Author: Staff Writer

Egyptian HRtech startup bluworks has raised $1 million in seed funding, marking another major step in its mission to digitise blue-collar workforce management across Africa and the Middle East. The seed round was led by A15, Enza Capital, Beltone Venture Capital, and Acasia Ventures, alongside several strategic angel investors, underscoring…

Africa’s entrepreneurial community is gearing up for one of the continent’s most anticipated innovation events. Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH) — the flagship philanthropic initiative of Alibaba Philanthropy — has announced that the 7th ABH Summit and Grand Finale will take place in Kigali, Rwanda, from 12–13 December 2025, in partnership…

Paystack has announced a new integration with Xero—made possible through Stripe—in a move expected to significantly improve how small businesses in South Africa send invoices, accept payments, and manage their finances. The partnership brings together one of Africa’s most trusted payment gateways and one of the world’s leading small-business accounting…

As the content industry rapidly evolves, AI-generated text has become a standard part of everyday workflows. Marketers, agencies, publishers, educators, and freelance writers increasingly rely on AI tools for speed and efficiency. But as AI expands, so does the demand for content that sounds authentic, relatable, and unmistakably human. This…

For many years, schools and small businesses across Africa have struggled to access loans that truly work for them. Even when funding is available, it often comes with a hidden danger: the loans are priced in US dollars, while most schools earn their money in local currency. This means that…

Zenith Bank Plc is accelerating its pan-African expansion strategy with plans to acquire Kenya’s Paramount Bank, marking the Nigerian lender’s first entry into the East African banking landscape. The proposed deal, currently undergoing regulatory scrutiny in both Nigeria and Kenya, is expected to be finalized by January 2026, according to…

Nigeria’s Dangote Group is returning to Zimbabwe in a big way, with founder Aliko Dangote announcing plans to invest at least $1 billion across cement, energy and fuel infrastructure. The move marks one of the most significant African-to-African investment pledges Zimbabwe has seen in recent years and underscores how regional…

Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has taken a decisive step to rein in the country’s fast-growing digital lending sector, issuing a directive that all online lenders must fully comply with the Digital, Electronic, Online and Non-Traditional Consumer Lending Regulations, 2025 by January 5, 2026. The announcement marks…

Spotify is rolling out one of its biggest subscription shake-ups in years, and South Africa is one of only five markets globally chosen for the new tiered Premium structure. The move signals how important the country has become to the streaming giant’s African ambitions — and how the company is…

Nigeria is intensifying its efforts to regulate and tax income earned in the digital economy, as the Federal Government confirms it now receives financial and asset data on Nigerians from more than 100 countries. The update, delivered by Taiwo Oyedele, Chair of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax…

Y Combinator-backed fintech startup Moni has officially rebranded as Rank, marking a bold new chapter in its evolution from a community lending platform into a regulated digital financial institution. The transformation follows its acquisition of AjoMoney, a group savings platform, and Zazzau Microfinance Bank (MFB), giving Rank the infrastructure and…

Rack Centre, West Africa’s premier Tier III carrier and cloud-neutral data centre, has announced the launch of EdgeNext’s Content Delivery Network (CDN) and cloud hosting services in Nigeria. The deployment, hosted at Rack Centre’s advanced Lagos facility, marks a pivotal step in strengthening Africa’s internet infrastructure and expanding the region’s…

Equinix, one of the world’s leading digital infrastructure company, has announced plans to build a new $22 million data center in Lagos, Nigeria — its first newly constructed facility in West Africa. The new site, named LG3, represents the first phase of a broader $100 million Africa investment plan aimed…

Morocco- and Uganda-based venture capital firm First Circle Capital has received a fresh US$6 million injection from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group, to deepen its backing of early-stage fintech startups across Africa. The capital will fuel First Circle’s strategy of investing in high-growth pre-seed…

Ventures Platform is doubling down on Africa’s tech future with fresh firepower. The Lagos-based early-stage investor has announced the first close of its new VP Pan-African Fund II (PAF II), securing $64 million towards a targeted final size of $75 million. The fund is designed to go beyond traditional seed…

AXIAN Telecom’s fibre subsidiary, Yas, has moved to deepen its footprint in East Africa’s broadband market with the acquisition of almost all of Wananchi Group, one of the region’s most established fixed internet and enterprise connectivity players. AXIAN Telecom Fibre Ltd, which trades as Yas, has completed the purchase of…

M‑KOPA’s Nigerian arm announced that it has reached the milestone of 1 million customers, marking the fastest growth of any country in the company’s footprint. According to a statement released by the company, the achievement was supported by its full-time workforce expanding from approximately 60 employees in 2020 to more…

Paris- and Tunis-based agritech company nextProtein has raised €18 million ($20.7 million) in a Series B funding round aimed at scaling its insect-based protein operations. The round was co-led by Swen Capital’s Blue Ocean Fund and British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution, and includes €4 million in…

Mukuru, one of Africa’s leading next-generation financial services platforms, has teamed up with JUMO, an AI-driven banking technology provider, to launch Fast Loan — a new mobile-first credit solution designed to provide fair, transparent, and responsible lending for millions of underserved customers in South Africa. According to TransUnion, nearly 16.8…

FroggyTalk, a fast-rising communication platform built for Africans in the diaspora, has raised €300,000 in seed funding, marking a significant milestone in its young but ambitious journey. The round was led by the SI3 Fund of Shaping Impact Group, a Belgium-based impact-focused investment firm, and will help FroggyTalk scale its…