Flutterwave is shifting attention to Rwanda as it seeks to establish a central hub for payment operations in the East Africa region, reports indicate.
According to media reports in April 2023, Oluwabankole Falade, the Chief Regulatory and Government Relations Officer of Flutterwave, expressed the company’s dedication to opening an office in Kenya and designating it as the regional hub for their operations.
However, Flutterwave has encountered challenges in obtaining a payment provider license in Kenya due to a series of lawsuits and allegations of money laundering.
Flutterwave has denied the allegations and has refuted any involvement in money laundering. While some of the lawsuits against the company have been withdrawn, there are still ongoing legal proceedings that are progressing through Kenya’s legal system.
In March 2023, Flutterwave made an announcement stating that it had successfully acquired Electronic Money Issuer (EMI) and Remittance licenses in Rwanda. These licenses empower Flutterwave to hold funds in wallets, similar to mobile money providers, and facilitate cross-border transactions as well.
Rwanda was also the first country where the fintech secured a payment service provider license outside of Nigeria back in 2019.
“Rwanda is big for us because it is one of the only markets where we have every licence you can think of,” said Olugbenga Agboola, CEO, Flutterwave.
“We’ve got plans to have a financial operations centre set up in Rwanda where all our settlement across the region goes from here. Everyone has supported us to make that happen. So it makes sense to put something in this market and scale it from here,” Agboola said.
“It’s not about the size of the market, it’s about market readiness. They’re ready here.”
While acknowledging that Rwanda is a relatively small market, Agboola, the CEO of Flutterwave, recognizes the country’s aspirations to become a leading destination for managing foreign investment funds into Africa.
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