Ransomware is becoming more dangerous and expensive all the time, and it has affected nearly every industry and geography. Nobody is safe from the threat. According to Fortinet’s global ransomware survey, 67 percent of organizations have experienced a ransomware attack. Worse, nearly half of those polled said they had been targeted more than once, and…
Luno, a global cryptocurrency company, has launched an investment arm called Luno Expeditions, which will support early-stage fintech and cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and plans to make 200 to 300 investments per year. Luno, which has over nine million customers and operates in 43 countries across Africa, Southeast Asia, the United States (US), and Europe, makes it…
The news media landscape has shifted dramatically over the last few decades. Searching for news online has become commonplace, whether through Google, social networking sites, major newspapers, or local media websites. Because smartphones are so widely used, people can get the most up-to-date information from all over the world in real time. While digital media…
Ghana’s central bank has released information about its ‘eCedi’ digital currency, which it hopes will encourage more people to use the country’s banking system. The Bank of Ghana has released a digital paper advocating for hardware wallet services for Ghanaians who do not have internet access or bank accounts. The West African country is developing…
Sokowatch, a Kenyan e-commerce company that uses technology to improve the informal retail supply chain, has raised $125 million in Series B funding, rebranded as Wasoko, and expanded into West Africa. Tiger Global, the world’s largest venture capital firm, and Avenir Growth Capital are leading the round, which also includes VNV Global, Flipkart co-founder Binny…
Engen, a South African petroleum company, has opened applications for its Pitch & Polish pitching competition, in which 16 entrepreneurs will compete for a ZAR1 million (US$67,000) first prize. Pitch & Polish, now in its 12th year, went fully virtual for the first time in 2021, when Cape Town-based business partners Pieter du Plessis and…
Every new product starts with an idea, but ensuring its continuation depends on something less exciting: its underlying structure. Appealing features and marketing will be irrelevant if the system is unable to process the load. As a product scales from a small user base to millions of users, the tech behind it needs to change…
Startupbootcamp AfriTech and Telecel Group have chosen 11 African startups to participate in the second edition of the Africa Startup Initiative Programme (ASIP), which provides funding and support to participants. Startupbootcamp AfriTech was founded in 2017 as the first pan-African startup accelerator backed by multiple corporations. Disrupt Africa announced in March of last year that…
Mercy Corps, a global humanitarian organization, has established a $1 million Crypto for Good Fund to test and support blockchain-based solutions for people who are low-income and/or unbanked. “We are excited to partner with visionary founding teams to identify, test, and prove the potential of crypto and web3 to improve financial access for the world’s…
Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, has confirmed that Instagram will soon launch a non-fungible token (NFT) feature. This statement was made at South by Southwest (SXSW) 2022, an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences held in mid-March in Austin, Texas, United States. Twitter announced its NFT profile picture…
Shatablee, an Egyptian digital interior design and home renovation startup, has raised US$1.2 million in funding to accelerate its national expansion. Shatablee, founded in 2021 by Mostafa Amer, provides a 3D technology-powered digital platform through which users can build and customize home designs in less than 30 minutes and have the entire renovation completed in…
Pivo, a Nigerian startup, offers an all-in-one financial services platform for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the supply chain sector, including banking, lending, and insurance solutions. Pivo, founded in July 2021 by Ijeoma Akwiwu and Nkiru Amadi-Emina and launched in public beta in September, is aimed at any business involved in the import, export,…
According to the National Infrastructure Plan 2050, which was released on Friday by South Africa’s Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Patricia De Lille, every South African household will receive 50GB of data by the fiscal year 2025/6. According to the document, the government’s goal is to provide high-speed, affordable, and accessible broadband to underserved…
Africa has recently made significant progress toward realizing its ambition of being a launching pad for most startup businesses. Although, Africa’s track record of maintaining and ramping up startups is a different tale. Only few African startups with global impact exist on the continent, the most stemming from the tech industry. In comparison, the Western and…
PECB University has signed a new Academic partnership agreement with Digital Encode Limited, to commit their knowledge, resources, and efforts to provide top-class education to students in Nigeria. PECB University is an independent institution of higher education focused on business education, which is inspired by the tenets of professionalism of its parent company, PECB Inc. – a…
