- October 14 2024
Fintech startup Lendsqr is launching ₦1 billion working capital for lenders
Lendsqr, a startup that provides all the software companies need to start a lending business, will now offer its clients a line of credit to help them provide more loans to grow their businesses. Founded in 2018, Lendsqr counts Kredi, Snapcash, Blockacash among its clients and will offer these businesses overdrafts from a ₦1 billion purse. The company, which claims to have “thousands of lenders servicing millions of clients,” will charge qualified lenders 4% per month, and claims interest will be collected only on the portion of the facility that’s disbursed to end users, i.e., retail lenders. “If they get repayments from their borrowers and their account swings into positive, they don’t even pay any interest at all,” said Lendsqr CEO Adedeji Olowe, adding that Lendsqr will track how the loan is used to identify and address potential risks. For digital lenders that offer collateral-free personal loans, the cost of funds plays a significant role in loan pricing. Coupled with the risk of defaults, customers sometimes have to bear the brunt of high interest rates. So, while technology remains crucial to success for digital lenders, relatively cheap funds are the holy grail. “For a long time, we believed that providing top-tier lending technology was enough to help lenders scale,” said Adedeji Olowe, CEO of Lendsqr. “But technology alone cannot scale a loan business without adequate capital. That’s why we decided to go a step further and solve this critical need.” With this offering, Lendqr now joins a coterie of on-lending institutions—lenders who lend money to lenders—such as Lendable, the Nigerian Bank of Industry, and the African Finance Corporation. “We’re excited to be the catalyst for growth in Nigeria’s lending sector. Our onlending initiative isn’t just about providing capital. It’s about enabling a stronger and more inclusive financial ecosystem where every licensed lender, big or small, can thrive,” Joy Bello, Head of Sales at Lendsqr. Lendsqr runs a subscription model with packages ranging from ₦20,000 to ₦1 million per month. For non-Nigerian businesses, the product is priced at $1,000 per month. “By next year, we would have closed some of the ongoing capital conversations and should see other lenders provide 20x capital to more lenders,” Olowe added. “We are also looking at extending this to the other countries where we are either operational or available.”
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- October 14 2024
TechCabal Daily – Will inflation bite in Nigeria?
In partnership with Lire en Français اقرأ هذا باللغة العربية Good morning! We hope you had a great weekend. We are still buzzing from the stellar reviews of our moonshot conference. Attendees raved about engaging conversations and were delighted by the beautiful brand experience. If you missed out on this year’s edition, mark your calendars for October 15 and 16, 2025. We weren’t the only ones receiving accolades over the weekend though. Elon Musk’s SpaceX made history after the Starship rocket was captured on its return to the launch pad. It was a world-first. Elon Musk’s Tesla also made the future history over the weekend with the launch of two autonomous vehicles, a robotaxi and a robovan, alongside Optimus, a humanoid robot. Nigeria’s inflation forecast for September is tricky Kenya agrees $736 million energy deal with Adani Zambian fintech Lupiya eyes Nigerian expansion Jobs Economy Nigeria’s Inflation forecast for September is tricky Image Source: TechCabal “It’s difficult to predict.” That’s what one analyst told me when I asked his thoughts on Nigeria’s September inflation number. While headline inflation has eased for two consecutive months, analysts I spoke to wouldn’t be drawn into predicting September inflation figures. A food harvest season and a six-month free import duty on food drove down food prices which contribute more than half of the key metric—the CPI index—for judging inflation rate. However, a 45% increment in fuel prices has driven transport prices up, a second determing factor of infation rate. Given Nigeria’s current harvest season, the increased demand for food transportation, primarily by road, will likely elevate fuel consumption. This, in turn, could contribute to a rise in the inflation rate, argues Basil Abia, an analyst at Veriv Africa. Regardless of what figures the National Bureau of Statistics show, the CBN is leaning towards a continued tightening of the monetary cycle arguing that core inflation continued to rise in July and August. In September, the Central Bank Monetary Policy Committee delivered a shock 50 basis point interest rate hike, increasing borrowing cost. