Rwanda’s new SIM registration, Somalia’s Trade Information Portal, Cellulant’s partnership with GAINDE 2000
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Rwanda’s new SIM registration, Somalia’s Trade Information Portal, Cellulant’s partnership with GAINDE 2000

ByTechTrends

Rwanda’s new SIM registration, Somalia’s Trade Information Portal, Cellulant’s partnership with GAINDE 2000 Written by Victoria Fakiya Rwanda’s new SIM registration directives What’s the news? Telecom operators will implement new SIM card registration procedures. The Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA), Rwanda’s telecom regulator, claims it will help reduce fraud. According to RURA, anyone who wants to get…

Zip acquisition of Payflex means Africa is ripe for BNPL disruption
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Zip acquisition of Payflex means Africa is ripe for BNPL disruption

ByTechTrends

Zip acquisition of Payflex means Africa is ripe for BNPL disruption Writen by Tage Kene-Okafor Australian buy now, pay later (BNPL) company Zip this week acquired South Africa-based BNPL player Payflex for an undisclosed amount. It’s a piece of news that once again highlights the hype around BNPL services and the quest for global dominance among the…

African energy startups to benefit from SIMA’s $68,000,000 Energy Access Relief Fund
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African energy startups to benefit from SIMA’s $68,000,000 Energy Access Relief Fund

ByTechTrends

African energy startups to benefit from SIMA’s $68,000,000 Energy Access Relief Fund Written By Joan Aimuengheuwa With a focus on ensuring adequate decentralisation of clean energy globally, Social Investment Managers and Advisors’ (SIMA) has made its $68,000,000 Energy Access Relief Fund (EARF) accessible to startups in the energy sector. Smaller to mid-sized energy companies across sub-Saharan…

No, your phone isn’t making you dumber or more forgetful

No, your phone isn’t making you dumber or more forgetful

ByTechTrends

No, your phone, Digital devices and technologies isn’t making you dumber or more forgetful Digital devices and technologies can enhance the way we learn and work. Digital technology is ubiquitous. We have been increasingly reliant on smartphones, tablets and computers over the past 20 years, and this trend has been accelerating due to the pandemic….

Nigerian government orders telcos to shut down mobile services in Zamfara to curb banditry

Nigerian government orders telcos to shut down mobile services in Zamfara to curb banditry

ByTechTrends

Nigerian government orders telcos to shut down mobile services in Zamfara to curb banditry Written by Ejike Kanife The federal government has ordered telecom operators in the country to shut down all communications sites in Zamfara State and in neighbouring states that could provide telecommunications services in Zamfara State. This was contained in a memo reportedly sent…

Zowasel, a Nigerian agritech startup, has received $100,000 in funding from Guinness and Promasidor.

Zowasel, a Nigerian agritech startup, has received $100,000 in funding from Guinness and Promasidor.

ByTechTrends

Zowasel, a Nigerian agritech startup, has received $100,000 in funding from Guinness and Promasidor. At the UN World Food Programme Zero Hunger Sprint, Nigerian agri-tech firm Zowasel received US$100,000 in funding from Guinness Nigeria and Promasidor Nigeria, a large pan-African consumer packaged food maker. Zowasel is an agricultural technology startup that is working to create a sustainable…

WhatsApp rolls out a feature allowing users to transfer chat history from iPhone to Samsung device

WhatsApp rolls out feature allowing users to transfer chat history from iPhone to Samsung device

ByTechTrends

WhatsApp rolls out a feature allowing users to transfer chat history from iPhone to Samsung device Written by  Alan Friedman In a blog post published today, popular messaging app WhatsApp announced that it has started rolling out new files that allow users to move their chat history from iOS to Android. This will take place without messages…

Twitter May Soon Let Users Add Bitcoin, Ethereum Addresses to Their Profiles for Tips

Twitter May Soon Let Users Add Bitcoin, Ethereum Addresses to Their Profiles for Tips

ByTechTrends

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey suggested the new move in July by calling Bitcoin a “big part” of the platform’s future. Written by Jagmeet Singh Twitter May Soon Let Users Add Bitcoin, Ethereum Addresses to Their Profiles for Tips Twitter is found to be working on allowing users to add Bitcoin and Ethereum addresses to their…

WhatsApp Message Reactions May Support All Emojis, Money Heist Fans Get Special Sticker Pack

WhatsApp Message Reactions May Support All Emojis, Money Heist Fans Get Special Sticker Pack

ByTechTrends

WhatsApp Message Reactions May Support All Emojis, Money Heist Fans Get Special Sticker Pack Written by  Jagmeet Singh WhatsApp may follow in the steps of Facebook’s Messenger while enabling message reactions on its platform. WhatsApp is found to allow users to apply any of their favourite emojis as message reactions. The new development appears just…

