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TechCabal Daily – We’re going back to the cinemas and here’s an update on Cars45

Olumuyiwa Olowogboyega 4th September 2020

In yesterday’s newsletter, Alex talked about some big news at Cars45.

So here’s the summary:

Someone within the company decided it was a good idea to do a mugshot style picture compilation of some of its high level employees who left the company.
In an Instagram post, which has now been deleted, it warned the public that the employees no longer represented the company.

It felt like the sort of thing you would do if some low-level employees
were caught in some heinous act. But I won’t rehash the story, I wrote about it here.

Instead, let me tell you about what happened when the news broke. It first felt like some strange dream; I mean, what kind of thinking pushes a company to publish the pictures of its former co-founder and VPs?

Was there something bigger at play here? I did a LinkedIn search and noticed that a lot of the people who left Cars45 are now at a new organisation called NewCo.
It was and still is important to hear their side of the story so I sent LinkedIn messages, called and emailed some of the people who moved from Cars45 to
NewCo.

I didn’t make a lot of progress. Every person I tried to speak to responded with silence. I got a little desperate and emailed Endeavour Network to ask about Etok Ikpe, the former CEO of Cars45- no dice.

It’s not entirely surprising; the players in the Nigerian ecosystem can keep a secret.

So, until NewCo shows its hand, I’ll be left wondering; what really happened at Cars45? That’s definitely a story I intend to stay on until I find some answers. Got a scoop for me? Send me an email; muyiwa@bigcabal.com

On this week’s TC podcast, I talked about South Africa’s decision to reopen its cinemas, with two of the biggest cinema chains opening on August 28. There was even a whole campaign around it.

In that podcast, I said that Lagos could follow South Africa’s
example in reopening cinemas. After all, other places of mass gathering like churches and restaurants are now open in Lagos.

So, I’m adding this section just to say, “I told you so!”

The Nigerian government announced today that cinemas will be allowed to reopen and that the 10pm curfew in Lagos will be relaxed. It’s right in time for Friday night, and it means you can stay out till midnight.

The Nigerian vehicle manufacturer, Innoson has decided to launch a ride-hailing service in Enugu state, SouthEastern Nigeria.

I’ll try not to dwell on their press statement in which it says that this move to set up a ride-hailing business is part of its corporate social responsibility.

While the CSR bit is still up in the air, Innoson says it already has 2000 branded hatchbacks and if things go according to plan in Enugu, it will add another 3000 vehicles to the fleet.
It will also expand to other states in SouthEast Nigeria.

Innoson’s announcement has made me curious about the size of the addressable market in Enugu. It will be quite the thrill to visit Enugu soon and find out for myself.

Chinese phone manufacturer, Transsion Holdings is recording an impressive 2020 despite all the realities from COVID-19. In its recently released earnings report, the company raked in revenue of 13.9 billion yuan ($2.02 billion) for the first six months of the year. This represents a 31.81% growth over the same period in 2019.

Interestingly, Transsion’s profits surged in H1 2020, beating expectations shaped by COVID-19 realities. Between January and June, the company posted a profit of $1.09 billion yuan, a 33.4% growth from 2019.

Read all about it here.

Have you ever tried to set up a bank account or bid for a contract without any means of identification? If the contracting officer or banking officer did their jobs well, you must have been unable to proceed without an ID. Now, imagine what the experiences of those who have no formal means of ID are.

Digital identities are important. They can make the difference between whether people access economic opportunities or not.

This month, on Wednesday, September 16th, 2020, TechCabal
in partnership with identity verification company, VerifyMe will mark International ID-day by bringing industry veterans together to explore the state of digital identity in Nigeria.

Speakers include Mitchell Elegbe, Founder / Group Managing Director, Interswitch, and Esigie Aguele, Co-Founder and CEO, VerifyMe Nigeria. They will answer questions including how a digital identity ecosystem will enable the Nigerian tech community, particularly fintech; and how entrepreneurs and professionals can shape and take advantage of a working digital identity system?

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TechCabal Daily – We’re going back to the cinemas and here’s an update on Cars45

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