Flutterwave Founder and CEO Olugbenga “GB” Agboola has described stablecoins and open banking as the “operating system” for economic growth across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) over the next decade.
Speaking at the 2026 World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos during Semafor’s Next 3 Billion event, Agboola said the region must build financial infrastructure that drives productivity at scale to outperform global peers, especially as the global economy is projected to grow by just 3.1 percent.
“Stablecoins and open banking are not abstract concepts; they are practical tools powering productivity at scale,” he said, highlighting their role in enabling seamless financial transactions and access to reliable data.
Agboola cited Flutterwave’s acquisition of Mono, a leading open banking platform, as a foundational step toward this vision. Open banking allows secure, interoperable access to financial data, helping lenders make informed decisions and enabling businesses to offer tailored products.
He also pointed to Flutterwave’s stablecoin infrastructure as key to transforming cross-border trade by cutting settlement times from days to minutes. “When settlement is instant and data flows seamlessly, innovation follows. That is how you turn exclusion into opportunity for the next three billion people,” he added.
Agboola’s remarks reflect Flutterwave’s focus on building modern financial rails that empower enterprise merchants and small businesses, the backbone of Africa’s economy, to operate faster and more efficiently. By combining instant settlements with reliable data access, the company aims to expand economic opportunities and integrate the MEA region more fully into the global economy.
