance Reforms (2022–2024)
Rapid growth brought regulatory attention. In 2022, Kenyan authorities froze accounts linked to Flutterwave amid allegations of money laundering and fraud. The Assets Recovery Agency later withdrew its case, and the funds were released after investigations.
In Nigeria, reports of unauthorised transactions surfaced between 2023 and 2024. Flutterwave said customer funds were not lost and stated that it worked with regulators while strengthening internal controls and fraud detection systems.
The company also faced internal governance and workplace culture allegations in 2022. In response, it introduced compliance reforms and recruited risk and compliance professionals with experience from global firms including Mastercard, Stripe and PayPal.
These episodes showed the bigger challenges facing fintech companies operating across multiple regulatory regimes, including foreign exchange restrictions, cybersecurity risks and cross-border compliance gaps.
Profitability Push and Acquisition Strategy (2025–2026)
By 2025, Flutterwave shifted focus from rapid expansion to profitability. Half-year results in 2025 showed improved margins compared with the previous year, driven by tighter cost controls and operational efficiency.
The company secured additional U.S. Money Transmitter Licenses, bringing its total to 34. It expanded further in markets including Cameroon, Senegal and Zambia, while strengthening corridors linking Africa to Asia and North America.
In January 2026, Flutterwave acquired Mono, a Nigerian open-banking startup, in an all-stock deal valued between $25 million and $40 million.
Mono provides APIs for bank data access, identity verification and account-to-account payments. The acquisition allows Flutterwave to deepen its infrastructure, reduce third-party dependencies and improve margins.
Agboola has repeatedly stated that the company intends to build a consistently profitable and scalable business before pursuing a public listing. While no timeline has been announced, preparations for a potential IPO remain under discussion.
Role in Nigeria’s Fintech Landscape
Flutterwave’s growth shows the rise of Nigeria’s fintech sector, impacted by venture capital inflows, regulatory reforms and increasing digital adoption.
It operates alongside competitors such as Paystack, owned by Stripe, and local firms including Moniepoint.
Its growth also aligns with policy efforts by the Central Bank of Nigeria to reduce cash dependence and with continental initiatives under the African Continental Free Trade Area to increase intra-African commerce.
From a shared desk in Lekki to dual headquarters in Lagos and San Francisco, Flutterwave’s expansion stresses how Nigerian-founded technology firms have built global platforms from local challenges.
In strengthening open-banking integration, exploring new settlement technologies and pursuing sustainable profitability, Flutterwave is holding firm to stand as the core infrastructure for businesses moving money into, out of and across Africa.
