Flutterwave’s Unicorn Status Is No Surprise (Opinion Article)

Flutterwave's 170mill series C raise and it achieving unicorn status come with no surprise to me. One may wonder why? As a founder, your goal is to create sustainable value and impact for the people to whom it is intended for. When you get people compensating you for the value you created for them and they come again and again and willing to recommend others then you have achieved what we call product-market-fit. And Flutterwave has achieved that, it comes with no surprise when investors are gashing money into this startup.

The Story of both Paystack and Flutterwave is quite interesting which teaches me more about timing, focusing on value creation, building pipelines, and positioning brand strategically for growth notwithstanding getting the right people to help you achieve such a milestone.

For your reference, Flutterwave and Paystack started some 6 years ago and it is been 6 years of what every startup goes through, it was not built overnight. It took time, patience, and when the right time came, they cashed out. I find this even more interesting as most founders want to see results real-quick so they focus on achieving growth at all cost (GAAC) which chokes them up in the short run. Patience is a tool, a culture, and a habit to cultivate which pays eventually.

I was not surprised also about the tremendous milestone this fintech has been able to achieve just in the 5 years. Over 9 billion dollars in transaction volumes from 140million transactions with about 250k customers across 20 African countries, yes is a big one. These milestones were not achieved on a silver platter considering the market in which this startup found itself, battling with regulators, competitors, and increasing overhead costs, but yes, they pulled this off. That is what it takes to build a venture. I am proud it was built by Africans, from Africa, and for Africans.

Nigeria is a rapidly growing market, especially considering the market size and the opportunities that come with it. It is to no surprise Flutterwave was able to achieve such a great and tremendous milestone. It demonstrates the success a startup can achieve if they leverage the size of the market they find themselves in and also are right on schedule to market.

There is no excuse not to grow as a founder regardless of the environment you tend to find yourself in. Value rewards with profitability, and patience is a guaranteed tool for success. I chanced on a sermon by Pastor Mensah Otabil, titled "Seed Time" and "Waiting". These two sermons summarize Flutterwave and Paystack's demonstrated success.

Norbert Dziwornu