TechPression

Tag: Africans

  • Bloc MFB reinvents business banking for tech-savvy Africans

    Bloc MFB reinvents business banking for tech-savvy Africans

    Bloc MFB, a fintech startup, disrupts tech companies’ access to financial services with its flagship business banking product. 

    This launch marks a turning point in the company’s mission to help businesses capitalize on global opportunities.

    Bloc Microfinance Bank, Providus Bank, and Sterling Bank, licensed banks, offer corporate bank accounts, transfers, and virtual cards to Bloc customers. 

    Bloc Business Banking adds advanced features and value-added services to essentials to improve banking. USD accounts, global payment acceptance, bill payment, custom checkout, and payment links are new features coming soon.

    Bloc MFB’s Banking-as-a-Service infrastructure has helped hundreds of startups integrate financial services into their products for two years. Bloc will now offer a complete business banking solution to help businesses scale with Bloc infrastructure and manage revenue and finances.

    Sign up for Bloc at https://app.blochq.io and provide essential information to open a client account. After providing business details, you’re good to go.

    Read also: Vella Finance to discontinue crypto trading and focus on SME banking

    Bloc MFB unleashes infinite possibilities

    Bloc MFB CEO and Founder Edmund Olotu says the company understands businesses’ financial challenges and offers seamless solutions. Bloc, an API-focused company, has helped startups and non-tech companies solve financial service problems.

    Edmund says the Bloc has endless possibilities. We provide essential banking services to be the best at satisfying businesses. Our innovation will open doors to local and global opportunities and provide top-notch tools for financial growth, capital access, and even customer services tomorrow.

    Charting the Future for the Customers

    Bloc wants to be the “Mercury Bank + Unit for African businesses” with this launch. It will be a hub for reliable business banking products and the making of custom apps with built-in financial services.

    Bloc MFB provides everything African tech startups and non-tech organizations need to start, survive, and grow. Bloc will support you in opening a new location, entering a market, and going global.

    “It’s still early days,” says Chief Product Officer Jerry Enebeli. “We’re eager to get feedback from our tech-savvy customers so we can improve the product even more and make them happier.”

    Bloc MFB’s business banking service is now live and open to all tech-focused companies. Visit https://www.blochq.io/ to sign up. While currently available on the web, the mobile app is slated for release in Q1 2024.

  • ₿trust acquires Qala, Bitcoin training organization for Africans

    ₿trust acquires Qala, Bitcoin training organization for Africans

    Qala is an organization that trains African Bitcoin engineers to drive Bitcoin’s growth in Africa and the Global South while also nurturing a generation of engineers who are committed to the open-source ethos of Bitcoin development.

    ₿trust, a non-profit organization focused on decentralizing Bitcoin software development, has announced that it has acquired Qala. Qala is an organization that trains African Bitcoin engineers.

    As part of the agreement, which was finalised on September 1st, 2023, Qala will be rebranded as the ‘₿trust Builders Programme, with the goal of bolstering Trust’s commitment to its purpose of fostering the growth and education of Bitcoin open-source engineers from countries located in the Global South.

    Bernard Parah, co-founder and director of Qala, was asked about the transaction, and he said the following:

    “When we launched our program in 2021, our goal was clear – to build a critical mass of African engineers with a deep understanding of Bitcoin’s capabilities to transform the continent. Today’s announcement significantly accelerates this mission, strengthening our capacity to not only expand our existing community but effectively resource them to play a major role in influencing Bitcoin’s open-source development as a vital solution to Africa’s unique socio-economic challenges.” 

    “With this in mind, we strongly believe our new transition should not only be viewed as a massive boost for the Bitcoin ecosystem but a crucial foundation in leveraging Bitcoin as the gateway and catalyst to financial freedom in Africa and the Global South.”

    Read also: Jack Dorsey funds $6 million Bitcoin voucher

    The impact Qala has made

    Since its founding in 2021, Qala has been sourcing, training, and matching premier African software developers with leading Bitcoin organisations from all over the world. As a result, Qala’s engineers are equipped with the abilities that are most in demand on the global Bitcoin talent market.

    To this day, Qala has succeeded in constructing the continent’s largest online community of Bitcoin developers. This network spans over 42 nations and includes Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda. Alumni of the programmes have been offered positions at companies like as Galoy, SphinxChat, and Bitnob, in addition to receiving open-source funding from ₿trust and Superlunar. The fellowship placement rate for the programmes is rather outstanding.

