- Speaking at Black Ops' Operators Happy Hour event in Lagos, Uwem Uwemakpan, head of investments at Launch Africa, said it is critical for founders to bring operators into the business from the get-go.
- Whichever way we look at it, it is evident that the current economic reality is challenging with inflation soaring in emerging markets, especially Africa. In Nigeria, inflation is at 26.72%, and in Ghana, it’s at a whopping 40.1%, and even up to 63.30% in Sudan. The average annual inflation in Sub-…
- Although people frown at the idea of chipping at their salaries before payday, their financial behaviour shows that it is what they need.
https://techcabal.com/2023/11/03/meet-the-startups-that-say-your-salary-shouldnt-wait-till-payday/(opens in a new tab)
- In October, Chowdeck, a YC-backed Nigerian food delivery startup, delivered food worth ₦1 billion to its customers across four Nigerian cities. Its CEO, Femi Aluko, shares with TechCabal how the startup did it.
- Chipper Cash, which claims to have issued one million virtual cards, will leverage Visa’s experience and investment across more areas of its business.
- WeWork South Africa distances itself from WeWork Global's bankruptcy
By Ephraim Modise
Link: techcabal.com/2023/11/01/wework-sa-wework-global-bankrupcy/
- Swvl's long-awaited 2022 financial report shows the company made its first-ever gross profit as it doubled revenue, but it is still chasing profitability.
- Kwarabuild is a tech community building a tech ecosystem in North Central Nigeria. The community has provided over 4,500 students with STEM education. The community is open to anyone who wants to upskill.
- According to data from the 2023 Southern Africa Venture Capital Association report, in 2022, 11% of South Africa’s private equity (PE) firms investments went to technology companies, compared to only 3% in 2021.
By Ephraim Modise
Link: techcabal.com/2023/11/01/sa-private-equity-tech/
- The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is facing criticism for a controversial directive that imposes taxes on personal items, whether new or used, valued at over $500 that travelers bring in
- South African power-generating company Eskom has recorded a R24 billion ($1.2 billion) loss for the 2022/2023 financial year. This is a 100% increase from the R11 billion ($588 million) loss recorded in 2021/22 FY.
More in #TCDaily.
- TechCabal has now crossed one million monthly web users in October, the largest monthly audience size in its ten-year history.
Click here to read full article: https://techcabal.com/2023/10/31/techcabal-hits-one-million-web-users---the-largest-audience-in-its-ten-year-history
- In an ideal world, this should create an opening for active corporate venture capital and even mergers/acquisitions, especially where arms-length collaboration is not feasible.
- According to the Piggyvest report, 56% of income earners pay black tax every month, compared to the 27% who only pay occasionally.
Click here to read more: https://techcabal.com/2023/10/27/56-of-earners-pay-black-tax-every-month-according-to-piggyvest-2023-savings-report/
- The 5% booking charge issue was controversial, and drivers rejected it because it was introduced after the state reduced the commission to a standard of 18%.
- Leading cybersecurity company Infoprive has announced its rebrand at the just concluded Nigeria Fintech Week (NFW). The company formerly known as Infoprive will now be known as Cybervergent. As the world embraces digital advancements and internet accessibility grows across Africa, cybercrimes are…
- Yesterday, Kenya's National Transport Safety Authority (NTSA) renewed Bolt’s operating licence weeks after it initially declined the ride-hailing platform’s request. Bolt has also removed its "illegal" booking charge.
More in #TCDaily.
- FactCheck Africa (@FactC_Africa) has built an AI tool that allows people to verify news within seconds on a simple web page that’s translatable in five languages. TechCabal analyses the tool in this report. Read below:
https://techcabal.com/2023/10/30/is-that-fake-news-ask-factcheck-africas-ai-…
- MTN Nigeria will increase investments in data revenue after the telecommunication giant saw a slump in its profit after tax for the first nine months of 2023.
