Author: Staff Writer

Community Investment Ventures Holdings (CIVH), the Remgro and New GX-controlled parent company of fibre infrastructure operators Dark Fibre Africa (DFA) and Vumatel, announced that effective 1 May 2022, its two fibre network assets would be managed under a new infrastructure company. The infrastructure entity’s name has not yet been announced. CIVH says this decision is a strategic step to meet ongoing customer and business requirements and increase open-access offerings across the networks. Although its two most significant operating subsidiaries (DFA and Vumatel) will be incorporated into this new infrastructure company, CIVH says each business will initially continue to operate separately.…

With demand for data rising as much as 45% in Gauteng, MTN South Africa is ramping up investment to meet demand, maintain network excellence and extend reach into township areas. The fight against battery theft and vandalism remains a key priority in 2022. The investment budget for Gauteng in 2022 amounts to R2.2 billion, as MTN continues to ensure more people are connected to and benefit from the digital world. “Gauteng remains SA’s economic hub, with half of all national 5G traffic generated from the province. MTN also saw a 45% increase year-on-year in data volume growth in February,” says…

MTN Group has linked the remuneration of senior executives with the Group’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) targets. This supports the delivery of our Ambition 2025 strategy, and in particular the strategic priority to ‘create shared value’, with ‘ESG at the core’. The variable elements of executive compensation – both short-term incentives (STIs) and long-term incentives (LTIs) – now depend on progress on three ESG goals: reaching Net Zero; enhancing diversity and inclusion; and extending rural broadband. “Effectively managing our environmental, social and governance impacts is critical to reaching Ambition 2025,” said MTN Group President and Chief Executive Officer Ralph…

South Africans just can’t seem to catch a break. As we grapple with rising crime, the post-pandemic economic slump, increases in the fuel price and destructive weather, the last thing the country needs is more bad news. However, recent crime statistics released by the police ministry paint a bleak picture, particularly when it comes to kidnappings, which are on the rise. Between October and December last year, 2 605 kidnapping cases were reported, which is 686 more cases compared to the previous reporting period. The last four months of 2021 showed the highest number of reported kidnappings in five years.…

The Automobile Association of South Africa (AA) has announced that it has acquired a 30% equity stake in the mobile security service CASi as part of its 2030 strategy to diversify and enhance its offering. The Vision 2030 strategy of the AA is supported by five pillars: Providing conventional roadside assistance, AA armed response services, and emergency medical response services, Providing financial services through short-term insurance and the provision of warranties and life assurance products, The expansion of the AA Auto Centre network and the promotion of the AA Technical College as a vehicle for job creation and providing opportunities…

Sitho Mdlalose has been appointed as the Managing Director (MD) of Vodacom South Africa, effective 01 July 2022. Mdlalose is currently the Managing Director of Vodacom Tanzania, a position he has held since August 2021. Vodacom Group said he returns to Vodacom South Africa to assume the role held by Balesh Sharma, who leaves the company at the end of June to pursue an external career opportunity. Mdlalose will report directly to Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub and will join the Vodacom Group executive committee. Mdlalose’s successor in Tanzania will be announced in due course. Mdlalose is a qualified Chartered…

South Africa’s Tafari Capital recently launched a COVID-19 management app in collaboration with the Lesotho government. The app is designed to empower and strengthen the Government’s efforts to end COVID-19 transmissions. In less than 3 weeks since launch, the app has registered over 50 000 users and is growing. “The Citizen App is a tool that government and businesses can use to open up economic activity in the country including movement across the borders safely by identifying people who have vaccinated fully and those who are unvaccinated but have negative COVID-19 tests to openly engage in economic activity,” says Dr…

Helm (previously Praekelt Consulting), Africa’s customer experience innovation experts, will be going global again with its client Dr. Oetker, purveyors of the perfect pizza. Dawood Patel, CEO of Helm, confirmed that the AI work being done locally will be rolled out in Poland next. “This is an exciting time for us. We’ve been working with the team at Dr. Oetker in South Africa for almost three years now. Our relationship with them started when they approached us in Johannesburg to find out if technology and machine learning could help them make an even better pizza.” “The announcement of our…

