New USSD billing model gives Nigerians more control over charges
Nigeria’s Communications Commission (NCC) and the Central Bank (CBN) have approved a new End User Billing (EUB) model for USSD services. The decision means USSD charges will be deducted directly from the airtime balance, ending years of financial disputes between telecom operators and commercial banks. For Nigeria’s telecom and digital finance ecosystem, it is a long-awaited resolution to a conflict that has disrupted services and stalled industry progress for nearly half a decade. “The EUB model is an important change in how customers are charged for transactions. It is being introduced to improve consumer quality of experience and to put customers in better control of their spending,” the NCC noted in a statement. Previously, many Nigerians using USSD codes for banking activities, such as checking account balances, transferring funds, or buying airtime, were charged without notice through deductions from their bank accounts. In contrast, when the same USSD channel was used for telecom services, the cost was deducted from users’ airtime with immediate confirmation. This split billing model not only confused consumers but created a rift between Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) and banks. Telcos bore the infrastructure and operational costs of USSD delivery, while banks collected and often delayed payments, leading to billions of naira in unsettled debts and strained relations. The EUB model simplifies this system. Under the new approach, all USSD session costs—including those for banking—will be deducted directly from the customer’s airtime balance, just like a regular voice call or SMS. Users will now see, control, and approve charges upfront, promoting transparency and financial awareness. What this means for users For consumers, the biggest win is billing clarity and control. Users will now receive real-time confirmation of charges and can opt in or opt out of using USSD banking services altogether. This protects consumers from unauthorized deductions and aligns USSD billing with other mobile services, removing the mystery and mistrust that previously plagued the system. Importantly, the cost of a USSD session remains capped at ₦6.98 for 120 seconds—cheaper than the old model, which charged ₦1.63 every 20 seconds, totaling nearly ₦10 for the same duration. This reduction offers better value for users while minimising pressure to rush through transactions. Perhaps the most transformative aspect of EUB is its resolution of the long-standing financial dispute between telcos and banks. For years, telecom operators complained that banks were slow to remit funds for USSD services, creating a bottleneck that led to service interruptions and strained public trust. At one point, unpaid debts reached billions of naira, prompting threats of USSD service suspension by major telcos. With EUB, that friction is gone. MNOs now receive payment directly at the point of service. This real-time revenue model eliminates payment delays, reduces administrative overhead, and allows telcos to plan more confidently for infrastructure investments. It also restores a level of financial autonomy for telecom providers, enabling them to innovate and expand service offerings without banking bottlenecks. Regulatory oversight and consumer protection To ensure a smooth rollout of the End User Billing (EUB) model, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) have put in place a series of strict regulatory safeguards designed to protect consumers and promote transparency. One of the key provisions is the prohibition of double billing. Under the new model, banks are not allowed to charge users for USSD sessions—only Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are authorised to apply charges. This rule eliminates confusion over who is billing the user and prevents overlapping charges. Another important measure is the requirement for end-of-session notifications. Telcos must send users immediate alerts after each USSD session, clearly stating the cost incurred. This step ensures that subscribers are fully aware of what they are being charged and can verify it in real time, just as they would with voice or SMS services. The regulators have also mandated clear and consistent communication. Both banks and telcos are expected to inform customers in advance about service availability, fee structures, and any planned downtimes that may affect USSD access. Customers who experience double billing or other service-related issues can reach out to the CBN and NCC via complaint channels: CBN at +234-70-0225-5226 or via email at contactcbn@cbn.gov.ng, while the NCC can be contacted through its toll-free line at 622 or via email at ncc@ncc.gov.ng. Banks are currently working with MNOs and Value-Added Service (VAS) providers to complete technical integration, end-to-end testing, and formal agreements. Customers will be notified by their banks once the EUB model goes live for their accounts. Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Join Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Early bird tickets now 20% off—don’t snooze! moonshot.techcabal.com.
