Author: Staff Writer
Telkom today revealed that it has added Instant Messaging (IM) platform, Telegram, to its FreeMe offer, both on Postpaid plans and Prepaid bundles. This after observing a keen interest by a significant portion of its customers in this platform and a sizeable uptake to it, at the start of 2021 as many sought out IM application alternatives mainly due to privacy reasons. Within 72 hours of WhatsApp’s privacy policy update at the start of the year, approximately 25 million users across the world had downloaded alternative IM platform Telegram and over 800 000 joined Signal. South Africa was no exception, as…
Vodacom has launched three new 30-day promotional LTE bundles available exclusively to new prepaid customers. Everyday-ta! Data Bundles come standard with a bolt-on YouTube data allocation, enabling customers to stay connected on SA’s leading network. To enjoy access to the Everyday-ta! Data Bundles, customers need to simply buy a bundle via the My Vodacom App or *135*111#. The bundle will be rationed in equal daily amounts, over the validity period with a YouTube allocation. For example, a customer opting for a 30GB Everyday-ta! Data Bundle at R299, will get a 1GB anytime data, every single day for 30 days,…
Movile, one of Latin America’s leading and longest-standing investors and growth accelerators for technology companies, has received a new investment from Prosus totaling$200 million or R2.8 billion, the largest primary investment in a single round since Movile’s founding in 1998. Prosus, a global consumer internet group and one of the largest technology investors in the world, has been an investor since 2008 and is the majority shareholder of Movile. The new funds will go towards expanding Movile’s current companies, including iFood, a leading foodtech company and one of the biggest tech success stories to date in Latin America; MovilePay and Zoop, two of…
Following the devastating scenes of unrest and violence in parts of South Africa, and the vandalising of infrastructure, Absa has introduced a range of customised relief measures for customers impacted by the recent disorder. “Through and post the crisis Absa has had to deliver uninterrupted banking services to our customers. The immediate need was to ensure that the closure of a branch or an ATM in an area, did not equate to eliminating access to banking. We have been hard at work restoring branch and ATM operations that were impacted in parts of South Africa,” says Bongiwe Gangeni, Deputy Chief…
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) will implement tax relief measures in response to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic and recent civil unrest. At the weekend, the revenue collector said the relief measures, which were announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa a week ago, are to assist affected and tax compliant businesses to recover and ensure livelihoods for their employees. “SARS will implement these tax relief measures because compliant taxpayers have paid their fair share of tax, making it possible for the government to provide such a temporary safety net in a time of extreme difficulty,” SARS said in a statement. SARS…
Capitec clients can now get cash back on their purchases at Dis-Chem and Baby City by simply paying with their Capitec Debit or Credit card. A benefit that can collectively save their clients that shop there over R25 million per year. The 2% cash back will automatically be paid monthly into their free Capitec Live Better Savings Account, which offers a percent higher interest rate than clients earn on their main transactional account. Francois Viviers, executive of Marketing and Communications at Capitec says “Research shows us that people are tired of traditional rewards programs that require you to jump through…
This week the Banking Association of South Africa (BASA) came to an agreement with South Africa’s banks that Saswitch fee, a fee that customers pay for using other banks’ ATMs, will be waived for a period of two months with effect from 1st August 2021. This is in response to the recent civil unrest where some ATMs in Gauteng and KwaZulu -Natal were damaged and are currently not available for use. Kabelo Makeke, Head of Consumer and High Net Worth clients South Africa says, “We understand that some of our clients are adversely affected by the unavailability of the damaged…
By some estimates, South Africa has as much as R35 trillion worth of untapped mineral wealth. Despite that, the country has in recent years not attracted sufficient investment to allow for new mines to be opened or for substantial exploration campaigns to be carried out. One way to fuel new growth in the sector is for it to embrace digital transformation. Despite the unique challenges associated with South Africa’s mining conditions, embracing new technologies and digitally driven processes could result in mass benefits to the local mining sector. That was the messaging from a mining roundtable hosted by Huawei and…
MakwaIT, a 100% youth and black-owned Information and Communications Technology (ICT) company is committed to closing the ICT skills gap by assisting in the development of skills through a specialized ICT skills incubation program. The incubation is a 12-month contractual program for both unemployed but determined youth with no prior ICT skills as well as youth who have formal IT education but no working experience and are extremely eager to pursue a thriving career in the ICT sector. The MakwaIT Academy has been offering global-standard practical experience and theoretical training to South African self-starters since February 2020. To this day,…
InsurTech firm Flock announced on Thursday it has raised $17 million or R248 million to reinvent insurance for connected vehicles. The InsurTech firm will use the funds to supercharge its expansion into new geographies and product lines. Flock is a venture capital and Government-backed London InsurTech using data to insure connected motor fleets and commercial drone operations. The round was led by Social Capital, the Californian investment firm run by Chamath Palihapitiya, a renowned tech investor, Chairman of Virgin Galactic, and an early backer of Slack, Tesla, and Bitcoin. Our incredible existing investors Anthemis and Dig Ventures also participated. The company said the funding marks…
Standard Bank’s Instant Money cash transfer product has more than tripled its access points in nine months. Today, the bank announced that the service is now available at about 50 000 access points in South Africa. In November last year, the bank had 15 000 access points. Instant Money is a money transfer product that allows consumers who do not have a bank account to send and receive cash. Funds can be transferred using internet banking, ATM’s, the banking app and cellphone banking. The service is also available at various retail partners. With Instant Money, a limit of R 5000…
