Blessed Frank

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Kune Foods

How the Kenyan Gov't Can Mitigate the Number of Failed Startups in the Country

In the last year, tech startup shutdowns have become a recurring phenomenon in Kenya’s tech startup ecosystem, with Zumi, a B2B e-commerce startup, announcing this week that it has once again permanently closed its operations due to an inability to raise the necessary funding to sustain its operations. The

Lay Off

Kenya’s ELR Court Bars Meta and its Outsourcing Partner, Sama from Firing 260 Kenyan Content Moderators

Meta, the parent company of social media platform Facebook, and its outsourcing partner Sama have been barred from firing content moderators in Kenya by the country’s Employment and Labor Relations Court. The emergency court order also prevents Meta from hiring a new outsourcing firm to handle content moderation while

market insights

Rwazi, African-focused Market Intelligence Startup, Raises $4M Seed to Scale its Product and Expand

Rwazi, a market intelligence startup, has secured $4 million in seed funding to scale its platform in emerging markets, including Africa, South Asia, and Latin America. The startup provides market insights backed by data collected directly from consumers, allowing local and international brands to establish their presence or expand into

Delta40

Factor[e] Ventures Launches Delta40: Examining  How Venture Studios Could Support the Underserved African Tech Startups

The African tech startup ecosystem has been gaining momentum and rapidly growing over the past few years, with an increasing number of startups emerging in various sectors, and several global investors and tech giants have shown an interest in tapping into the potential of the African market. However, despite the

Côte d’Ivoire

Côte d’Ivoire Sets to Deepen its Tech Ecosystem as it Unveils Startup Act

Côte d’Ivoire has announced a new legal framework, the Ivorian Startup Act, which is awaiting parliamentary approval, as the West African nation continues on its bold step to join countries like Nigeria and a few other African countries to enact a startup law to drive the nation’s tech

Business

Liquid Intelligent Technologies Acquires Cysiv MEA to Expand into MENA

Liquid Intelligent Technologies, a subsidiary of Cassava Technologies, a pan-African technology group, has today announced the acquisition of an Egyptian Cysiv MEA, formerly SecureMisr which provides enterprise cloud and cyber security services to some of Egypt’s leading companies, particularly in the financial services sector to extend its operations into

East Africa

Huawei's Wi-Fi 7 set to Deepen Internet Penetration and Accelerate Shift to Wireless Connectivity in East Africa

East Africa has seen a significant increase in the adoption of technology over the past few years, with advancements in internet connectivity playing a pivotal role in this transformation. However, there is still a considerable gap in network penetration and connectivity in the region, which presents both challenges and opportunities

Connectivity

Unlocking Africa's Potential: Strategies to Promote Connectivity and Financial Inclusion for Inclusive Growth

The African continent has enormous economic growth and development potential, but one of the major impediments is a lack of mobile internet access and financial inclusion. As the World Bank Chief Economist for Africa, Andrew Dabalen, pointed out in a recent report, closing the uptake gap for mobile internet services

AFDB

African Development Bank and its Partners Launch $618M iDICE Fund for the Nigerian Creative and Tech Industries

The African Development Bank (AfDB), in partnership with other organizations, has launched the Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) program, aimed at supporting the Nigerian creative and tech industries. The program will attract direct investments of $618 million in more than 200 technology and creative startups, and provide non-financial

Expansion

Flutterwave Secures EMI and Remittance Licenses in Rwanda

Flutterwave, a leading African technology payments startup, has received Electronic Money Issuer and Remittance Licenses from the National Bank of Rwanda (NBR) to expand its operations in East Africa. This is a significant milestone for Flutterwave’s vision of connecting all parts of Africa through payments and connecting Africa to

African Venture Capitalists

Indigenous VCs, the Unsung Heroes: Spotlighting Launch Africa Ventures' Activities in the African Tech Ecosystem

Africa has become one of the leading startup hubs in the last decade, with its young and tech-savvy population driving innovation and entrepreneurship across the continent. The continent has seen an increase in the number of VCs investing in these startups in recent years (nearly 1,500 investors have been

Early-stage investment

YC De-emphases Late-Stage Funding to Focus on Early-Stage Investments

Y Combinator, the Silicon Valley-based startup accelerator and venture capital firm, has announced a strategic shift in its investment focus from late-stage funding to early-stage investing. The company’s CEO, Garry Tan, explained that “YC is rightly known for early stage investing. In recent years, we have also done some

Expansion

Franco-Senegalese Fleet Management Startup, Fleeti Expands to Morocco

Fleeti, a Franco-Senegalese startup and fleet management solutions for Africa, has expanded into the Moroccan market. The firm, which provides innovative solutions to collect, centralize, and analyze data from field operations (vehicle fleet, machinery and equipment, cold chain, production chain, and so on), is expanding its international reach “to meet