The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) has proposed linking biometric data to SIM cards. If successful, new regulations would require all South Africans to provide their biometric data to mobile service providers to obtain a new cellphone number or action a SIM swap. The proposals are included alongside other draft regulations published by the regulator which close for public comment on Wednesday, 11 May 2022. ICASA’s proposal calls for biometric data such as fingerprint mapping, facial recognition, and retina scans to be bound to a consumer’s SIM card. Amid privacy concerns around protecting biometric data, Gur Geva, Co-Founder…

Eskom announced today the resignation of Phillip Dukashe, Group Executive for Generation. Dukashe’s last day will be on 31 May 2022. In his resignation letter and discussions with Eskom executives, Dukashe cited the critical need to achieve balance for the benefit of his health, family and work responsibilities. Eskom said in a statement Dukashe leaves behind a competent team to ensure sustainability of the Generation Division. Rhulani Mathebula will act in the interim as the Group Executive for Generation while the recruitment process is initiated. Rhulani is a seasoned Power Station General Manager and had acted as Group Executive Generation…

The SA Reserve Bank (SARB) is likely to again increase its interest rates next week, say economists at the Bureau for Economic Research (BER). “Against the global backdrop of more rapid policy normalisation and, importantly, the associated recent sharp weakening of the rand exchange rate, and the sustained upside risks to domestic inflation, we now expect the SA Reserve Bank (SARB) to hike the repo rate by 50bps next week,” says BER. “This is a change from the previous view for a 25bps hike at the May policy meeting. The SARB’s decision is unlikely to be unanimous.” The key question…

Gold bullion, in the form of standardised gold bars and coins, has proven its value as an investment over thousands of years appreciating on average 13.5% year on year. Traditional gold jewellery set with precious stones, on the other hand, is usually crafted from 9 or 18-karat gold and loses 80 – 90% of its value on resale and which tarnishes over time due to worthless diluting metals. Gold startup, Nebü Gold is the first African jeweller to give bullion investors the option of wearing elegant 24-karat investment-grade jewellery instead. It’s a winning idea because Nebü Gold which started just…

inq., a Convergence Partner’s company, is set to acquire Syrex, a provider of hyperconverged cloud technology solutions in South Africa. The strategic acquisition bolsters an already robust business offering from Syrex to provide innovative, reliable, and industry-leading solutions to the South African market. inq. a leading Edge computing company has today announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Syrex for an undisclosed amount. The agreement is subject to customary conditions including approvals by the Competition Authority of South Africa and the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA). Syrex is a hyperconverged solutions provider that delivers the full…

SA’s Voucher System, mybux, has seen its growth reaching new heights while adding more countries to its system. Founded in Cape Town,  mybux is currently operating in over 14 African countries including Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Rwanda, South Africa, and more, the company has been experiencing a steady monthly growth of 25% and processing over 20 million vouchers a month. As it continues to grow, by the end of 2022, mybux is anticipated to process double the amount. Today, it processes on average between six to ten transactions a second, 24 hours a day, and services the biggest sports betting platforms…

In a little over a year since its launch, Africa’s fastest-growing video-on-demand streaming platform Wi-flix has passed the 1 million-plus paid subscriptions and 300 000 plus customer milestone. The online streaming platform has grown quickly in recent months with more content and distribution partnerships and more titles being added to its library resulting in major customer attraction. To celebrate this milestone, Wi-flix is offering the first 1000 customers to use the code WIFLIX1MILLION, a FREE access for 48 hours to binge all their favourite movies, series, kids content and live tv shows. Co-Founder and Chief Commercial and Technology Officer at…

Rand Merchant Bank (RMB), the corporate and investment banking business of FirstRand Limited, today announced that Emrie Brown has been appointed chief executive effective 1 October 2022. Brown will take over from current chief executive, James Formby, who will hand over the role after seven years as RMB CEO. Said current RMB CEO, James Formby: “I am delighted to be able to pass the baton to someone of Emrie’s talent and experience. The time is right to hand over and I have the right person to hand over to.” Brown began her career with RMB in 2001 as a transactor and…

Vodacom’s pledge to halve its environmental impact by 2025 is well underway with a target set to accelerate the reduction of greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions. Within the next three years, Vodacom aims to diversify its energy mix which includes buying electricity needed for its operations from 100% renewable-energy sources. This target will have a huge impact on Vodacom’s pledge, as electricity consumption is the primary source of the TechCo’s GHG emissions. Furthermore, by actioning this target, Vodacom will contribute nationally to a transition to a low carbon economy thereby helping government achieve its Paris Agreement goal, which requires countries to cut…

