Pesalink wants to be Kenya’s “digital payments rail.” Can it pull it off?
Sending money in Kenya is still more complicated than it looks. A payment that starts in a bank account often transfers through a mobile wallet before reaching a merchant, with each leg taking a fee, and each system jealously guarding its own rails. Commercial banks’ answer has been Pesalink, an instant transfer platform that promises to cut out those detours. But eight years after launch, its ability to simplify Kenya’s payments landscape depends less on technology than on politics. Wider ambition? When the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) launched Pesalink in 2017, the aim was to enable customers to transfer money between banks instantly, without the delays and charges associated with traditional interbank transfers. At the time, the only way to move money digitally between financial institutions was through electronic funds transfer (EFT) or real-time gross settlement (RTGS)—systems that were clunky, slow, and unsuitable for retail use. “Before PesaLink came about, the only ways you could move money between banks digitally were EFT or RTGS — neither of which are real-time,” recalls Gituku Kirika, CEO of Integrated Payments Services Ltd (IPSL), the company that owns and runs Pesalink. Since its launch, Pesalink has worked largely as a back-office convenience, a utility for the banking sector rather than a household name. But the payments landscape around it has shifted rapidly. M-Pesa has become Kenya’s dominant channel, processing an estimated KES 8 trillion ($61.9 billion) a year, while Airtel Money, Telkom’s T-Kash, and a growing roster of fintech wallets are racing to claw out niches. As of 2024, Kenya had 73 million registered mobile money accounts — and a deeply fragmented ecosystem. Banks, fintechs, and Savings and Credit Cooperatives (SACCOs) each maintain their own networks, agents are duplicated, and merchants must juggle multiple systems. “You go to a pharmacy in Nairobi and you find they’ve been signed up by five different entities,” says Kirika. “That’s duplication of effort, duplication of technology, and time-consuming for the owner. One shared agent infrastructure would cut those inefficiencies.” Kirika says Pesalink’s leadership is pushing to reposition the platform as the shared infrastructure that links banks, mobile money wallets, SACCOs, and fintechs into one interoperable payment ecosystem. “Our role is to reduce friction in payments,” he says. “That means building rails that everyone can ride on — not just banks.” Global trends Globally, the trend is toward open, centralised rails. India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has become the benchmark of a government-backed platform. In August, it processed over 12 billion transactions, surpassing the total volume of card payments in the US for that same month. Nigeria’s NIBSS Instant Payments (NIP) now underpins over 90% of bank-to-bank transfers in Africa’s fourth biggest economy. Both systems have scaled by offering a single integration point for all players and reducing transaction costs through sheer volume. Kirika believes Kenya’s version of UPI or NIBSS could be Pesalink. The comparisons flatter Pesalink but also expose its weaknesses. The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has outlined a National Payments Strategy and consulted on a fast payments system. But unlike India or Nigeria, it has stopped short of mandating a single national switch. Pesalink is still wholly owned by the KBA. “World over, the rule is that the governance — that’s the decision-making, the shareholding — should be representative of the payment participants,” Kirika explains. “It’s something we would definitely need to look into.” That governance gap shapes perceptions. Fintechs and other wallets worry about plugging into a system run by their competitors. The regulator, meanwhile, is balancing the desire for lower costs and interoperability with concerns about competition from a bank-dominated switch. Kirika says IPSL is in “constant” dialogue with the CBK as it reviews the National Payments System Act and rolls out its consumer protection framework. Hop-step-jump Pesalink aims to streamline the payment process for the majority of users with multiple accounts, eliminating the need for multiple layers. Because transactions do not have to “hop” from bank to mobile wallet to merchant, fees can be lower. “Today, for example, you find wallet providers where if you need to move money to a bank, it moves from the wallet provider to the mobile money wallet, from there to the bank. That’s a hop. There’s a cost to it,” Kirika says. “By opening up ecosystems, we reduce the costs that have been passed on to payment participants. You’d hope then that would translate to lower costs for consumers.” Each hop adds friction for businesses and consumers. The