Flutterwave, Africa’s largest fintech firm, has acquired Nigerian open-banking startup Mono in an all-stock deal valued at between $25 million and $40 million.

The acquisition unites two key fintech infrastructure players as Flutterwave moves to bolster its payments ecosystem with open-banking, data and identity capabilities.

Mono will continue operating as an independent product, with its leadership and day-to-day operations unchanged.

The deal enables Mono’s investors to at least recover their capital, with some early backers reportedly posting returns of up to 20x.

Flutterwave said Mono’s platform offers secure access to financial data, identity verification and account-to-account payment services—capabilities seen as increasingly vital as African markets shift toward authenticated, bank-based payments.

Commenting on the acquisition, Flutterwave Founder and CEO, Olugbenga Agboola, said the deal underscores the company’s long-term vision for Africa’s financial infrastructure.

“Payments, data, and trust cannot exist in silos. Open banking provides the connective tissue, and Mono has built critical infrastructure in this space. This acquisition allows us to expand what’s possible for businesses operating across African markets, while staying grounded in security, compliance, and local relevance,” Agboola said.

Mono Founder and CEO Abdulhamid Hassan said the acquisition builds on an existing relationship between the two firms, which started with a partnership in 2021.

“Mono’s capabilities across financial data access, direct bank payments, and identity verification, combined with Flutterwave’s unmatched scale and global reach, create something more defensible and comprehensive,” Hassan stated.

Flutterwave said integrating Mono’s open-banking APIs will enhance faster merchant onboarding, improve verification processes, reduce fraud, and enable seamless account-to-account payments across multiple African markets.

Beyond payments, the collaboration is expected to streamline compliance-heavy processes for businesses, including identity checks and bank verification.

Developers and ecosystem partners are also set to benefit from a more unified environment where payments and financial data infrastructure coexist, reducing complexity and accelerating product development.

The companies added that the acquisition deepens Flutterwave’s vertical capabilities, with potential gains such as stronger margins, greater platform stickiness, and more differentiated infrastructure.