In a groundbreaking move for Africa’s fintech and blockchain landscape, Flutterwave, the continent’s largest payment infrastructure company, has announced a strategic partnership with Polygon Labs. Polygon PoS will now serve as the primary blockchain network powering Flutterwave’s new cross-border payments system.

The partnership, revealed by Polygon Labs, marks a huge step toward transforming cross-border transactions across emerging markets. With Flutterwave having processed over $40 billion in transaction volume to date, this integration is expected to significantly reduce payment costs and accelerate settlement times for millions of businesses and individuals.

According to Polygon CEO Marc Boiron, the collaboration is a “massive vote of confidence in stablecoins as the future of cross-border payments.” He emphasized that stablecoins on Polygon can cut settlement times from days to seconds and reduce fees to mere pennies — a game-changer for African businesses that lose billions to slow and expensive international transfers each year.

Flutterwave’s CEO and Founder, Olugbenga ‘GB’ Agboola, highlighted the impact of the partnership on the continent’s digital economy:

“Businesses in emerging economies process billions in cross-border payments annually, yet still face high costs and slow settlement times. By partnering with Polygon, we’re introducing a solution that makes international payments even more simple and affordable than many local ones.”

The rollout will begin in phases — starting with a pilot program for Flutterwave for Business users in 2025, followed by full integration in 2026. The initial focus will be on enterprise clients such as Uber and Audiomack, enabling global multinationals to leverage stablecoin payment rails for instant, low-cost transactions. Later phases will expand to consumer remittances through the Flutterwave Send App, making fast, affordable cross-border payments accessible to everyday users.

This partnership tackles major challenges in the $2 trillion global cross-border payments market, where fees often exceed 8% in developing regions. With Polygon’s transaction costs averaging less than $0.01 and near-instant settlements, Flutterwave aims to deliver a vastly improved user experience and financial efficiency.

Beyond speed and affordability, the collaboration creates a blueprint for stablecoin adoption in emerging markets, demonstrating how blockchain infrastructure can complement traditional banking systems. Flutterwave currently operates in 30+ African countries, supporting over 150 currencies, positioning it perfectly to lead this digital finance revolution.

As both companies continue to push the boundaries of innovation, the Flutterwave–Polygon alliance represents a pivotal moment for real-world blockchain adoption, setting a new benchmark for how decentralized technology can solve real payment challenges at scale.