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For 27-year-old CTO, Godswill Adie, loyalty to one company can yield lifelong rewards
One Friday night in 2016, Godswill Adie, a second-year computer science student at the University of Calabar, slipped off-campus to attend a friend’s girlfriend’s birthday party. The night was a blur of laughter and celebration. The next morning, another friend’s call jolted Adie awake with an unexpected opportunity: an internship interview at Nugi Technologies. With only ₦100 for the ₦150 bus trip, the two walked half the distance and then boarded a bus midway to the office. Adie, still in his party clothes, arrived to find the office buzzing with young people on their laptops, coding, surprised by the hive of activity for a Saturday. He interviewed with the chief technology officer, presenting a rudimentary chat app inspired by Facebook and an incomplete logistics platform as proof of his skills. The CTO was impressed and offered Adie an unpaid internship on the spot. He started work immediately. Today, at 27, Adie is not only Nugi’s CTO but also a shareholder, steering a company that has evolved from creating white-label software for educational clients to serving government agencies and launching subsidiaries including Nugi Farms, O2 Constructions, and TerraGrid, under the Nugdi Group. In an industry where developers switch jobs every two years for better pay or quicker career growth, Adie’s seven-year tenure is rare, especially for a high-performing talent who has climbed from intern to C-suite. He acknowledges this anomaly but recalls a pivotal moment early in his career that has anchored his seven-year journey: “Whatever I want to achieve in this world, I can do it right in this company.” Get the best African tech newsletters in your inbox Country Afghanistan Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Antarctic Territory British Indian Ocean Territory British Virgin Islands Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Canton and Enderbury Islands Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos [Keeling] Islands Colombia Comoros Congo – Brazzaville Congo – Kinshasa Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Côte d’Ivoire Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Dronning Maud Land East Germany Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories French Southern and Antarctic Territories Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Heard Island and McDonald Islands Honduras Hong Kong SAR China Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Johnston Island Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau SAR China Macedonia Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Metropolitan France Mexico Micronesia Midway Islands Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar [Burma] Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles Neutral Zone New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island North Korea North Vietnam Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pacific Islands Trust Territory Pakistan Palau Palestinian Territories Panama Panama Canal Zone Papua New Guinea Paraguay People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen Peru Philippines Pitcairn Islands Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Russia Rwanda Réunion Saint Barthélemy Saint Helena Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands South Korea Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard and Jan Mayen Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syria São Tomé and Príncipe Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu U.S. Minor Outlying Islands U.S. Miscellaneous Pacific Islands U.S. Virgin Islands Uganda Ukraine Union of Soviet Socialist Republics United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Unknown or Invalid Region Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Vatican City Venezuela Vietnam Wake Island Wallis and Futuna Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe Åland Islands ?> Gender Male Female Others TC Daily Events TC Scoop <!– Next Wave –> <!– Entering Tech –> Subscribe Following his curiosity Adie’s ambition began modestly, rooted in curiosity. As a child, he dismantled radios and fans to unravel their mechanics, earning scoldings from his parents but fueling a lifelong inquisitiveness. In secondary school, he launched a football news blog on Blogger and grew fascinated by how text fields transformed into web pages. This sparked his self-taught journey into HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and PHP—web development languages. By graduation, he had built his first webpage, a basic replica of his blog. “It was probably terrible by today’s standards,” he says with a smile, “but it was a great start.” In 2015, Adie enrolled at the University of Calabar to study computer science, but during a chaotic hostel move his laptop fell, its screen detaching from the keyboard, rendering it useless. For a month, he was frustrated, fearing he’d lose his coding skills. Like any software engineer with no money to buy a computer, he began writing code by hand in an exercise book, testing it in the university’s computer lab or a friend’s PC when possible. “My cousin thought I was crazy,” he told me during a virtual call, chuckling. “The book was filled with code that made no sense to him. Sometimes, I didn’t even know what I was writing. I’d copy snippets from online tutorials to run later.” Eventually, his three older brothers, who had taken on caregiving roles after their father died in 2009, pooled their money to buy him a better laptop. Adie keeps it in his office at Nugi today, a relic of their belief in him. Purchased by his three older brothers in 2009 as a replacement for a broken laptop, this computer remains in Adie’s office today as a reminder of his family’s faith in him. Image
Read MoreWith USAID gone, what’s next for Africa’s healthcare and healthtech industry?
Africa’s healthcare ecosystem is at an inflection point. Over the past decade, healthtech has risen from a nascent concept to a lifeline for millions, powering telemedicine in villages, digitising supply chains for lifesaving drugs, and enabling data-driven public health strategies. But today, the abrupt suspension of USAID-funded programs such as the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) programs threatens to destabilise this fragile progress. What is at stake, and how can we pivot? The silent backbone: USAID’s role in Africa’s health ecosystem USAID wasn’t just a funder; it was a catalyst. Its investments exceeded dollars—they built bridges between governments, NGOs, and innovators like Remedial Health Solutions. Consider Nigeria’s National Malaria Elimination Program: USAID’s technical and logistical support substantially helped slash malaria mortality rates in a decade. Maisha Meds, a leading healthtech startup in Africa, received $5.25 million in scale-up Stage 3 funding from USAID’s Development Innovation Ventures (DIV) to expand their mobile software platform and provide affordable malaria care across Africa. In Kenya, Rwanda, and Mozambique, USAID-backed platforms like OpenMRS