Mobility startup Plentywaka picks up $1.2M seed, acquires Ghana’s Stabus Written by Tage Kene-Okafor Lagos and Toronto-based mobility startup Plentywaka has raised a $1.2 million seed round to scale its operations on the back of leaving the Techstars Toronto accelerator program last month. Canadian-based VC firm The Xchange led the round, SOSV and Shock Ventures participated, while…
Are Our Smartphones Making Us Dopamine Addicts? Ask, addiction expert Dr. Anna Lembke. Written by David “According to addiction expert Dr Anna Lembke, our smartphones are making us dopamine junkies,” reports the Guardian, “with each swipe, like and tweet feeding our habit…”As the chief of Stanford University’s dual diagnosis addiction clinic (which caters to people with…
Google has apparently been paying phone manufacturers not to install third-party app stores. Written by Tyler Lee Google’s Android operating system is seen as being more “open” compared to Apple’s iOS platform. Users can install apps from outside the Play Store, and if they wanted, they could even download and install third-party app stores like…
New business registration forms will be available by end of August – CAC. Written by David Oladele The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has disclosed that the two new forms of business registration provided by the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA 2020) will be available for Nigerians by the end of August 2021. The registrar…
Is public shaming by online lending platforms that gives loan a legal or criminal?- A legal perspective Written by Ejike Kanife Nigeria is a country with millions of people existing in abject lack. With an unemployment rate of 33.3%, the country has the second-highest rate on the global ranking. According to a Bloomberg report, about 23.5…
Is Uber raising your fare based on your battery percentage? Written By Aleksandar Anastasov The topic of privacy has been a heated one for some time now, and if you are wary of large companies taking a peek into your life without you knowing, you would not be the only one. Recently, a Twitter user reported…
Crypto-currency adoption in Africa: The ups and downs Challenges include a lack of reliable internet and a lack of financial literacy. Written by Eugene Yiga Africa is booming in terms of cryptocurrency adoption, according to the 2020 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report by Chainalysis – a blockchain analysis company that provides data, software, services, and research…
Unlocking the potential of blockchain technology Written by Zach Winn Algorand uses a unique architecture developed by MIT Professor Silvio Micali to offer a decentralized, secure, and scalable blockchain. The Republic of the Marshall Islands is a country of around 50,000 people spread across more than 1,000 islands in a remote part of the Pacific…
The Six Biggest Blockchain Trends Everyone Should Know About In 2021 Written by Bernard Marr Blockchain has been one of the most talked-about tech trends of the last few years. As with many other trends that were important before the pandemic hit, it didn’t make as many headlines in 2021 as it has done previously….
Here’s How to Know When It’s Time to Pivot Your Online Business Written by Christine Hansen Even if you have an absolutely perfect business idea, there will inevitably come a time in which you have to pivot. Pivoting is a normal, natural part of the business development process — particularly for service-based entrepreneurs. With that…
As the market for Virtual Reality (VR) is growing rapidly, these are the 5 VR Startups to Watch in 2021 Written By Adriaan Brits The market for virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technology, which uses advanced displays and movement-tracking to immerse its users in a particular experience, is set to grow at a rapid clip in the coming…
South African e-health VitruvianMD raises 8-figure ZAR funding round Written By TOM JACKSON South African e-health startup VitruvianMD has raised an eight-figure ZAR – so at least ZAR10 million (US$659,000) – funding round in order to scale its tech and launch more pilots. Founded last year, VitruvianMD combines biomedical engineering and state-of-the-art artificial intelligence (AI) to deliver…
Meet Wale Abba, who designed Interswitch’s Quickteller and several Nigerian banking apps Written By Oluwanifemi Kolawole Nigerian fintech unicorn, Interswitch, has, for the past 19 years, led the way when it comes to digitising payments in Nigeria — where it provides most of the country’s digital banking infrastructure — and other African countries. Interestingly, an…
SA fintech startup Revio set for continental expansion as it powers SaaS businesses Written By TOM JACKSON South African fintech startup Revio, a subscription billing and payments platform that powers software-as-a-service (SaaS) businesses, is planning an expansion into other African markets soon. Co-founded in 2019 by venture builder The Delta and a private investor, Revio is a SaaS company…
Wiiqare App disrupts health care services in eastern DR Congo’s Goma Written By Africanews In the Democratic Republic of Congo, access to quality healthcare is expensive and tedious. But Bienvenue Zigabe has managed to create an application to facilitate quick access to medical services. “Wiiqare” helps patients pay for treatment and drugs using their savings…