Egyptian beauty startup Glamera launches B2B product

Egyptian beauty startup Glamera launches B2B product

ByTechTrends

Egyptian beauty startup Glamera launches B2B product Written by  TOM JACKSON Egyptian beauty service booking platform Glamera has launched a new B2B product that helps customers with beauty salon management. Launched in September 2019, Glamera allows users to book appointments with hundreds of contracted providers covering all beauty sections, including salons, clinics, spa, gym, and dental. The…

Egyptian e-commerce startup FwRun acquired by Saudi logistics company

Egyptian e-commerce startup FwRun acquired by Saudi logistics company

ByTechTrends

Egyptian e-commerce startup FwRun acquired by Saudi logistics company Written by  TOM JACKSON Egyptian e-commerce solutions provider FwRun has been acquired by Saudi Arabian last mile delivery and logistics firm Diggipacks as the latter looks to expand its presence in the Egyptian market. Founded in 2019, FwRun provides fulfillment, delivery, and warehousing services to e-commerce companies….

Make accessibility part of your startup’s products and culture from day one
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Make accessibility part of your startup’s products and culture from day one

ByTechTrends

Make accessibility part of your startup’s products and culture from day one Written by Joe Devon The world of accessibility has experienced a tipping point thanks to the pandemic, which drove people of all abilities to do more tasks and shopping online. For the last year, the digital world was the only place brands could…

Playbyte’s new app aims to become the ‘TikTok for games’

Playbyte’s new app aims to become the ‘TikTok for games’

ByTechTrends

Playbyte’s new app aims to become the ‘TikTok for games’ Written by Sarah Perez A startup called Playbyte wants to become the TikTok for games. The company’s newly launched iOS app offers tools that allow users to make and share simple games on their phone, as well as a vertically scrollable, fullscreen feed where you can play the games…

TheCut, a technology platform designed to handle back-end operations for barbers, raised $4.5 million in new funding.

Barbershop technology startup theCut sharpens its platform with new $4.5M round

ByTechTrends

Barbershop technology startup theCut sharpens its platform with new $4.5M round Written by Christine Hall TheCut, a technology platform designed to handle back-end operations for barbers, raised $4.5 million in new funding. Nextgen Venture Partners led the round and was joined by Elevate Ventures, Singh Capital and Leadout Capital. The latest funding gives theCut $5.35…

4 Ways Haller Farmers App Helps Fight East African Climate Change
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4 Ways Haller Farmers App Helps Fight East African Climate Change

ByTechTrends

4 Ways Haller Farmers App Helps Fight East African Climate Change Written by Luis Monzon Africa is warming much faster than the global average, according to the IGAD Climate Predication and Application Centre (ICPAC). Major cities in East Africa have witnessed increased temperatures that almost double the 1.1-degree warming average that the rest of the globe…

Nigerian tech-enabled spices exporter Agricorp raises $17.5m Series A funding round

Nigerian tech-enabled spices exporter Agricorp raises $17.5m Series A funding round

ByTechTrends

Nigerian tech-enabled spices exporter Agricorp raises $17.5m Series A funding round Written by TOM JACKSON Nigerian startup Agricorp, which is utilising technology in a bid to become the largest spices exporter on the continent, has raised US$17.5 million in Series A funding to help it increase its production capacity to 7,000 metric tonnes.   Founded in…

Startups should look to state-of-the-art tech to tackle diseases affecting women

Startups should look to state-of-the-art tech to tackle diseases affecting women

ByTechTrends

Startups should look to state-of-the-art tech to tackle diseases affecting women Written  by Shahar Keinan Startups devoted to reproductive and women’s health are on the rise. However, most of them deal with women’s fertility: birth control, ovulation and the inability to conceive. The broader field of women’s health remains neglected. Historically, most of our understanding…

How Hybrid Cloud & AI Boost Innovation in Africa’s Banking Sector

How Hybrid Cloud & AI Boost Innovation in Africa’s Banking Sector

ByTechTrends

How Hybrid Cloud & AI Boost Innovation in Africa’s Banking Sector Written  by Luis Monzon Over the past few years, organisations across sectors have embarked on their digital transformation journeys at a moderate pace following industry predictions. The pandemic fast-tracked digital transformation as companies looked to emerging technologies in order to avoid business interruptions and ensure…

Absa Launches Search for Digital Partners Across Africa
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Absa Launches Search for Digital Partners Across Africa

ByTechTrends

Absa Launches Search for Digital Partners Across Africa By  Luis Monzon Absa Group, one of the largest financial service providers in Africa, is strengthening efforts to grow its digital partnerships ecosystem across the continent with the appointment of HYBR and SystemicLogic, which will help Absa identify potential collaboration partners. “We believe in the substantial mutual…

South African Property Firm First to Accept Crypto for Rental Deposits

South African Property Firm First to Accept Crypto for Rental Deposits

ByTechTrends

South African Property Firm First to Accept Crypto for Rental Deposits Written by Luis Monzon Quorum Holdings, an affordable residential and student housing specialist is the first property firm in South Africa to accept rental deposits in cryptocurrency tokens and to allow prospective tenants to potentially benefit from an increase in value. While rental deposits…