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) will announce interest rates on Wednesday. Read Moniepoint’s Case Study on Funding Women After losing their mother, Azeezat and her siblings struggled to keep Olaiya Foods afloat. Now, with Moniepoint, they’re transforming Nigeria’s local buka scene. Click here for a deep dive into how Moniepoint is helping her and other women entrepreneurs overcome their funding challenges. Energy Adani and KETRACO agree $736 million energy deal in Kenya Image Source: TechCabal Adani Energy Solutions, a subsidiary of the Indian conglomerate Adani Group, has agreed a KES 95.68 billion ($736 million) deal with Kenya to build three transmission lines and two substations. It is a build-operate-transfer (BOT) arrangement that will see Adani construct and operate the power lines for 30 years. Adani will finance the project—its first in Kenya and the first made by any Indian company in the country—through debt and equity. It will construct 388 km of high-voltage transmission lines spanning the entire country, in collaboration with the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (KETRACO). Kenya’s power grid is aging, causing country-wide blackouts . Repairs and maintenance were previously funded from taxpayers and grants which became insufficient. Adani Energy Solutions will recoup its investment from new charges on households’ monthly electricity bills, which will likely go higher. For Adani Energy Solutions, which operates more than 21,000 km of power transmission lines worldwide—playing a key role in electricity transmission across India’s Gujarat and Maharashtra regions—it has landed one deal it has desperately pursued since December 2023. Issue USD and Euro accounts with Fincra Whether you run an online marketplace, a remittance fintech, a payroll, a freelance platform or a cross-border payment app, Fincra’s multicurrency account API allows you to instantly create accounts in USD and EUR for customers without the stress of setting up a local account. Get started today. Fintech Lupiya, micro-lending fintech eyes Nigerian expansion, plans to raise $10 million Image Source: Empower Africa Zambian microlending fintech Lupiya, which raised $8.25 million in series A funding in 2023, plans to expand into Nigeria . After entering Tanzania in March, the fintech company is betting on Nigeria’s microlending market which already has players like Fairmoney, Branch, and Umba. In the last five years, South African fintechs Jumo, Yoco, and Stitch have expanded to Nigeria, with varying levels of success. Nigeria’s huge fintech market and the presence of key players like Flutterwave and Paystack presents an opportunity. But Zambian startups haven’t often expanded into Nigeria. Instead, Nigerian fintechs have been more likely to enter Zambia. For example, Flutterwave, Paystack, and Chipper Cash, with its acquisition of Zoona in 2022, have all expanded to Zambia. For Zambia, only Union54, which provided card issuing services to fintechs like Busha, and Zazu—which now has no marked presence in the country—have entered Nigeria. Zambia and Nigeria both have young and tech-savvy populations, which makes fintech adoption higher. Like Zambia, Nigeria is also consumption-based, with huge capital demand from retailers who are typically shut out of credit provided by traditional banks. But that’s where the similarities end. Zambia has low internet penetration and faces challenges with financial literacy, both of which could be problematic for digital-first neobanks like Lupiya. Evelyn Kaingu, Lupiya’s co-founder, has acknowledged these challenges in Zambia, where over 135 microfinance institutions provide consumer credit. Nigeria, on the other hand, has a larger population and a more developed fintech ecosystem. With three times the number of fintechs compared to Zambia, the competition in Nigeria is fiercer. Yet, Kaingu is confident of Lupiya’s ability to compete. The startup is currently raising a further $10 million in a series B funding round to enable it to compete with other microlending players in Nigeria with deep pockets. Introducing Pay with Pocket on Paystack Checkout Paystack merchants in Nigeria can now accept payments from PocketApp’s 2 million+ customers. Learn more → CRYPTO TRACKER The World Wide Web3 Source: Coin Name Current Value Day Month Bitcoin $63,928 + 1.71% + 6.21% Ether $2,531.74 + 2.73% + 4.41%
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- October 11 2024
Chowdeck “looking at” South Africa and Kenya for possible expansion
