Flutterwave bets $40m on data, acquires open banking pioneer, Mono, to power Africa’s fintech future

Flutterwave has acquired Nigerian open banking startup Mono for $40 million in a strategic move to secure control over a vast network of financial data.

The deal grants Flutterwave access to Mono’s infrastructure, which links over eight million Nigerian bank accounts and has delivered more than 100 billion financial data points.

This acquisition marks Flutterwave’s decisive expansion beyond payment processing. Mono’s technology allows businesses—like fintechs, lenders, and payroll platforms—to securely access consented user bank data, revealing detailed financial behavior such as income, spending, and transaction history.

In an economy with limited formal credit records, this behavioral data is a critical asset for risk assessment and lending.

Unlike consumer apps, Mono operates as embedded infrastructure, serving over 200 business clients including major players like Moniepoint and PalmPay. Its systems have become foundational to Nigeria’s digital lending ecosystem.

For Flutterwave, integrating Mono means it can now offer a unified platform combining payments, income verification, recurring debits, and data-driven risk services. CEO Olugbenga ‘GB’ Agboola framed the deal as “building the connective tissue for Africa’s next phase of fintech growth,” where payments, data, and trust are intertwined.

The acquisition reflects global trends of consolidation in fintech infrastructure and provides Mono with the regulatory compliance scale and multi-country reach of Flutterwave to accelerate expansion.

It also offers a significant liquidity event for Mono’s investors during a period of scarce startup exits.

Ultimately, Flutterwave’s bet signals a belief that the next frontier in African fintech will be defined not just by moving money, but by owning the critical data layer that enables credit, commerce, and financial inclusion across the continent.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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