The Shoprite Group is fighting food waste by adopting various technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). South Africa wastes up to 10.3 million tons of food each year – and this is a problem the Shoprite Group is tackling from multiple angles. Food waste is not just a front to the hungry in a country where 2.5 million people experience hunger weekly. It also has significant environmental and economic implications. Food is wasted across the supply chain, from farm to fork. It is a complex issue, which is why Africa’s largest food retailer has adopted systematic and comprehensive…

Fairvest has been approved for a secondary listing on A2X Markets and will be available to trade on A2X Markets from 11 May 2022. This follows the merger of Arrowhead Properties Limited and Fairvest Property Holdings, creating the largest SA-focused REIT. Fairvest will retain its listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and its issued share capital will be unaffected by its listing on A2X. Both A ordinary shares and B ordinary shares will be available for trade on A2X. Fairvest Property Holdings Limited and Arrowhead Properties Limited merged on 31 January 2022 setting the stage for the creation of a mid-sized…

World Password Day is a reminder of the increase in cyber threats affecting South Africans and the country’s businesses. For example, a recent TransUnion study revealed that 37% of South Africans admitted that they had been targets of COVID-19-related digital fraud. Furthermore, the rate of digital fraud against the country’s businesses went up by 44%,” says Carlo Bolzonello, country lead for Trellix South Africa. “While passwords may be a critical part of everyday life, they aren’t adequately protecting personal and business data against these growing threats. Instead, individuals and organisations should use biometric or phone message multifactor authentication (MFA) wherever…

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic and an ongoing semi-conductor shortage, Volkswagen Group South Africa (VWSA) reached a momentous milestone when the plant in Kariega built its 1-millionth Polo for export. The plant has been building Polos since 1996 and began exporting Polo models in 2002. VWSA currently exports the Polo built in Kariega to 38 countries, building this vehicle for all right-hand-drive markets and supplementing production for left-hand-drive markets. The Kariega plant is also the sole manufacturer worldwide of the Polo GTI, and builds the popular Polo Vivo for the local market. By the time the 1-millionth export Polo rolled off…

MTN SA is investing R624 million into the Eastern Cape to drive upgrades and deploy new network infrastructure across the region this year. As part of MTN’s “Modernisation of Network South Africa project” (MONZA) project the investment will expand network reach into rural communities, drive 5G expansion and work to restore vandalised network infrastructure. “We are working across the country to modernise the entire MTN network. Just over 68% has already been completed nationally, and the Eastern Cape is our next focus area. While we have invested in improving data speeds and connections in the short term, this plan is…

Independent mobile payments, insights, loyalty and rewards platform, Zapper, has announced that their merchants will now be able to accept tap-on-phone payments. The new functionality gives them access to virtually all digital payments without the need for any additional point of sale hardware and irrespective of whether consumers have the Zapper app. “After a successful pilot phase, we have rolled out new functionality available to all Zapper merchants which enables them to accept physical card payments as well as mobile wallet payments, such as Samsung Pay, Apple Pay, Garmin Pay and others. The consumer simply taps the physical card or…

FIFA has teamed up with blockchain technology company Algorand to agree a sponsorship and technical partnership deal. The agreement means Algorand will become the official blockchain platform of FIFA and provide the official blockchain-supported wallet solution. As per the sponsorship agreement, Algorand will be a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ Regional Supporter in North America and Europe, and a FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023™ Official Sponsor. Blockchains allow non-editable data to be permanently recorded and distributed on digital networks, while also facilitating innovations and ensuring safe, untampered exchange of value and assets such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and…

Green hydrogen will be one of the largest economic opportunities over the next 30 years. Driven by international actions to combat climate change, it has the potential to revolutionise numerous value chains in the energy industry and across both the mobility and manufacturing sectors. With rapidly improving technology and decreasing costs for fuel cells, green hydrogen is becoming a more appealing fuel alternative in Africa. At the core of green hydrogen production is the availability of renewable energy that is not being utilised for its prime role as electricity supply. For Europe, the lack of spare renewable energy capacity will…