Ripple backs Flutterwave's Series E, pushing valuation to $3.2bn with stablecoin integration plans

Flutterwave has received a strategic investment from Ripple as part of its Series E round, valuing the Nigerian fintech at $3.2 billion.

The partnership will integrate Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin and the XRP Ledger into Flutterwave's payment rails and Send App remittance platform to deliver faster, cheaper cross-border settlements across Africa.

Founded in 2016, Flutterwave has raised over $500 million in total funding and processed more than one billion transactions worth over $50 billion, with the new capital aimed at scaling stablecoin-enabled payments for SMEs and multinationals on the continent.

Institutional blockchain players are now placing direct bets on Africa's payment infrastructure, not just observing from the sidelines, and Flutterwave's $3.2 billion valuation confirms it remains the continent's most capitalised fintech despite years of regulatory and reputational headwinds.

For Nigerian businesses and SMEs that currently absorb high FX charges and settlement delays on cross-border transactions, the planned RLUSD integration into Flutterwave's network could meaningfully reduce costs if the technical rollout proceeds on schedule.

Nigerian fintech competitors including Moniepoint and Interswitch will face pressure to articulate their own stablecoin or blockchain settlement strategies as enterprise clients begin to benchmark against real-time, lower-cost alternatives.

It is too early to know how the Central Bank of Nigeria will respond to stablecoin settlement flows operating through a licensed payment processor, but that regulatory question is the single most important signal to watch as this partnership moves from announcement to live infrastructure.