Meet Iyin Aboyeji, the man building Africa's Silicon Valley
Iyin Aboyeji is a Nigerian techpreneur and investor. He is best known as a co-founder of multiple start-up companies, including Flutterwave, Future Africa, Talent City, Andela, and Partcloud. In 2015, Forbes listed him among the 30 Most Promising Young Entrepreneurs In Africa, and in 2019, New African featured him among the top 100 Most Influential Africans.
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Iyin Aboyeji’s rise to becoming one of Africa’s astute businessmen was not smooth sailing. He hails from a humble background and excelled in education before venturing into the business world in 2014. The entrepreneur is the brain behind some of Africa's most successful finance and technology companies. Beyond his career, he is a dedicated family man.
Profile summary
| Full name | Iyinoluwa Samuel Aboyeji |
| Gender | Male |
| Date of birth | 28 March 1991 |
| Age | 33 years old (as of January 2025) |
| Zodiac sign | Aries |
| Place of birth | Lagos, Nigeria |
| Current residence | Lagos, Nigeria |
| Nationality | Nigerian |
| Ethnicity | African |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Sexuality | Straight |
| Hair colour | Black |
| Eye colour | Dark brown |
| Siblings | 1 |
| Marital status | Married |
| Partner | Whittmey Payne Aboyeji |
| Children | 1 |
| School | Loyola Jersey College |
| College | Columbia International College, University of Waterloo |
| Profession | Techpreneur, investor |
| Net worth | $1 billion |
Iyin Aboyeji’s biography
The businessman was born Iyinoluwa Samuel Aboyeji in Lagos, Nigeria. His parents are from Warri, Delta State, but there is no information about their names and what they do for a living. He reportedly has an older brother who studied in Canada.
Iyin Aboyeji attended a primary school in the Yaba area, but when his family relocated to Warri, Delta State, he joined Loyola Jesuit College, Abuja, for his high school education.
What did Iyinoluwa Aboyeji study? He pursued an undergraduate course in international development, legal studies, and economics at Columbia International College. The entrepreneur also earned a B.A in legal studies from the University of Waterloo.
What is Iyinoluwa Aboyeji’s age?
The Nigerian entrepreneur was born on 28 March 1991 and is 33 years old as of January 2025. His zodiac sign is Aries.
Iyin Aboyeji’s career
Source: Original
Iyin Aboyeji’s career journey started immediately after completing his college education when he joined the United Nations Youth Alliance as an intern. He later became a manager at Imprint Publications, a Canadian publishing firm, before founding Bookneto Inc., an e-learning platform later acquired by the Canadian Innovation Centre in 2013.
According to his LinkedIn profile, in 2014, he co-founded Andela, a company that trains software engineers and connects them to top tech companies. The company raised $24 million from Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan's Fund.
In 2016, he co-founded Flutterwave, an integrated platform for Africans to receive and make payments from anywhere. The fintech company was highly successful, establishing over 50 bank and multinational partners.
In 2019, Iyin Aboyeji became a founding investor in Moove, a Nigerian fintech that provides revenue-based vehicle financing and financial services for mobility entrepreneurs globally. Around the same time, he became a founding investor in Talent City, now known as ITANA. The company helps tech and service-based businesses to access markets in Africa.
Currently, Iyin Aboyeji is a managing partner at Accelerate Africa, a company that invests in start-ups and early-stage SMEs in key sectors, such as agribusiness, technology and renewable energy. He is also a founding member of Future Africa, an innovation fund that provides capital, coaching, and community support to bold and visionary leaders.
Iyin Aboyeji’s net worth
According to Punch and IntelRegion, the Nigerian entrepreneur’s allegedly worth $1 billion. He boasts multiple income streams from his business ventures, including tech start-ups like Flutterwave and Andela.
Is Iyinoluwa Aboyeji married?
The Nigerian techpreneur is married to Whittmey Payne Aboyeji. They exchanged marriage vows in June 2018 and are parents of a daughter named Caris. Their love story began in Lagos when Iyinoluwa was at Flutterwave pursuing a master’s degree in Crisis Communication.
Iyinoluwa Aboyeji’s wife is an American award-winning television and film producer and advisor. She is the TV and film advisor at The National Cultural Foundation Barbados and the head of content production at Maame Productions.
In an interview shared on YouTube by Chibi Archives Production, Iyi Aboyeji gave a snippet of his wife and marital journey. He said:
I married an amazing woman of God. She is American, and we have one amazing child, Caris. I think God really led me when it came to the question of marriage because of the kind of life that I lead and live. The truth is, my friends always marvel. They are like, “How did you do it because my wife would never let me take some of the risks?”
What happened to Iyinoluwa Aboyeji at Flutterwave?
In October 2018, news broke out that Iyinoluwa was exiting Flutterwave amid claims of dismissal by his co-directors. However, the techpreneur came out clean about his reasons for leaving the giant fintech, saying in an interview:
That was a more complicated scenario because it was a range of things. I think the first thing whenever I join or leave companies I think I try to do is be guided by God in my big decisions and there is a way that God speaks to you when it’s time. I feel like my leaving Flutterwave was one of those moments. There were certain signs that it was time for me to take my leave, and so that is why I left in October 2018.
FAQs about Iyinoluwa Aboyeji
- Who is Iyinoluwa Aboyeji’s father? The techpreneur’s parents are unknown as he has never revealed details about them. However, they are from Warri, Delta State, Nigeria.
- Where is Iyinoluwa Aboyeji from? His hometown is Warri, Delta State, but he resides in Yaba, Lagos State, Nigeria.
- Who is the CEO of Future Africa? Iyinoluwa Aboyeji and Mia von Koschitzky-Kimani are the CEOs of Future Africa. Iyin Aboyeji has held the position since November 2014.
- Why did Iyinoluwa Aboyeji leave Flutterwave? He attributes his exit to multiple reasons, including God’s guidance, conflict of interest, and financial decisions.
- How much is Iyinoluwa Aboyeji worth? His net worth is alleged to be approximately $1 billion.
- Who is Iyinoluwa Aboyeji’s wife? He tied the knot with Whittmey Payne Aboyeji in June 2018.
- How many kids does Iyinoluwa Aboyeji have? He has a daughter named Caris.
- Is Iyinoluwa Aboyeji on X (Twitter)? He has no X (Twitter) account; he deactivated and deleted it. The entrepreneur shared a post on Instagram warning people to beware of impersonators and fraudsters claiming to be him.
Iyin Aboyeji is among the best entrepreneurs in the African tech and start-up ecosystem. He has built several companies that have positively changed business transactions and transformed people’s lives. Currently, he is the CEO of Future Africa and Accelerate Africa. He is married to an American wife, and they have a daughter.
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