Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, born on March 28, 1991, in Lagos, Nigeria, is an entrepreneur and business leader best known as a founder of Andela, a private platform that connects global talent with companies worldwide. The Nigerian executive co-founded the company in 2014. He also founded Flutterwave, a financial technology company focused on payment infrastructure.
New African magazine listed him among the 100 most influential Africans in 2019. He completed his early studies in Nigeria and later continued his education in the United States and Canada. He is also a partner and co-founder of Future Africa, an investment firm that supports Nigerian and African startups.
Los primeros años de Aboyeji en América del Norte
After attending a Jesuit school in Nigeria, Aboyeji moved to North America. He pursued a degree in legal studies with a specialization in international studies. He completed the program at St. Jerome’s University, an institution federated with the University of Waterloo in Canada.
During his years in the Jesuit school, he was active in student parliaments, youth alliances, debate societies and a variety of extracurricular activities. While living in Canada, he founded Bookneto Inc., an online platform created to support independent work for online professors. In 2013, the company was acquired by a Canadian education center.
Andela y Flutterwave
The company was founded in 2014 by several entrepreneurs, including Iyinoluwa Aboyeji. From the outset, Andela’s goal was to gather and elevate top talent through a global marketplace. Today, the company operates in more than 130 countries, applies artificial-intelligence functions, develops applications and provides extensive training for African developers and engineers.
Andela’s mission is to connect highly skilled Africans with major companies in the global labor market. The company manages the entire process—from talent recruitment and training to corporate integration. Andela received multimillion-dollar investments from Mark Zuckerberg and Google Ventures, among others.
One of the reasons behind Andela’s rapid expansion was its global impact and the interest it attracted from high-profile investors. Thanks to large-scale funding from major companies and CEOs, Andela was able to consolidate its place in the market. Aboyeji was part of the company from 2014 to 2016.
In 2016, after leaving Andela, Aboyeji founded Flutterwave, a payments-technology company focused on financial infrastructure in Africa. Until 2018 he served as CEO and founder, and during that period the company became one of the fastest-growing firms in its sector. According to African sources, more than 50 million transactions were processed.
Flutterwave not only completed millions of transactions but also developed partnerships with banking institutions. It became an accessible, easy-to-use resource for Africans. Aboyeji emphasized card payments, bank transfers, marketplace automation and account management.
His experience at Andela and his involvement in technological development provided the foundation to build a leading payments company. Flutterwave reached a valuation of 3 billion dollars, making it one of the top firms in the African market. With such rapid growth, thousands of investment funds supported the project with multimillion-dollar contributions.
Aboyeji’s story is marked by constant change and innovation. True to his principles and driven by a desire to support the African continent, he launched a new stage after stepping down as CEO of Flutterwave by co-founding Future Africa, a company that invests in early-stage startups.
El impulso de Iyinoluwa Aboyeji por Future Africa
Also known as the Fund for the Future of Africa, Future Africa was created by Aboyeji and other founders to support emerging entrepreneurs who have promising projects but lack the financial resources to enter the market.
Since Aboyeji joined, Future Africa has invested in more than 100 African companies, with more than 6 billion dollars committed. The firm has also participated in various investment programs to support early-stage African businesses. In 2019, Aboyeji became involved in politics when he served as deputy director-general for a presidential campaign.
Board member, founder of a construction company, participant in innovation and digital-economy groups and general partner at Future Africa—Aboyeji’s résumé continues to expand as he pursues new projects aimed at empowering and developing African talent.
Iyinoluwa Aboyeji has become a remarkable entrepreneur. From the creation of his first company during his university years to the launch of several ventures throughout his professional journey, the Nigerian executive has consistently pursued initiatives in talent development and technological growth across the African continent.
