Nigerian fintech unicorn, Flutterwave, has acquired its Payment Services Provider and Payment Facilitator licenses in Egypt, marking its entry into the North African region.
The licenses will enable Flutterwave to act as an official payment service provider in the country, collect payments on behalf of its customers and settle payments locally and globally.
Additionally, the licenses will also allow Flutterwave to deploy “Flutterwave for Business” suite of products including stores, payment links, invoices, and checkout for businesses in Egypt.
Speaking on the expansion, Aalaa Gamal, regional manager, North Africa in expansion & partnerships, Egypt, stated, “We’re excited to receive the payments services provider and facilitator licenses in Egypt. The licenses will enable us to be the go-to payment processor and digital transformation partner for global settlements in Egypt, which enables our customers to expand quickly within or outside of the country. This, for us, is the beginning of other strategic wins in the North Africa and Middle East regions.”
The expansion comes at a time when the unicorn, which was valued at $3 billion at its last $250 million Series D fundraising in January 2022, is mulling over going public via an IPO listing.
For Flutterwave founder and CEO Olugbenga GB Agboola, the expansion is part of the company’s vision to connect all of Africa through easy and seamless payments infrastructure.
“We are proud to have been granted the Payment Services Provider and Payment Facilitator licenses in Egypt, which forms part of our international expansion strategy. This is testament to our commitment to provide first-class payment services, seamlessly connecting businesses to their customers. Our vision is to connect all parts of Africa through payments and connect Africa to the world. This way, it is easier for multinationals expanding into Africa to do so. This achievement is yet another step in that direction, ” he said.
As part of Flutterwave’s expansion initiatives, the company has also made it possible for users to send money to Ethiopia via cash pickup. Ethiopians in the diaspora can send money home and have the receivers pick up the cash in Dashen bank branches, Amole Agents and Ethiopian postal service offices.
