The High Court in Nairobi has frozen an additional Sh400.6 million belonging to Nigerian start-up Flutterwave.
The money held in three accounts at UBA and Access banks and 19 Safaricom MPesa paybill numbers is linked to card fraud and money laundering, according to Business Daily.
The funds were frozen following an application filed by the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) to block the transfer or withdrawal, pending the filing of a petition to have the money forfeited to the government.
The funds include Sh110 million in one UBA account, another $556,622 (Sh66.7 million), Sh29.1 million in Access Bank and Sh68 million, Sh112 million and Sh14.5 million in 19 Safaricom paybill numbers.
High Court judge Grace Nzioka barred the company from withdrawing, transferring or dealing with the money, pending the conclusion of investigations by ARA.
“A preservation order be and is hereby issued prohibiting 1st respondent or his agents or representative from transacting, withdrawing, transferring, using any other dealings in respect to the money held in the account,” ruled Justice Nzioka.
In documents filed in court, ARA says that millions of shillings whose source is suspected to be money laundering and card fraud were wired to the bank accounts and MPesa paybill.
ARA argues that debits amounting to Sh136 million, including chargebacks, reversals and refunds, are an indication of card fraud. Another account was used to convert dollars into shillings, in a scheme of layering and intermingling.
This comes barely two months after the court froze a total of Sh6.2 billion in 62 bank accounts belonging to Flutterwave and four Kenyans.
Flutterwave Payments Technology ltd is owned by Nigerians Olugbenga Agboola, Adeleke Christopher, Iynoluwa Samuel and Flutterwave Inc which is registered in the US.
David Mouko Elizaphan Omaanya, a Kenyan national, is also a director but has zero shares in the company.