Eight African fintech startups have been selected to participate in the latest edition of the GreenHouse Lab accelerator, securing access to funding and mentorship. Written by TOM JACKSON GreenHouse Lab is the flagship accelerator programme run by GreenHouse Capital, a Lagos-based fintech investment fund and platform focused on supporting early-stage companies and world-class emerging market entrepreneurs…
Zoom is coming to your living room. Why not take your video calls on the biggest screen in your house? Written By Anthony Spadafora After launching Zoom for Home last year, Zoom has been working with its hardware partners to develop solutions to ensure that users have the best video conferencing experience wherever they find themselves working. As organizations are…
Malware attacks in Africa are increasing, reaching 85 million in only 6 months Malware is rife across Africa with various countries exhibiting strong growth in all malware types in the first half of 2021 when compared to the same period last year, Kaspersky research has highlighted. Written By Yinka Okeowo This is a 5% increase in the…
In my experience in the Startup space, I have spoken to at least 30 founders. Although it is impossible to meet the perfect person in any circumstance, it is possible to attain a level where one can be ranked as a professional and have the ability to manage a business and people effectively. Starting a…
An innovative game is helping Ugandan women to combat online violence Written By Amy Fallon Rocking a sharp fuchsia pink blazer with high cut trousers and a flower behind one ear, Goitse, a Botswanan college student living in Rwanda, is described as an “ardent feminist” who loves a “soft life.” When she hears about a…
Founders of tech startups based in Egypt and Nigeria have been accepted into the global Endeavor network, gaining access to various support services to help their companies scale. Written by TOM JACKSON The Endeavor initiative works to catalyze long-term economic growth by selecting, mentoring, and accelerating the best high-impact entrepreneurs worldwide, and has accepted a host…
How Nigeria’s Nguvu Health provides on-demand therapy sessions to Africans Written by TOM JACKSON Nigerian startup Nguvu Health is providing on-demand online therapy sessions to Africans anywhere in the world via their smartphones. Founded in March 2020, Nguvu Health utilises Android and iOS apps to connect users with licensed therapists via in-app messaging or video call, in…
Senegal-born factory worker is Europe’s first TikTok megastar Written By Alexander Onukwue The latest TikTok star to reach 100 million followers is not a musician, actor, or athlete. It’s a 21-year-old former factory worker living in Italy on a Senegalese passport. Khaby Lame has crafted a comedic brand that has resonated around the world by putting…
Ghanaian fintech Waya sees strong growth propel it into other African markets Written by TOM JACKSON Ghana-based payments startup Waya is seeing month-on-month growth of between 20 per cent in its three existing markets, prompting it to launch expansion activities into three additional African countries. Founded in 2018 after co-founder Delali Anku-Adiamah faced a challenge sending…
How Kenya’s Paylend is helping MSMEs better record data and access loans Written by TOM JACKSON Kenyan fintech startup Paylend, which is helping MSMEs better record data and access loans, is conducting surveys in Tanzania and Nigeria ahead of beta tests in those markets. Founded in 2019 by Bendon Murgor and Eliutherius Juma, Paylend is digitising the…
More than 300 African tech startups have raised over $1.1bn so far in 2021 Written by TOM JACKSON More than 300 African tech startups have raised more than US$1.1 billion combined so far in 2021, the first time the sector has broken the US$1 billion mark – and with four-and-a-half months of the year still to…
Wazo Challenge East Africa is open for applications for tech entrepreneurs across Eastern Africa Hindsight Ventures, Africa focussed vertical of Startup Réseau, has announced Wazo Challenge East Africa as its latest program catering to tech entrepreneurs in the region. The India-headquartered emerging markets focussed startup accelerator has been ramping its program operations in East Africa…
Why Innovation Is Increasingly Becoming Critical to Entrepreneurship Innovation is a facilitator of entrepreneurship and a way of empowering people to take charge of their lives and economic prosperity. At the same time, entrepreneurship is the answer to innovation both at the individual business level. It also stimulates the general business sector growth of a…
WhatsApp has started the new experience with seven backgrounds to choose from. WhatsApp on Tuesday introduced Payments Backgrounds in India to upgrade the experience of money transfers on its platform. The new feature is aimed to deliver a personalised payments experience to WhatsApp users. It lets you select a relevant background when you are sending…
Facebook’s undersea Internet cable is coming to South-East Nigeria and 3 other African countries The 2Africa project, championed by social media giant, Facebook, and seven other companies — China Mobile International, MTN GlobalConnect, Orange, stc, Telecom Egypt, Vodafone, and WIOCC — is adding four new branches to its 37,000km undersea Internet cable. The new branches…