Chowdeck, a Nigerian YC-backed food delivery platform, could consider expanding to South Africa, Kenya, and Ivory Coast. “We are still figuring things out, but we are looking at these countries because they have a mature market. Especially South Africa,” Kennedy Offor, sales lead at Chowdeck, said on the sidelines of Moonshot by TechCabal on Thursday. The food delivery markets in South Africa, Kenya, and Côte d’Ivoire are bustling with players. In South Africa, there is Mr D Food, a Takealot Group subsidiary, Uber Eats, Zulzi, and others. In Kenya, Chowdeck will compete with Glovo and Bolt Food. Glovo and Uber Eats are also in Côte d’Ivoire. Chowdeck, which recently celebrated reaching one million registered users, makes 40,000 deliveries daily. However, 70% of them come from Lagos State. While the company has integrated other verticals like grocery delivery, medicine shopping, advertising, and last-mile logistics to expand its offerings on its app, expanding to other countries with a similar consumer dynamic like Lagos provides growth opportunities. Until the international expansion, Chowdeck will continue working to increase the number of restaurants in its network by adding new ones and supporting existing partners to open outlets in new locations. “By opening outlets closer to places where the data shows frequent orders come, we are ensuring that food gets to people faster and at a more affordable rate,” Offor said. “We have helped smaller businesses [in Lagos] open such new outlets.” For restaurant aggregators like Chowdeck to scale orders, restaurants with high patronage must be well-distributed. So the company has also doubled down on partnerships with quick-service restaurant chains. In August 2024, it signed an exclusive partnership with Chicken Republic, which has nearly 100 outlets in the country. The company recently worked with Chicken Republic to launch a new food product. Chowdeck is also looking to support its expansion into new states. “We figure out ways to help them grow as much as we can, whether it’s a quick delivery, whether it’s the amount of data we’re able to give them in terms of where orders are coming and whatnot,” he said. Offor believes a symbiotic relationship with these restaurants is a sure path for the company’s growth. This seems like an operating philosophy that will fit right in wherever their expansion takes them.
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- October 11 2024
TechCabal Daily – Much ado about food delivery
In partnership with Lire en Français اقرأ هذا باللغة العربية TGIF! Moonshot, the widely acclaimed African tech event of the year, has come and gone, but the memories, the conversations, and the pictures will forever be cherished as mementos of the journey the African tech ecosystem is on. Pulling a crowd of 4,000, featuring aces in the African tech ecosystem, from across the globe in the middle of a week? Yes, we take our flowers! We take every compliment to heart. A special shout-out to the incredible team that made it happen—including you! We discussed everything from climate and cleantech, creator economy, AI, venture capital dynamics in Africa, entering tech, and building companies that compete globally. These conversations will remain key reference points we’ll hold onto as we continue to build innovative solutions that consistently put Africa on the global map. Thank you for making this event memorable. See you next year? Much ado about food delivery Open banking still needs CBN approval to work Investors need to back African startups’s global scale ambitions, says VCs The World Wide Web3 Jobs Startups Much ado about food delivery Image Source: TechCabal If you ask me, the most interesting panel at TechCabal’s Moonshot was the panel on food delivery. During the panel discussion, Kennedy Offor (head of business development at Chowdeck), Yinka Adewuyi (founder of GoLemon, an increasingly popular grocery delivery startup), and Guy Futi (founder of Orda, a food ordering software provider) spoke about the market opportunity in food delivery. They also spoke about sustainable business models that maximise revenue in this market. Futi, who previously worked for Jumia Food Nigeria when the platform was processing a mere 300 orders daily, gained valuable insights while scaling it to 10,000. Hardened by those lessons, Futi now believes that software is the key to profitability. This conviction led him to found Orda, a software provider for restaurants, and a business unburdened by the decreasing purchasing power of consumers and the unpredictability and high cost of logistics necessary to deliver food door to door. Offor, who has co-led Chowdeck to partner with thousands of restaurants across eight markets and to serve one million users, believes the key to profitability lies in speed and a symbiotic relationship with restaurants. Chowdeck has built a reputation for delivering food and groceries within 40 minutes, half the time it took predecessors like Jumia Food, Bolt Food, and OFood. The startup has also rapidly onboarded popular restaurants and claims to collaborate with them to increase their production capacity, expand to other locations and consequently, the number of orders on the platform. On the other hand, Yinka, the founder of GoLemon, established over a year ago, believes it’s about prioritising the right elements. According to him, in the food delivery sector, there’s a triangle from which businesses must choose only two of three factors to centre their business models around: speed, price, or quality. For his grocery business, he has chosen to de-emphasise speed and has found that focusing on