company promises fewer hops and lower wholesale costs, which could in turn drive down retail fees. But it does not set consumer pricing — that is left to banks and wallets. Much will depend on whether they see volume growth as worth lowering their margins. In theory, the economics are compelling for most small players. Today, a fintech launching in Kenya must negotiate separately with banks and telcos, each integration carrying technical and commercial costs. By offering a one-stop gateway, Pesalink cuts entry barriers, which can be passed to consumers as lower fees. Pesalink already connects 80 service providers, including all major banks and several SACCOs. Talks are underway with Safaricom and Airtel to bring their wallets fully on board. However, if the platform can prove itself at the merchant and agent level, it could gain real traction. While CBK has been discussing agent interoperability, little progress has been made as dominant players have pushed back. This would allow one agent to serve all the banks on a single system rather than each bank or telco recruiting the same chemist or kiosk multiple times. If successful, the prize could be a seamless system where a customer can walk into any agent — bank, telco, or SACCO — and transact without worrying whose sign hangs above the door. Other African markets are experimenting along similar lines. Uganda’s banks formed the Agent Banking Company in 2018, creating a shared agent network now numbering over 20,000 outlets. In Ghana, the GhIPSS (Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems) switch enables wallet-to-bank
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Car washers in South Africa’s biggest cities can now receive instant digital payments
Street Wallet, a South African cashless payment fintech, has partnered with Plush Car Wash, a popular car care brand, to introduce digital payments to informal car washers in Cape Town, Durban, and Johannesburg. Through this partnership, Street Wallet will embed its payment system into Plush’s network of informal car washers, many of whom are unbanked or underbanked, a way to receive instant device-free payments. In South Africa, where over 40% of working-age citizens are unemployed or discouraged from seeking work, the streets have become the country’s largest informal economy hub. For thousands of workers who survive on car washing and other street-level services, this partnership signals a shift that cash-heavy, insecure transactions are giving way to digital payments that do not require smartphones or bank accounts. Using Street Wallet’s QR code payment, mobile washers wear a card around their neck, customers scan it using familiar platforms like SnapScan, Zapper, Apple Pay, or Samsung Pay, and vendors receive earnings via Standard Bank Instant Money Vouchers, redeemable at ATMs or retailers. Unlike SnapScan or Ozow, Street Wallet does not require vendors to own a smartphone or bank account. That’s a game-changer for car guards, dry washers, and other informal workers operating in high-footfall zones. “Our teams operate in high-footfall zones where speed and ease matter. Street Wallet gives us a flexible, secure system that benefits both staff and customers,” said Plush CEO Neil Meyerowitz. While Street Wallet already has a strong footprint in Cape Town and Durban, this partnership strengthens the Johannesburg market, a city with the highest concentration and proportion of informal workers after Durban. “This partnership shows how digital convenience can meet everyday services, securely, simply, and inclusively,” said Street Wallet CEO Kosta Scholiadis. The partnership follows Street Wallet’s $350,000 raise in August at a $2 million valuation, aimed at scaling its reach across South Africa’s informal economy. The startup also acquired Digitip, a QR code payment digital tipping startup, to consolidate its tech stack and accelerate merchant onboarding. Scholiadis noted that Street Wallet is betting that the future of fintech lies not just in apps, but in accessible, device-free solutions that meet people where they are. Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Meet and learn from Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Get your tickets now: moonshot.techcabal.com
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Pesalink eyes premium payments market with Cellulant integration
