NIGERIA – Flutterwave, a Nigerian payments firm, is seeking fresh funding at a valuation of US$3 billion or more, a figure that would roughly triple its last valuation, reports Bloomberg.

The start-up, which has offices in Lagos in Nigeria and San Francisco in the US, recently held discussions with potential investors, the people said.

Terms of the funding round haven’t been finalized, and it’s possible they may change.

A Flutterwave spokeswoman declined to comment.

Led by Chief Executive Officer Olugbenga Agboola, the company in March 2021 said it had achieved unicorn status after raising US$170 million in a round led by Avenir Growth Capital and Tiger Global Management.

Other participating investors in that deal included DST Global, Greycroft, Insight Partners, and Salesforce Ventures, the company said at the time.

In March 2021, Flutterwave said it would collaborate with PayPal to enable the US giant’s global customers to pay African merchants using Flutterwave’s platform. The start-up enables the creation of virtual Mastercard and Visa cards, among other payments services, according to its website.

Flutterwave has said it facilitates cross-border transactions across Africa for companies including Facebook, Uber Technologies, and Booking.com.

As of March 2021, the start-up said it had processed more than 140 million transactions worth over US$9 billion in aggregate and that its revenue had risen at a compound annual growth rate of 225% between 2018 and 2020

The startup, which facilitates cross-border transactions across Africa for companies including Facebook Inc., Uber Technologies Inc., and Booking.com had processed more than 140 million transactions worth over US$9 billion in aggregate as of March 2021.

Earlier this month October 2021, Airtel Money signed a partnership with the startup, aimed at enhancing payment and transaction options for businesses across Eastern Africa.

The partnership will allow businesses integrating Flutterwave in Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Kenya, and Rwanda, to receive payments from Airtel Money customers, as well as make bulk payments into Airtel Money wallets.

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