Flutterwave, Africa's leading fintech startup, is set to contact over 6,000 account holders across 35 banks to recover ₦19 billion (*$24 million) following a High Court ruling on February 1.
The Mareva injunction empowers Flutterwave to reclaim funds illegally transferred by POS merchants in October 2023. Despite a technical glitch leading to automatic transfers, Flutterwave ensured immediate communication with banks and fintechs. However, merchants, not entitled to the funds, retained them.
The recovery efforts underscore the importance of Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures, highlighting challenges faced by neobanks and traditional banks in maintaining accurate customer information.
This incident comes amid a surge in fraud attempts in Nigeria's financial services sector, prompting the Central Bank to mandate stricter KYC measures starting March 2024.
The success of Flutterwave's recovery hinges on the cooperation of financial institutions and the effectiveness of updated KYC practices