The Internet of Things Forum Africa will be held for the fifth time on March 29 and 30, 2022, at the Maslow Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa. IoT Forum Africa 2022, hosted by IT News Africa, is shaping up to be bigger and better than ever, with an exciting lineup of visionaries, thought leaders, and…
It is not easy to start a business. To get a business off the ground, you must put in a lot of effort, dedication, and perseverance. However, in today’s world, there are a variety of tools and technologies that make it easier than ever to start a business. You must consider several factors, including your…
Some of today’s most successful businesses began as startups. They usually begin with a brilliant idea or a new technology that promises to solve a problem and force us to reconsider how we do business. The African region is no stranger to startups; according to reports, African startups raised nearly $5 billion in total estimated…
Yoco, a South African payments company, has acquired Nona Digital, a Cape Town-based fintech and Web3 software development agency, to accelerate its roadmap by bringing in a team of highly specialized fintech product and technology professionals. Yoco creates tools and services to assist small businesses in accepting card payments in-store and online, obtaining loans, and…
Spleet, a Nigerian real estate technology startup, has raised US$625,000 in pre-seed funding to help it launch a new product that provides tenants with affordable loans to help them pay their rent. Spleet, founded in 2018 by Tola Adesanmi in response to the need to find rentals in Lagos with flexible payment options rather than…
Google for Startups Accelerator Africa Class 7 participants have been announced, with the selected startups set to receive mentorship and expert advice over the course of the three-month program. The Google for Startups Accelerator Africa, announced in 2017, is a three-month program that connects early-stage African tech startups with the best of Google’s products, people,…
Nigerians and Africans in general have not fully embraced the gift card culture, a culture that is acceptable in other parts of the world, ensuring a thriving gift card industry. It’s easy to see why, given the numerous industry roadblocks in the way, one of which is the global no-refund policy on gift cards. A…
Moove, one of the fastest-growing mobility fintechs, has raised $105 million in a new Series A2 funding round led by previous investors Speedinvest, Left Lane Capital, and the latest ventures, as well as new participants AfricInvest, MUFG Innovation Partners, Latitude, and Kreos Capital. The company said in a statement to Technext that the funds will…
Wattnow, a Tunisian startup that provides IoT smart energy management solutions, has raised a pre-Series A funding round of US$1.3 million to help it expand across Africa and the Middle East. Wattnow, founded in 2018 by Issam Smaali, assists businesses in gaining control of their energy usage through the use of plug-and-play hardware and software…
Providing children with the skills they need to protect themselves online can be extremely beneficial to families. Kaspersky Lab, a cybersecurity and digital privacy company, shares seven digital practices that parents can teach their children. To survive in today’s Internet world, everyone requires certain skills. While adults typically learn these skills as new technologies emerge,…
Curacel, a Nigerian insurtech startup that offers an AI-powered platform for claims processing and fraud management in Africa, has announced its participation in the latest Y Combinator cohort, as well as the launch of Grow, an embedded insurance product that enables technology companies to seamlessly offer insurance as part of their existing products and services….
Telegram is getting an update with a slew of new features. A download manager to control downloads, a new attachment menu to share documents and re-arrange media albums before sending, and new streaming tools to turn a Telegram channel into a TV station are among the new features. In addition, semi-transparent headers are being added…
Twelve African tech startups have been chosen for the first cohort of the FAST startup accelerator, which was developed by Microsoft in collaboration with Flapmax to strengthen and scale Africa’s digital ecosystem. The 12-week FAST programme, which starts next week, brings together startups from six different countries and nine industries, chosen from over 800 applications…
On Friday, three Nigerian federal government agencies—the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), the National Information and Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Offences Commission (ICPC)—worked together with the Nigerian police force to raid some illegal financial institutions based on Opebi Road in Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria. Digital lending platforms…
Following the completion of all Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) requirements and the receipt of a US$2.2 million pre-seed funding round, Egyptian fintech and next-generation banking startup Nexta is set to begin operations. Nexta, founded in 2021 by Ibrahim Farag and Ahmed Hisham, is a digital bank that aims to improve Egyptians’ daily lives by…