The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) says Flutterwave and Chipper Cash are not licensed to operate in the country.
Patrick Njoroge, CBK governor, said this on Thursday in Nairobi, the country’s capital, at a media briefing following its monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting.
Flutterwave is a Nigerian fintech company that provides a payment infrastructure for global merchants and payment service providers.
Chipper Cash, founded in 2018, enables a person to send and receive money across borders. It is available in Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana and South Africa.
Speaking to journalists, Njoroge said the two fintech firms are not allowed to operate remittance services or offer payment solutions to merchants in the East African country.
Flutterwave And Chipper Cash Are Not Licensed Payment Service Operators, Says Kenyan Central Bank
“Flutterwave is not licensed to operate as a remittance provider or for that matter as a payments service provider in Kenya,” Njoroge said.
“They are not licensed to operate and therefore they shouldn’t be operating, and Chipper Cash we could also say the same.”
Flutterwave is currently confronted with allegations of money laundering by Kenya’s Assets Recovery Agency (ARA).
Last month, a Kenyan high court froze more than Sh6.2 billion spread in 62 bank accounts belonging to Flutterwave and four Kenyans.
The court issued the freezing order following suspicion that the funds are proceeds of card fraud and money laundering.