Pesalink, Kenya’s interbank money transfer platform, is linking its network with Cellulant, a pan-African fintech, through Tingg, its digital payments platform for businesses. The link will make it easier for online merchants to accept high-value customer-to-business (C2B) payments. The alliance immediately expands Pesalink’s reach into the digital commerce sector by providing merchants direct access to millions of bank customers while addressing critical reconciliation and delay friction points in digital transactions. It is a decisive strategic manoeuvre by Pesalink to capture a larger share of Kenya’s digital commerce market, an area historically dominated by mobile money ecosystems. Pesalink is also positioning itself as the preferred, high-value infrastructure for real-time transactions by taking advantage of Cellulant’s established merchant base. Under the new arrangement, consumers purchasing from Cellulant merchants can make instant payments up to KES 999,999 ($7,700) per transaction directly from their bank accounts. This high cap exceeds the typical mobile money limit of KES 500,000 ($3,900), positioning the partnership to capture larger commerce volumes. A core benefit for businesses is improved operational efficiency because every payment carries a reliable reference number for instant reconciliation and faster settlement. The service is already live for businesses in the airline and travel sectors. This renewed strategic focus signals the banking sector’s intent to reinforce its existing infrastructure. The strategy counters earlier proposals from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to build an entirely new fast payment system, a plan opposed by banks who favour upgrading the existing Pesalink system. Pesalink has previously faced limitations integrating with mobile money wallets, a structural weakness it is actively addressing through recent partnerships, including a focus on enhancing bulk payments for small enterprises. It recently extended this integration with M-PESA and TendePay. Kenya’s digital payments market is projected to reach $9.36 billion by 2025, according to industry estimates. The tie-up positions Pesalink and Cellulant to compete for a larger slice of those flows, especially in high-value segments where banks see an edge over mobile money. Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Meet and learn from Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Get your tickets now: moonshot.techcabal.com
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What developers, startups, and users will gain with Base and Solana bridge
On September 15, Base, the layer-2 (L2) blockchain owned by US crypto firm Coinbase, announced an open-source bridge that connects its network to Solana, the layer-1 (L1) network. The bridge, which is currently being tested and will be live in a “few weeks,” will allow crypto tokens to move directly between the two blockchains without routing through an exchange, reducing the risk of lost funds and expanding access for users and startups. Base has grown rapidly in 2025, with total value locked (TVL) reaching $5 billion and a stablecoin supply of $4.5 billion. Solana remains one of the largest blockchain networks in crypto, recording 2.2 million daily active wallets in Q1 2025, up 60% year-over-year (YoY), and a peak of 120 million monthly active addresses in 2024. Between them, Base and Solana handle more than $220 billion in crypto trades every month, driven by Solana’s high throughput and dominance in trading and Base’s growing on-chain activity. A bridge between the two blockchains will expand liquidity access, making it easier for users, traders, and developers to move crypto assets and participate in markets across both networks. 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But sending tokens directly across the two blockchains without a bridge—for example, transferring USDC from a Solana wallet straight to a Base address—would result in permanent loss of funds. The bridge solves that problem by locking assets on one side and issuing equivalent assets on the other. The process ensures asset transfers between Solana and Base become homogeneous. David Salami, CTO of Hyperbridge, a blockchain interoperability protocol built by Polytope Labs, said the move also highlights a deeper issue in bridging systems. “Trusted bridges like LayerZero and Wormhole rely on multisignatures or custodians, which means users must depend on a third party for security,” said Salami. “In a highly adversarial environment like crypto, that model does not scale. Coinbase [Base] built its own bridge because it did not want to entrust user funds to someone else’s system.” It remains unclear whether Base’s new bridge will be fully trustless, meaning one that verifies transactions directly on-chain without relying on third-party custodians or multisignature signers. Base has not released full technical details, and the code is still in testnet. That leaves open the question of how much users will need to trust intermediaries in the bridge’s design. What changes for startups and users Liquidity is the immediate prize. Liquidity refers to the pool of money in the system. Larger pools lead to steadier prices and lower costs for trading. By connecting Base and Solana, the bridge combines two markets, making it easier for exchanges, traders, and market makers to operate at scale. Cross-chain transaction volume surged from $18.6 billion in September 2024 to $50 billion by November 2024, a 188% increase, and has remained steady in 2025. Average fees on existing trusted third-party Solana bridges, including Base’s, cost up to 0.2% per transaction, but well below traditional exchange costs. “Base wants Solana traders to be able to trade on Base too,” said Divinegift Soetan, founder of Importa, a Nigerian social commerce platform built on Base. “That brings liquidity into Base. It matters most for products
