Safaricom unveils its first data centre in Ethiopia ahead of full-scale commercial launch in April

Safaricom’s newly unveiled data centre in Addis Ababa Business Insider Africa understands that the facility cost about $100 million to construct and was put together by Huawei and Nokia. Safaricom said it plans to construct two additional data centres and will erect about 7000 network towers across Ethiopia in the next five years. Recall that […]

Led by Kenya-based entrepreneurs Tesh Mbaabu and Mesongo Sibuti, MarketForce closes the largest Series A round of its kind in East and Central Africa

[L – R]: MarketForce co-founders, Mesongo Sibuti and Tesh Mbaabu The funding round was led by V8 Capital Partners, a London and Lagos based African-focused investment vehicle. This latest round brings the total funds raised by MarketForce to date to $42.5 million. Ken Njoroge, co-founder and former CEO of Cellulant, also participated in the round […]

MTN Group is the biggest company in West Africa by market capitalization – here’s the Top 30 list

A worker walks past an outlet of South Africa’s MTN Group in Johannesburg, South Africa, February 23, 2016. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo The market cap of the Top 30 companies for January 2022 was US$116bn, up 4.7% in December. BUA Foods (Nigeria) and Access Bank (Nigeria) are new entrants in the Top 30, replacing Jumia Technologies […]

Telco-led banking – a new phase for fintech in Nigeria

Mobile money Acquiring a mobile phone and opening a bank account are two significant but separate events for many Nigerians. However, if Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) in the country successfully launch banking operations as planned, acquiring a mobile phone could mean owning a bank account without needing traditional banks. “Banking in Nigeria remains an attractive […]

US flags Kenya for relaxing dirty cash reporting rule

Kenyan officials handling money-laundering investigation files are tipping account holders of suspicious transactions to move their assets before raids, hampering the fight against money launderers. A new US report tracking the global money-laundering hotspots also says Kenya appears to have taken a step back in the fight after last year it lifted the threshold of […]

State to reveal names, homes of tender tycoons

Attorney General Paul Kihara Kariuki. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NMG The State will start making public the names, residential addresses and occupation of secret shareholders in companies that clinch tenders in ministries and parastatals. Attorney-General Kihara Kariuki has unveiled fresh regulations that will compel the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) to reveal information on […]