price and quality offers a valuable proposition. The company promises to deliver high-quality groceries at below-market prices, but customers must wait two days for their orders. This makes sense for its customers who typically order in bulk but don’t need to use it instantly and can afford to wait a day or two for delivery. Only time will tell which models find profitability first. Read Moniepoint’s Case Study on Funding Women After losing their mother, Azeezat and her siblings struggled to keep Olaiya Foods afloat. Now, with Moniepoint, they’re transforming Nigeria’s local buka scene. Click here for a deep dive into how Moniepoint is helping her and other women entrepreneurs overcome their funding challenges. Fintech Open banking still needs CBN approval to work Image Source: TechCabal Open banking is ready for Nigeria, but the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is taking its time to give the green light. “All we need is CBN to blow the whistle to open banking,” Adedeji Olowe, the founder and CEO of Lendsqr, a lending platform said during a fireside chat with Uzoma Dozie, CEO of fintech startup Sparkle at Moonshot. The regulator has been slow to adopt open banking in the financial ecosystem, three years after it first released the guidelines for open banking. Open banking lets banks securely share customer financial data with fintechs and other third-party providers (TPPs) through APIs allowing fintechs to build more personalised financial services. It can unlock growth in Nigeria’s lending market, which has long been held back by insufficient data for credit assessment. With open banking, customers win as they get personalised and cheaper financial services. “Lenders want to know if they will get their money back. Open banking will ensure that they know who they are giving their money to,” Olowe said, arguing that pricing risk in credit due to little access to information about borrowers makes lending expensive. Experts, during the panel discussion, said they expect the regulator to approve open banking by 2025. Issue USD and Euro accounts with Fincra Whether you run an online marketplace, a remittance fintech, a payroll, a freelance platform or a cross-border payment app, Fincra’s multicurrency account API allows you to instantly create accounts in USD and EUR for customers without the stress of setting up a local account. Get started today. Venture Capital Investors need to back African startups’s global scale ambitions, says VCs Image Source: TechCabal African startups can build solutions that are scalable across the global market, investors who spoke at Moonshot by TechCabal on Thursday said. They need support in terms of funding, access to networks and market knowledge to achieve global ambitions. In Africa, the idea of expansion is mostly centred around launching in one of the “Big 4” markets and scaling from there. In recent years, startups like TymeBank, Flutterwave, and Moove have set up shop in markets like Southeast Asia and North America. Penetrating foreign markets requires startups to have a clear idea of what it takes to succeed in different
Read More- October 10 2024
African startups need financial backing for global ambitions, says VCs
African startups can build solutions that are scalable across the global market, investors who spoke at Moonshot by TechCabal on Thursday said. They need support in terms of funding, access to networks and market knowledge to achieve global ambitions. In Africa, the idea of expansion is mostly centred around launching in one of the “Big 4” markets and scaling from there. In recent years, African startups like TymeBank, Flutterwave, and Moove have set up shop in markets like Southeast Asia and North Africa. Penetrating foreign markets requires startups to have a clear idea of what it takes to succeed in different countries. This clear picture of the market comes from having investors who can back the founders’ ambitions. “It seems obvious but what works in African markets might need significant tweaking to work in markets like LatAm and Southeast Asia,” said Sadaharu Saiki, founder & GP at Sunny Side Ventures. Startups like TymeBank, which launched in South Africa and is now present in the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia, often cite the similar macroeconomic conditions in Africa and Southeast Asia But it takes more than just similar market dynamics to build a successful product. This is where partnerships with local players come in handy. “There will always be someone who knows the market more than you. Leverage that knowledge through well though partnerships,” added Aaron Fu, director of venture investments at DCG. As the African market becomes highly competitive and somehow saturated, foreign markets are becoming increasingly attractive. To reach their potential of penetrating these markets, it will take a combination of “patient capital,” deep knowledge of the markets and partnerships with significant synergies.