revolutionised HIV/AIDS tracking. USAID-funded programs reduced patient “loss to follow-up” in PEPFAR programs, which was as high as 22.4% in Ethiopia. USAID’s exit isn’t just a budget line item; it’s a seismic shock to systems that relied on its expertise to optimise last-mile delivery, train frontline workers, and scale digital tools. For healthtech startups, this could mean fewer opportunities to collaborate with public health programs to integrate their solutions into national healthcare strategies. It also means a loss of credibility and trust, as USAID’s endorsement often served as a stamp of approval for innovative solutions seeking to gain traction in the market. In the wake of USAID’s exit, the sector must reimagine its playbook, and here are my four imperatives for the sector’s survival: 1. Governments must lead with policy, not platitudes: African leaders must stop treating healthcare as a charity cause. It’s an economic imperative. Nigeria allocates just 5.18% of its national budget to health, less than half the Abuja Declaration’s 15% pledge. We need aggressive domestic investment in digital infrastructure (e.g., Kenya’s digital health tax levies). These policies streamline regulations for health tech approvals, enabling faster innovation and reducing reliance on foreign aid. By building resilient, locally-led systems, they improve healthcare access, empower startups, and ensure long-term sustainability across Africa. 2. Leveraging local and regional partnerships: The private sector, including health tech startups, must explore partnerships with local and regional organisations to sustain and scale their solutions. For example, Ghana’s mPharma is acquiring distressed pharmacies to stabilise drug access. Localised action beats grand gestures. 3. Diversify capital: VCs and impact investors must step into USAID’s shoes. Tools like development impact bonds or revenue-based financing (e.g., PharmAccess’s Medical Credit Fund) can de-risk investments in electronic health records (EHRs) or telemedicine. Crowdfunding platforms like AfriGadget are already proving this model works. 4. Advocate relentlessly, silence is complicity: The African Union must pressure global institutions to recommit—but with African-led frameworks. Why should the EU or the Gates Foundation replicate USAID’s playbook? Let’s demand co-creation, not consultation theater. Yes, USAID’s withdrawal is a blow. But it’s also a reckoning. For too long, we’ve outsourced our healthcare sovereignty. This moment demands audacity: Kenyan startups like Afya Rekod and Zuri Health are repurposing AI for drug demand forecasting, and South Africa’s Ndlovu Clinic runs entirely on solar-powered EHRs. As a builder in this space, I’m doubling down on two truths: Resilience is Africa’s competitive advantage. We’ve leapfrogged legacy systems before—mobile money is proof. Community trust is our moat. Tech is nothing without the nurses, pharmacists, and patients who wield it. The road ahead is uncharted, but the destination is nonnegotiable: a healthcare system that serves Africans, by Africans. Let’s build it. ______ Damilola Adelekan is a Product Manager with 5+ years of experience in wellness, SaaS, and dot-coms. As Lead Product Manager at Remedial Health Solutions, she combines strategic thinking and user-centricity to deliver impactful solutions. Passionate about mentorship, she’s helped 50+ individuals transition into tech, driving growth in Africa’s tech ecosystem through collaboration and continuous learning.
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Left behind: The millions of Nigerians whose use of technology is an afterthought
Nigeria has an estimated 35 million persons with disabilities (PWDs), roughly 15% of the population according to the National Commission for Persons With Disability (NCPWD). This represents a market larger than many African countries’ entire populations, yet their digital needs remain invisible to the tech sector. Professionals, students, entrepreneurs, and civil servants with disabilities are systematically excluded from platforms that ought to improve their lives. Whether government portals or private platforms, complaints abound about inaccessible designs, screen-reader incompatibility, and services that ignore users with visual, auditory, cognitive, or mobility impairments. “If we want to talk about digital accessibility in Nigeria, we would need more than a 24-hour podcast to scratch the surface,” said Saheed Okerayi, a blind tech enthusiast. According to him, most platforms have bits of accessibility for persons with disabilities whilst others completely neglect it, with fundamental issues like unlabelled buttons and missing alt text (alternative text) remaining widespread. Root causes In his assessment of Nigeria’s accessibility landscape, Olufemi Bayode, a digital accessibility expert who has spent years navigating Nigeria’s digital exclusion crisis, gave a stark remark: “If I’m to rate accessibility, be it digitally or otherwise, if I’m not too strict, I would give it 4%.” Bayode said that the exclusion is comprehensive and systematic, affecting every major platform category. The root cause, according to him, is simple: “When it comes to accessibility in this country, nobody cares. Be it individual developers or governments, people are just not concerned.” Bayode breaks down the most pervasive violations into several categories: Missing alt text and unlabelled buttons: “So many images and unlabelled buttons exist on websites and apps. There’s one fintech app where you don’t know what’s there when entering your password. Your screen reader can’t recognise if it’s an image or button.” Inadequate markups and semantics: “Developers don’t follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) promoting basic markups that make web content readable for screen readers, such as heading styles, paragraph tags, navigation tags.” Absence of keyboard navigation: “Nigerian websites don’t provide keyboard shortcuts like LinkedIn or Facebook. You have to keep scrolling to find message links or buttons.” Improper form labelling: “Many developers use placeholders instead of accessible labelling. Screen readers don’t read these aloud, so users don’t know what input is required.” Lack of user-defined experience: Unlike global websites offering text size or colour contrast adjustments, “I’ve never seen that on a Nigerian website,” Bayode said. These technical shortcomings create nightmares for users across Nigeria’s digital ecosystem. Get the best African tech newsletters in your inbox Country Afghanistan Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Antarctic Territory British Indian Ocean Territory British Virgin Islands Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Canton and Enderbury Islands Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos [Keeling] Islands Colombia Comoros Congo – Brazzaville Congo – Kinshasa Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Côte d’Ivoire Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Dronning Maud Land East Germany Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories French Southern and Antarctic