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Deep dive into East Africa's tech startup ecosystem

Africa Tech Perspectives
3/22/2023

New survey reveals a lack of access to investors, reliance on international VCs and global recession trends as the biggest barriers for East African tech startups to access funds.

M-Pesa Africa invests $2M in Shared Service Operations Centre

Paula Gilbert
3/22/2023

M-Pesa Africa has launched a Shared Service Operations Centre (SSOC) in Nairobi to support operations in Kenya and five other African markets.

Podcast: What's the Story? African tech startups score $3.3B in funding

Connecting Africa Video
3/17/2023

Connecting Africa's Paula Gilbert joins this Light Reading podcast to explain why the fintech sector is bringing in the most funding, which countries are leading the way for most funding and what these trends mean for the continent as a whole.

MTN SA sells device insurance business to Santam

Paula Gilbert
3/16/2023

MTN South Africa is selling its device insurance book, worth $21.7 million in annual gross written premium value, to insurance company Santam.

SA power cuts knock $38M off MTN Group earnings

Paula Gilbert
3/13/2023

Extensive power cuts in South Africa impacted MTN Group's earnings by R695 million ($38 million) as the operator plans to ramp up installation of more power backups for towers across the country.

Telkom SA partners with Clikatell to launch Chat 2 Pay

Matshepo Sehloho
3/10/2023

Chat Commerce company Clickatell has launched its Chat 2 Pay feature for South African telecommunication company Telkom.

Online shopping growing in South Africa – World Wide Worx, Mastercard

Paula Gilbert
3/10/2023

There was a 40% increase in the total number of people shopping online in South Africa between 2021 and 2021 according to a new study by World Wide Worx and Mastercard.

MTN revenue growth continues in Uganda, Rwanda

Paula Gilbert
3/6/2023

MTN has once again seen double-digit service revenue growth in its operations in the East African countries of Uganda and Rwanda.

MTN Ghana grows subscribers despite SIM registration impact

Paula Gilbert
3/1/2023

MTN Ghana grew mobile subscribers by 12.8% in 2022, to 28.6 million, despite having to cut over 5 million users in December who did not re-register their SIM cards under national rules.

Safaricom falls victim to $4M SIM card fraud

Matshepo Sehloho
2/13/2023

Kenya's Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has arrested eight suspects for alleged SIM card fraud involving Safaricom's M-Pesa overdraft service Fuliza.

Fintech Mama Money expands Malawi reach with TNM partnership

Connecting Africa News
2/7/2023

SA fintech Mama Money is partnering with Malawian network TNM to expand its cross-border money transfer services in the country, following a similar deal with a major bank in Zimbabwe last month.

African tech startup funding hits $3.3B in 2022

Paula Gilbert
2/6/2023

Investment in Africa's tech startup ecosystem passed $3 billion for the first time in 2022, with Nigeria taking the biggest piece of pie and fintech dominating other sectors, according to a report from Disrupt Africa.

MTN Nigeria profit soars in 2022

Paula Gilbert
2/3/2023

MTN Nigeria has reported a strong set of results for 2022, with profit up over 20% and users growing 10% despite SIM registration challenges, high inflation rates and macroeconomic pressure.

Zimbabwe's EcoCash to grow USD mobile money transactions

Matshepo Sehloho
2/2/2023

Mobile money operator EcoCash plans to grow its US dollar transactions distribution footprint across Zimbabwe.

Airtel Africa reports double-digit revenue and customer growth

Paula Gilbert
2/2/2023

Airtel Africa grew its customer base by 10% and revenue by 12%, for the first nine months of the financial year, as it increased capex and spent more on 4G and 5G spectrum across Africa.

Connecting Africa Podcast: S2 Ep. 4 – Agri-fintech, from kibbutz to Kenya

Paula Gilbert
2/2/2023

The Connecting Africa Podcast team speak to Israeli-Kenyan startup Avenews' co-founder and CEO, Shalom Ben-Or, about his fintech super-app that has been built specifically for Africa's agriculture industry.