Read More- October 10 2024
Interoperability critical to the future of payment solutions in Africa
Favourable demographics, economic growth in the past decade, and innovation in payments infrastructure are working to define the future of payments in Africa. African businesses, whether small traders or large corporations need reliable payment solutions tailored to their specific needs. In the past decade, payment startups have attempted to solve challenges facing the continent’s payment ecosystem, with many wins and a few drawbacks. African fintechs have come a long way, but much more still needs to be done, according to payments experts during a panel discussion at Moonshot by TechCabal in Lagos on Thursday. “All these African financial systems should work together to give customers seamless transactions across borders. For instance, you should be able to use mobile money while in Ghana and Kenya,” said Unini Campbell, BudPay chief commercial officer. Despite the regulatory headwinds, funding drought, and security breaches, African fintechs have shown resilience, building platforms that respond to local challenges. However, the panelists said, that interconnection and interoperability, which should help integrate various payments systems on the continent to deliver seamless cross-border transactions, is still low. Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa—have all managed the transition to digital payments faster than the rest of the continent. The five have delivered the appropriate infrastructure and policies that are driving the growth of e-payments. Yet, transacting across the borders of the continent’s biggest payments markets is still a challenge. While Nigeria has made progress in card payments, travellers have reported cases where their cards get rejected. In some African countries like Sierra Leone, P2P, and C2B payments can take up to five days, slowing trade. “We are very good at creating policies in Africa, but how are we adapting the policies to ensure that if you have a license in Nigeria, you can use it across the other markets in Africa,” said Tolulope Adeyinka, MasterCard’s fintech business development lead, West Africa. “African fintech companies are very audacious and resilient. They have worked to solve problems with localised solutions. If policies are right, then we will be able to attract capital and talent.” It is projected that by 2025, both domestic and cross-border payment volumes in Africa will hit 200 billion. This growth will be driven by young, urbanised consumers. “The growth of domestic payments like Verve in Nigeria has been great. We are heading there, despite the challenges that the sector is facing,” said Wiza Jalakasi, Ebanx director of Africa market development.
Read More- October 10 2024
Open banking is ready for Nigeria, but CBN’s approval stands in the way
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) needs to give the green light for open banking to become operational in Nigeria, panelists at Moonshot by TechCabal said on Thursday. Open banking in Nigeria was conceptualised in 2017 with strong backing from key players like Sterling Bank, Flutterwave, Paystack, and banking executives, the CBN’s approval is the missing piece in the puzzle. “All we need is CBN to blow the whistle to open banking,” said Adedeji Olowe, founder and CEO of Lendsqr, in a fireside chat with Uzoma Dozie, CEO of Sparkle. In 2023, the CBN released the first draft of a regulatory framework for open banking. Olowe, a Trustee of Open Banking Nigeria, admitted that developing systems, regulations, and syncing participating financial institutions and regulators have been challenging, contributing to why open banking is yet to kick off in Nigeria. Yet, it makes sense why open banking has picked up the pace in Nigeria over the last seven years; it has been tested in the U.K. as a tool to offer a level playing field for its leading lenders. Besides being one of the first countries to implement open banking regulations, open banking is also guided by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which provides a robust legal framework for data protection to ensure that users have control over their personal information. That same approach would be essential for Nigerians, especially groups accessing credit, said Dozie. With open banking, banks and other financial institutions share customer data with third-party providers like fintechs. This would allow the development of innovative financial products and services that benefit consumers, such as cheaper loans and personalised budgeting tools. It is particularly important to Lendsqr, a digital credit management startup that strongly believes that credit can be cheaper if lenders can access banking information through open banking. “Lenders want to know if they will get their money back. Open banking will ensure that they know who they are giving their money to,” Olowe said, arguing that pricing risk in credit due to little access to information about borrowers makes lending expensive. Both Dozie and Olowe believe regulators have locked in the most sensitive part of open banking: data privacy. The National Data Protection Commission (NDPC), Nigeria’s data privacy regulator, has been at the forefront of ensuring that open banking operates within the framework of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR). This regulation safeguards consumer data and is essential for the success of open banking initiatives in Nigeria. “
