Author: Akin Naphtal

De Lorenzo SpA, a leading Italian company specialised in the design, development and production of technical and vocational training didactic equipment in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Machine Automation, Process Control, and Factory Automation, has made a substantial donation to The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA). This was revealed in an announcement signed by Mrs Hadiza Umar, Head, Corporate Affairs and External Relations, NITDA. In a formal attestation of the donation, Mr. Luciano Prosperi, President of De Lorenzo SpA, confirmed that the company will be contributing one thousand (1000) E-Learning Solutions, specifically designed by De Lorenzo, to NITDA.…

Wise, formerly, TransferWise Ltd, a provider of international money transfer services for individuals and businesses, has announced that it has grew its revenue from £225.2m a year ago to £276.6m. In a trading update, Wise cited an increase in customers using multiple features as a key growth driver, with approximately half of all customers now using combinations of services such as a Wise card and the money-sending app. The company said it now has 7.5 million active customers, a figure that has grown 30% year on year. The majority of its customers are personal accounts. Business customers comprise 392,000 active…

Google is set to witness additional job cuts this year, according to an internal memo sent by CEO Sundar Pichai, giving employees at the Alphabet-owned company a heads up about the decision. The announcement, reported by The Verge on Wednesday, 17th January 2024, showed Pichai noting that 2024’s layoffs are targeted at eliminating organisational layers, and the objective is not to repeat the scale of the job reductions Google executed in 2023. “These role eliminations are not at the scale of last year’s reductions, and will not touch every team,” Pichai stated in the memo. He reassured employees that despite…

Samsung Electronics has unveiled its latest premium Galaxy S24 series smartphones, featuring a range of artificial intelligence (AI) functions, including the ability to allow simultaneous translation of foreign language phone calls. The simultaneous translation feature makes the S24 the first-ever smartphone to offer two-way voice translation in real-time during live phone calls conducted in different languages. The on-device AI function, available in 13 languages, utilises Samsung’s proprietary generative AI training. Among the innovative features is the “circle-to-search” function, which allows users to search any part of an image on the screen directly in Google. The smartphones also offer AI translation…

TymeBank, a South African fintech, has announced that it reached its first-ever profit in December 2023. The neobank says it’s the first digital bank to break even and become profitable in South Africa and on the continent. This news comes six months after the digital banking service, which operates online with no physical branches, posted a loss of R858 million (~$45 million). Founded in 2019, TymeBank claims to have added 150,000 customers monthly since it targets the underprivileged and economically marginalised groups in society with its easily accessible, affordable, and quality banking services. The Founder and Chairman of African Rainbow…

Vodafone and Microsoft unveiled a strategic alliance that promises to reshape the digital landscape for millions of businesses and consumers throughout Europe and Africa on Tuesday. The 10-year partnership is set to harness the companies’ combined prowess in digital technology, impacting over 300 million entities. The collaboration will see a transformation in Vodafone’s customer experience, using Microsoft’s cutting-edge generative AI. It aims to supercharge Vodafone’s managed IoT connectivity platform and spawn innovative digital and financial services, with a keen focus on supporting SMEs across the two continents. This partnership will catalyse a comprehensive revamp of Vodafone’s global data centre cloud…

Multi-asset broker, Exness, has announced the start of applications for its Fintech Scholarships program in South Africa (SA), as part of the company’s commitment to supporting education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The Exness Fintech Scholarships program aims to provide a platform for outstanding South African students, particularly those facing financial challenges, to pursue academic excellence and foster career development in STEM disciplines. By empowering these individuals, Exness aims to contribute to the creation of the next generation of tech leaders in the country. Collaborating with the University of Cape Town (UCT), Exness will continue its support…

New York-based growth equity firm, General Atlantic, managing $83 billion in assets, has agreed to acquire London-based energy infrastructure investor Actis, in a move to deepen its investment in sustainable infrastructure. The deal, expected to conclude in the second quarter of 2024, will result in a combined platform with $96 billion in assets under management (AUM), spanning sustainable infrastructure, real estate, growth equity, and credit. While financial terms of the acquisition are yet to be disclosed, the joint statement released by the companies stressed the creation of a diversified global platform. Head of EMEA, and Head of Climate of General…

Canza Finance, a pioneering Wb3 neobank specializing in facilitating cross-border payments for African startups, has successfully closed a funding round, raising an amount of $2.3 million. The company plans to utilise the funds to acquire licenses from various financial regulators across Africa, while focusing on laying the groundwork for its innovative FX DeFi platform, Baki. With this latest funding round, Canza has now raised a total of $5.5 million, following a $3.27 million seed round last year. Led by Polychain Capital, the funding round saw participation from notable investors such as Protocol Labs, Avalanche’s Blizzard Fund, 99 Capital, Stratified Capital,…

After six years of operation in South Africa, Lyca Mobile has announced its decision to discontinue its operations in South Africa by January 9, 2024. Since its launch, Lyca Mobile has been instrumental in facilitating connections for South Africans with their friends and family, both locally and internationally. Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, Lyca Mobile finds itself unable to sustain its service in South Africa. As a result, Lyca Mobile services are scheduled to cease operations on January 9, 2024. Customers currently using Lyca Mobile services are advised to transition to another mobile network operator before the specified date to…