Territories Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Heard Island and McDonald Islands Honduras Hong Kong SAR China Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Johnston Island Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau SAR China Macedonia Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Metropolitan France Mexico Micronesia Midway Islands Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar [Burma] Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles Neutral Zone New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island North Korea North Vietnam Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pacific Islands Trust Territory Pakistan Palau Palestinian Territories Panama Panama Canal Zone Papua New Guinea Paraguay People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen Peru Philippines Pitcairn Islands Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Russia Rwanda Réunion Saint Barthélemy Saint Helena Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands South Korea Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard and Jan Mayen Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syria São Tomé and Príncipe Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu U.S. Minor Outlying Islands U.S. Miscellaneous Pacific Islands U.S. Virgin Islands Uganda Ukraine Union of Soviet Socialist Republics United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Unknown or Invalid Region Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Vatican City Venezuela Vietnam Wake Island Wallis and Futuna Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe Åland Islands ?> Gender Male Female Others TC Daily Events TC Scoop <!– Next Wave –> <!– Entering Tech –> Subscribe Big and small; public and private From private to public-owned establishments, telecommunications companies to banks, e-commerce platforms to media houses, the systematic exclusion of persons with disabilities spans every major platform category and companies of different sizes. This exclusion represents a massive missed business opportunity. Globally, the disability market represents over $13 trillion in annual disposable income, yet Nigerian businesses potentially miss out on this market simply because tech developers and designers do not build with PWDs in mind. “If a website doesn’t build with persons with disabilities in mind, they’re losing customers double the size of some countries. Imagine collecting ₦1,000 from each PWD; we’re talking billions,” Bayode said. In the financial sector, for instance, accessibility is fragmented and inconsistent across platforms and devices. Users report vastly different experiences even with the same institution. And challenges span both large traditional banks and
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Roam’s Nairobi factory shows what’s hard about building electric bikes in Africa
About 10 kilometres from Nairobi’s central business district, inside the city’s industrial zone along Mombasa Road, Roam Park sits behind a modest gate. The 10,000-square-metre facility is the site of Roam’s unfolding electric motorcycle assembly facility. Around 20 to 30 Kenyan technicians and engineers are spread across different stations inside the facility, including warehousing, fabrication, welding, electronics, and testing. One locked room houses the battery diagnostics lab, and visitors aren’t allowed in. “That tech is internal,” says Habib Lukaya, Roam’s regional sales manager. The floor runs quietly but steadily, with whole bikes taking shape as the pieces move from station to station, built mostly by hand. Roam Electric’s new Nairobi facility. Image Source: TechCabal The plant is 36% complete, but assembles 12 to 15 electric bikes daily. Once fully up, it could produce up to 50,000 bikes a year, a serious claim by Lukaya. The Nairobi-based startup, known for its two-wheelers, is shifting from importing fully built units to putting together bikes locally, including some component integration. At the centre of that push are the Roam Air and its newer version, the Roam Air V2. “We’ve tried to improve what riders care about most, including speed and battery life, and load,” said Lukaya as he introduced the new electric motorcycles to some members of the press. Roam Air V2 now comes with two batteries, charges fully in 45 minutes, and can carry up to 240 kilograms. It has a range of 100 to 120 kilometres and a lighter frame. Each battery weighs about 20 kilos, lasts up to five years, and supports 800 to 1,200 full charge cycles. Riders own their batteries, which include trackers to monitor performance. While rivals like Ampersand and ARC Ride rely on battery swapping, Roam is sticking with a charging model. “We want riders to have full ownership of the battery,” said Lukaya. Roam uses open architecture, which allows other battery models to be charged at its facilities. The company is building out its charging network in Kenya and has partnered with Total Energies and supermarket retailer Quickmart to set up charging stations. Riders can use an app to find charging spots. Image Source: TechCabal How the Roam plant works The facility has distinct sections for warehousing, assembly, body work, fabrication, engineering, after-sales support, and a battery lab. Lukaya said bikes are built from components supplied by different international partners, as no single supplier provides more than one part. Roam imports batteries and motors from China. It takes about 30 minutes to assemble one bike on the main line. Once quality checks are completed, the bikes are ready for dispatch to customers. The facility also has a battery testing zone, and while visitors weren’t allowed to enter, Lukaya noted that this area is reserved for performance and charging tests, including Roam’s proprietary fast-charging technology, which remains confidential. Roam also runs a battery buyback programme, collecting used or degraded batteries at the end of their useful life. Typically, these batteries fall below 80% state-of-health, meaning they no longer hold charge as expected. The company says the battery recycling effort will scale at the end of 2025, once enough units have been in the field for at least three years. Image Source: TechCabal A look at the numbers The Roam Air costs $2,290 (about KES 297,000). With dual batteries, the cost rises slightly, up to around $2,500 depending on the version. Battery units account for 40 to 60% of the total bike cost. “The price is still the same for Roam Air V2 is the same as V1, with most parts still imported from China and India, but we are looking to localise more parts as time passes to ensure the price becomes affordable for the boda boda rider. Also, the next battery generation we are working on will be a bit cheaper,” a Roam representative told TechCabal. Charging one battery to full costs about KES 150 ($1). Most riders top up with KES 80 ($0.6) worth of power per day. Given that the average rider covers about 150 kilometres daily and earns KES 4,000–5,000, charging costs are a small but steady expense. Roam doesn’t offer direct credit sales, but partners with four major asset-financing firms: Watu Credit, M-KOPA, 4G Capital, and Mogo. For riders unable to pay upfront, each firm offers slightly different terms for financing the double-battery version of the Roam Air. Financing agreements can run for 12, 18, or 24 months. Customers also have the option to purchase a single-battery bike or just the battery alone, depending on what they can afford or already own. But even the most affordable options are still out of reach for many riders. A KES 25,000–35,000 ($194-232) deposit and daily fees north of KES 1,000 ($8) can be too much for those who already operate on thin margins. It’s not entirely clear how Roam expects this to scale among its core market of boda boda riders, most of whom live hand-to-mouth. 