Egypt acquisition boosts Vodacom quarterly revenue

Paula Gilbert
1/31/2023

Vodacom is already seeing an earnings boost from its December acquisition of a 55% stake in Vodafone Egypt, reporting double-digit Group revenue growth for the third quarter.

Ghana's Zeepay expands into Zambia

Matshepo Sehloho
1/31/2023

The Central Bank of Zambia has granted Ghanaian remittance fintech company Zeepay an operating license.

12 more Kenyan digital lenders get licenses

Matshepo Sehloho
1/30/2023

The Central Bank of Kenya has licensed a further 12 digital lenders, bringing the total number of licensed Digital Credit Providers (DCPs) in the country to just 22.

Call for comments on Kenya's emerging technologies draft document

Matshepo Sehloho
1/26/2023

The Communications Authority of Kenya is calling for public comment on a new Framework For Emerging Technologies Regulatory Sandbox by February 3, 2022.

Delayed licensing frustrates Kenyan digital lenders

Matshepo Sehloho
1/24/2023

Unlicensed Kenyan digital lenders are blaming being blocked from Google's Play Store on the Central Bank of Kenya's delay in granting them operating licenses.

Kenya High Court suspends mobile money fees

Matshepo Sehloho
1/13/2023

The Kenyan High Court has suspended charges for sending money between mobile money wallets and bank accounts pending the determination of a consumer rights lawsuit.

MTN MoMo to offer personal loans in SA

Paula Gilbert
1/10/2023

MTN Mobile Money (MoMo) is offering personal loans in South Africa of up to R180,000 (US$10,540) as it moves to meet a rising demand for mobile fintech services on the continent.

Clickatell helps SA companies leverage chat commerce

Matshepo Sehloho
1/5/2023

South African brands are interacting with their clients using chat platforms like WhatsApp to upsell and improve their customer service.

Connecting Africa Podcast: S2 Ep. 3 – Building fintech in Ghana

Paula Gilbert
12/21/2022

In this episode the Connecting Africa Podcast team speaks to BezoMoney co-founder and CEO Mubarak Sumaila for a deep dive into Ghana's fintech ecosystem and how it differs from its counterparts in other countries in Africa.

Visa to invest $1B in Africa's digital transformation

Paula Gilbert
12/15/2022

Visa has pledged to invest $1 billion in Africa by 2027 to scale operations, deploy new technologies and deepen collaboration with African partners.

SA's Ukheshe secures funding, eyes international expansion

Matshepo Sehloho
12/8/2022

Fintech enabler Ukheshe has raised money from Development Partners International and Fireball Capital to fund its growth plans.

Kenya reinstates mobile money fees

Matshepo Sehloho
12/6/2022

The Central Bank of Kenya says as of January 2023, charges for sending money between mobile money wallets and bank accounts will be reinstated.

Orange targets data & digital growth in Africa

Paula Gilbert
12/2/2022

Orange Deputy CEO for the MEA, Brelotte Ba, spoke to Connecting Africa about the group's strategy to grow its African data, fintech and digital customers.

Connecting Africa Podcast: S2 Ep. 2 – Remittance revolution

Paula Gilbert
11/30/2022

The Connecting Africa Podcast team spoke to SendSprint founder and CEO Damisi Busari about the remittance market and how to improve the experience that Africans in the diaspora have with sending money home.

Safaricom launches M-Pesa Go for youth

Matshepo Sehloho
11/30/2022

Kenyan telecoms operator Safaricom has launched a youth-oriented service, M-Pesa Go, which aims to teach digital financial skills to young people.

Zoho eyes African expansion, adds second SA office

Matshepo Sehloho
11/29/2022

Indian multinational tech company, Zoho, is opening its second office in South Africa as it eyes further expansion in the Middle East and Africa.

