Fintech startup Flutterwave obtains payments processing license in Nigeria

This license allows Flutterwave to offer customers transaction switching and card processing services. Others include non-bank acquiring, agency banking and payment gateway services.

The company can also process card transactions, participate in agency banking and offer various payment services without intermediaries. Prior to this license, Flutterwave operated with its Payment Solution Service Provider (PSSP) and International Money Transfer Operator (IMTO) licenses.

Company officials stated that the license will allow them to offer more services and explore more payment use cases for their ecosystem. With this license, they can offer more value to their customers while taking more control of their value chain to enable an augmented payments experience for their enterprise, medium scale, and retail customers.

Flutterwave looks at an IPO amid regulatory pain points

Flutterwave is considering an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the US and Nigeria, according to Bloomberg. According to sources cited by Bloomberg, the recent recruitments into key positions at Flutterwave were all in preparation for the IPO.

Besides that, Flutterwave has been grappling with a slew of reputation-damaging allegations and regulatory hurdles since the start of 2022. In June 2022, a Kenyan High Court granted an order to freeze an additional sum of USD 3.3 million belonging to the pan-African fintech giant.

Kenya's Assets Recovery Agency (ARA), which is leading an investigation into the fintech firm, had filed to block the funds from being transferred. The agency also accused Flutterwave of money laundering and seeks to have the frozen millions forfeited to the government.