    In accordance with the terms of the agreement, Femi Longe, the current CEO of Qala, and Stephanie Titcombe, the current Programmes Manager at Qala, will formally join ₿trust in the capacity of Programme Leads at ₿trust Builders. The “₿trust Builders” programme will shift its attention to open-source training in order to jumpstart the next part of its growth path. Additionally, the programme has issued a call for its next cohort of senior African software engineers who are interested in transitioning into designing for Bitcoin and Lightning.

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    Impact of the acquisition on ₿trust

    Ojoma Ochai, a Board Member at ₿trust said “We’re incredibly proud to welcome Femi and his excellent team to ₿trust. With Qala’s extensive outreach and world-class programs, the organisation has made rapid progress in driving open-source development in the Global South through the advancement of education within the region, which is heavily aligned with our core mission at ₿trust.” 

    “As we move forward, we’re fully focussed on not only building on Qala’s impressive work in Africa but empowering more developers throughout the Global South with the support they need to build truly innovative open source solutions through the power of Bitcoin.”

    The ‘design for Africa’ Hackathon will be held for the first time in September 2023, and it will be hosted by trust Builders. The goal of this event is to encourage makers to design solutions that solve African concerns and raise Bitcoin acceptance in Africa.

    This will function as a platform for open innovation and collaborative problem-solving, where makers will come together to generate novel ideas through an idea hack focused on tackling challenges that are specific to Africa, and accelerate their Bitcoin projects through mentorship in design, development, and lighting integration. 

    The hackathon is an important pre-event for the Africa Bitcoin Conference, which will take place from December 1–3 in Accra, Ghana. trust is pleased to be a sponsor of the conference for the second year in a row.

  • Tiktokers, others make list of ‘100 Most Influential Africans’

    Tiktokers, others make list of ‘100 Most Influential Africans’

    Africa’s creative abilities once again take center stage in New African magazine’s list of the 100 Most Influential Africans (MIA). This list honors 100 Africans whose lives and works have profoundly impacted both domestic and international affairs. Readers in Africa, the US, and Europe eagerly anticipate and discuss the yearly listing, which appears in this year’s Christmas (December/January) issue of the longest-running and most widely read pan-African periodical in English. An entry in the MIA listing is regarded as Africa’s highest recognition of accomplishment. 

    Although several names on the list have previously appeared, the list’s editor, Anver Versi, notes that it “is a tribute to their staying power that year on year, they do not rest on their laurels but continue with fresh impetus to do more for more people in more areas.” Nevertheless, a new and fascinating generation of up-and-comers is making their names known in the listings.

    The ranking for this year, like previous rankings, shows the shifting emphasis and objectives on the continent. Africa’s entrepreneurs, innovators, social and environmental activists, scientists, and opinion shapers make a strong comeback into the ranks as normal life starts to reestablish itself following the Covid devastation.

    Read also: Two Africans now serve on Binance’s Global Advisory Board

     

    African writers, singers, actors, designers, editors, journalists, chefs, and even Tiktokers continue to top the list with 26 entries as the continent’s creative talent pool continues to flow freely. Today, there is no denying their contribution to altering the African narrative.

    Some, like the Kenyan actress Lupita Nyong’o and the UK Vogue editor Edward Enninful, have achieved international fame and stardom and are changing both their fields of endeavor and how the world currently perceives Africa. In addition to dominating the worldwide music landscape, entertainers like Burna Boy are reshaping other genres of music to an Afrobeat beat. The world can’t get enough of the distinctive African style that Africa’s best-selling authors and designers are developing.

    The French-Algerian football player Karim Benzema joins other legendary athletes like Senegal’s Sadio Mane and Kenya’s Eluid Kipchoge in the world of sports. They have become role models for the youngsters of this young continent, and their effect extends beyond athletics.

    Most of the African entrepreneurs and leaders that made the list have influence that goes beyond their typical sphere of influence and has regional and international repercussions. Prof. Benedict Oramah, president of Afreximbank, is a prime example because of the innovative ways in which he approaches money. Cutting-edge technology involves a lot of other people.

    In the section of leaders, among others, Kenya’s new President William Ruto is seated next to Rwanda’s Paul Kagame, who is indispensible year in and year out, and Sierra Leone’s Maada Bio, who made the audacious choice to devote more than 20% of his nation’s budget to education.

