The Kenyan Government in a bid to combat money laundering and other financial crimes has frozen over Sh6.2 billion in 62 bank accounts allegedly belonging to popular Nigerian start-up, Flutterwave.
The High Court received an application from the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) to freeze the billions stashed in Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB), Equity, EcoBank, KCB, and Co-operative Bank accounts. The ARA suspected card fraud and went on to block transfers and withdrawals. They also filed a petition to forfeit the cash to the Kenyan government.
The ARA revealed in court filings that they suspected the money was gotten from fraudulent activities and sent under the guise of payment for goods and services. The agency’s investigators believe the money was transferred from different countries and spread across six companies.
The ARA explained that “the 1st Respondent’s bank accounts received billions in a suspected scheme of money laundering and the same deposited in different bank accounts in an attempt to conceal or disguise the nature, source, location, disposition, or movement of the said funds”.
“The transactions were done using cards issued by the same bank, at the same point, on the same day, raising suspicion of card fraud.”
Their findings showed that Flutterwave had suspiciously deposited a whopping Sh5.17 billion in 29 accounts at GTB, Equity, and Eco Bank in Kenya shillings, US dollars, Euros and Sterling pounds. Then the cash was transferred to various organizations.
But Flutterwave Payment Technology, a subsidiary of the digital behemoth, says it processes online payments, provides a worldwide point of sale, and offers a payment technology for merchants.
The subsidiary, registered in the United States is co-owned by Nigerians: Olugbenga Agboola, Adeleke Christopher, Iyinoluwa Samuel, and Flutterwave Inc.
The High Court then froze the money sent to the company accounts of Boxtrip Travels and Tours (Sh467.1 million), Bagtrip Travels Ltd (Sh436 million), Elivalat Fintech Ltd (Sh1.16 million), Hupesi Solutions (Sh1.6 million), and Cruz Ride Auto Ltd (Sh2.4 million).
The agency also froze Sh14 million deposited to an account bearing Simon Karanja Ngige, director of Cruz Ride Auto Ltd.
Court filings show that Flutterwave received Sh12.4 billion between November 2020 and April this year in a single account at Equity Bank. The figures sounded outrageous and hard to link to the African start-up.
Another reason why the ARA suspected fraudulent activities was the transfer of the money at Equity Bank to Rem X LTD. And Rem X LTD was already facing an Sh5.6 billion money-laundering suit. (Rem X Ltd is owned by Nehikhare Eghosasere and Demuren Olufemi Olukunmi.)
According to the agency, “Further investigations established that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the funds are proceeds of crime obtained from illegitimate sources by the respondent which require to be preserved pending the filing and hearing of an intended forfeiture application”.
The ARA believes that the transactions were used to move illegally-acquired cash since no explanations or supporting documents have been tendered.
