The just-ended back-to-school season is one of those tough days for most parents; for different reasons. The usual hustle and bustle of parents and learners all over the country mad dashing, with shopping lists, trying to get ready for the crucial third term. Above and beyond this pandemonium, there are also unspoken and often unseen endeavours and struggles by parents to make sure they raise all the necessary financial resources to be able to pay tuition fees and all the other associated costs of sending a child to school. Perhaps the only beautiful and relieving part of this story is…
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Emata, a pioneering fintech and microfinance firm based in Uganda, has successfully secured $2.4 million in a seed funding round. The funds, which include $800,000 in equity and $1.6 million in on-lending capital, will be utilized to expand the company’s innovative agri-loan services throughout the East African region. The seed funding round was supported by a group of investors, including African Renaissance Partners, a venture capital firm dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship in East Africa and the Horn of Africa. Norrsken Accelerator, the investment division of Europe’s largest impact tech ecosystem, also contributed to the round, along with Zephyr Acorn, Marcus…
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Startups need funding to grow at a speed that they want. This funding usually comes in the form of venture capital which is raised from VC firms, angel investors and other programs in exchange for equity. Funding for African startups has been growing steadily. In 2016, African startups raised just $130m according to Partech. But by 2022, the funding had risen to $3.33bn as per Disrupt Africa which represents a growth rate of over 2000% within a seven-year period. But with funding, comes investor communications. As per Wimbart’s Startup Performance Reporting in Africa, only 71% of investors said they received…
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Mastercard Inc., a leading global payments and technology company, has recently announced its decision to acquire a minority stake in the fintech division of MTN Group Ltd., This strategic move comes just two years after Mastercard invested $100 million in Airtel’s mobile money business, demonstrating the company’s continued interest in the burgeoning African fintech sector. Mastercard, headquartered in Purchase, New York, is a multinational financial services corporation. The company operates the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments, and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. Mastercard’s products and solutions make everyday commerce activities –…
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A startup, in its broadest sense, is a young, ambitious company that is in the initial stages of its business operations. These companies are typically driven by a unique business idea or a novel product or service, which they believe has the potential to disrupt the market. Startups are characterised by their innovative approach, high growth potential, and scalable business model that can rapidly expand to meet the increasing market demand. One of the most critical aspects of a startup’s journey is raising capital. This is primarily because startups, in their early stages, often operate at a loss due to…
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Flutterwave, the Pan-African payments startup, has launched a new product called Tuition by Flutterwave which will enable Africans to pay tuition for universities in the West in their local currencies. The new product was announced in a blog post on 11th July 2023. African students are increasingly attending universities in the West with the UK, USA, Canada and France being popular destinations. Despite this, paying tuition is still difficult with long wait times and expensive charges as the most convenient means is doing bank transfers. The new product is currently available for Nigerian students but will be launched in other…
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Pan African startup, Chipper Cash, has laid off at least 10 employees in its latest round of playoffs including the Global Head of Marketing and the Country Director of Kenya. This is the third time that Chipper Cash has laid off employees since December 2022 which has raised some questions about the potential impact such changes would have on the startup’s operations. In a confirmation of the latest round of layoffs, Chipper Cash wrote in an email to TechCabal, “As part of our previously announced restructuring as an organization to focus on core products and markets, we recently made redundant…
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In September 2012, Paul Kirungi arrived at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, with one goal in mind, to pursue the American dream. Paul had decided to leave behind a burgeoning journalism career that he had carved out at Kisementi-based Capital FM to pursue better opportunities in the USA. “It was a leap of faith for me. “ Paul tells me. “I was excited for this new chapter in my life.” Just like any new migrant to a new place, he knew he had to find a way to survive and get his new life started. His first job…
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Two Ugandan startups, Xazu Technologies and eMaisha Pay have been selected for the inaugural Amazon AWS Fintech Accelerator program. AWS (Amazon Web Services) is the cloud computing arm of technology giant, Amazon. A total of 25 startups were selected from seven African countries. Xazu Technologies is a fintech that operates the Omni Smart Card, a card that students can use to receive pocket money from their parents and also conduct cashless transactions at the school canteen. On the other hand, eMaisha Pay describes itself as Africa’s first neobank for agribusinesses and it makes it quick, convenient, and flexible for micro…
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Goldmine Finance, a licensed tier IV micro finance and ioTec Limited, a financial technology firm and software development company have entered into a partnership to catalyze the micro lenders next phase of growth. To kickstart the partnership, ioTec has enabled Goldmine Finance to launch, the first of many digital products that will come under this partnership— a micro credit platform dubbed the Goldmine Mobile Loans. The product, according to Alan Tayebwa, the Chief Executive Officer of Goldmine Finance, has been designed to “give better, faster, and efficient service to both new and existing clients.” According to Tayebwa, for businesses –…
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