Flutterwave, a leading payments company in Africa, has partnered with Polygon Labs to enhance cross-border payments, making them faster and more affordable using blockchain technology, as announced on Thursday.
This collaboration will integrate the Polygon (POL) network as the primary infrastructure for Flutterwave’s upcoming stablecoin-based payment solution, according to a press release issued to CoinDesk.
The initial phase of the launch, beginning later this year, will target multinational business clients like Uber and Audiomack. A more extensive rollout is set for next year, expanding the service to include Flutterwave’s Send App for retail remittances.
Currently, cross-border payment processes in many African countries are both slow and expensive, with average fees surpassing 8%, as noted by the firms. Delays in fund clearance can hinder businesses, causing them to lose access to working capital or miss out on growth prospects.
Stablecoins, which are cryptocurrencies pegged to fiat currencies such as the U.S. dollar, strive to provide a more cost-effective and quicker alternative to traditional payment systems by executing transactions on-chain and avoiding banks. Stablecoins have evolved into a $300 billion asset class and are becoming increasingly prevalent in emerging markets for daily transactions and savings.
“Companies in developing economies manage billions in cross-border payments each year, yet they continue to encounter high fees and slow settlement times,” stated Olugbenga Agboola, founder and CEO of Flutterwave. “Through our collaboration with Polygon, we’re launching a solution that simplifies international payments, making them more affordable even than many local ones.”
With this initiative, Flutterwave joins a growing cadre of financial institutions exploring stablecoin solutions on blockchain rails to address persistent payment challenges. Notably, Western Union, a global leader in money transfers, recently revealed plans to introduce its own stablecoin based on the Solana blockchain in collaboration with U.S. crypto bank Anchorage Digital next year. Meanwhile, PayPal (PYPL) has introduced its PYUSD stablecoin in partnership with Paxos this year, and Stripe is in the process of developing its own blockchain and stablecoin infrastructure.