Kenya's NCBA eyes M-Shwari expansion deals

Matshepo Sehloho
11/28/2022

Kenyan NCBA Group is reportedly ready to launch mobile phone banking services M-Shwari in Ghana, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Ghana's Zeepay to use ThetaRay's AI to monitor transfers

Matshepo Sehloho
11/23/2022

Ghanaian mobile financial services company Zeepay has partnered with Israeli ThetaRay to use its AI solutions to monitor remittance transactions coming into Africa.

Chipper Cash to acquire Zambian fintech Zoona

Matshepo Sehloho
11/22/2022

Pan African cross-border payment solutions unicorn company Chipper Cash is set to acquire Zambian fintech company Zoona Transactions International.

Kenya's central bank provides 50% discount to digital defaulters

Matshepo Sehloho
11/15/2022

The Central Bank of Kenya has implemented a Credit Repair Framework to encourage digital defaulters to repair their credit records.

Vodacom half-year earnings impacted by Ethiopia startup costs

Paula Gilbert
11/14/2022

Despite revenue growing, Vodacom Group saw interim earnings decline as startup costs from its new network in Ethiopia and higher finance costs impacted overall profit.

Mastercard eyes African fintech potential

Paula Gilbert
11/2/2022

Mastercard VP Muhammad Nana spoke with Connecting Africa on the sidelines of MWC Africa about the growth potential in Africa's fintech sector and how Mastercard is partnering and investing in local fintech companies.

MTN, Sanlam receive approvals for insurtech partnership

Paula Gilbert
11/1/2022

Sanlam and MTN Group's insurtech alliance to distribute digital insurance and investment products across Africa has finally kicked off following regulatory approval.

Fintech Mukuru launches funeral loyalty benefit

Matshepo Sehloho
10/18/2022

Financial services platform, Mukuru, has launched a loyalty funeral benefit to its South African customers who transfer money internationally.

Shoprite wins big at MTN App awards

Matshepo Sehloho
10/14/2022

South African retailer Shoprite's Money Market app was crowned MTN Business App of the Year.

Airtel Kenya spins off mobile money unit

Matshepo Sehloho
10/12/2022

Airtel Kenya has separated its mobile money unit from its core telecoms business in compliance with regulations set by the Central Bank of Kenya.

Glo eyes share in Nigeria's mobile money pie

Matshepo Sehloho
10/11/2022

Nigerian telco Globacom (Glo) has announced the official launch of its MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank joining its counterparts MTN MoMo and Airtel SmartCash.

SA's FNB adds ChatPay feature, overhauls banking app

Matshepo Sehloho
10/11/2022

South African bank FNB has added new features such as ChatPay, which allows customers to send and receive money via its chat platform.

40 Kenyan digital lenders audited for data breaches

Matshepo Sehloho
10/7/2022

The audit comes at a time when the Kenyan government, through the Central Bank of Kenya, is on a mission to clean up the digital lending industry to get rid of illegal operators.

Safaricom cuts M-Pesa's Fuliza daily charges by up to 50%

Matshepo Sehloho
9/29/2022

Kenyan operator Safaricom has announced it will cut daily charges for M-Pesa's overdraft service Fuliza from October 1, 2022.

SA bank Capitec launches MVNO with data that never expires

Paula Gilbert
9/26/2022

South African bank, Capitec, has launched its own mobile virtual network operator service, called Capitec Connect, promising mobile data prices that are considerably less than its competitors and data that doesn't expire.

Tanzania scraps mobile money tax

Matshepo Sehloho
9/22/2022

Tanzanians will from October 1, 2022 no longer pay mobile money transfer levy.

Majority of Kenya's mobile lenders are unlicensed

Matshepo Sehloho
9/19/2022

The Central Bank of Kenya has approved only 10 Digital Credit Providers out of the 288 applications it has received since March this year.

Comment: I Can Testify - UberDOST8022 - 9/16/2022

Nigeria leads African tech startup funding, fintech dominates

Paula Gilbert
9/15/2022

Nigeria has received the most tech startup funding in Africa over the last eight years, and fintech companies are the main driver, according to a new report from Disrupt Africa.