4G Capital is the most affordable financing option, while M-KOPA is the most expensive over the full term. The difference between the two extremes can be as much as KES 138,000 (around $1,060). Roam doesn’t control its financing partners’ pricing models, but it relies heavily on these partnerships to move units in a price-sensitive market. Where things stand Roam is trying to walk a thin line by building local capacity without fully domesticating its supply chain. The plant is still dependent on foreign components, especially for high-cost parts like batteries and motors. But local fabrication and bodywork are growing, and the engineering team is based on-site. Roam says that as the plant scales, the cost of production per unit should drop. But that depends on volume and whether local suppliers can enter the chain. Roam expects to complete the Nairobi facility by the end of 2025. When fully operational, the plant will produce tens of thousands of electric bikes yearly, most for the local market. The Roam Air V2 rollout will continue in stages, targeting riders
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How Releaf Earth is using biochar to repair soils for Nigerian farmers
Releaf Earth, a Nigerian climate-agritech startup, has launched the country’s first operational industrial biochar production facility in Iwuru, Cross River State, capable of removing carbon from the environment. Using palm kernel shells processed by its proprietary machine, Kraken, the plant converts the agricultural waste into biochar, a charcoal-like substance made from agricultural waste that helps soil hold nutrients to enhance crop growth. It also sequesters carbon, giving Nigeria a market opportunity in the global carbon removal economy. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) removal is crucial in combating global warming because it addresses the excess CO₂ already present in the atmosphere, which continues to trap heat and drive climate change. However, conservation and sustainable use of biomass have become a primary global strategy for reducing atmospheric carbon. Releaf’s biochar production emerged from its origins in food processing, where palm kernel shells are mostly treated as waste despite their economic value. The shells, due to their high carbon composition, are now being transformed into a valuable biochar, creating wins for farmers, the climate, and the economy. According to the company, its Iwuru facility will remove 40 kilotonnes of CO₂ from the environment by 2030, with plans for an additional 60 kilotonnes of CO₂ removal at other facilities. The company said the Kraken machine de-shells the palm nuts. While the kernels are used to produce ingredients such as vegetable oil, the leftover shells are fed into a pyrolyser. This thermal conversion system heats the biomass in the absence of oxygen, converting it into biochar. This process locks carbon in a stable form for centuries when the biochar is buried underground, preventing it from re-entering the atmosphere as CO₂. The process returns the removed atmospheric carbon to the land, supporting smallholder farmers by enhancing soil quality for improved crop yields and income, and creating new income streams through the commercialisation of carbon credits. “This innovative approach combines permanent carbon sequestration with regenerative agriculture, delivering tangible benefits to both the planet and the smallholder farmers at the heart of Africa’s food systems,” the company said. “In addition to its climate and agricultural benefits, the biochar production process generates its own renewable energy. This means Releaf Earth’s biochar units can operate with minimal reliance on external power sources, making them ideal for deployment in off-grid rural areas.” To tap into the market for both agricultural inputs and climate finance, Ikenna Nzewi, CEO of Releaf Earth, expressed that the company has partnered with Thrive Agric, an agribusiness that works with over 500,000 farmers across Nigeria, and has already begun distributing and applying biochar among smallholder farmers, while also storing and tracking it daily as part of a growing initiative. “Biochar serves as both a physical product that enhances soil productivity and as a carbon removal mechanism that generates high-value carbon credits, which are digital assets,” he said. “ So, we’ve already started sequestering carbon for thousands of years, which is really exciting.” To bring transparency to the emerging value chain, Nzewi told TechCabal that the company has built geospatial software tools to visualise its entire supply chain, from sourcing palm kernel shells to storing biochar. These tools provide real-time traceability for carbon credit buyers, such as Microsoft and other major tech firms, who can now see where the carbon is stored, complete with images and GPS data, making their carbon removal operations fully auditable. While transparency is necessary to attract global buyers of carbon credits, he said the company is using Riverse, a carbon credit verification platform, to provide real-time tracking and verification of its removed carbon. “They essentially review our factory, the raw material that we are using, and basically do an analysis for every ton of palm kernel shell that we put in our machine to make biochar, how many tons of carbon does that remove?” He revealed that while the company is a biochar industry pioneer in the country, it is targeting two distinct revenue streams, the sale of biochar, which is potentially priced between $400 to $600 per ton, and carbon removal credits, which fetch $150 to $200 per ton of CO₂ equivalent removed. According to industry data by Sylvera, biochar projects accounted for over 90% of all issued carbon credits from removal projects. However, Africa remains underrepresented in the carbon credit market, despite its abundance of biomass that could help it remove large amounts of carbon through biochar. Nwezi stated that while Africa produces more than a billion tons of biomass annually, biochar gives the continent the unique opportunity to lead the global climate goals, which requires that “carbon removal must scale 14,000-fold to reach 10 billion tons annually in the next 25 years. [And] the need to feed its growing population means this output is bound to increase.” Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Join Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Early bird tickets now 20% off—don’t snooze! moonshot.techcabal.com.
