Author: Akin Naphtal

Global professional services firm KPMG has collaborated with American software company ServiceNow to help its client automate their finance and supply chain workflows. KPMG and ServiceNow’s partnership dates back more than a decade, where they jointly created new offerings in areas such as information technology, human resources, risk and cybersecurity, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) to cater to their global clientele. The extended partnership combines KPMG’s business expertise with ServiceNow’s technology, especially their recently announced AI-powered finance and supply chain workflows to streamline the existing procurement and supply chain systems of clients, while helping them reduce costs and increasing…

The dwindling Crypto exchange landscape recently experienced a boost as the Chief Executive Officer of Tradefada, Mr. Oluwaseun Dania, announced the backing of PATRICIA Technologies with a significant investment. According to the announcement, the amount of the investment was undisclosed, it was revealed through a recent LinkedIn post by the CEO, Dania. He noted that the investment in PATRICIA Technologies, a standout name among Africa’s premier crypto exchanges, is a pointer to the confidence investors have in Africa’s leading crypto exchanges. Following the post, he lauded Patricia Technologies for its unparalleled innovation and commendable representation of Nigeria and Africa on…

Amazon’s cloud unit AWS has expanded its generative artificial intelligence platform called Bedrock with the introduction of new foundational models (FM) from AI startups like Anthropic (Claude 2 model) and Stability AI (Stable Diffusion XL 1.0). The platform has also onboarded Cohere as an FM provider. The announcement was made at AWS Summit New York on July 26. Bedrock platform was launched in April as a new low code capability for easily building generative AI applications. Customers can use Bedrock to build and scale generative AI applications by accessing application programming interface (API). The new expansion will allow customers to…

South African mobile operator MTN has launched a new mobile plan in partnership with Disney+. MTN will offer a bundle to its customers who sign up for a Disney+ Mobile Plan at the cost of R49. If customers pay for the bundle with their airtime or add it to their monthly bill, they will get 500MB of free streaming data per month, the operator said. MTN said customers will also be able to get a Disney+ mobile entertainment pass that will include 2GB of streaming data for R59 per month. The Disney+ Mobile Plan with MTN offers the same access…

South African telco, Bam Telecoms, has announced plans to launch its locally manufactured smartphone line in September 2023. One report shows that 43.48 million South Africans (72.3% of the population) use the Internet as of January 2023. The black-owned telco intends to close the digital divide in South Africa by giving the local market affordable, quality, 4G-enabled phones, tablets, and smart technologies. The telco says it will realise this via partnerships. It has partnered with local and international players, including ZTE, Dahua Technology, Digit, Bam Forensic Institute, and Providence Software Solutions. Currently, Bam Telecoms runs two factories in South Africa,…

Two years ago, Etornam Fianoo-Vidza set out to learn Swahili but found online materials ineffective. This experience motivated the French and Spanish teacher to start her interactive language learning platform, Spiika, to help provide more engaging resources. Unlike other apps limited to offering just text and audio lessons, Spiika provides users with live tutoring, engaging video lessons, student community features, and interactive activities. This immersive approach helps African users better master languages practically. Fianoo-Vidza has long been passionate about languages, already speaking five fluently – English, French, Spanish, Twi, and Swahili. She also plans to add German and Chinese to…

REdimension Capital, a South African real estate venture capital firm, has announced the first close of its inaugural fund, the REdimension Real Estate Technology and Sustainability Fund I. The fund will focus on investing in early-stage innovative technology companies that deliver demonstrable improvements in the way property is developed, managed and engaged with. By strategically aligning with sector stakeholders, the fund has built an ecosystem of mutual value, aiming to deliver both investment and operating returns while accelerating technology adoption and driving sustainable outcomes. The fund received total commitments of over $10 million. The funding round was led by Investec…

Flutterwave, a leading African payments technology company, recently announced the enhancement of its $end Mobile product, to Send App by Flutterwave. The app will facilitate affordable money transfers from people in the diaspora to their families, friends, and loved ones in Africa. Send App now supports transfers from US and Canada and has added new recipient countries namely Egypt and Sénégal in its network. With the app, you can send and receive money from 35+ countries. Launched in 2021, Send by Flutterwave provides a fast, transparent, and secure way for the Africans Diaspora to bridge the distance, strengthen the bonds…

Nigerian health-tech startup , Remedial Health has achieved a significant milestone by securing $12 million in Series A equity-debt funding. This funding will aid the company in expanding its operations within Nigeria. Previously, Remedial Health had also raised $4.4 million in a seed round in September 2022. The funding round was co-led by prominent Fintech VC firm QED Investors and Ventures Platform. Existing investors such as Y Combinator, Tencent, and Gaingels also participated in this round. Remedial Health’s platform is crucial in empowering pharmacies and hospitals by enabling them to source pharmaceutical products directly from reliable manufacturers and verified distributors.…

Opay Nigeria, one of the largest fintech companies in Africa, with over 30 million users, about 500,000 agents and more than 300,000 merchants, is contemplating growth in the Egyptian market. This move comes after it reportedly sought a license to form a digital bank in North Africa. Mahmoud Khedr, the Head of Business Development and Strategic Partnerships at Opay, shared his enthusiasm via an email statement sent to Techloy: “We look forward to securing a license to launch a digital bank in Egypt and to collaborate closely with the Central Bank of Egypt and all related authorities. This step marks…