Orange, Cellulant expand mobile payments in Botswana

Matshepo Sehloho
9/13/2022

Orange Money in Botswana has teamed up with payments company Cellulant to enable card-to-wallet transfers from eight banks in Botswana.

SA telcos use fintech to tap into lending market

Paula Gilbert
9/6/2022

Growing fintech trends have seen several South African telecoms operators launching lending solutions that range from nano loans to large cash advanced for small business owners.

Fintech startup Klasha connects African shoppers to global brands

Paula Gilbert
8/29/2022

Nigerian startup, Klasha, is helping African consumers access e-commerce options outside of the continent and helping merchants worldwide sell their products into Africa.

Comment: May i have your address in South Africa - [email protected] - 8/28/2022

SA becomes first African nation to get Google Wallet

Paula Gilbert
8/24/2022

South Africa becomes the first country in Africa where the Google Wallet is available, adding to a rising trend of contactless payments and fintech services in the country.

SA's data-free MoyaApp hits 10M downloads

Paula Gilbert
8/17/2022

South Africa's data-free super app, MoyaApp, has been downloaded over 10 million times on the Google Play Store, a milestone only six other local apps have reached.

Zimbabwe's InnBucks gets green light to resume services

Matshepo Sehloho
8/16/2022

Zimbabwean mobile money platform, InnBucks, has resumed its fintech services following a suspension in April.

MTN's fintech ecosystem grows as spinoff plans continue

Paula Gilbert
8/12/2022

Pan-African operator MTN's fintech ecosystem continues to grow as it moves forward with plans to spin off its financial services business into a stand-alone entity.

MTN offered $35M for Afghanistan operation

Paula Gilbert
8/11/2022

MTN group has received a binding offer for 100% of MTN Afghanistan as it continues with plans to completely exit the Middle East and focus on its pan-African footprint.

SA government launches app to tackle potholes

Matshepo Sehloho
8/10/2022

South African transport minister Fikile Mbalula in partnership with the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL) has launched an app to get rid of potholes.

MTN sees double-digit revenue growth in Rwanda & Uganda

Paula Gilbert
8/5/2022

MTN's operations in Rwanda and Uganda have reported strong interim results with revenue and subscribers on the rise.

SA startup Sendoff is digitizing funerals

Matshepo Sehloho
8/5/2022

South African startup Sendoff is a full-service funeral app that is digitizing the way funerals are organized.

Moroccans and Egyptians embrace digital payment methods

Paula Gilbert
8/3/2022

Mastercard's New Payments Index 2022 shows that digital payment adoption is accelerating across MENA, including strong growth in Egypt and Morocco.

Major data boom for MTN Ghana

Paula Gilbert
8/2/2022

MTN has seen huge data growth from its customers in Ghana with data traffic up 52% in the first six months of the year and data revenue almost 50% higher than last year.

Safaricom wants Kenya to be a digital talent hub

Matshepo Sehloho
8/2/2022

Kenyan operator Safaricom has launched a Digital Talent Program and is teaching kids to code through the M-Pesa app, as it aims to create a sustainable digital talent pipeline.

North Africa Com 2022: Transforming telco strategies

Connecting Africa Video
8/1/2022

Experts from operators across North Africa join a panel discussion about how telcos are evolving their strategies to become not only telcos but also tech-cos.

Guinea regulator fines Orange $1.1M for service outage

Paula Gilbert
7/26/2022

Orange is facing a hefty fine in Guinea after a network outage left customers without key services, including mobile money, for 30 hours.

Omdia View: June 2022

Guest Perspectives
7/25/2022

5G was the major news trend across Africa in June, as Orange became the first operator to launch 5G in Réunion and operators in Senegal accelerated their 5G plans despite spectrum delays.

Vodacom reports 'resilient' quarterly growth

Paula Gilbert
7/21/2022

Vodacom Group has reported solid quarterly revenue growth on the back of a resilient performance in South Africa and good data revenue growth in its international markets.

North Africa Com: Collaboration needed in digital banking

Matshepo Sehloho
7/19/2022

Experts on a panel at North Africa Com 2022 discuss accelerating fintech innovation on the Continent.

