Flutterwave’s five years adventure redefines fintech space
Lack of access to credit and financial services has been the main impediment to financial growth with several emerging economies, and this has led to the introduction of Financial Technology (FinTech) companies in Africa, as an important measure in making financial services easily accessible to the population. FinTech firms are positioned to enhance financial procedures, promote financial inclusion and ensure seamless payments across multiple platforms.
It is on this premise that Flutterwave, a San Francisco and Lagos-based FinTech startup was conceived. As an online payment processing going concern with focus on helping and connecting businesses and their customers with secure and seamless payment experience, the company was founded in 2016 by a team of ex-bankers, entrepreneurs, and engineers who are Nigerians with a mission to provide the award-winning core technology needed to deliver a robust, reliable, and intelligent payments gateway for all forms of business transactions.
The Nigerian-founded startup’s main business is providing B2B payments services for companies operating in Nigeria and Africa to pay other companies on the continent and abroad, as well as allow clients to tap its APIs and work with Flutterwave developers to customise payment applications.
In a statement, Flutterwave said it is on a mission to build payments infrastructure to connect Africa to the global economy. “We do this by building technology, tools, and infrastructure for businesses and banks who want to provide a more seamless and secure payments experience for their customers.”
The Fintech hub, within its five years of operation, has gone beyond just payments, but has expanded capabilities of offering more services around its payment products, while seeking expansion through strategic partnerships with global companies such as Worldpay FIS, a U.K.-based merchant acquirer that provides payment technology to merchants, businesses and financial institutions around the world, with a focus on e-commerce and omnicommerce.
The global financial outfit is changing the face of payment solutions and creating a future where Africa is included in the world of Fintech, with over 200,000 businesses trusting it with their business growth, and has processed over $8 billion in transaction value since 2016.
Its existing customers include Uber, Booking.com, Wakanow, Flywire etc. The company has an active presence in 15 African countries, including Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa. Flutterwave’s financial valuation has continued to expand yearly, as the Pan-African leading Payments Technology Company has attracted significant investment from experienced Fintech investors such as Ycombinator Continuity Fund (investors in Stripe), Greycroft (investors in Braintree and Venmo), Greenvisor Capital, Omidyar Network, and Glynn Capital amongst others. In 2017 Flutterwave was named Africa’s best Fintech company at the Apps Africa Innovation Awards.
With all these milestone achievements in the 5 years life span of its existence, the company may likely extend its tentacles across the globe as confirmed by the chief Executive Officer, Olugbenga Agboola. According to him, “the company will be looking to either list on the New York Stock Exchange or perform a dual listing in the US and Nigeria”.
Its financial status has also grown to an enviable height in the Fintech world, by raising US$10 million in Series C as a funding in August 2017.
The Series C round comes a year after Flutterwave closed its $35 million Series B and $20 million Series A in 2018. In total, Flutterwave has raised $225 million and is one of the few African startups to have secured more than $200 million in funding.
When the company raised its Series B, Flutterwave had processed 107 million transactions worth $5.4 billion. Today, those numbers have increased to over 140 million transactions worth more than $9 billion, with a US$35 million Series B in January of last year according to company data.
Just recently, it broken the news of its financial breakthrough of raising $170 million in a Series C funding round, bringing its total fundraise to $225 million since its launch five years ago.
The CEO also revealed that the company grew more than 100% in revenue within the past year due to the pandemic, with the absence of physical contacts, consumers relied on virtual financial services to access and disburse funds and Fintech solutions came through.
Flutterwave, funded by 40 investors, has quickly become a leading player in online payments, processing 60m transactions worth over $2B from global companies like Uber, Booking.com, and more.
Insight Partners and Tiger Management Corporation are the most recent investors Flutterwave has a post-money valuation in the range of $100M to $500M as of Jan 21, 2020, according to PrivCo.
Flutterwave said more than 290,000 businesses use its platform to carry out payments. According to the company’s statement, they can do so “in 150 currencies and multiple payment modes, including local and international cards, mobile wallets, bank transfers and arter”.
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