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How do banks and fintechs determine your credit worthiness?
By March 2025, Mubarak Umar had spent a year and a half working as a supplier agent for Sun King, a solar company in Ibadan, western Nigeria, earning about ₦200,000 ($126) monthly, paid directly into his GTBank account. Earlier in the year, he conceived the idea to open an electronics store and believed his consistent income and banking history would qualify him for a sizable loan from his bank. But when he applied, he found he could borrow no more than ₦120,000, far below the ₦2 million he wanted. He turned to PalmPay and Opay for a quick loan, the fintech apps he often borrowed from, but was also offered modest amounts of ₦23,000 and ₦8,000, respectively. “It surprised me that [the] bank I have been using for over ten years couldn’t offer me such an amount, not even half of it,” Umar said. “The mobile apps too have never lent me more than ₦35,000, although I use them for daily major transactions. It is like we are the only ones that trust them; they don’t trust us.” Every day, many Nigerians like Umar seek loans from banks or tap their smartphones to apply for quick loans from digital lenders. Unbeknownst to the loan seekers, the decision on how much they can borrow isn’t always entirely made by humans. Lenders are increasingly employing tech systems that use customers’ data to calculate their credit score and determine how much they can afford to borrow. The technology that decides a customer’s borrowing power depends on whether they borrow from a traditional bank or a loan app. While the former rely on systems that assess structured-income verification and credit history for loan limits, the latter explore digital footprint and mobile phone data with algorithms that scan through a customer’s smartphone analysing app usage and accessing contact lists. Traditional banks in Nigeria mainly give loans to corporate clients, salary earners who have at least one year of salary history, or are employed by companies affiliated with the bank, according to a bank staff. This practice often excludes micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), as well as informal sector workers, who may not meet these criteria. TechCabal’s analysis of the 2023 annual reports of Nigeria’s leading banks—FirstBank, UBA, GTBank, Access Bank, and Zenith Bank—shows a strong preference for corporate lending over retail or individual lending. In 2023, FirstBank allocated 94% of its ₦6.6 trillion loan portfolio to corporate borrowers, giving just 6% to individuals and small businesses. UBA followed a similar pattern, giving 70% of its ₦5.5 trillion loan book to corporates. Access Bank’s 2023 audited financials show that it committed 88% of its ₦8 trillion loans to corporate clients, with only 12% going to retail borrowers. GTBank’s loan portfolio was 69.4% corporate and 24.1% retail. Abdulhakeem Abdulmajeed, a product manager at The Alternative Bank, said traditional banks remain cautious in lending to the broader population due to the inherent risks in credit recovery. “Banks are deposit collectors, not investment funds, so they must be extremely careful with where they put these funds to ensure depositors can access their money at any time,” he said. He added that banks avoid high-risk individuals and sectors likely to default on loan repayment to protect their liquidity and maintain regulatory standards. Unlike fintechs that cushion loan defaults with high interest rates, “banks must keep default rates below 5%; that makes them more selective with who gets access to their credit,” Abdulmajeed said. For eligible customers, banks use rule-based credit scoring systems that evaluate customers’ turnover, and use the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) credit check software to scrutinise the customer’s account for past credit with their BVN. “The customer must have an account with the bank, and we look at their account turnover of the amounts coming in and going out from their account each month. We also do a credit check to see if the customer has a history of default,” said Obayemi Gbenga, a loan desk officer at Keystone Bank. The average of a customer’s turnover and credit history rating determine the loan limit the customer could borrow. The lower the credit score is, the higher the risk of the customer defaulting on the repayment, and vice versa. According to CreditRegistry, a credit bureau licensed by the CBN, credit scores range from 300 to 900, with scores above 700 considered good and those below 500 regarded as poor. Gbenga stated that a customer’s monthly turnover is expected to be at least twice the amount he intends to borrow, as this indicates their repayment capacity. He explained that if the turnover with the bank falls short, the loan desk uses a system to check the customer’s accounts in other banks and fintech platforms to assess their overall financial activity. “Everybody has only one BVN; inputting the customer’s BVN on the [credit check] software will bring all past credit history across all banks, including digital lending apps,” Gbenga said. “But for a business or company, the system uses the Corporate Affairs Commission’s registration number to access the company’s borrowing history, while using the BVN for the personal credit history of the owner of the business or company.” Digital lenders rely on tech-driven data to offer loans Unlike traditional banks that largely restrict loans to customers with salary income and formal credit histories, fintechs like PalmPay, OPay, FairMoney, and other digital lenders use behaviour-based algorithms and smartphone data to assess creditworthiness. The lender uses algorithmic credit scoring systems powered by machine learning, which collect customer’s data—SMS alerts, contacts, apps usage, device information, and location—accessed with the customer’s permission, which they consent to while agreeing to the app terms during signup. Some lenders also use apps that require customers’ BVN or request access to bank statements through APIs to provide more formal financial insights. The data determines the credit limit, sets the interest rate, and defines repayment schedules. Despite digital lending offering collateral-free loans, zero paperwork, and approval within minutes, it often comes with very high interest rates. These