Hot startup of the month: South Africa's Sensor Networks

Tom Jackson
7/19/2022

This month's hot startup is South Africa's Sensor Networks, which has developed a smart home system and IoT platform that aims to reduce insurance risk.

Ghana, Kenya biggest users of mobile money for B2B transfers

Matshepo Sehloho
7/13/2022

A report by Duplo has found that even though bank transfers are more common than cash, Kenyans and Ghanaians use mobile money more for B2B transactions.

Pesapal gets green light to operate in Uganda

Matshepo Sehloho
7/1/2022

Kenyan digital payments startup Pesapal, has been granted an operating license in Uganda to provide mobile cashless transactions in the East African country.

MTN MoMo sues 18 Nigerian banks for alleged fraud

Matshepo Sehloho
6/29/2022

MTN Nigeria Mobile Money Payment Service Bank has taken 18 banks to court for alleged fraud worth US$53.7 million and has demanded a refund.

SA's smart city finalists win big for innovation

Matshepo Sehloho
6/27/2022

South Africa's City of Johannesburg's Smart City Office has awarded four innovators R500,000 (US$31,434) for their innovative solutions.

WorldRemit halts bank transfers in Zimbabwe

Matshepo Sehloho
6/22/2022

WorldRemit has terminated direct bank transfers to customer bank accounts within Zimbabwe.

Fintech platform Eversend takes aim at B2C market

Matshepo Sehloho
6/20/2022

Ugandan fintech platform Eversend has aspirations to be a one-stop-shop for cross-border money transfers for Africa's diaspora.

Safaricom, Visa launch M-Pesa global pay virtual card

Matshepo Sehloho
6/3/2022

Safaricom and Visa have launched the M-Pesa virtual card to enable secure cashless payments.

Moya super app takes aim at SA fintech market

Paula Gilbert
5/25/2022

Super app Moya's fintech platform, MoyaPay, aims to be South Africa's most widely used mobile money payments platform.

MTN MoMo bank begins operations in Nigeria

Matshepo Sehloho
5/23/2022

MTN's fintech platform MoMo has officially begun operating in the West African country.

SA govt launches DigiTech "app store" for SMMEs

Matshepo Sehloho
5/19/2022

South African Communications and Digital Technologies Minister, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, has introduced a new tech platform aimed at selling South African digital apps.

Airtel launches banking offering in Nigeria

Paula Gilbert
5/19/2022

Airtel Africa has officially launched its long-awaited payment service bank in its biggest market of Nigeria through subsidiary SmartCash.

SA agri-tech Nile gets $2.5M investment from Naspers

Matshepo Sehloho
5/18/2022

Naspers, through its early-stage tech investment vehicle Naspers Foundry, has invested in agri-tech company, Nile, that connects farmers to buyers of fresh produce across Southern Africa.

Vodacom targets enterprise, fintech growth with Egypt purchase

Paula Gilbert
5/18/2022

Vodacom sees huge growth opportunity for both mobile financial services and the enterprise market when it finalizes its acquisition of a controlling stake in Vodafone Egypt.

Digital inclusion key to unlock future of work potential

Matshepo Sehloho
5/17/2022

Experts at a roundtable hosted by Uber South Africa outline how technology is shaping the future of work.

Omdia View: April 2022

Guest Perspectives
5/16/2022

This month's Omdia View highlights indicate a shift to digital transformation and operational consolidation to maximize return on investments.

Vodacom wants 75M fintech customers by 2025

Paula Gilbert
5/16/2022

Vodacom's financial services business has become integral to the telco's business model and it plans to increase its fintech customers base to 75 million by 2025.

Safaricom promises Ethiopia launch this year

Paula Gilbert
5/13/2022

Kenya's Safaricom says it is making good progress with plans to launch a network in Ethiopia, noting it will begin commercial operations by the end of 2022.

