Flutterwave has announced the appointment of Oluwabankole Falade as Chief Regulatory and Government Relations Officer.
It is arguably the first time the payment company is filling such a role and is likely an indication of the expansive position it now holds in the financial sector, which is most likely to put in more direct contact with Regulatory agencies.
Flutterwave saw its valuation rise to over $1 billion after a $170 million Series C funding in March this year. The funding was led by growth-equity firms Avenir Growth Capital and Tiger Global. New and existing investors who participated include DST Global, Early Capital Berrywood, Green Visor Capital, Greycroft Capital, Insight Ventures, PayPal, Salesforce Ventures, Tiger Management, Worldpay FIS, and 9yards Capital.
Until his appointment, Falade was the director, Regulatory Affairs and Government Relations at IHS Towers. He also held key leadership roles at VISA and MTN, where he managed interactions with key government stakeholders and regulators in key markets across Africa. Bankole brings 18 years of experience in law, regulatory affairs, government relations and business development across financial and telecoms industries.
“With Bankole joining our team, we believe he is well placed to strengthen our existing relationships as well as support us in creating new relationships. Bankole will play an instrumental role in supporting us achieve our goal of creating endless possibilities for our customers with our key stakeholders in mind,” said Olugbenga ‘GB’ Agboola, Founder and CEO of Flutterwave.
In his role, he will support Flutterwave’s vision by providing strategic oversight and government relation strategies, while ensuring that the interest and needs of the business are aligned with that of the regulators.
“I’m excited about the work Flutterwave has done so far in building trust with regulators. We want the same things with the regulators; to grow businesses and economies through technology. My role remains to proactively work with stakeholders to better understand our interests and needs whilst ensuring we are always aligned with set standards and regulations. I’m happy to get to work,” Bankole Falade, Chief Regulatory and Government Relations Officer at Flutterwave said.
Bankole is an alumnus of the University of Aberdeen, Scotland with a certificate from the Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation. He is also a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administration, Nigeria and an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in the United Kingdom.
