Kenyan Court Freezes 22 Accounts Belonging To Flutterwave, As Crackdown Continues

About 22 accounts belonging to Nigerian financial technology (Fintech) company, Flutterwave, has been blocked from transferring or withdrawing by Kenyan court, amid investigation by authorities in the country. 

Kenya’s Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) had filed for a court order to restrain Flutterwave from accessing the accounts which has $3.3 million spread through United Bank for Africa (UBA), Access Bank, and Safaricom M-Pesa paybill numbers. 

Justice Grace Nzioka ordered that, “A preservation order be, and is hereby issued prohibiting 1st respondent or his agents or representative from transacting, withdrawing, transferring, using any other dealings in respect to the money held in the account.” 

It was gathered that 19 M-Pesa paybill accounts owned by Flutterwave carries Sh68 million ($566,308.03), Sh112 million ($932,870.58), and Sh14.5 million ($120,784.34). 

Two UBA accounts hold Sh110 million ($916,136.99) and Sh66.7 million ($556,622), while one account in Access Bank contains Sh29.1 million ($242,405.54). 

Flutterwave’s operation in Kenya has witnessed multiple clampdown from different government authorities in the country in the last five months, with the Central Bank of Kenya also disclosing that the firm is running an illegal operation, cause it doesn’t have license to operate in Kenya. 

Another account belonging to Flutterwave had also been frozen by a different court order in a crackdown against 62 bank accounts of companies in Kenya two months ago. 

It was also accused of aiding card scams and other illegal transactions on its payment platform, however, Flutterwave denied the allegation, “Claims of financial improprieties involving the company in Kenya are entirely false, and we have the records to verify this.”