Flutterwave Unveils Plan to Invest $50 Million in Kenya to Drive Growth
African Fintech unicorn Flutterwave has unveiled plans to invest $50 million (Ksh 7.3 Billion) in Kenya to drive growth.
Flutterwave’s investment in the East African country is coming as it pushes for a payments and remittances license in the country.
During an interview in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, Flutterwave CEO and Co-founder Olugbenga Agboola, disclosed that the firm has received first-name approval from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and stands ready for phased investments once it receives a license.
In his words,
“We are looking at investing not less than $50 million. We are employing people. We are getting a new office and scaling up our infrastructure. There is a lot to do in Kenya. We are happy we are going through the process of approval. We didn’t chicken out. We stayed the course even when everything stopped. The current administration is very supportive.”
Having faced regulatory challenges and investigations from the Asset Recovery Agency (ARA) over money laundering allegations that were later cleared, Flutterwave wants to push further and expand its operations in the Kenyan market.
The fintech which currently has about 27 employees in Kenya, has applied for both a payments service provider and remittances license that will facilitate money deposit and withdrawal in addition to electronic funds transfer.
Mr. Agboola disclosed that getting approval in Kenya will add to other African markets such as Egypt, South Africa, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Cameroon where Flutterwave provides payment infrastructure for merchants and service providers.
He further added that Flutterwave will be targeting merchants in nearly all sectors including entertainment, hospitality, logistics, and health.
Flutterwave investments and expansion plans in Kenya is a strategic one, because the East African country is a pivotal fintech hub within the African landscape, and the company’s move also reiterates its commitment towards strengthening its relationship with Kenyan regulators.
While the unicorn has been embroiled in several cases with regulatory authorities in different parts of Africa, it has remained unfazed and maintained consistency while being a top performer in the financial services industry.
In order to attract prominent international clientele while also spotlighting the vast potential of the African economy, Flutterwave earlier unveiled its IPO plans.
The startup believes that transitioning into a public company will see it appeal to a specific demographic of clients, specifically, major global entities in search of partners that share comparable compliance benchmarks and possess a panoramic global outlook.
According to a report, the IPO will be rolled out on the Nasdaq stock exchange and will be used to expand the fintech’s operation in existing markets and expand into new African markets.