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Neibar, the app fostering gifting of pre-owned items in African communities
In many parts of Africa, where hand-me-downs and second-hand markets dominate the cyclic ownership of goods, people still discard items they no longer need while others nearby struggle to afford them. In 2024, Ugandan software developer Namwanza Ronald saw this as a challenge and founded Neibar, an app that lets people give their pre-owned items away for free, extending their lifespan while meeting real needs in low-income households. Ronald’s mission is to cut waste and close inequality gaps in African communities by making gifting pre-owned items easy and dignified. Through the location-based app, people can list household, school, or workplace items they no longer need, and neighbors can pick them up. “Existing platforms for used items mostly focus on buying and selling, which leaves a big gap. But Neibar set out to close that gap by reducing waste and inequality across African communities, making purposeful giving easy, accessible, and stigma-free,” Ronald told TechCabal. How it works The app, currently available on Android, requires users to sign up with basic information and location. That way, they can see when someone in their neighborhood is giving away an item. A user’s dashboard displays categories of items from household goods to clothing and learning materials. When a user lists an item to give away, others in the neighborhood are notified by email and can log in to reserve it on a first-come, first-served basis. With the app’s built-in end-to-end encrypted chats, the giver and recipient can discuss the item and agree on a safe public location for pickup. “We encourage users to meet in public places where they know it is safe like parks, cafes, or designated community zones where they are receiving items,” Ronald said. To stop people from hoarding items for commerce, the platform limits each user to five item reservations per day. The system also monitors user activities and can flag users who repeatedly reserve items within short intervals. 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 Giving meets need For beneficiaries, the impact can be immediate. When Sabbi Derrick began his computer science degree at Makerere University in Uganda, he realised he needed a laptop to keep up with his coursework but he had none. He often borrowed from a friend, which left him behind in practice and struggling to keep pace with his peers. The pressure to get his own laptop grew as he entered his second year. “I was desperate,” Derrick said. “Laptops here are so expensive. At the time, I couldn’t afford one because to buy such a gadget it would cost about UGX600,000 ($171) to UGX700,000 ($200),” he stated. That changed when Derrick discovered Neibar on Facebook and signed up. Through the app, he received a used laptop from a stranger in his neighborhood, the same one he now relies on for coursework and coding. “It made me improve in the course of my study because it’s what I’m using right now for school and other things that I’m doing like learning tech skills.” In Kenya, Nabatte Kevina turned to Neibar when shopping for essentials for her growing daughter. One of those needs was a bed and she found one listed on the app that she reserved and secured. For Kevina, the gift eased the financial pressure of buying a new bed. “When I checked the platform, I didn’t see much, but I was able to get a bed
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About 7,000 Kenyan tech jobs caught in US-backed policy uncertainty
More than 66,000 jobs in Kenya’s export processing zones (EPZs) are at risk as a US trade pact that underpins the country’s export economy is set to expire. The African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), which for 25 years has allowed duty-free access for African goods into the US, lapses at midnight, Sept. 30. Despite apparel dominating the programme, which supports over 800,000 livelihoods, tech-related jobs within the EPZs are equally significant, with approximately 3,000 to 7,000 roles, or 5 to 10% of the total workforce. If the US Congress does not extend it, tariffs on Kenyan exports will rise above 30%, threatening years of gains in apparel and raising costs for technology service providers that depend on