Author: Akin Naphtal

With a target of simplifying payment operations in Africa and the Middle-East, Egypt and U.S.-based MoneyHash has received US$3 million. The start-up plans to build a super-API for payment operations. The company describes itself as the Middle East and Africa’s “first super-API for payment orchestration and revenue operations.” The pre-seed round is an extension of an undisclosed six-figure raise MoneyHash announced last June from investors Ventures Platform, Kepple Africa Ventures, LoftyInc Capital and lead COTU Ventures. The Middle Eastern early-stage fund also led this extension, with participation from previous backers in the initial pre-seed round and others like VentureSouq, VentureFriends, The…

Mr Olutokun Toriola, Chief Executive Officer, MTN Nigeria, has urged Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to use the data presented to them through telecommunication companies and financial systems to access capital. Toriola, gave the advice on Friday at the Sparkle’s webinar for SMEs with the theme: ’’Simplifying Support for Small Businesses’’. According to him, data is abundant in both the telecommunications and financial system. “The person to make magic out of this is the person that can turn data into wisdom because the data is out there and not many people have successfully been able to transform and beneficially structure…

The Executive Vice-President of the European Union (EU) Commission, Margrethe Vestager, has disclosed that the EU has approved a three-year Digital Economy Package worth €820 million for Nigeria. This, she said, was part of a Global Gateway Africa-Europe Investment Package worth €150 billion announced recently by the President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. Vestager, who spoke while leading a delegation of the EU Commission on a visit to Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo at the State House, announced an EU-Nigeria Digital Economy Package of at least €820 million until 2024. According to her, the package will help enhance secure…

Remedial Health has secured $1 million in pre-seed funding to digitize pharmacies, and stem the supply of fake and substandard pharmaceutical products, starting with Nigeria before expanding to the rest of Africa. The round was led by Global Ventures and Ventures Platform, with participation from Ingressive Capital, Voltron Capital, Opeyemi Awoyemi’s (Jobberman co-founder) Angel Syndicate Fund, and other angel investors, including Flutterwave’s Olugbenga “GB” Agboola and Victor Asemota. Part of the new funding will be used to extend the startup’s buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) offering, for an even wider reach. Founded in 2020 by Samuel Okwuada, a trained pharmacist and self-taught software developer, together…

Mdundo, an Africa-focused music streaming service, is banking on more partnerships with telcos across the continent to grow its earnings and user base. Last year, the company signed deals with MTN and Airtel in Nigeria, and Vodacom in Tanzania, which appear to be paying off after its user-base almost doubled as it added paying subscribers as a source of revenue. MTN and Airtel Nigeria have a combined customer-base of 124.5 million, while Vodacom Tanzania has 15.6 million subscribers, giving Mdundo access to a huge target audience. According to the Founder, Martin Nielsen, “This is a new revenue stream for us.…

Startups have sought to use technology to digitize processes in Africa’s B2B e-commerce and retail space over the past couple of years. While many focus on moving products and providing credit, issues around cash overdependency haven’t been tackled at scale.  Here’s why this is a critical problem. When traditional distributors move goods from manufacturers and suppliers to retailers, they collect cash through a network of agents. These agents, from different parts, then proceed to make lump-sum payments into a central bank account. For the most part, there is a lot of fraud behind the scenes because of inefficiencies in manual reconciliation processes on…

Kenya’s central bank has called on the public to share their views, before May 20th, on the possibility of adopting a digital currency, just one day after it emerged that Zambia is also testing its viability too. Nigeria became the first country in Africa to launch its central bank digital currency (CBDC), dubbed the eNaira, in October last year while Ghana is said to be at an advanced stage of launching its e-cedi. The The Bank of Zambia is also carrying out research on digital currencies. The CBDCs, unlike cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, are developed by central banks and pegged on…

By Samuel Saint-Ayisi Protestors, with the name, Coalition of Concerned Ghanaians, have poured onto the streets of Accra-Ghana, to express their opposition to the Electronic Transaction Levy Bill (E-Levy), which is before Parliament for consideration. The demonstration dubbed: ‘Yentua’, a Twi word meaning ‘We won’t pay’ was led by the youth wing of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), also saw groups such as Justice 4 Ghana advocacy group, Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA), Coalition of Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) trainees, Coalition of Concerned University Students, head porters and okada riders participating. The demonstration was also made up…

Olubayo Adekanmbi, an award-winning business and digital innovation executive, has joined Airtel Africa, to lead its strategy, partnership and sustainability roadmap. Prior to his appointment by Airtel Africa headquartered in London, United Kingdom, Adekanmbi previously worked for MTN in South Africa and Nigeria as Chief Transformation and Strategy Officer, Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer, General Manager, Business Intelligence and Head of Strategy and Analytics. He has about 21 years cognate industry experience. Information on Airtel Africa’s website, indicates that Olubayo Adekanmbi will be “responsible for leading strategic business-wide initiatives, including innovation, strategic investment, operational efficiencies, and partnerships. In addition to…

Owing to his expertise and professional achievements over the years as a tech expert, President Muhammadu Buhari appointed renowned technocrat, Dr Vincent Olatunji as the first National Commissioner/Chief Executive Officer of the newly established Nigeria Data Protection Bureau (NDPB). The federal government of Nigeria recently approved the establishment of the Bureau following the successful implementation of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy which has recorded a significant increase in the adoption of data platforms in the country. The Nigeria Data Protection Bureau will be responsible for consolidating the gains of the NDPR and supporting the process for the development…