In a uncommon intra-African crypto acquisition, Nigerian crypto startup Roqqu has acquired Flitaa, one other crypto change with operations in Nigeria and Kenya, marking its entry into East Africa’s rising digital asset market. The corporate didn’t disclose the worth of the all-cash deal.
The acquisition, which Roqqu claims has acquired regulatory approval, permits the corporate to bypass Kenya’s slow-moving crypto licencing course of and sidestep the hurdles that rivals like Busha and Luno have confronted. It additionally indicators a strategic shift as Roqqu deepens its African footprint past Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa, and builds a case for crypto consolidation throughout the continent.
“We’re not simply constructing to increase to Europe,” Ayo Shonibare, Roqqu’s chief advertising and marketing officer, mentioned. “We additionally need to increase into our house base [Africa], so it solely is sensible that in our quest for this enlargement, we additionally increase into our own residence territory.”
As a part of the acquisition, Flitaa will proceed to function independently utilizing Roqqu’s infrastructure, however its management and workers have exited the corporate, with severance packages offered. Nice Onomor, a director at Roqqu, will head Flitaa’s operations and function its CEO.
The mixing offers Flitaa customers entry to Roqqu’s broader providers whereas stabilising the Kenyan startup’s operations, which had suffered from restricted funding, weak infrastructure, and a slim product providing. The mixed entity now positions Roqqu for deeper enlargement into Uganda, Rwanda, and Tanzania.
“We need to stabilise the operations of Flitaa and ensure they’re as sturdy as Roqqu’s,” mentioned Shonibare. “Our purpose is to make sure that present and new customers get pleasure from the identical expertise throughout each platforms.”
Flitaa’s present groundwork in Kenya made the acquisition precious for Roqqu. The crypto startup had already arrange native operations, giving Roqqu a direct entry into the Kenyan market with out the friction of constructing from scratch. Shonibare famous that Flitaa had fulfilled Kenya’s regulatory necessities earlier than the acquisition.
“Flitaa had already figured it out in Kenya,” he defined. “Reasonably than undergo your complete problem of organising from scratch, we noticed worth of their groundwork, particularly their plans to increase into Uganda, Rwanda, and Tanzania. That they had already arrange the operational processes in these nations.”
Based in 2021, Flitaa constructed its presence by itemizing lesser-traded cryptocurrency tokens. The startup grew to 72,544 customers—with most of its operations in Kenya—and processed round 560,000 transactions month-to-month, in accordance with inside figures. Its key benefit lay in its deep M-PESA integration and native traction in Kenya’s $100 million crypto market. This M-PESA integration allowed clients to simply purchase, promote, and convert their crypto belongings to Kenyan Shillings.
Joseph Mutati served as Flitaa’s nation supervisor in Kenya, serving to to deepen the startup’s traction within the nation. He additionally led the startup’s engagement with regulators and native companions.
Whereas Flitaa lacked mental property (IP) and regulatory licences and suffered poor app evaluations, its person base and compliance posture made it a precious off-ramp for Roqqu. M-PESA entry is especially vital in Kenya, the place banks are at present barred from offering providers to crypto corporations.
Two funding analysts who spoke to TechCabal estimated the worth of the deal to be between $85,000 and $350,000, citing Flitaa’s small person base and the restricted spending energy of its African clients, which stored its income potential low.
Joseph Mutati didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon the valuation.
Roqqu declined to reveal the worth of the deal.
Why this issues
Roqqu’s acquisition of Flitaa is the primary publicly disclosed intra-African consolidation within the crypto sector. The deal indicators a maturity milestone for the continent’s crypto ecosystem. It additionally signifies a rising urgency amongst African crypto startups to speed up cross-border enlargement whereas regulatory frameworks throughout a number of elements of the continent stay in flux.
By buying a regionally embedded platform, Roqqu enters Kenya with out having to attend for formal licencing beneath the nation’s pending Digital Asset Service Supplier (VASP) framework, which remains to be beneath evaluation by a multi-agency activity drive.
This transfer echoes related urgency seen in 2023 when Blockfinex acquired Nigerian startup Fluidcoins in a cross-market transaction. That deal got here near an intra-African milestone however didn’t fairly qualify, as Blockfinex is headquartered within the UAE regardless of its founder, Danny Oyekan, being Nigerian.
The deal additionally indicators to different African crypto corporations that regional merger and acquisition (M&A) is now a viable development technique, not only a survival tactic.
Roqqu marches inwards
Roqqu, based in 2019, has not raised any exterior funding and financed the Flitaa acquisition by means of inside money move.
Its presence in Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa has allowed the corporate to construct a pan-African person base. In South Africa, Roqqu has acquired regulatory approval to supply crypto providers however has but to safe a crypto-asset service supplier (CASP) licence. In Nigeria, it stays one of the broadly used crypto exchanges.
The corporate additionally holds a digital foreign money licence in Europe, permitting it to function throughout 28 nations within the European Financial Space (EEA).
With this acquisition, Roqqu is now turning its focus again to the continent. The corporate is trying to increase deeper into East Africa, utilizing Flitaa’s operational groundwork as a launchpad.
“Our plan is to deepen Roqqu’s footprints throughout the African continent,” mentioned Benjamin Onomor, Roqqu CEO. “We need to assist thousands and thousands of individuals interact with this Web3 financial system for the advantage of the continent and everybody in it.”
The entry of larger gamers into Kenya indicators rising curiosity within the nation’s crypto financial system. With stronger training and hiring ramp-ups anticipated quickly, Kenya’s crypto adoption may improve within the coming years, opening the marketplace for extra competitors.
Roqqu expects the competitors to accentuate, with deep-pocketed overseas crypto corporations comparable to Binance, Bitget, OKX, Huobi, and Paxful additionally taking part in out there. Clearer crypto regulatory frameworks throughout East Africa will assist Roqqu consolidate its pan-African presence.
“That is our first acquisition, however will probably be the primary of many to return,” mentioned Shonibare.
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