EPZ incentives. Kenya’s EPZs are best known for textile firms like United Aryan, which produces Levi’s and Wrangler jeans, or Hela Clothing, which supplies PVH brands Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger. But these zones also house outsourcing and tech service companies such as Sama (a business process outsourcing firm that offers data labelling services) and Majorel (a content moderation company). They train and employ thousands of young Kenyans to label data for artificial intelligence systems, run call centres, and provide back-office support for US clients. These companies now risk losing duty-free imports of servers, networking equipment, and specialised hardware. Those costs underpin their ability to compete globally. 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 A threat to tech firms The business models of companies like Sama and Majorel are highly sensitive to infrastructure costs. Losing EPZ exemptions means that tariffs and VAT will be applied immediately to imported computer hardware and networking equipment. In outsourcing, contracts are priced per seat or per task. Even a small increase in the cost per worker can prompt clients to relocate projects to more affordable jurisdictions. Sama, for example, supports global AI firms by tagging images and text; therefore, a tariff-driven increase in capital expenditure for servers and equipment would erode its position as one of Nairobi’s anchor digital employers. The same applies to Majorel, which provides multilingual customer support for multinational companies. A minor cost imbalance is enough to trigger a mass exodus of digital contracts, revealing that Nairobi’s nascent tech hub is critically dependent on an American trade waiver. Pankaj Bedi, who chairs the apparel manufacturers and exporters sector at the Kenya Association of Manufacturers, wrote for the Star, a Kenyan newspaper, that lenders are already nervous. “If Agoa cannot be renewed in time, Kenya must pivot immediately to a fallback plan: a Kenya–US Free Trade Agreement built on Kenya’s longstanding strategic partnership with the US and the low level of trade competition between the two countries,” Bedi said. Financing payrolls and new contracts is becoming harder, as banks factor tariff exposure into their credit models, meaning that the squeeze runs across textiles and technology alike. Agoa’s design gave Kenya two clear advantages: predictable access to the US market and fiscal incentives for companies inside the EPZ framework. Both are now at risk. The US administration has said it supports a one-year extension, but legislation requires congressional approval. The lack of urgency in Washington has left Nairobi’s exporters guessing. Factories face digital gaps On the apparel side, some Kenyan exporters have invested in digital tools to keep up with US buyers. Hela Clothing has implemented Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) tagging and inventory management software to enhance
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‘Copy-paste does not always work’ and other truths about investing in Africa
Venture capital (VC) funding in Africa is still young, with most firms yet to reach the 10-year mark when portfolio performance and returns to investors—limited partners—can be judged. In such an early industry, few universal truths exist. Yet across five editions of this column, clear lessons have emerged. Capital in Africa only compounds when it comes with three things: operational muscle, deep local fluency, and a deliberate plan for liquidity. Without them, even the best-intentioned investments struggle to translate into lasting value. This week, my recap of the past five episodes pulls lessons from interviews with the corporate venture arm of one Egypt’s largest companies (GB Ventures), a venture studio exporting Anglophone Africa business models into Francophone West Africa (Mstudio), a global early-stage fintech specialist doubling down on inclusion (Accion Ventures), a decade-old pan-African seed fund reflecting on exits and local capital (Ventures Platform), and a research-heavy firm combining equity, venture building and debt (Consonance). Here are the truths to be drawn from those conversations: 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 Truth 1: Capital plus operating muscle beats capital alone Every investor profiled has built an operating stack around their cheques. GB Ventures integrates startups directly into its sprawling mobility and finance group. It also expects board seats in exchange for investment, and the startup will run three-month pilots inside business units. The firm helps its portfolio companies with distribution, revenue, and credibility that the startup could never buy on its own. Mstudio goes even further, investing €500,000 ($588,000) worth of services and another €250,000 ($294,000) in cash while its 