About Wakanow
A father surprising his daughter with her first trip to Europe, a startup founder flying to East Africa to close a game-changing deal, and a newlywed African couple planning the honeymoon of their dreams in the Maldives, these are not “just” travels; they are lasting memories, and Wakanow is at the heart of it all.
Since 2008, Wakanow has grown from being just a travel company to becoming a leader in unforgettable destination experiences, making both local and global travel more accessible for hundreds of thousands of Africans. With operations in multiple African countries and beyond, the company redefined travel booking, planning, and holiday experiences. Recognizing that seamless payments are essential for great travel experiences, Wakanow partnered with Flutterwave to provide their customers with reliable cross-border payment. This strategic collaboration ensures that customers can make payments with ease and convenience, while also positioning Wakanow for scalable growth and the ability to meet its expansion goals and evolving payment needs.
The Challenge
Wakanow’s nearly two-decade journey to becoming a leading online travel company in Africa with growing influence in other verticals, such as fintech, has not been without its challenges. Managing payments from local and international travelers using multiple payment methods and currencies, often leading to unsuccessful bookings and delays in cross-border transactions, was a major pain point.
These challenges increased with complexities in currency conversions and regulatory compliance as Wakanow expanded its African presence and sought global expansion. This need led the group to seek a modern and reliable payment infrastructure system built for large enterprises. Wakanow found its answer in Flutterwave.
The Solution
Payouts and Collections
In 2017, after nearly 10 years of successful operation, Wakanow was at a turning point. The company had recorded many milestones, including gaining an exclusive license as an event reseller during the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, and it was evolving from a promising startup to a major player in Africa’s travel industry.
To support this growth and its expanded ambitions, Wakanow chose Flutterwave to seamlessly collect payments and make payouts across multiple markets. Though one year old at the time, Flutterwave was an equally ambitious startup aiming to overhaul payment processing on the continent and deliver on the promise of endless payment possibilities for its first enterprise clients, such as Wakanow. Using Flutterwave’s robust payment gateway across multiple markets, Wakanow gained access to:
- Seamless Cross-Border Payments: Wakanow customers have the freedom to pay how they want, while the company also receives settlements in their preferred currencies.
- Multiple Payment Methods: The company effortlessly accepts payments via credit or debit cards, as well as alternative payment methods such as bank transfers and mobile money.
The Outcome
Travel bookings require real-time transactions and instant confirmations. With Flutterwave’s innovative and scalable payment infrastructure, Wakanow has the capacity it needs to deliver exceptional booking experiences to customers across all its markets.
From an initial launch in Nigeria, Wakanow now seamlessly collects payments across Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates. This solidified its position as a leading travel platform in Africa. Wakanow’s success story is another testament to Flutterwave’s successful track record in providing enterprise businesses with the reliable payment infrastructure they need to deepen their African presence and expand their reach globally while adhering to the highest compliance and regulatory standards.
Bayo Adedeji, Group CEO of Wakanow, commented on shared commitment with Flutterwave to innovation and scalability, saying
“At Wakanow, we believe that a frictionless payment experience is key to making travel more accessible for Africans. Flutterwave’s expertise in African payments and comprehensive reach on the continent have been instrumental to our success story. Our shared commitment to innovation and priority for scalability has enabled us to scale seamlessly across and beyond Africa while ensuring our customers enjoy the convenience to pay with their preferred method from anywhere.”
Good to Know
Wakanow’s leadership has consistently demonstrated visionary decision-making, recognizing opportunities for growth and innovation. Choosing Flutterwave, a then one-year-old startup that already had landed a global ride-hailing giant as its customer, exemplifies this. The decision was not just about addressing immediate payment needs; it was an important bet in positioning Wakanow for its next decade of growth and digital transformation.
Leveraging Flutterwave’s Fintech-as-a-Service, Wakanow successfully launched its fintech subsidiary, Kalabash54. Kalabash54 provides flexible credit options for travelers booking on Wakanow, Air Peace, and other hospitality or travel companies. This allows both Wakanow’s existing and new customer base to pay for their travels in instalments, reducing the financial stress of large upfront payments.
In addition, Flutterwave provides Wakanow with offline payment solutions via Point-of-Sale (POS) devices for in-store and walk-in payments. This ensures that all customers, regardless of their payment preference, can complete transactions effortlessly, further demonstrating Flutterwave’s capacity to support enterprise merchants in every way they need.
Ready to expand your presence in Africa with Flutterwave? Let’s talk today.