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MTN Uganda to spin off mobile money unit into a standalone fintech
MTN Uganda has announced plans to spin off its mobile money business into a standalone fintech company, ending its status as a subsidiary of the telecoms group in a strategic shift aimed at unlocking more value from the fast-growing payments business. The proposed restructuring will transfer MTN Mobile Money Uganda to a new entity owned by MTN Group Fintech Holdings B.V. and a trust acting on behalf of the minority shareholders of MTN. MTN Uganda said the transaction is still subject to regulatory and MTN shareholders’ approvals. Shareholders are expected to vote on the transaction at an extraordinary general meeting on July 2. “The proposed transaction will, if approved, will result in MTN MoMo ceasing to be a subsidiary of MTN,” MTN Uganda said in a notice on Tuesday. “The mobile money and financial technology business currently run by MTN MoMo will be operated by a new company following a company amalgamation.” MTN Uganda’s restructuring will not affect its listing on the Uganda Securities Exchange, where it remains one of the bourse’s most actively traded stocks since its 2021 IPO. The transaction is part of MTN Group’s strategy to separate its high-growth financial services business from its telecom operations. The Johannesburg-listed company is betting on fintech as a long-term growth driver, with mobile money already outpacing traditional telecoms revenues in key markets like Uganda. While it’s unclear whether the new company would seek outside capital or partnerships, the reorganisation will allow the two businesses to pursue their growth in the East African market independently. Mobile money services have become a critical part of the telecom business in Africa, particularly as smartphone penetration and digital payments uptake continue to grow. MTN’s move mirrors Airtel Africa’s plan to list its mobile money unit, Airtel Money, in the first half of 2026 as it seeks to capitalise on the growing demand for digital payment services across the continent. MTN’s MoMo enjoys a larger footprint across West and Central Africa with an estimated 14 million active subscribers in Uganda. In Q1 2025, its mobile money services grew 18.4% to $70.8 million (Ush 255.6 billion). Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Join Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Early bird tickets now 20% off—don’t snooze! moonshot.techcabal.com.
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👨🏿🚀TechCabal Daily – Silverbacks 5x cashout
In partnership with Lire en Français اقرأ هذا باللغة العربية Happy mid-week! If you’re often missing TC Daily in your inbox, check your Promotions folder and move any edition of TC Daily from “Promotions” to your “Main” or “Primary” folder and TC Daily will always come to you. Let’s get into it. Silverbacks Holdings earns 5x return on partial exit from OmniRetail South Africa’s largest Starlink kit distributor, IcasaSePush, shuts down Telkom records 10% surge in mobile service revenue Kenya’s Mobius Motors to resume assembling cars in December World Wide Web 3 Opportunities Venture Capital Silverbacks Holdings earns 5x return on partial exit from OmniRetail What is cashout again? A 5X return!/Image Source: Nollywood Memes Silverbacks Holdings is doing more than just putting money into Africa; they’re reaping massive returns. Their latest triumph? A partial exit from OmniRetail, a Nigerian B2B e-commerce startup, where they landed a 5x return on their initial investment. The exit follows OmniRetail’s recent $20 million Series A raise. Luck or pattern? This recent partial exit marks Silverbacks’ ninth profitable exit, consistently proving that Africa is a goldmine for investments. Its partial exit from OmniRetail comes one month after securing a 29x return from its LemFi exit, after the startup closed its $53 million Series B round in January 2025. Silverbacks’ African portfolio consistently outperforms other regions, yielding an average 10.7x multiple on invested capital (MOIC) and an 81.5% internal rate of return (IRR) in Nigeria over two years and eight months. In Egypt, the company averaged a 9.7x MOIC and a 339% IRR over 1 year and 7 months. For the curious (and confused): Multiple on invested capital (MOIC) is a measure of how many times an investment has been returned, while internal rate of return (IRR) is the annual return on investment a company has earned, factoring in the exact timing of every cash-in and cash-out. This partial exit from OmniRetail is a calculated move by Silverbacks Holdings. By selling a portion of its stake, Silverbacks de-risks its investment while retaining exposure to OmniRetail’s continued growth. This strategy allows Silverbacks Holdings to generate immediate liquidity for its fund and then use this capital to invest in new, promising ventures across Africa, like its co-investment in the South African basketball team, Cape Town Tigers, with the OmniRetail founder. What startup will Silverbacks fund next? Africa is watching. Fincra – The Easiest Way to Move Money in and out of Africa. Empower your business to effortlessly collect payments and make payouts across Africa with Fincra. Their payment solutions equip fintechs, marketplaces, global merchants, & more with unmatched speed and security. Create your account in 3 minutes. 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The company, which helped rural and remote communities get online, says it is stepping back to avoid disrupting efforts to bring Starlink into the country legally. Its closure comes just as Starlink finally pulled the plug on roaming in South Africa. No more backdoor access, no more clever workarounds. Until an official launch happens, Starlink is off the table. While IcasaSePush claims that it is not directly affiliated with Starlink or SpaceX, for months, it has imported and sold hardware of the satellite internet
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Why telcos will now deduct USSD charges from your airtime