14-person internal team helps the startup execute against a 100-task venture-building playbook and constantly updates its learnings in an internal knowledge base. Accion Ventures fields ex-operators to work on the ground on pricing, credit policy, segmentation, and go-to-market. Ventures Platform explicitly hires former operators so that early founders get hands-on help with strategy, sales, partnerships, and culture, while Consonance has institutionalised post-investment help and complements equity with debt so companies can finance working capital without dilution. These firms’ different approaches all show that execution risk is so high that capital alone is rarely enough. Without helping build startups, most early African VCs risk their investment drowning in poor execution. While money is necessary, the accompanying support is decisive. Truth 2: Copy-paste does not always work, and localisation decides winners Mstudio’s most valuable lesson is a failed startup. Tuzo, cloned from Nigeria’s Bumpa, shipped the right features to the right users, yet the monetisation logic collapsed. Subscription billing depended on card rails and automated debits that simply aren’t culturally or technically feasible yet in Francophone West Africa, where mobile money dominates. The startup did not struggle with users but with revenue. That experience now anchors Mstudio’s process, which requires paid traction during the three-month Entrepreneur-in-Residence phase or kills the idea early. GB Ventures also uses a similar approach, as it focuses all its investments in its home country. The firm’s parent company chose only Egypt to build a corporate venture capital playbook inside a familiar legal and commercial context, then use small pilot investments in new countries to learn before scaling the corporation’s own operations. Ventures Platform evaluates Francophone West Africa with a first-principles rubric: currency stability, regional harmonisation (the “lake and ocean” idea), and whether the ecosystem can actually deliver venture returns. Accion staffs locally in each key geography to
Read MoreTechCabal and NITDA announce strategic partnership for Moonshot 2025 Policy Track
We are excited to announce the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) as a Strategic Partner for the Policy Track at this year’s edition of our flagship event, Moonshot by TechCabal, themed “Building Momentum,” taking place on October 15–16, 2025, at the Eko Convention Centre in Lagos. As Nigeria’s foremost institution for digital transformation, NITDA drives the country’s digital economy agenda through bold policies, progressive regulation, and ecosystem collaboration. From advancing national digital literacy to crafting regulatory clarity for frontier technologies like blockchain, AI, and digital assets, the Agency is laying the groundwork for inclusive growth, investor confidence, and global competitiveness. Through this partnership, NITDA will spotlight how policy can serve as the engine of momentum for Africa’s digital future. Its sessions at Moonshot will explore how forward-thinking regulation can unlock opportunities, drive inclusion, and strengthen Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem. The Agency’s participation will feature a visionary keynote on “Policy as an Engine of Momentum,” where NITDA’s leadership will outline Nigeria’s latest digital policy agenda, including national digital literacy, a regulatory roadmap for AI and blockchain, and implementation of the Nigeria Startup Act. NITDA will also host a high-level policy session, “The Nigeria Startup Act in Action,” bringing together policymakers, ecosystem leaders, and founders to showcase the Act’s early wins and its role in embedding startups directly into the policymaking process. This discussion will highlight how the Act is unlocking new channels for investment, providing regulatory clarity, and creating opportunities for deeper collaboration between government and innovators. In addition, NITDA will host a pavilion presentation showcasing its programs, partnerships, and innovation-driven initiatives that continue to shape Nigeria’s digital economy. TechCabal and NITDA are working to position Nigeria’s digital policy agenda as a driver of opportunity, investment, and sustainable innovation. The partnership will also showcase the Nigeria Startup Act as a model for policy–ecosystem collaboration, reinforce trust and dialogue between government, startups, and investors, and inspire confidence in the role of policy as a catalyst for inclusive digital growth. Moonshot 2025 will bring together Africa’s brightest minds, innovators, investors, and policymakers for two days of bold ideas, high-level policy dialogues, strategic networking, and actionable insights that will shape the future of Africa’s tech ecosystem. Secure your tickets now and be part of the conversation.
