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Olugbenga Agboola is a Software Engineer

Olugbenga Agboola is a software engineer, entrepreneur and the CEO of Flutterwave, a Nigeria-based digital bank. Olugbenga Agboola recently sold his company to Google’s Project LF for an undisclosed amount.

  1. About Olugbenga Agboola

He is in his late 20s. He studied Computer Science at Columbia University and graduated with a degree in 2011. He also holds an MBA from Imperial College Business School, London. His co-founder, Chris Stewart, is also an international software guru who has worked with Google and Facebook. He is also a believer in the idea that Nigeria can become a software powerhouse, a country that is known for producing great engineers.

  1. About Flutterwave

Flutterwave is a new digital bank that has raised $12 million in funding. It works with your existing bank to make payments and check balances and act like you are accessing your regular banking service. Its mission is to make it easier and more convenient for Nigerians to access financial services, including loans, savings and payment products. The company also offers micro-insurance products, enabling its users to buy insurance for their cars, personal property or health in case of an accident with a slight premium collected on the monthly payment plans.

  1. About Google’s Project Rapid Finance

Project Rapid Finance is a $60-million investment by Google in African financial services. It will be headed by the former CEO of Visa, Africa, Ajay Banga. The project seeks to make it easier for an unbanked population to access financial services. The funding will open Flutterwave’s software platform to third parties and expand its network among merchants and banks. Agboola and his co-founder, Stewart, will work out of Google’s Silicon Valley office.

  1. About Y Combinator and Endeavor

Flutterwave has been a part of Y Combinator, a VC-backed accelerator, and Endeavor, a global investor focused on emerging markets like Nigeria. Both companies helped Flutterwave to be recognized in Silicon Valley and gain more visibility among investors. With Y Combinator, Flutterwave became part of an exclusive network that includes Airbnb, Dropbox and Reddit. Y Combinator usually takes 0.7 percent of the company’s equity, meaning it would get $100,000 from the $12 million investment it just got from Google.

  1. Angels and accelerators

Accelerators allow companies to be co-developed by companies and leading entrepreneurs. They are the gateway for many entrepreneurs, helping them to get funding. There are funding options such as angel investors, seed or venture capital investments or even government ones. Angel investors invest small amounts of money in a commodity they believe in but want to be part of its growth. They have no stake in the company and are not asking for a share of the profits. The seed investors have usually experienced entrepreneurs who invest small amounts of money to build the company.

Olugbenga Agboola has been named an entrepreneur to watch by Forbes. The BBC has featured him as a young black African tech entrepreneur. Through Flutterwave, Agboola intends to change the way Nigerians access financial services. He aims to help them make loans, manage their money, and save money.