The eighth natural wonder of the world is getting a partnership with TikTok
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The eighth natural wonder of the world is getting a partnership with TikTok

ByTechTrends

The eighth natural wonder of the world is getting a partnership with TikTok Written by Conrad Onyango Kenya is turning to a global youth audience to showcase the eighth natural wonder of the world—the great wildebeest migration—as Africa goes all out to ramp up international tourism numbers. The east African country’s tourism board on Aug. 24 announced…

WhatsApp Patches Vulnerability in Image Filter
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WhatsApp Patches Vulnerability in Image Filter Function That Could Have Led to Data Exposure

ByTechTrends

WhatsApp Patches Vulnerability in Image Filter Function That Could Have Led to Data Exposure Written by Jagmeet Singh WhatsApp brought the patch in February and added two new checks in place to restrict memory access. WhatsApp has patched a vulnerability that could allow an attacker to read sensitive information from the app’s memory, including private…

Nigerian VC firm LoftyInc announces first close of $10m fund
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Nigerian VC firm LoftyInc announces first close of $10m fund

ByTechTrends

Nigerian VC firm LoftyInc announces first close of $10m fund Written by TOM JACKSON Nigerian VC firm LoftyInc Capital Management has announced the first close of its US$10 million LoftyInc Afropreneurs Fund 3 (LAF3) as it seriously scales up its activity in the startup space across the continent.  LoftyInc Capital Management is a venture capital firm…

Samsung announces 200-megapixel phone camera sensor

Samsung announces 200-megapixel phone camera sensor

ByTechTrends

Samsung announces 200-megapixel phone camera sensor That’s a lot of pixels Written by  Sam Byford Samsung has announced a 200-megapixel image sensor intended for smartphone cameras, by some distance the highest resolution phone camera sensor ever made. The ISOCELL HP1 has 0.64?m pixels and can bin 16 of them at once for the equivalent of a 12.5-megapixel…

Property (Proptech) technology to disrupt Africa’s real estate sector – Analysts
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Property technology to disrupt Africa’s real estate sector – Analysts

ByTechTrends

Property (Proptech) technology to disrupt Africa’s real estate sector – Analysts Written by Yinka Okeowo While the real estate sector increasingly values data as the new gold; the analysis and usability of the data is what will set apart industry leaders from their peers. Africa’s Property Technology (Proptech) sector is ramping up and is a key component…

Google Assistant
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You’ll soon be able to use the Google Assistant without saying ‘Hey, Google’

ByTechTrends

You’ll soon be able to use the Google Assistant without saying ‘Hey, Google’ Written by BABU MOHAN There’s currently no word on when the features will begin rolling out to users. Google announced a bunch of new features coming to the Google Assistant with Android 12 at I/O 2021 — including shortcut expansions. A teardown of the latest Google…

Nigeria’s Bumpa raises $200k pre-seed to build e-commerce solutions for retail businesses

Nigeria’s Bumpa raises $200k pre-seed to build e-commerce solution

ByTechTrends

Nigeria’s Bumpa raises $200k pre-seed to build e-commerce solutions for retail businesses Written by  TOM JACKSON Nigerian startup Bumpa, which helps retailers manage and grow their businesses from their mobile phones, has closed a US$200,000 pre-seed funding round to help it reach more merchants and add more features. Launched in February by Kelvin Umechukwu and…

South African buy now pay later fintech startup Payflex has been acquired by Australia Securities Exchange (ASX)-listed Zip as the latter takes it global expansion plans into Africa.

SA fintech startup Payflex acquired by listed Australian firm plotting African expansion

ByTechTrends

SA fintech startup Payflex acquired by listed Australian firm plotting African expansion Written by TOM JACKSON South African buy now pay later fintech startup Payflex has been acquired by Australia Securities Exchange (ASX)-listed Zip as the latter takes it global expansion plans into Africa. Founded in 2018, Payflex allows consumers to shop now and pay later, interest-free….

Kenya’s MotiSure launches API-powered insurtech platform
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Kenya’s MotiSure launches API-powered insurtech platform

ByTechTrends

Kenya’s MotiSure launches API-powered insurtech platform Written by  TOM JACKSON Kenyan startup MotiSure has launched an API-powered insurtech platform that provides personal accident cover for commuters and riders through embedding insurance in tickets and other points of sale within mobility. MotiSure was co-founded this year by Joel Macharia, Jane Njau and Thuita Wachira after they sampled…

Number of African participants in latest Y Combinator accelerator climbs to 15

Number of African participants in latest Y Combinator accelerator climbs to 15

ByTechTrends

Number of African participants in latest Y Combinator accelerator climbs to 15 Written by TOM JACKSON The number of confirmed African participants in the Y Combinator accelerator’s S21 cohort has increased to 15 after two more were named ahead of demo days taking place yesterday (August 31) and today (September 1). Disrupt Africa reported last month…