Author: Akin Naphtal

Nigerian “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) startup CredPal has raised US$15 million in funding to expand its consumer credit offerings in Nigeria and scale across Africa. Launched in 2018 by Fehintolu Olaogun and Olorunfemi Jegede, CredPal is a consumer credit platform that gives buyers the freedom to buy now and pay later, and helps merchants acquire more customers to increase sales. The startup has over 85,000 active customers and over 4,000 onboarded merchants, and has now raise debt financing and a bridge round totalling US$15 million to scale further. Existing backers including Greenhouse Capital have participated in the bridge round,…

Applications are now open for the fourth year of Africa’s Business Heroes competition, which annually awards 10 outstanding entrepreneurs from across Africa with a share of a US$1.5 million grant. Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH (competition is the flagship philanthropic initiative spearheaded by the Jack Ma Foundation aimed at supporting and inspiring the next generation of African entrepreneurs across all sectors. Over a ten-year period, ABH will recognise 100 African entrepreneurs and commit to allocating grant funding, training programmes, and support for the development of a stronger entrepreneurial ecosystem. Entrepreneurs from all 54 African countries, across every sector, age group, and…

Morocco’s Al Mada Holding Group has launched a MAD1.1 billion (US$110 million) pan-African venture capital fund to invest in fast-growing startups across the continent. Al Mada, an investment holding company controlled by the Moroccan royal family, is one of the largest private investment funds in Africa, and its new fund aims to attract innovative investors and take part in the exponentially-growing African startup landscape. The fund will back tech or tech-enabled startups in industries including financial services, health, logistics, education, and renewable energy. It will operate as a vertical accelerator, targeting startups that have reached a certain level of maturity…

Nigerians may have to pay higher tariffs for telecommunications services as network operators lament over rising cases of vandalization and insecurity as well as the high cost of diesel to power their more than 20,000 bases stations nationwide. The Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has announced a Thursday media interaction in Lagos to inform the public on the state of affairs even as it also raised concerns over the shut down of telecom facilities in Kogi state – an action connected to case of double taxation. ALTON is the umbrella body for all telecom operators in Nigeria.…

Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA),  Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, has called for more strengthening of Nigeria’s cybersecurity architecture in order to promote its digital ecosystem. Abdullahi made the call at the recently held ‘GISEC Global Africa Program in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). The program was one of the major highlights of the annual Gulf Information Security Exhibition and Conference (GISEC), organised by the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), an agency of the UAE’s government. While presenting a paper titled: ‘Strengthening Nigeria’s Digital Ecosystem: Implementing Effective Cybersecurity Frameworks,’ Abdullahi stressed major achievements of the Nigerian government in cybersecurity including…

MFS Africa, the largest pan-African digital payments hub, announces that it has completed its acquisition of Capricorn Digital Limited, known in the market as Baxi. The transaction was first announced in November 2021 pending approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria, which has now been granted. Baxi is one of Nigeria’s largest independent SME-focused electronic payment networks, with over 90,000 agents. It provides a cash-in/cash-out offering as well as value-added services (account opening, money transfer, bill payment and more) to the last mile. As well as providing entry into the Nigerian market for MFS Africa, the acquisition also provides exciting…

OPPO Nigeria, Wednesday, launched OPPO A96 in Nigeria. OPPO A96 is equipped with the 5000mAh long-lasting battery and 33W SUPERVOOC flash charging, complemented by the OPPO Glow Design that allows the phone to be scratch and fingerprint resistant, 6.59-inch 90Hz Colour-Rich Punch-Hole Display with 96% NTSC wide colour gamut that is managed by the OPPO’s self-developed Adaptive Refresh Rate Technology to deliver an immersive viewing experience. Some captivating features embedded in the OPPO A96 includes the All-day AI Eye Comfort which enhances the screen visibility in bright or dim environments based on the levels of ambient light. The display now…

Meng Wanzhou, the senior Huawei executive whose detainment in Canada became a flashpoint of US-China tensions, returned to the corporate stage Monday as sanctions continue to slam its business. The chief financial officer’s first appearance since her release came at an earnings presentation in Shenzhen where she took questions from reporters. The Chinese tech giant said that it made 636.8 billion yuan ($99.9 billion) in revenue in 2021, down nearly 29% from the previous year. “We managed to survive 2021,” the company’s rotating chairman, Guo Ping said. “[But] our fight to survive is not over yet.” Profits, however, soared to 113.7 billion yuan ($17.8 billion),…

Russia is believed to have hacked US satellite communications provider Viasat on the day of its invasion of Ukraine. Western intelligence agencies have been investigating the incident and while they have not yet made a public accusation, they believe Russia was behind it. It appears to be the most significant cyber-attack linked to the conflict so far, affecting military, as well as government, communications. Overall though, Western officials say Ukraine has proved more resilient to cyber-attacks than many had expected. Western intelligence agencies are investigating the hacking of Viasat, which provides communications through a network of satellites. It appears to…

TikTok has been hit with another lawsuit from former content moderators who claim the job traumatized them. Ashley Velez and Reece Young, former contract content moderators for TikTok, allege that their work involved reviewing “unfiltered, disgusting and offensive content,” including “child sexual abuse, rape, torture, bestiality, beheadings, suicide, and murder,” according to a complaint filed Thursday in a California district court against the popular short-form video platform and its parent company, ByteDance. They accuse the company of negligence, alleging that it failed to provide adequate care to protect moderators from harm and support them after reviewing such content. “By requiring content moderators to review…