Author: Gugu Lourie
Sbu Shabalala stepped down Tuesday as chief executive of Adapt IT, a JSE-listed software group helped found in 1998 and is now valued at R934 million. On May 10, Shabalala was granted a three-month leave of absence to attend to personal matters after he was accused of masterminding an attack on an Ethekwini municipality manager. Tiffany Dunsdon, chief commercial officer, who is interim CEO while Shabalala is on leave, will continue in her role, Adapt IT announced on Tuesday. “Shabalala has since taken the decision to terminate his employment with Adapt IT and resign as director of Adapt IT and…
South African mobile and fixed-line telephone customers seem to be generally doing well, thanks to the number portability regulation giving them more options: to choose when to stay or dump either Vodacom, MTN, Telkom Mobile and Cell C. By the end of July, the average mobile ports per month were more than 73,624, according to recent stats published by the Number Portability Company (NPC). The NPC was founded in 2006 to protect the customer by enabling him or her to vote with their feet when they are not happy with the Telco services, seems concerned with service woes. From November 2006 to the end…
The application channels for the R350 COVID-19 grant will be opened from Friday, 06 August, Social Development Minister, Lindiwe Zulu, announced on Wednesday. The first payments will be made by the end of the month. President Cyril Ramaphosa announced last month that the government would reinstate the grant. How to apply for the R350 COVID-19 Grant? “Noting that R350 COVID-19 grant is still very much upon us, we will continue with measures to limit face to face interactions to manage social distancing and use the frontline application systems which had proven to be successful during the initial implementation of this…
Telkom announced today, the appointment of Serame Taukobong as Group CEO Designate with effect from 01 October 2021. TechFinancials speculated as early as February that Taukobong might be in the race to occupy the hot seat at Telkom. For more read: Is Serame Taukobong Heir Apparent to Telkom Boss Sipho Maseko? Making the announcement, Sello Moloko, Chairperson of Telkom said the organisation was pleased that its extensive search process confirmed the calibre of Telkom’s people. “Serame is a seasoned executive, with deep experience in the ITC sector in South African and the continent. “His appointment of Serame ensures continuity of…
Telkom Mobile – a growth engine for Telkom Group – continues to experience strong mobile and data subscriber growth for the first quarter ended June 2021 despite concerns from experts that this growth would taper off as competition intensifies. Telkom, valued at more than R20 billion, informed investors today that its revenue rose 3.5% year on year to R10.6 billion, mainly driven by the mobile business. The company, led by Sipho Maseko, who is leaving next year, said the Mobile business and the Masts and Tower (M&T) portfolio sustained their growth trajectory into the first quarter. While, the Consumer business, which includes Telkom…
MTN South Africa is planning to expand 5G – the fifth-generation wireless network – into Gqeberha and East London. The company said on Tuesday the plans are part of its R170 million investment in the Eastern Cape to offer consumers and businesses greater access to the world of digital opportunity in this important economic hub. “Our investment in the Eastern Cape will, in the short-term, ensure improved connection and data speed in areas that may have had connectivity challenges in the past while our longer-term strategic intent includes network modernization, network resilience, building new sites and 5G expansion, with the aim…
South African AgriTech Startup Khula has closed a seed round to the value of R20 million led by JSE-listed chemicals giant AECI. The company said on Wednesday that the funds will be used to expand to the rest of the African continent. The AgriTech startup provides small-scale and commercial size farmers with software and a marketplace to grow their business. Khula has been in an intensive pilot over the last three years, working with farmers of all sizes across South Africa. AECI has acquired a minority interest in Khula, as they believe that the platform will enable greater access to…
Sherry Singh, CEO of Mauritius Telecom, today launched the my.t 5G Experience Zones at the Hennessy Park hotel, Ebene, in the presence of Honourable Deepak Balgobin, Minister of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation. With the deployment of four 5G Experience Zones in Ebène, at the University of Mauritius, at Bagatelle Mall and La City Trianon, Mauritius Telecom is propelling Mauritius on the world map of countries that have launched 5G. The country is now among the Top 10 African countries that have deployed this technology. Taking up the 5G challenge on the Mauritian market Singh stated that 5G is a…
MTN announced today that is a step closer to resolving the Afghanistan terrorism lawsuit. In the court papers, American families argue that for more than a decade, MTN has been integral to the Taliban’s terrorist campaign against Americans in Afghanistan. Africa’s and the Middle East biggest mobile phone operator faces a lawsuit filed United States District Court for the District of Columbia for violation of the anti-terrorism act. For more read: MTN To Defend Itself Against US Lawsuit for Alleged Funding the Taliban The American families argue alleges that the company paid the Taliban for protection, providing the insurgency with money…
Payments company Square today announced it is buying Australian “buy now, pay later” provider Afterpay in a $29 billion or R417 billion all-stock transaction. The acquisition aims to enable the companies to better deliver compelling financial products and services that expand access to more consumers and drive incremental revenue for merchants of all sizes. For Square, whose chief executive Jack Dorsey is also Twitter’s CEO, “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) presents an attractive opportunity supported by shifting consumer preferences away from traditional credit, especially among younger consumers, consistent demand from merchants for new ways to grow their sales, and the…