African startups

SVB Collapsed: Why African Startups Must Begin to Look Inward

The recent collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), which was shut down by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) last Friday after the bank announced that it lost $1.8 billion in the sale of treasuries and securities has sent shockwaves throughout the global tech community, particularly in Africa, where

CBN

CBN Policies and Financial Inclusion: Open Banking in the Spotlight

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in following up with its plans towards achieving financial inclusion in Nigeria has introduced an Open Banking policy, which is aimed at deepening financial innovation and inclusion in the country. The policy allows for the sharing of financial data between different financial institutions, third-party

Cross Switch Ghana

Cross Switch Ghana Gets a Node from the Bank of Ghana to operate as an Enhanced Payment Service Provider

Cross Switch Ghana LTD, a Ghanaian fintech startup, and its parent company, Cross Switch International S.A.R.L., have announced that Cross Switch Ghana LTD has received approval from the Bank of Ghana to operate as an Enhanced Payment Service Provider. The payment firm plans to use the EPSP

Expansion

Kenya's WorkPay, Takes it's HR-Payroll Services to the Moroccan Workers 

Workpay, a Kenyan HR-payroll startup, which recently secured $2.7 million in pre-Series A funding from a group of investors including Launch Africa, Saviu Ventures, Acadian Ventures, Proparco, Fondation Botnar, Kara Ventures, Axian, P1 Ventures, and Norrsken has expanded its operations to Casablanca, Morocco in its latest expansion drive. This

Ci-Gaba Fund of Funds

Innovative Fund of Funds Launches in Ghana to unlock $75M  for SMEs

Impact Investing Ghana (IIGh) has launched its Ci-Gaba Fund of Funds, a private sector-led initiative that aims to mobilize $75 million in local and international funding to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and advance the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Also, the fund, which will invest locally and

African Women Tech Founders

International Women's Day 2023: Speaking to the Gender Imbalance in the African Tech Startup Ecosystem 

The United Nations designates March 8 as International Women’s Day to recognize and celebrate women’s social, economic, cultural, and political contributions to the world’s development. This year’s International Women’s Day theme is “DigitALL: Innovation and technology for Gender Equality,” which emphasizes the role of innovative

blockchain technology

EchoVC, a Lagos-Based Blockchain-Focused VC, Launches $8M Blockchain-Focused Seed Fund

EchoVC, a Lagos-based early-stage VC firm focused on investing in underrepresented founders and underserved markets, has launched a blockchain-focused seed fund called EchoVC Chain. The $8 million pilot seed fund is aimed at investing in startups and founders that span EchoVC’s specific areas of interest, as first reported by

digital skills

African Telecom Giant, Orange, Takes Orange Digital Centre to DR Congo

Orange, a leading telecom operator, has launched the 15th Orange Digital Centre (ODC) in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The ODC  as an ecosystem dedicated to developing digital skills and innovation, offers free and accessible programs to the public, including a coding school, digital manufacturing workshops, an

Cyber Attacks

Cyber Attacks as a Threat to the Rise of Fintech Platforms in Nigeria

The Central Bank of Nigeria’s decision to redesign the country’s naira notes has resulted in a cash shortage, forcing Nigerians to turn to fintech platforms such as Kuda, MoMo, Fairmoney, Flutterwave, and Vbank. However, these startups have recently become targets of cyber attacks, with hackers stealing billions of

CBDC

Financial Inclusion: Will the CBN Newly Launch eNaira Enhanced Services be the Masterstroke?

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) launched the e-Naira, the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), under the project Giant Initiative in October 2021 as a digital version of the Nigerian currency to promote financial inclusion, improve payment systems, and foster economic growth. Central bank digital currencies have been one of

Financial Inclusion

Trustee Announces Guinea Fintech Week 2023 to Drive Digital Financial Inclusion and Innovation

Trustee, a leading international organization promoting financial inclusion and innovation, has announced Guinea Fintech Week 2023, which will be held from June 14-16 at the luxurious Palm Camayenne hotel in Conakry, Guinea. Furthermore, the event is organized in collaboration with KF invest & consulting and will bring together a diverse

Internet connectivity

Microsoft and Liquid Intelligent Technologies Partner to Further Provide Internet Access to 20M Africans 

Microsoft has today announced several new initiatives aimed at expanding digital infrastructure, digital skilling, and digital development in the world’s Least Developed Countries (LDCs). The tech giant is partnering with Liquid Intelligent Technologies, a subsidiary of Cassava Technologies, to provide high-speed internet access to 20 million people in Africa