Nigerian Company Denies Claims Of Laundering Billions in Kenya

Nigerian fintech company, Flutterwave Payment Technology Limited has now said that reports of involvement in a Ksh6.7 billion money-laundering scheme in Kenya are false.

Kenya's Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) had moved to the High Court over the matter and it subsequently ordered the closure of 56 bank accounts operated by seven companies after they were found to be used as channels for money laundering under the guise of providing merchant services.

The Nigerian start-up had held 17 accounts with a local bank, 29 with a leading African bank and six with a pan-African banking conglomerate.

A court gavel. /iSTOCK

“Investigations established that the bank accounts operations had suspicious activities where funds could be received from specific foreign entities which raised suspicion. The funds were then transferred to related accounts as opposed to settlement to merchants," ARA stated.

The startup however responded in a statement on Thursday, July 7 by terming the allegations as false, circulated as part of a disinformation campaign that has seen it being a target of deliberate false media reports and misrepresentations.

“Through our financial institution partners, we collect and pay on behalf of merchants and corporate entities. In the process, we earn our fees through a transaction charge, records of which are available and can be verified. As a business, we hold corporate funds to support our operations and provide services to all our customers.

“By facilitating payments for the biggest organizations in the world and everyday businesses, we process significantly large volumes of money and contribute to growing the economy in Kenya, and the rest of Africa," read the statement in part.

Flutterwave went on to showcase its portfolio as the fintech company catering to payments for the biggest organizations in the world and small-sized businesses, using the highest of standards in handling huge amounts of money that play a big role in Africa's economy.

To be specific, the company uses one of the big four firms to audit their operations as part of anti-money laundering practices.

“We are a financial technology company that maintains the highest regulatory standards in our operations. Our Anti-money laundering practices and operations are regularly audited by one of the big four firms. We remain proactive in our engagements with regulatory bodies to continue to stay compliant.

“Flutterwave has a responsibility to ensure the integrity of the ecosystem, and we pledge our commitment to continue to work with all stakeholders to uphold this. We are working to figure out the motive behind the publication, and have the records straightened,” added the statement.

Flutterwave is the highest valued African start-up, recently announcing that it had raised Ksh29.5 billion in Series D funding, valuing the company at over Ksh354.3 billion as the brand continues to transform the way Africans transact on the continent and across the world.

It was the recent subject of a nationwide uproar as former employees accused the company of alleged corruption in fiery confessions that also dragged the members of its administration.

To make matters worse, the company was dragged into controversy when one of its former employees released an explosive blog post accusing its CEO of bullying and harassing her for years. She quit as Head of Implementation (Rest of Africa) in 2018.

An image of Flutterwave employees. /FILE