Flutterwave CEO calls for seamless payment infrastructure at CNN Global Perspectives Summit

By:  Nana Appiah Acquaye

Flutterwave Founder and CEO Olugbenga “GB” Agboola has outlined a bold vision for Africa’s digital future, describing Flutterwave as the “payment superhighway” that will power intra-African trade and connect the continent to global markets. Speaking during a panel session at CNN’s inaugural Global Perspectives Summit, Agboola said that Africa’s economic acceleration will depend heavily on interoperable payment systems that allow money to move as freely as ideas.

The summit, held under the theme “Africa’s Role in a Changing World,” gathered global policymakers, innovators and private sector leaders to examine how Africa can shape a more inclusive global growth model.

Mr. Agboola participated in a panel moderated by CNN anchor Richard Quest alongside Airwallex Co-founder and President Lucy Liu, Google Africa Managing Director Alex Okosi and MTN Group Fintech CEO Serigne Dioum. He highlighted regulatory fragmentation as a major obstacle for scaling fintechs on the continent, but pointed to the recent Ghana–Rwanda MoU on cross-border fintech collaboration as evidence of progress.

He said African regulators increasingly recognise the need to enable innovation and support companies with infrastructure and market knowledge to accelerate growth. Other panellists agreed, noting that regulatory evolution across Africa is becoming more supportive of open, connected digital economies.

Citing Africa’s early leadership in mobile money and alternative payments, Agboola stated that the continent must now focus on building infrastructure that links these systems together. He said Flutterwave is advancing this ambition through initiatives like its partnership with Polygon to develop Africa’s largest stablecoin payments infrastructure.