Author: Akin Naphtal

In a move to further reduce cash transactions, stimulate innovation and drive the growth of digital payments in Nigeria, ProvidusBank together with Mastercard, Interswitch and Thales Group has launched a Tap-to-Pay service. The service allows cardholders to make fast, secure, and convenient in-store payments by tapping their NFC enabled smart device at any contactless-enabled payment terminal. The solution works by enabling a connected device such as a smartphone or wearable device to act as a safe and secure payment method in the same way as a physical card. Leveraging Mastercard’s Digital Enablement Service (MDES), and Interswitch’s tokenization capability, ProvidusBank customers…

PalmPay, a fintech innovator aiming to make digital payment more accessible and flexible has announced the launch of “PalmPay Anniversary Gold Rush”, a 35-day campaign offering all the users who participate in the in-app Gold Rush game the opportunity to share a massive N300 million cash giveaway. The celebration also marks PalmPay reaching the milestone of 10 million users in Nigeria as of July 2022. The anniversary campaign will run from Monday, September 5th, to Monday, October 10th, and will give substantial cash rewards and coupons in the app as a way of saying thanks to PalmPay’s users. The PalmPay…

By Margaret Soi, Head of Cross Border Banking, AfCFTA The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was signed on 21st March 2018 in Kigali, Rwanda, by 44 out of the 55 African countries, and brokered by the African Union (AU). This agreement was born of the realisation that total trade exports from Africa to the rest of the world are estimated at USD 760 billion; however, this is mostly in the form of raw materials and thus prevents Africa from deriving the true value of such exports. Considering that African exports to the world make up only 3% of the…

Liquid Networks, a business of Cassava Technologies, a pan-African technology group, today announced the launch of its Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) Secure offering to its customers. The solution is designed to proactively mitigate attacks by scrubbing traffic and blocking known attackers or malicious traffic. “Cyber Attacks are at an all-time high; cyber security threats cost the African GDP almost a whopping US$4.1 billion in 2021. And, DDoS are on top of the cyber security attacks; the staggering cost to our GDP is proof enough that no business can afford to be without a layer of protection against them. While…

As a market-leading developer and vendor of digital twins for the energy sector, KDI is now adding digital twin for maritime to its portfolio. Digital twins allow new ways of working and interacting with data and operational insights. The first areas the maritime twin supports are trim advisory, 3D visualization of the vessel, and situational awareness around it, including weather conditions. The twin is powered by real-time data from the Vessel Insight data infrastructure and its eco-system of applications. “The maritime industry is facing huge challenges to meet the new standards for increased transparency and reduced carbon footprint. As a…

Nearly 400 wind farms in Ireland today collectively generate more than 35% of the island’s electricity. These carbon-free electrons travel on power transmission lines to farms, businesses and homes, helping utilities avoid emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels to generate electricity. Like everywhere around the world, the intensity of the wind in Ireland fluctuates throughout the day and over the course of the seasons, which causes variable power production. As the supply of renewable energy increases, a growing problem for electric power grid operators is created. That’s because they need to only put on…

The Hong Kong government is set to bring in a number of financial incentives to address what has been termed as a skills shortage, especially in terms of the fintech sector. A number of industry associations, such as the Hong Kong Investment Funds Association, and lobby groups have complained that Hong Kong has become uncompetitive as an international financial hub due to a tightening of immigration rules and stringent quarantine measures as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, a survey conducted by Google, found that 64% of fintechs in Hong Kong arte facing a “severe talent gap” while…

Lentra, an enterprise SaaS company, empowering lenders with digital lending ecosystem, announced the appointment of Haribandhu Patra as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Bhuvaneswar Naik as the Chief Human Resource Officer (CHRO). These appointments will enhance Lentra’s ability to rapidly scale-up operations and launch innovative technology platforms that empower banks and financial institutions to democratise credit in India. Haribandhu Patra has more than two decades of experience in leading Finance teams at several global financial technology organizations. At Lentra, he will focus on enhancing shareholder value. Bhuvaneswar Naik has over 25 years of experience in managing Human Resource functions…

Tech focused magazine, TechBerg, has unveiled Chinwe Uzoho, the Regional Director West & Central Africa of Network International as its Tech personality of the week. Chinwe Uzoho is a visionary and strategic leader who is an expert at continually refining and advancing an organization through my extensive background in Retail Banking, Product development, Research and Innovation. I am able to take the helm and drive forward ambitious and feasible strategic growth and sustainability plans. Highly energetic, forward-thinking and creative individual who possesses an entrepreneurial spirit that is coupled with strong business acumen. Recognized as a strong and supportive leader, who…

Nigerian startup Duplo, a B2B payment platform that makes it easier for African businesses of all sizes to pay each other, has raised US$4.3 million in seed funding to launch new products and expand into new business verticals. Founded by Yele Oyekola and Tunde Akinnuwa in September 2021, Duplo allows B2B companies to automate payment inflows, reconcile at scale, and create a streamlined experience for business customers. Businesses are able to perform all their payment operation needs on Duplo and also offer financial services to their customers, with the startup describing itself as a “financial operating system for B2B companies”.…