By
Babafemi Adebajo
July 26th, 2023
To complete transactions on Flutterwave, users can either scan QR codes or generate one-time tokens using the app.
Flutterwave, a Nigerian fintech company that provides commercial financing and mobile payment services, has announced that over 1,000,000 merchants can now accept eNaira as a payment on their platform. The option is an addition to existing methods such as cards, bank transfers, Barter by Flutterwave, etc.
Flutterwave CEO Olugbenga GB Agboola said:
“With our new adoption of eNaira as a payment method on Flutterwave, we’re enabling various payment methods to merchants and their customers to ensure everyone has access to payment solutions that work for them. Flutterwave will continue to strive to be at the forefront of innovation as we develop and implement new solutions to facilitate global payments for our customers.”
To complete transactions on Flutterwave, users can either scan QR codes or generate one-time tokens using the app.
CBN Expanding eNaira Use
The Central Bank of Nigeria launched its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), the eNaira, back in October 2021 and became the first African country to do so. eNaira provides a unique form of money denominated in Naira (the currency of Nigeria). It serves as both a medium of exchange and a store of value, offering better payment prospects in retail transactions when compared to cash payments.
The eNaira digital currency app and its merchant wallet also became available for download after going live. Through the app, customers are able to identify a bank of their choice, connect to their bank accounts and carry out transactions. Initially, Nigeria was planning to increase the number of app users to 8 million. However, the currency’s adoption has been quite slow as lenders worry the app would compete with their online platforms and reduce fee revenue. Since its launch, the eNaira app has reached nearly a million downloads and 270,000 active wallets.
In May this year, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced support for eNaira payments for all kinds of utility services, such as electricity bills, TV subscriptions, and flight tickets. Besides, recently, the bank revealed its readiness to expand the use of eNaira project to reach more people. In particular, the authorities would like to see eNaira in use among the unbanked population.
About Flutterwave
Flutterwave is a Nigerian fintech company that provides a payment infrastructure for global merchants and payment service providers across the continent. In February this year, the company raised $250 million in a Series D round that brought its valuation to over $3 billion. As a result, Flutterwave became the highest valued African startup. In March 2021, the number of its users was 290,000. Now, as many as 900,000 businesses globally use Flutterwave to process payments in 150 currencies and across different payment modes.
The company is contributing to the adoption of eNaira in Nigeria. Therefore, it is now accepting the eNaira currency as a payment method.
Earlier, Flutterwave obtained a Switching and Processing License issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). It is widely regarded as CBN’s most valuable payment processing license. This license allows Flutterwave to offer transaction switching and card processing services to customers.