In the mid of February 2023, Flutterwave, one of the biggest African fintech companies, experienced a significant hack that saw hackers transfer over ₦2.9 billion from its accounts. The hack was a considerable blow to Flutterwave, which has been making strides in the African fintech industry and had recently closed a $400 million Series C funding round.
Flutterwave’s legal counsel, Albert Onimole, reported the case to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, State Criminal Intelligence Department, Panti, Yaba, Lagos, on February 19, 2023. According to Onimole’s letter, the hack occurred about two weeks before that date, on February 13, 2023. The letter contained a list of accounts that had received the money, but unfortunately, the police could not freeze the funds.
Flutterwave alleges that some commercial banks allowed the money to be moved to other accounts, which made the money trail wider. To investigate accounts holding the stolen funds across various financial institutions in Nigeria, S.A. Adedesin, Legal Officer, State CID, Panti, Yaba, Lagos, filed a suit in the Magistrate Court of Lagos (Yaba Magisterial District sitting at Yaba) to support Flutterwave’s claims.
The suit is between the Commissioner of Police and 27 financial institutions in Nigeria, including Access Bank, Providus Bank, Union Bank, Keystone Bank, PalmPay, First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Kuda Bank, Zenith Bank, First Bank of Nigeria, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB), United Bank for Africa (UBA), Polaris Bank, Wema Bank, Union Bank, Sterling Bank, Ecobank, Paycom, Fidelity Bank, Eyowo, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Opay, VFD Microfinance Bank, Carbon, Moniepoint, Al-Hayat Microfinance Bank, PiggyVest, and Nomba (previously Kudi). Some accounts have already been frozen.
According to the motion filed by Adebesin, 107 accounts, including fifth beneficiaries of those accounts, are to be placed on lien/Post-No-Debit (PND). While it is unclear at this time whether the court has ruled in favor of Inspector Micheal’s motion, some people have confirmed that their accounts have been frozen in connection with the hack.
The hack is a massive blow to Flutterwave, which has been making strides in the African fintech industry. The company’s success has been attributed to its innovative solutions, which include its flagship product, Flutterwave Pay, a payments platform that allows businesses and individuals to make and receive payments across Africa.
The hack raises questions about how hackers got past Flutterwave’s security and what this means for the unicorn’s customers. The incident is also a reminder of the growing threat of cybercrime in Africa, where many financial institutions are struggling to keep up with the evolving tactics of hackers.
Flutterwave has responded to the incident, stating that they are preparing an official statement on the issue. For now, the company is focused on cooperating with the police and the financial institutions involved in the suit to recover the stolen funds and bring the perpetrators to justice.