    In his introduction to the listing, the Editor of New African magazine, Anver Versi, says that in addition to the many easily recognized names, “there are many others who are working away diligently and ceaselessly but away from the public eye. Some are making far-reaching changes at the grassroots, some are beavering away in laboratories or obscure sites – their influence is understated and yet fundamental to our progress.”

    The 100 Most Influential Africans of 2022 in numbers

    Categories:

    Creatives 26, Entrepreneurs 21, Opinion Shapers 16, Leaders 15, Changemakers 12, Sports 10.

     

    Gender

    62 male, 38 female

     

    By Country 

    Nigeria 28, South Africa 11, Kenya 9, Cameroon 5, Ghana 5, Senegal 4, Zimbabwe 4, Morocco 3, Tunisia 3, Zambia 3, Algeria 2, Côte d’Ivoire 2, Ethiopia 2, Mali 2, Rwanda 2, Sierra Leone 2, Somalia 2, Uganda 2, Botswana 1, Burkina Faso 1, Burundi 1, Congo 1, Egypt 1, Guinea-Bissau 1, Madagascar 1, Mozambique 1, Togo 1

    Total, 27 nationalities were represented.

     

    By Languages

    Anglophone 67, Francophone 18, Arabic 9, Lusophone 2, Amharic 2, Somali 2

    Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank, Bineta Diop, special envoy of the African Union, Nardos Bekele-Thomas, CEO of AUDA-NEPAD, and Francesca Chiejina, one of the rising stars of opera, are among the notable individuals profiled and interviewed in the Dec./Jan. issue.

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    About New African

    The English language monthly has continually provided an African perspective on international news since it began publication in 1966. It is an important publication for businesspeople, professionals, and anyone interested in Africa. Every time Africa is mentioned, people examine New African, which is available in more than 100 nations. The best-selling magazine in Africa and the foremost commentator on African politics.

  • Nigerians, other Africans win the Data Analytics creative projects

    Nigerians, other Africans win the Data Analytics creative projects

    Five Africans won the Data Analytics Hackathon, held by 10Alytics and Mustard Insights. Nigerians and other Africans are rewarded for their data expertise through one of the 10Alytics’ creative projects, the Data Analytics Hackathon.

    Over 1,686 entries were received for the two-day virtual competition, which was held on December 3 and 4, 2022, with 44% of women and 56% of men participating.

    600 people from the UK, Singapore, Switzerland, Sweden, and other African nations took part in the hackathon.

    Out of the 200 submissions, 17 finalists were chosen to compete for the prizes. They were given the case study “Tackling the Health Crises in Africa” to work on, and they were required to present findings supported by data and make appropriate recommendations.

    Read also: Nigeria’s ThriveAgric becomes 2022 Global Winner of Visa Everywhere Initiative

    10Alytics Data Analytics Hackathon Winners

    The winners are Mariam Azeez, Kwame Otchere, Sodiq Adeoti, Gershinen Shanding, and Tina Okonkwo, who came first, second, third, fourth, and fifth position, respectively.

    Cash awards won by the competitors are N400,000 for the first place, N275,000 for the second position, N175,000 for the third position, N100,000 for the fourth position, and N50,000 for the fifth position, according to Efemena Ikpro, co-founder of 10Alytics.

    He claims that winners will get cash awards in their preferred currency, which will be deposited into their designated bank accounts. All participants would be given priority consideration for Data Analyst positions in partner firms, he noted.

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    The Data Analytics creative projects Panel of Judges

    The panel of judges at the hackathon consisted of Founder, Mustard Insights, Lawretta Egba; Head, Business Intelligence, Mastercard Foundation, Toyosi Odukoya; Manager, Revenue Assurance, 9mobile, Victor Oti; Data Analyst/Engineer Lead, TAJBank Limited, Habeeb Zakariya; and Data Analyst, University of Cambridge, Sebastian Obeta.

    Others include Founder, Realaax Technologies, Hussien Azeez; Client Technology Lead at Microsoft, Mojisola Olawepo; Business Intelligence Data Analyst at Shell, Efe Otorfia; and Lead Analyst, TrustPilot, Sadiqah Musa.

    According to Adeiza Suleman, Co-founder 10Alytics, participants were assessed based on how well they understood the case study, effectively communicated the findings, managed their time during presentations, responded to the questions effectively, and produced high-quality insights.

