In 2021, the mobile industry in sub-saharan Africa continued to show incredible resilience against the impacts of Covid-19 and experienced high growth. Digital solutions have provided instrumental support for communities and businesses, boosting their transition into adopting a mobile-first approach to tackle most of the daily challenges across the continent,…
Author: Oluwasegun Olukotun
Ford Motor Company has signed a five-year agreement with Stripe to scale its e-commerce capabilities faster and to deliver an always-on experience for Ford and Lincoln customers. Commenting on the deal, Marion Harris, Ford Motor Credit Company CEO said, “We have been working with Ford to reimagine our e-commerce payment…
Nestle, Nomanini, and Standard Bank have teamed up to provide MSMEs with access to working capital through Trader Assist, a digital finance solution that enables retailers to sufficiently stock up their shops. As part of the initiative, Standard Bank will be providing much-needed access to responsible working capital while Nestlé…
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC) has launched the Etihad 7, a UAE-led innovation program, dedicated to securing funding for renewable energy projects in Africa. The launch was done at the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2022. The initiative will supply clean electricity to 100 million people…
North Korea is famed for ballistic missiles, violation of human rights, disputes with neighboring countries, and international sanctions. However, the country in recent years has found its name in the book of infamy for cybercrimes especially hacking. According to blockchain data platform, Chainalysis, in its report, North Korean cybercriminals stole…
Visa on Thursday announced the launch of a new platform, Visa Acceptance Cloud (VAC), set to revolutionize the way businesses accept payments from their customers. VAC will let acquirers, payment service providers, point of sale (POS) manufacturers, and Internet of Things (IoT) players move payment processing software from being embedded…
Coca-Cola Africa Operating Unit (AOU) and its bottling partners have launched a new Africa-focused sustainability platform, JAMII, to promote and stimulate entrepreneurship opportunities through the provision of improved access to skills training, networks, finance & markets. The platform houses the Company’s existing and new sustainability initiatives. Through this signature platform,…
The Federal Government has lifted the ban on Twitter seven months after it suspended the microblogging site in Nigeria. The lift on the suspension was made known via a statement issued by the Chairman Technical Committee Nigeria-Twitter Engagement and Director-General National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi. The…
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami and the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, will commission a Digital Nigeria Centre (DNC) project in Osun State in January 14, 2022. This is to give concrete expression to the underlining principles and fundamental philosophy of the…
IBM has acquired Envizi, a leading data and analytics software provider for environmental performance management. The deal aligns with IBM’s growing investments in AI-powered software, including IBM Maximo asset management solutions, IBM Sterling supply chain solutions, and IBM Environmental Intelligence Suite, to help organizations create more resilient and sustainable operations…
Leading mobile data and analytics company, App Annie, has revealed that mobile continues to dominate as consumers spent a record 3.8 trillion hours on mobile in 2021. The company revealed several trends on how the world continues to move toward mobile in its State of Mobile 2022 report. Theodore Krantz,…
The co-founder and chief executive of encrypted-messaging app, Signal, Moxie Marlinspike has resigned. Marlinspike whose real name is Matthew Rosenfeld in a blogpost said, “I have now been working on Signal for almost a decade. It has always been my goal for Signal to grow and sustain beyond my involvement,…
Early-stage fund and angel community, Ajim Capital, has launched a $10 million fund to invest in African tech startups. This will go a long way to help entrepreneurs focus on growing their businesses without worries over funding. The fund will provide checks of $25,000-$150,000 to pre-seed to seed tech-enabled companies…
Banking software company, Temenos, has extended its strategic relationship with the world’s leading provider of enterprise open-source solutions, Red Hat. This latest move would see Temenos integrate Red Hat Process Automation Manager with Temenos Infinity cloud-native digital banking services. These are interesting times as automation becomes the order of the…
One of the biggest multi-asset brokers in the world, Exness, has announced plans to continue to expand its presence in Africa in 2022. The Exness Group offers a wide range of financial instruments, including currency pairs, metals, cryptocurrencies, energies, indices, and stocks. The company has also has built a strong…
Uber’s fierce rival Bolt has raised 628 million euros ($711.40 million) in funding led by Sequoia Capital and Fidelity Management and Research Co, taking its valuation to 7.4 billion euros ($8.38 billion). Founded in 2013, Bolt is an Estonian mobility company that offers vehicle for hire, micromobility, car-sharing, and food…
Citigroup has announced it will sack any of its staff that fails to be vaccinated against Covid-19 by the end of January. According to a company memo seen by Reuters, members of its staff that remains unvaccinated by January 14 will be placed on unpaid leave after which they will…
Leading international air, ocean, and road freight services provider, DHL Global Forwarding, has launched in Zimbabwe to extend its presence across Africa. The company will give local and regional businesses within the greater Southern African Development Community (SADC) instant access to global markets. As a first step, DHL Global Forwarding…
The United Kingdom’s parliament has inaugurated a cross-party group, the Crypto and Digital Assets Group, saddled with the responsibility of overseeing the crypto and digital assets sector. Consisting of Members of Parliament (MPs) and Lords, the group will act as a platform for policymakers, parliamentarians and the UK crypto sector…
In a continued partnership with Google, Volvo Cars will be the first car maker to directly integrate its cars with Google Assistant-enabled devices. Also, YouTube is coming to all Volvo Cars. This move by the Google-owned streaming service comes as YouTube Vanced becomes more popular due to its added features…