- Airtel Africa grew its revenue in constant currency terms by 19.7% for the half-year ended 30 September 2023, according to the company's financial statements.
- Last week, Fidelity Bank blocked transfers to neobanks over lax anti-fraud and KYC standards. But other Nigerian banks have had internal conversations about blocking digital banks, two sources said.
- Kenyan ride-hailing drivers have urged the NTSA not to renew the licences of ride-hailing platforms Bolt and Uber until the companies adhere to existing regulations. They have given the NTSA seven days to ensure compliance or face a strike.
- Fidelity Bank has restored transfers to neobanks OPay, Palmpay, Kuda, and Moniepoint, a few weeks after it blocked them due to rising fraud and customer verification concerns.
- Milkor, a Pretoria-based defence company, recently ran a successful test flight on its Milkor 380 Drone after three years and seven months of development.
- While primarily designed for capturing life's moments and enhancing social media experiences, the Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses can also play a significant role in curbing vices prevalent in Africa, such as sexual abuse and police brutality. Read more:
- Ugandan traders are threatening to sue the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) for losses accrued over the country's two-year Facebook ban. The traders say they have lost 2.9 billion potential clients worldwide.
More in #TCDaily.
- On the second day of the NITDA Digital Conference, Kashifu Abdullahi, the DG of NITDA, shared the tech ministry’s strategy for collaborating with the private sector as investors asked for logical valuations and more local involvement in Nigeria's VC industry.
- SA startup WhereIsMyTransport is shutting down, cites lack of funds
By Ephraim Modise
Link: techcabal.com/2023/10/26/whereismytransport-shutting-down/
- These updated payment dates for October 2023 are part of SASSA's efforts to provide reliability in their services for the R350 SRD payment. Read to see the dates now:
- Shipbubble is creating a one-stop API integration that allows e-commerce businesses to harmonise all their logistics needs on one platform, eliminating the need for multiple logistics partners.
https://techcabal.com/2023/10/26/shipbubble-wants-to-help-nigerian-e-commerce-deliver-everything-…
- Only 5.9% of the 188 founders surveyed reported having access to grants or VC funding as investors are wary of the region.
Click here to read: https://techcabal.com/2023/10/26/investors-not-keen-on-funding-northern-nigerian-startups-new-study-reveals/
- According to a person with direct knowledge of the matter, DLM Trust abruptly withdrew from the partnership with Patricia due to media backlash.
Link: techcabal.com/2023/10/25/dlm-trust-patricia/
By Ganiu Oloruntade
- MTN’s Nigerian subsidiary has received a demand from a Lagos-based Tax Appeal Tribunal to pay $72.6 million for unpaid taxes and penalties. This comes three years after the Nigerian government withdrew a $2 billion claim against the telecom.
- Launched in 2021, Vella’s focus was to enable crypto-spending in Africa and provide infrastructure for businesses to collect payments globally. Though the fintech already has products that service small businesses, it’s ceasing all crypto-based operations on October 30
- Fidelity Bank has blocked transfers to Kuda, OPay, Moniepoint, and Palmpay over concerns that their lax KYC processes are leading to increased fraud cases.
https://techcabal.com/?p=122280
- At the sixth edition of Nigerian Fintech Week 2023, Day 1 featured discussions with prominent industry leaders on risk and compliance, digital trust, and customer-centric innovation.
- NITDA's Digital Nigeria Conference 2023 kicks off with a focus on emerging technologies
https://techcabal.com/2023/10/25/digital-nigeria-conference-2023/
By Muktar Oladunmade
- Absa Bank, a commercial bank in Kenya, has announced plans to invest KES100 billion ($665 million) in Kenyan MSMEs over the next three years.
Click to read more in #TCDaily.
- SA startups returned $17 million in exit returns to investors in 2022
By: Ephraim Modise
Link: techcabal.com/2023/10/24/sa-startups-returned-17-million-in-exit-returns-to-investors-in-2022/