Starting later this June, a new guideline proposed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) will charge mobile airtime balances instead of customers’ bank accounts for Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) sessions. This change marks the latest development in a years-long standoff between telecom operators and banks over who should bear the cost of USSD transactions—a dispute that has left over ₦160 billion ($106.67 million) in unpaid fees hanging in the balance. The new billing model, first hinted at in a June 3, 2025, customer notice issued by Sterling Bank and United Bank for Africa (UBA), states that each USSD session will cost ₦6.98 per 120 seconds. Telecom operators will deduct this amount directly from the subscriber’s airtime, but only after the user consents and the bank confirms it is ready to deliver the requested service. The NCC has yet to release a full public statement on the policy, but sources familiar with the ongoing discussions confirm that final implementation details are being worked out between banks and telcos, and implementation is likely to kick off before the end of June. While the commission declined to comment on this story, an NCC official said the commission was preparing a detailed position on the new rules. A long-running dispute, finally addressed The new model is intended to break the cycle of payment disputes that have plagued USSD services since their inception. Initially, telecom operators provided USSD infrastructure to banks, who in turn billed customers and were expected to settle service charges with the telcos. However, there was no clearly defined revenue-sharing model, and as user adoption soared, so too did the debt owed by banks to telcos. In 2019, MTN Nigeria attempted to shift the cost to subscribers directly by introducing an end-user billing model. The move was quickly halted by the NCC and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which argued that USSD was a “sunk cost” and not meant to be charged to end users. The NCC later adopted a corporate billing model in 2020, instructing banks to bear the service costs while collecting transaction fees from customers separately. Despite efforts to standardise USSD billing, disputes between banks and telecom operators persisted. In 2021, a flat fee of ₦6.98 per USSD session was introduced, with banks expected to collect this fee from customers and remit it to telecoms. However, compliance remained weak. Over time, unpaid fees accumulated significantly, and before regulatory intervention, telecom operators claimed that banks owed them around ₦250 billion for USSD services. In response, the CBN and the NCC directed banks to settle ₦212.5 billion, representing 85% of the total debt, by the end of 2024. The debt had steadily grown over several years due to delayed payments and unresolved billing models. By early 2025, MTN reported it had recovered ₦32 billion but still had ₦42 billion outstanding. What changes with direct airtime billing? The NCC’s directive effectively returns to end-user billing, but with safeguards in place. Instead of silently passing fees through bank channels, users will now be required to authorise each transaction. Once consent is given, the ₦6.98 fee will be deducted from their airtime balance, giving telecoms full control over fee collection. For telecom operators, the shift to direct airtime billing represents a long-overdue resolution, offering multiple operational advantages. It eliminates the need to pursue banks for settlements, reducing bad debt as payments are collected instantly at the point of transaction. Additionally, it gives telcos full oversight of USSD billing and revenue tracking, while also streamlining operations by removing the legal and administrative burden of dealing with unpaid debts from banks. What does it mean for customers? For subscribers, the most immediate impact of the new USSD billing model is the requirement to have sufficient airtime before initiating any transaction. This marks a shift from the previous system, where charges were deducted directly from bank accounts, and it may prove inconvenient for users who are not in the habit of topping up mobile credit. For those accustomed to seamless banking without the need to manage airtime balances, this could disrupt routine financial transactions. However, the model introduces certain benefits that could enhance the overall user experience. One key improvement is the introduction of a consent prompt before any charge is applied. This ensures that users are fully aware of and agree to the charges, fostering greater transparency and trust in how USSD services are billed. The standardised pricing—₦6.98 per 120 seconds per session—provides predictability. With clear and consistent costs, users can better plan for and manage their mobile banking expenses, which may, in turn, encourage more frequent use, especially in areas with limited access to internet-based banking options. USSD remains a vital channel for financial access in Nigeria, particularly in rural and underserved areas where mobile apps and internet connectivity are less prevalent. By simplifying the cost structure and improving reliability, the new model may enhance confidence in USSD banking and preserve its utility as a financial inclusion tool. While the NCC’s new rules resolve one of the telecom sector’s longest-running disputes, some questions remain. Will subscribers push back against airtime billing? How will banks adapt to a diminished role in the USSD transaction chain? And can this model be sustained in a market already grappling with rising costs and inflation? In the short term, telcos like MTN and Airtel stand to benefit from improved revenue collection and a stronger grip on service delivery. In the long term, however, the policy’s success will depend on user experience, public education, and the ability of stakeholders to maintain service affordability. Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Join Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Early bird tickets now 20% off—don’t snooze! moonshot.techcabal.com.
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