African payments giant Flutterwave has conducted a strategic overhaul of the compliance aspect of its business following the exit of Amaresh Mohan, the company’s outgoing Chief Risk Officer. Mohan was instrumental in deepening the fintech’s risk and compliance capabilities.
This singular change implies a transformation of the compliance department to revolve around three key persons. Mohan stays on as an advisor to the financial technology company, driving operational efficiency and regulatory oversight.
At the centre of the changes is Prashant Kalia, who joined the team as Chief Risk and Compliance Officer. Kalia brings over two decades of experience from global giants like Stripe, Amazon, American Express, and Circle. He has a background in building large-scale risk and compliance systems to match global best practices.
Mobolaji “Mo” Bammeke, who has served as Chief Compliance Officer since 2019, will now become Chief Regulatory and Data Protection Officer. With past roles at JP Morgan and Deutsche Bank, Bammeke has already shaped much of Flutterwave’s compliance journey.
Oluwabankole “Bankole” Falade will continue as Chief Legal, Regulatory, and Public Policy Officer, expanding his responsibilities. Falade is a lawyer with senior experience at MTN, Visa, and IHS Towers. His background in government relations and regulatory affairs will be critical as Flutterwave balances African regulatory challenges with global expansion.
Click to signupThese appointments arrive at a crucial time for Flutterwave. The company has its gaze set on the elusive task of securing a long-awaited IPO move on the Nasdaq stock exchange. While the payments giant, reportedly valued at $3 billion, has confirmed that the plans are still in the works, it must first turn a profit and put its house in order before making that big move.
To attain that level, the fintech has shed every weight of the business that could impact its long-term listing plans. It has laid off a significant portion of its staff and repositioned its business to focus on remittance and enterprise, its two largest revenue drivers.
In the meantime, Flutterwave UK Limited, the company’s British subsidiary, has experienced growth while simultaneously driving a case for listing in Nigeria. Last year, the startup acquired more than 30 new licenses in the United States to expand its remittance business. It now offers services to remit funds to Africa in the United Kingdom, more than 50 US states, and every European Union nation.
However, the fintech has not been completely successful in withstanding fraud and breach cases, for which this latest reshuffle was designed. Under Mohan’s 19-month tenure as Chief Risk Officer from December 2023 to date, Flutterwave has not been spared from key fraud and breach issues.
In February 2024, the fintech giant tried to contact over 6,000 account holders across 35 banks and financial institutions to recover ₦19 billion ($24 million) illegally transferred by POS merchants after a High Court ruling. In April of that same year, the company lost ₦11 billion ($7 million) to a security breach.
2024 was a storm in a teacup for the tech firm, as it recorded a high number of employee turnover from the top echelon of management.
Olugbega Agboola, Flutterwave CEO’s optimism is well noted. However, the company has a long way to go if it will eventually get the Nasdaq nod to list its shares in the not-too-distant future.