Read More- October 10 2024
Trust and partnerships key to unlocking the next level of Africa’s e-commerce
To unlock the next stage of growth in Africa’s e-commerce sector, issues like fragmented payments, lack of trust for digital platforms, and regulatory bottlenecks must be addressed. This was the major takeaway from a panel discussion at Moonshot by TechCabal on Thursday. According to recent data, the African e-commerce market is projected to reach $75 billion from 478 million consumers by 2025. Despite the growth, e-commerce penetration on the continent is currently at less than 40%, showing the potential for further growth. ` Addressing the trust deficit is a key step: e-commerce platforms must bridge the gap between consumers and traders. “If there is a trust deficit, the e-commerce provider has to address it because trust determines the success of any transaction,” said Sunil Natraj, CEO of Jumia Nigeria. According to Natraj, to ensure trust, e-commerce platforms have to ensure that they keep the service promises that they make to consumers. Partnerships between industry players are also essential to unlock the growth opportunities in Africa’s e-commerce sector. Tappi, a Nigerian e-commerce company that helps small businesses onboard onto the internet, partnered with telcos in West Africa to leverage their distribution channels. “Scaling is based on distribution and instead of trying to reinvent the wheel, you can utilise the reach of existing players to get to your target market,” said Kenfield Griffith CEO of Tappi. The company has also explored partnerships with banks to extend credit financing to SMES. While partnerships are important in unlocking the next level of e-commerce in Africa, startups must prioritise building a good product for customers. Because of the highly customised nature of e-commerce businesses, identifying synergies with potential partners can end up being a distraction away from a company’s core mission. “Consider partnerships only after figuring out the market,” said Anu Adedoyin Adasolum, CEO of Sabi. “Being able to scale through referrals should be a prelude to any partnership.” The market potential for e-commerce in Africa is vast, but so are the hurdles to be overcome before that growth can be realised. Navigating the route to that growth will take a collective effort to address issues of lack of trust, less-than-ideal infrastructure and tough regulatory and compliance frameworks across the continent.
Read More- October 10 2024
Energy and AI are the future of commerce, experts say at Moonshot
To capitalise on growing opportunities in global trade, Africa needs to focus on opportunities like energy transition and artificial intelligence, Anu Adasolum, CEO of Sabi, a startup that builds digital tools that enable trade, said at Moonshot by TechCabal on Wednesday. Demand for sustainability is surging due to rising consumer awareness, stringent regulations, and a growing emphasis on environmental responsibility. Africa is well-placed to plug into these evolving dynamics. “We have the minerals and the agricultural commodities. [We need] flows and solutions that enable businesses to plug into this demand,” Adasolum said in a fireside chat with Mudiaga Mowoe, CEO of Matta, a marketplace where manufacturers can source chemicals and other raw materials. Artificial intelligence also presents an opportunity to rethink the way we solve problems in the value chain of commerce. “One of the biggest problems you have when dealing with the informal sector is communication and engagement. AI bridges this gap,” Adasolum said. Businesses do not have to change their fundamental technology to integrate AI into their processes. In communication, there are AI bots that customers can interact with on WhatsApp, a communication platform many already use. AI can be overlaid with familiar technologies to make subcomponents of the process like placing orders and tracking supply more efficient. The technology also provides a standardization that can improve traceability—transparency in how goods and services are sourced. “With AI, our data structures can be a lot more flexible.” By exploring these opportunities, the continent has the potential to not only catch up but lead the way in the global trade value chain. logy can be overlaid on familiar communication technologies to make subcomponents of the process like placing orders and tracking supply more efficient. The technology also provides a standardization that can improve traceability—transparency in how goods and services are sourced. “With AI, our data structures can be a lot more flexible,” By exploring these opportunities, the continent has the potential to not only catch up but lead the way in the global commerce value chain.