    Suleman expressed the following when discussing the 10Alytics vision: “There’s a gap between what you learn and how you apply it, which is why we started 10Alytics. Africans are brilliant, intelligent, and smart people. But how do you transition from the classroom to the board room? 10Alytics equips people with soft skills and also guides them through the learning process by helping them review their CVs, prepare for interviews and optimize their LinkedIn profiles.

    “This has been a life-changing experience. We need people, especially Africans to step up and start to solve the problems that Africa faces today. Data Analytics is a language spoken all over the world and no solution is new, but how you bring new ideas and narratives to that area is important as it can bring about innovations. This is what we seek to achieve.”

    The top winner, Mariam Azeez, made the following comment: “I started data analytics around July this year, but I became more conscious about it because of my new role as a Core Finance Analyst. When I heard about the hackathon, I decided to test my knowledge. Up until yesterday, I was unsure about myself, but I just decided to keep going.

    “So, coming here today and hearing wonderful things and even winning made me proud of myself. I appreciate the organizers for this opportunity as this just boosted my confidence.”

    Over 15 participants in both the first and second iterations of the hackathon—which took place on October 9 and 10, 2021, and May 7 and 8, 2022, respectively—won cash prizes and full-time jobs as well as internship opportunities.

  • African Startup League aims to empower Africans with $1 million prize

    African Startup League aims to empower Africans with $1 million prize

    For the fiscal year 2023, the African Startup League (ASL) competition has been formed to provide funding for emerging innovation startups in Africa.

    Tanzanian startup businesses have the chance to win funding for capacity building, marketing, and growth through competition. Organizational sponsors of the African Startup League (ASL) include Adnanian Labs, Humanity Nodes Protocol, and Web3Africa.

    Speaking in a news release issued by the Africa Startup League (ASL) tournament at the end of the week in Dar es Salaam, Mr Aly Ramji said: “By building startup capacity across the continent, digital transformation will serve as the bedrock to create a productive and sustainable workforce, support development of an income generating environment and help to build a thriving economy across the continent.”

    To support this, Mr Ramji claimed that the Africa Startup League (ASL) had revealed the 2023 innovation challenge, which would start on February 8 and put young businesspeople from around the continent against one another for a $1 million (USD) financial prize.

    The first pan-African social network and Web3 integrated platform’s co-founder, Mr Ramji, stated, “…the continent-wide contest is open for innovators, entrepreneurs, micro-enterprises and early-stage start-ups to attain access to finance, as well as the much-needed expertise required to scale businesses.”

    Read also: I4G HACKFEST 2022 to empower African techies

    The competition’s judges are chosen from a variety of professions across Africa, and they will select the top startups based on factors including innovation and their potential to impact wider African communities.

    The competition will allow entrepreneurs and innovators to display their cutting-edge goods for six months. The top 100 entrepreneurs will be vying for 99 awards of $10,000 each and a grand prize of $1 million.

    The initiative’s aim

    The initiative aims to establish a form of matchmaker that would enable companies to obtain the initial seed money, mentoring, and training they need to scale their enterprises.

    At the same time, one of the main objectives is for Africans to see the opportunities that lie ahead of them and to engage in competition that can result in the development of solutions to urgent problems in African communities.

    “Rather than being left to fend for themselves, Africa’s tech startups would benefit from networks that connect founders, tech hubs, universities, and government bodies to assist in the identification of business opportunities, the overcoming of skill shortages, and the attraction of the required talent,” he summed up.

    Young entrepreneurs in Africa have the chance to showcase their abilities and inventions through the Africa Startup League, which also helps them develop more effective strategies for overcoming the issues facing their continent and growing the scope and viability of their businesses.

    For more than 1.3 billion people, Africa’s reliance on innovation will be the key to economic prosperity. Fintech is the sector with the highest growth in East Africa, according to reports.

    “Between 2020 and 2021, the number of tech start-ups in Africa tripled to around 5,200 companies. Just under half of these are fintechs” reads the McKinsey report.

    The analysis predicts that by 2025, the financial services business in Africa will generate around $230 billion in sales and expand at a rate of about 10% annually.

    “Overall, we anticipate that the growth opportunity in fintech is likely to be concentrated in 11 key markets: Tanzania, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, and Uganda, which together account for 70 percent of Africa’s GDP and half of its population,” reads the report.

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    About the African Startup League

    The African Startup League is an innovative platform that links business owners with strategists, artists, engineers, communities, and money to design, develop, and launch exponential organizations that aim to enhance human life and change the course of tomorrow’s world.