MTN Nigeria closes its stores and service centers due to xenophobia reprisal attacks
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| A MESSAGE FROM OUR PARTNER |
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VerifyMe Nigeria, a verification platform that enables seamless, real-time ID verification, has launched the first integrated ID Verification and KYC platform in Nigeria. The self-managed verification platform offers organizations a solution that takes away the problem of not knowing enough about their customers to approve them for services. Loan/service providers, employers and landlords can benefit from VerifyMe OneIdentity Report which delivers real-time ID authentication that meet CBN tier 3 and international Anti-Money Laundering (AML) directive standards.
Verify an ID now. |
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| Accion Venture Lab has launched a US$23 million inclusive fintech fund bringing its total capital under management to $42 million. The fund will make seed-stage investments in startups “that leverage technology to increase the reach, quality, and affordability of financial services for the under-served at scale.” A number of participants, including the Ford Foundation, Visa Inc. and Proparco — the French government’s development finance institution contributed to the new fund which is looking to allocate roughly 25 to 30% of its money to Africa. The fund has made its first seed financing to U.S. fintech platform for gig economy works, Joust and its investment ticket sizes will typically be about $500,000. |
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| MTN Nigeria has shut down its stores and services centres across the country following reprisal attacks in response to xenophobic assaults in South Africa. MTN said its facilities and stakeholders have been facing attacks since Tuesday. Meanwhile, there’s been a backlash to the xenophobic attacks in South Africa. Some African nations have responded by pulling out of the World Economic Forum currently happening in South Africa while Nigerian music star Tiwa Savage has strongly condemned the violent attacks by withdrawn from an upcoming food and music festival. Abubakar has the tea here in our latest story. |
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| Airtel Africa has appointed Ian Ferrao as Regional Director of its East Africa business. Ferrao joined Airtel from Vodacom where he held several roles including CEO of Vodacom Tanzania. He will join Airtel’s Africa Executive Committee based in Nairobi and will focus on driving growth across voice, data and mobile money in East Africa. |
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| A MESSAGE FROM OUR PARTNER |
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Register to attend the 4th edition of the Spotlight Nigeria Business Forum.
The event is hosted by Friends of Nigeria with the support of the Embassy of Nigeria Paris. Strategic partners include: the France Nigeria Chamber of Commerce & Industries (FNCCI), Paris Chambers of Commerce and Industries, ADEPTA (a network of top Agriculture companies in France), PwC, Council of Investors in Africa (CIAN), Nigeria Export Promotion Commission (NEPC), Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Netherlands Africa Business Council (NABC), Business France, French Foreign trade advisors, amongst others.
To register, visit: https://spotlightnigeria-france.com/participant-registration/ |
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| Telkom has accused Safaricom of frustrating its planned merger with Airtel. Safaricom was reported to have submitted queries to the Communications Authority (CA) about the merger. Telkom’s CEO, Mugo Kibati says Safaricom’s dominance has led to the absence of a major competitor thereby resulting in a stunted telco market that has left consumers with little to no choice. In its defence, Safaricom said it only wants the CA to review spectrum allocation relative to the number of subscribers post-merger. It also wants Telkom and Airtel to pay the combined debt of US$12.5 million they owe.
Both units are fighting for the heart of Kenya’s telecoms market which has 51 million subscribers and is controlled by Safaricom at 65% market share. Individually, Airtel and Telkom currently hold about 26.1% and 7.9% respectively. The merger will produce a more formidable contender to Safaricom. Banks and Telcos have been trying to break Safaricom’s mobile money dominance for some time now. |
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| South African grocery delivery startup, OneCart wants to close a Series A round by the end of September. Last year, it received seed investment which it revealed was under US$676,000. The company reported that its business grew by 50% monthly last year. OneCart launched last year and it works with a number of grocery retailers in South Africa to shop for as well as deliver groceries for customers. |
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Join the General Manager of the Lagos State Waterways, Mr Oluwadamilola Emmanuel at TC Townhall: Mobility, a forum about the future of Africa’s transport & logistics tech sector. The LASWA GM will speak alongside other policymakers at the state and national level to inform the public about their plans and proposed policies to improve transportation infrastructure available in Lagos State as well as their plans to partner and/or do business with the private sector.
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Early bird tickets are available here if you use the code TCMobility before September 9. |
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| Nigerian fintech companies, Carbon and Appzone have announced a partnership with non-profit ,Open Banking Nigeria. Both fintech companies “would actively participate in diverse phases of the development of common API standards for Nigeria, testing the APIs for certification, and stimulating the adoption of open banking standards across the country.” The partnership is expected to boost the rapid increase in mobile and digital payments while satisfying consumers’ desire for flexibility and convenience. Open Banking Nigeria was founded in 2017 by a group of industry experts across banking, fintech and risk management to build a common standard for Open Banking APIs in Nigeria. Some of its other partners include Ernst & Young, Fidelity Bank, PWC, Sterling Bank, Paystack and Flutterwave. |
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| ShopIT (South Africa), ExportUnity (Benin) and Wakulima (Tanzania) have won the Nestlé Research and Development (R&D) sub-Saharan innovation challenge. All three startups will attend a 4-month accelerator program at the Nestlé R&D Center in Côte d’Ivoire. Nestlé launched the R&D innovation challenge in sub-Saharan Africa in May 2019 as part of its efforts to foster innovative solutions across four areas: affordable nutrition, environmentally friendly packing solutions, sustainable cocoa plantlets, and new routes to markets. |
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| Applications are now open to the Pitch by the Pyramids pitch competition. The competition is being put together by RiseUp and qualifiers will hold in eight startup hubs across the Middle East and North Africa region including Cairo and Tunis. Startups in North Africa can apply here before September 21. |
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That’s It,
We’ll see you tomorrow.
– Olanrewaju
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