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- October 10 2024
TechCabal Daily – AI for Africa, by Africa
In partnership with Lire en Français اقرأ هذا باللغة العربية Happy pre-Friday! It’s Day 2 of Moonshot by TechCabal and we’re still buzzing from yesterday’s explosive kick-off! 4,000 visitors from across the globe joined us at the Eko Convention Centre where we had an awesome experience discussing AI, cross-border payments, cleantech, and lots more. Our lineup for day 2 is the reason you absolutely need to be here. Sunil Natraj, CEO of Jumia Nigeria, Tosin Eniolorunda, CEO of Moniepoint, and creators Layi Wasabi and Fisayo Fosudo will discuss commerce, the creator economy, and building companies that last. Remember to come along with your conference tags so you can check-in without hassle. We’ve also outlined the program schedule so you can plan around it. We kick off at 9 AM GMT. See you soon! AI conversations dominate Moonshot day one Africa’s payments market has a technology problem Carbon credit financing can boost clean energy funding in Africa The World Wide Web3 Opportunities AI AI conversations dominate Moonshot day one Image Source: TechCabal Day one of Moonshot was filled with conversations around AI. From TED-style AI talks to product demos and panel sessions, AI was on the lips of almost every speaker—at least on the main stage. Even Nigeria’s tech minister, Bosun Tijani, joined the conversation. “We would have failed our people and the future generations if we sleep on artificial intelligence because these are a set of technologies that will control what you think, how you think, and how you do everything,” Bosun Tijani said during a fireside chat. After the Minister’s fireside chat, Bayo Adekunmbi, a professional with over 22 years of experience in AI, gave a powerful TED talk on how Africa can export the next generation of AI talent. In an age where global companies are falling over one another to secure AI talents, Africa may be the biggest winner. Bayo’s argument has also been echoed by different AI professionals we have spoken with in the past including Nigeria’s tech minister. Although data has been the biggest challenge in AI adoption on the continent, other challenges, like digital literacy also hinder the application of the technology. However, panellists at this session think there might be a way out—using voice data. This workaround is currently being employed by startups across the continent. Startups now employ agents to gather audio recordings from users. While the continent continues to find ways to fill its AI data deficit, Yemi Keri, CEO of Heckerbella believes it is the responsibility of you and me to upload and contribute data for AI systems. How? By talking about your culture and languages on social media. Imagine a LinkedIn post talking about your state of origin and culture! Overall, we had an enjoyable time learning about how AI is shaping personal and business interactions. Tomorrow, the creative economy takes centre stage and we’ll be having creators like Layi Wasabi, Editi Effiong, and Jade Osiberu. See you around! Read Moniepoint’s Case Study on Funding Women After losing their mother, Azeezat and her siblings struggled to keep Olaiya Foods afloat. Now, with Moniepoint, they’re transforming Nigeria’s local buka scene. Click here for a deep dive into how Moniepoint is helping her and other women entrepreneurs overcome their funding challenges. Fintech Africa’s payments market has a technology problem Moyo Sodipo, co-founder/COO Busha, Benjamin Dada, publisher at BenDada.com (Moderator), and Guy Stiebel, VP Product Cedar Money/Image Source: TechCabal Cross-border payments are evolving in Africa. Every day, there is a different pitch from startups springing up, introducing one way or the other for people to send and receive money across borders. Stablecoins; virtual wallets; or using API integrations to make a difference. Coupled with the growing digital commerce activity on the continent, simplifying cross-border payments is the next bit finance players must crack. While we’ve come a long way since the days of Hawala and slow wires, high costs, limited coverage, and complexities with fiat currency conversions still exist. Tighter regulatory oversight and enhanced due diligence have rightly been made part and parcel of moving high-value transactions in and out of borders for any reason. During a Moonshot panel on Wednesday, experts in the payments ecosystem argued that it is not the regulatory hurdles in Africa, but limited technology to build solutions that allow faster data exchange during these payments, that will slow the development of better cross-border solutions. “Fintech is what happens when financial systems fail. Cross-border payments, historically, have been plagued by inefficiencies, and that’s where technology companies see a chance to make a difference,” said Guy Stiebel, VP Product of B2B cross-border payments fintech Cedar Money. On the other hand, “old school” traditional banking players seem slow to catch on to what is trending in cross-border payments, but they might hold the key for this development that we seek. There is an opportunity in a hybrid approach that combines fintechs’ agility and tech solutions with traditional banks’ reliability and regulatory knowledge. During the Builders Summit that happened in May, fintech operator and investor Iyin Aboyeji noted, “If the government’s business is your business, they’ll never shut you down. The government also has to make money from what you’re doing.” Banks have better relationships with regulators because they make the government money. Fintechs arguably have better technology. When fintechs and cross-border payments players start building in ways to align government interests—and that will likely involve traditional finance players—it will reduce regulatory pushback. Experts remain optimistic that more innovations will happen, despite regulatory dynamics on the continent. Issue USD and Euro accounts with Fincra Whether you run an online marketplace, a remittance fintech, a payroll, a freelance platform or a cross-border payment app, Fincra’s multicurrency account API allows you to instantly create accounts in USD and EUR for customers without the stress of setting up a local account. Get started today. Cleantech Carbon credit financing can boost clean energy funding in Africa Image Source: TechCabal With cleantech startups poised for explosive growth, carbon credit financing could be a game-changer for
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