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Digital Nomads: You too can become a global site reliability engineer, like Leke Ariyo
Leke Ariyo told me that he had always known he wanted to build a global career. While working international roles from Lagos, he saved every paycheck, setting aside what he needed to pay for a relocation. His eyes were fixed on graduate study abroad, a chance to sharpen his skills and open a new chapter of work. “When you are working in Nigeria for a foreign company, there is not that much you really want to spend that can match how much you are earning. I just kept setting it aside, and when the time came, I was ready,” he said. By 2022, three years later, the path opened. He received a fully funded master’s scholarship to study machine learning and deep learning at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland. It covered tuition and living expenses. More than that, it became the bridge that moved him from Nigeria into the global circuit of site reliability engineering. 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 Switching to site reliability and moving to the UK Ariyo had spent his early years switching between software and leadership roles in Nigeria. He worked at FoodCourt and later co-founded Briks and EscrooVest, sharpening his technical instinct while also stepping into the hard lessons of building startups. In the UK, he leaned fully into reliability engineering. A site reliability engineer (SRE) designs and maintains the backbone of technology products. They build the infrastructure that keeps systems alive, automate the work that slows down engineers, and watch the signals that show whether a product is healthy or in distress. “[SRE means] building systems that let companies run smoothly and faster,” he told me. “There is that speed where we are always trying to improve timing, and at the same time, we use automation to reduce manual toil. Security matters, availability matters, and our job is to make sure the system stays up and works for people no matter where they are.” The work is a healthy blend of software engineering and operations, and can be global. An SRE can work in distributed teams; they do not need to be in the same office as the servers they manage. With the right setup, someone in Lagos or Accra can monitor and fix production systems used by millions of people in other parts of the world. Though the demand for SREs has declined since the highs of 2023, when it was one of the most important tech roles, it remains a critical operation for many companies. SREs have been overshadowed by the demand for more AI expertise and tech infrastructure roles. Yet firms in Europe and the US keep hiring, from startups handling thousands of transactions to Big Tech companies that process billions. Ariyo’s own move into the UK job market—after his master’s at Strathclyde—came almost by chance. Near the end of his programme in Glasgow, he attended a networking event where teams from different companies had set up stalls. He shared his CV, held conversations, and walked away without expecting much. Weeks later, a manager who had spoken with him at the event called back. Leke Ariyo during his graduation from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow/Image Source: Leke Ariyo That conversation led to interviews, which in turn led to a job in the UK. Today, he works at a global financial institution and holds a membership at the British Computer Society
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Koolboks wants to be more than a freezer: Day 1-1000 of Koolboks
For most people in Sub-Saharan Africa, electricity is unstable at best, nonexistent at worst. This leads to a variety of problems: low productivity, heat waves, and a substandard quality of life. On a more structural level, unstable electricity means that businesses have to rely on extra sources of electricity, which increases operational costs, and hospitals have to factor in power outages when storing sensitive medication; the implications are far-reaching. For Ayoola Dominic, Koolboks started because he just didn’t fathom people not having constant cooling due to power inefficiencies. So he quit a 20-year career across different industries to launch a company that makes solar-powered freezers affordable to everyone. Koolboks has sold 10,000 units across Africa and raised $11 million in total funding. For Dominic, they’re just getting started. Day 1: My bedroom was our warehouse The mission was clear from the start. “Koolboks was born out of wanting to revolutionise the way people experience cooling. We wanted to democratise cooling,” Dominic recalls. The problem is not unfamiliar: over 600 million people lack access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa, leading to massive food waste and a lack of vital medical refrigeration. But a noble mission doesn’t pay the bills on day one. The early team was a small trio: Dominic, his co-founder, and their first investor. The reality was gritty. “Day one was, as usual, extremely tough. I had to sleep on the floor for a couple of months because I had to leave my initial company,” Ayoola says. With no cash, personal savings were poured into the first orders. His living space became the company’s headquarters. “My room was actually the warehouse, you know. I sold my couch. I had to sell a few things just to get enough.” He was the supply chain manager, the warehouse manager, the finance manager, and the salesman, all at once. Their first product was modest. “The first Koolboks was a fridge. It had an LED bulb. Had a USB port… It was just like an upgraded cooler.” The batteries were small, lasting only a few hours, and the cooling was inefficient. “Once you open it like three times, you are not even sure if it’s a cupboard or a fridge, right?” But people bought it. This was just the start. The Koolboks team had identified that small businesses – mostly frozen foods businesses were a primary audience. This led them to the Ijora fish market in Lagos, where they found their first true customer, a woman named Mama Ibadan. They installed a freezer in her shop as a demo. “After like two, three weeks, Mama Ibadan refused to let go of the freezer. That was how we got our first customer.” She remains a loyal user and advocate to this day. 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 Day 500: The pivot that saved everything The real lessons came when the freezers met the market, and the results were explosive—literally. “We got into trouble a number of times,” Dominic admits. The team discovered that their lab-tested technology couldn’t withstand the realities of a Nigerian fish market. “A typical fish trader opens a freezer hundreds of times a day. The typical shop is very small and has a pan roof and the temperature in that shop on a normal day is about 40° C, no fan,” he explains. “The compressor heats up… before you know it,
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