Airtel eyes Nigerian fintech growth with new license

Paula Gilbert
5/12/2022

Airtel Africa is moving forward with plans to expand its fintech services in its largest market of Nigeria, as the group reported strong mobile money growth for the past financial year.

East Africa Com: Fintech collaboration key to regional growth

Matshepo Sehloho
5/11/2022

Absa Bank Tanzania's CEO, Abdi Mohamed, told East Africa Com that the region's technical growth is dependent on banks, telcos and fintech stakeholders working together.

Fintech PayPulse hits new milestone in Namibia

Matshepo Sehloho
5/6/2022

The PayPulse fintech platform in Namibia has gained significant traction and processed just under a million transactions during 2021.

MTN sees fintech flourish in Nigeria

Paula Gilbert
4/29/2022

MTN Nigeria's fintech subscribers grew 135.2% year-on-year, to 10.7 million, as it plans to launch a mobile money payment service bank.

Hot startup of the month: Ghana's Float

Tom Jackson
4/19/2022

This month's hot startup is fintech company Float, which helps small businesses to manage and monitor their cash flow in real time, make supplier payments and access instant credit for critical business expenses.

MTN approved to launch mobile money bank in Nigeria

Paula Gilbert
4/12/2022

Mobile operator MTN has received final go-ahead to launch a payment service bank in Nigeria.

Telkom SA prepares for mobile commerce boom

Paula Gilbert
4/4/2022

Execs from Telkom South Africa discuss the growth in mobile commerce in Africa and how telcos are using digital channels to both improve customer experience and increase sales.

Africa accelerated mobile money growth in 2021

Paula Gilbert
3/31/2022

Mobile money transaction values grew 39% in Africa in 2021 to US$701.4B – making up about 70% of global transaction values which hit over $1T for the first time.

OkHi brings digital address verification to Nigeria

Paula Gilbert
3/11/2022

Smart addressing startup OkHi has come up with a unique way to provide Africans with verifiable addresses, a problem that impacts half the people in the world.

MTN fintech users grow as spinoff looms

Paula Gilbert
3/9/2022

MTN's fintech and data revenues saw double digit growth in 2021 as the pan-African telco moves forward with plans to spin off its fintech business.

Orange Africa growth story continues

Paula Gilbert
2/17/2022

French operator Orange's operations in Africa and the Middle East continued to be its strongest growth region with revenue rising almost 11% in 2021.

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Story

Deep dive into East Africa's tech startup ecosystem

New survey reveals a lack of access to investors, reliance on international VCs and global recession trends as the biggest barriers for East African tech startups to access funds.

Video

Podcast: What's the Story? African tech startups score $3.3B in funding

More Innovation hub

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Latest video

Africa Tech Perspectives

Story

Deep dive into East Africa's tech startup ecosystem

New survey reveals a lack of access to investors, reliance on international VCs and global recession trends as the biggest barriers for East African tech startups to access funds.

Story

Challenges and opportunities for women's tech careers

A new survey reveals that COVID-19, the cost-of-living crisis, skills shortages and a lack of mentorship have negatively affected women's career development over the past two years.

Story

Survey: Opportunities for Women in Tech

Take our new survey for women across Asia, Europe and Africa looking at the biggest challenges and opportunities for women-led enterprises and trends in tech careers for women.

More AfricaCom perspectives

Guest Perspectives

Story

Omdia View: July 2022

By Omdia Analysts

Kenya and Zambia move towards 5G with new spectrum allocations while Tunisie Telecom plans to shut down its 3G network - that and more in this month's Omdia View.

Story

Omdia View: June 2022

By Omdia Analysts

5G was the major news trend across Africa in June, as Orange became the first operator to launch 5G in Réunion and operators in Senegal accelerated their 5G plans despite spectrum delays.

More Guest Perspectives

Industry announcements

Liquid, Nokia partner on Kenya-SA fiber route
Johannesburg, Thursday, February 2, 2023
Telkom SA to add MVNOs to network this year
Johannesburg, Friday, January 20, 2023
SmartCIC launches services across 32 African countries
Cannes, Tuesday, October 11, 2022

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