Author: Akin Naphtal

NVIDIA has announced the immediate resignation of Jensen Huang as President, Chief Executive Officer and member of its Board of Directors, appointing Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress as Interim CEO while the company searches for a permanent successor. The company’s Board of Directors confirmed that Kress will retain her position as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer alongside her interim leadership responsibilities until a permanent CEO is appointed. The Board will consider both internal and external candidates as part of its succession process. Kress joined NVIDIA in September 2013 and has served as its Executive Vice President and CFO…

Mastercard and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) have agreed to explore ways of helping Nigerian small businesses go digital, with a focus on digital skills, payment solutions and access to wider economic opportunities. The collaboration, backed by a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), was announced at the SMEDAN MSME Growth Forum, which brought together entrepreneurs, financial institutions, policymakers and ecosystem partners. Under the MoU, both organisations will explore initiatives to help micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) adopt digital technologies, improve efficiency and participate more actively in the formal economy. It builds on the Federal Ministry…

YagoutPay Financial Technology has partnered with M-PESA Ethiopia to integrate Soundbox technology into M-PESA’s merchant payment services, aiming to make digital payments more convenient, transparent and reliable. Under the arrangement, merchants who accept payments through M-PESA Merchant QR Codes will receive instant audio notifications confirming successful transactions. The feature is expected to simplify payment verification, improve transaction management and give merchants greater confidence in accepting digital payments. READ ALSO: BLOM BANK AND MASTERCARD POWER LEBANON’S NEW MA’AK E-GOVERNMENT PLATFORM YagoutPay said the partnership reflects its commitment to working with local technology providers to deliver practical solutions for businesses and customers.…

Lebanon’s General Directorate of General Security has launched Ma’ak, a new digital platform developed in partnership with BLOM Bank and Mastercard to enable citizens to access selected government security services and make payments online. The platform gives users secure digital access to residency permit renewals, entry visa applications and certificate requests, with passport renewal to be added soon. Payments can be made online with local or international cards through Mastercard Gateway, which runs on Mastercard’s Merchant Cloud acceptance framework and offers fraud protection, authentication and tokenization. Ma’ak was developed with Lebanese firm Pro IT Solutions and French AI and data…

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has re-elected Doreen Bogdan-Martin of the United States as its Secretary-General, securing her a second term to lead the United Nations agency responsible for digital technologies and global telecommunications. Expressing appreciation for the confidence of member states, Bogdan-Martin said the digital landscape had undergone significant changes during her first term and would continue to evolve rapidly. She reaffirmed her commitment to ensuring that technological progress benefits everyone, particularly the estimated two billion people worldwide who remain without internet connectivity. First elected in 2022, Bogdan-Martin assumed office in 2023 after serving as Director of ITU’s Telecommunication…

Zedvance Finance Limited has introduced ExtraCash, a new credit solution designed to provide eligible Nigerians with access to additional financing for personal expenses, professional needs and small business activities. Available through the Zedvance mobile app, the product offers credit to eligible customers, including salaried professionals, creatives, entrepreneurs and small business owners. The company said ExtraCash was developed in response to the reality that financial demands do not always coincide with the availability of funds, whether in managing unexpected expenses, meeting personal commitments, funding creative projects or addressing urgent business needs. Speaking on the launch, Adegoke Orimolade, Acting Managing Director of…

Bahrain-based payment technology provider Global Payment Services (GPS) has partnered with EazyPay and Mastercard to support the launch of a new Mastercard prepaid card programme in Bahrain, expanding the country’s digital payment offerings. Under the partnership, GPS will provide the technology infrastructure and payment processing capabilities required to operate the programme. Its services will cover card issuing and processing, tokenisation, API integration, fraud monitoring and 3D Secure authentication. The collaboration will combine GPS’s payment processing infrastructure with Mastercard’s global payments network to support EazyPay’s rollout of the prepaid card offering within an integrated technology environment. The programme is expected to…

French telecommunications operator Orange is introducing two redesigned super-apps, Orange and Sosh, from 19 November 2026, bringing artificial intelligence, telecommunications management, cybersecurity and everyday digital services together in a single mobile experience. The new applications will replace the existing Orange et moi and MySosh apps, giving customers a central platform to manage their mobile plans, bills, data usage and devices while accessing services such as email, television, news and cybersecurity tools. A major feature of the launch is Orange IAs, a new artificial intelligence service designed to make multiple AI models accessible through one platform. The service will be available…

IHS Holding Limited, operating as IHS Towers, has reported a 21.4% year-on-year increase in revenue from continuing operations to $490.5 million for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, driven largely by strong growth in its Nigerian business. The telecommunications infrastructure company, which owns, operates and develops shared communications infrastructure across emerging markets, recorded revenue growth from $403.9 million in the corresponding period of 2025. Nigeria contributed $359.4 million, representing a 34.1% increase year-on-year, while revenue from its Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) segment declined by 3.5% to $131.1 million. According to the company’s financial results, growth in Nigeria was supported by…

Kenya has launched the SecureKE Sovereign Security Operations Centre (SOC) at Konza Technopolis, in a move aimed at strengthening the country’s national cybersecurity capabilities and protecting its growing digital infrastructure. The launch was announced by Eng. John Kipchumba Tanui, who said the centre would provide shared cybersecurity services to government institutions and private-sector organisations. The facility is designed to support continuous security monitoring, AI-assisted threat detection, incident investigation, vulnerability management and coordinated cyber response. The initiative comes as Kenya expands digital connectivity and moves more public services online through its Digital Superhighway programme. According to Tanui, the country had recorded…