Flutterwave Mono Acquisition Signals New Era for African Fintech

The Flutterwave Mono acquisition unites payments and open banking, marking a major consolidation move in Africa’s fast-growing fintech ecosystem

Africa’s largest fintech company, Flutterwave, has acquired Nigerian open banking startup Mono in an all-stock deal valued between $25 million and $40 million, according to people familiar with the transaction. The Flutterwave Mono acquisition brings together two of the continent’s most influential fintech infrastructure players at a time when Africa’s digital finance ecosystem is entering a new phase of consolidation.

A Strategic Infrastructure Merger

Flutterwave operates one of Africa’s widest payments networks, enabling local and cross-border transactions across more than 30 countries. Mono, often described as the “Plaid for Africa,” provides APIs that allow businesses to access bank data, initiate payments, and verify customer identities. Through the Flutterwave Mono acquisition, Flutterwave strengthens its infrastructure beyond payments, adding open banking and data intelligence capabilities to its platform.

Mono will continue to operate as an independent product, the companies confirmed. The startup has raised about $17.5 million from investors including Tiger Global, General Catalyst, and Target Global. Sources close to the deal said all investors were able to at least recoup their capital, with early backers reportedly seeing returns of up to 20x following the Flutterwave Mono acquisition.

Why Mono Matters in African Fintech

Founded in 2020, Mono addresses a critical challenge in African financial markets: the lack of standardized access to bank data. In countries like Nigeria, where credit bureaus are limited, lenders often rely on customers’ bank transaction histories to assess creditworthiness. Mono claims it has powered more than 8 million bank account linkages, covering around 12% of Nigeria’s banked population.

According to Mono CEO Abdulhamid Hassan, nearly all Nigerian digital lenders now rely on its infrastructure. That scale and market penetration made Mono a natural fit for Flutterwave, accelerating the logic behind the Flutterwave Mono acquisition.

Flutterwave’s Vision Beyond Payments

Flutterwave CEO Olugbenga ‘GB’ Agboola described the deal as a bet on Africa’s next stage of fintech growth. By combining payments, bank verification, identity checks, and data-driven risk assessment in one stack, Flutterwave aims to offer end-to-end financial infrastructure for businesses operating across Africa. The Flutterwave Mono acquisition allows the company to deliver these services while leveraging its existing licenses, compliance teams, and enterprise relationships.

A Signal of Industry Consolidation

The deal mirrors global fintech consolidation trends, including Visa’s attempted acquisition of Plaid in 2020. More broadly, the Flutterwave Mono acquisition signals a shift in African fintech, where startups that once aimed to grow independently may now find greater scale and sustainability by integrating into established platforms.