Kaspersky’s international study on dating and the impact of technology on relationships has found that the majority of users positively perceive the role of smart algorithms in dating services – 44% of those surveyed in South Africa would trust the matchmaking choice of AI, and 65% noted that the recommendations of the algorithms fully correspond to their preferences. This positive perception of AI, in general, is backed up by a global survey commissioned by ARM where 54% of respondents admitted that they were interested in using AI to serve as a personal companion or assistant. Online dating is no different,…
What do you get when you blend make-up tutorials with inspirational and uplifting stories of successful women? Behind the Beauty – an Avon YouTube masterclass relevant for the beginner, or expert, proudly hosted by renowned make-up artist Precious Xaba. Featuring open and honest discussions with South African personalities and celebrities about the real challenges they have faced, or are facing, in their lives, Behind the Beauty aims to unmask what lies behind the personalities whom the public adore and create a community forum for inspiration to help others overcome similar barriers to success. Behind the Beauty launches this month and…
DLO Resources, a black female-owned strategic investor, has bought 51% shareholding in Conco Energy Solutions, a subsidiary of Consolidated Power Projects. Conco Energy Solutions will be rebranded into DLO Energy Solutions. The transaction will enable DLO Resources to create South Africa’s first majority-black female-owned engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) & operations and maintenance (O&M) in the automation and protection space. “The importance of this acquisition for us as DLO Energy Solution is that it will finally lead to meaningful participation of black women in the energy sector, not just through shareholding but through the day-to-day involvement in the operations,” said…
Pick n Pay Smart Shopper loyalty members have another way of earning loyalty points, this time on all their travel bookings with South Africa’s newest flexible airline, LIFT. Smart Shopper members who book a LIFT flight online or in-store at any Pick n Pay nationwide, will earn 3X more loyalty points. Smart Shopper customers can use points earned when flying with LIFT and can spend these as real cash-back when shopping with Pick n Pay or with Smart Shopper partners. Smart Shopper and LIFT Airline will officially launch their partnership on Monday, 2nd August 2021. To celebrate a union that…
South African businesses, already under severe economic strain, are now counting the costs of rapidly increasing internal payments fraud. According to Ryan Mer, Managing Director, eftsure Africa, a Know Your Payee™ (KYP) platform provider, the number of recent high-profile cases before the courts only partly reflects the true scale of the problem. Estimates suggest that it costs the private sector more than R2 billion every year to combat theft and fraud. According to a PWC report, South Africa was ranked as having one of the worst white-collar crime rates in the world. A similar study conducted by the Association of…
To accelerate 5G in Africa, regulatory frameworks governing critical wireless backhaul spectrum, E-band (70-80 GHz), needs to be put on the agenda swiftly. This is the call made by ICT experts at the 6th Annual Sub Sahara Spectrum Management Conference which took place using a virtual format from the 20th to 22nd July 2021. For data to move from one point to another on the internet, there needs to be a medium that allows these points to interface with each other. Wireless backhaul is the use of wireless communication, such as microwave, to transport data between the wireless site and…
Go1, one of the world’s largest corporate education content hubs for on-demand training and resources, recently announced a $200 million or R2.9 billion Series D round – valuing the company at more than $1 billion or R15 billion. The online learning platform, co-founded by South African Melvyn Lubega and Australian Andrew Barnes together with their friends from high school, will be using this new investment to create new partnerships, expand its edtech product offerings, and grow its physical presence globally to support its more than 3.5 million learners at over 1,600 customer organisations worldwide. This Series D funding round was…
Capitec Bank is hiring. Big time. South Africa’s best digital bank, as rated in the SITEisfaction 2021 report, is looking to fill around 300 positions over the next few months. At a time when many companies are shedding jobs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and incessant low economic growth, Capitec is making room for more appointments. It’s a powerful indication that their purpose of helping South Africans simplify their financial lives so that they can live better is resonating. “We’re rapidly growing our team. South Africa’s response to our simple, transparent and affordable banking solution has been overwhelmingly…
BritBox, the British streaming joint venture between ITV and BBC Studios, is now available in South Africa at R99,99 per month or R999,99 for 12 months. After taking the United States, UK, Canada and Australia by storm and with over two million global subscriptions, BritBox will bring local consumers a wide range of top-quality viewing, including the biggest collection of British box sets, courtesy of a joint venture between British television powerhouses BBC and ITV, responsible for some of TV’s most iconic moments. Together they created a new streaming service BritBox, conveniently offering the best of both their programming –…
Pineapple announced today that it has closed Series A round at R80 million to upend the car insurance industry. The investors in the new funding include Lireas Holdings, the ASISA ESD Fund, E4E, Vunani Capital and the Old Mutual Enterprise & Supplier Development Fund. Pineapple is an InsurTech startup that has captured the hearts and minds of many South Africans. After launching in 2018, the company has won many awards locally and internationally, including MTN Consumer App of the Year, Stanford startup award, and was the first Insurtech accepted into Google’s Launchpad Accelerator Programme. Pineapple launched into the South African market…
The National Development Plan sought to leverage the country’s geographic position by transforming the country’s capital, Lomé, into a regional trading centre and transport hub; it implemented business reforms and completed large infrastructure projects to attract investment; and, it established the Business Climate Unit to coordinate economic reforms and play a key role in improving the business climate for the private sector – improving the ease of doing business in Togo as a result. Consequently, the country has prospered – with its economic and digital transformation following a trajectory that has resulted in Togo rising more than 50 places in…
In its role as a premium provider for individual mobility, the BMW Group is actively helping to create the liveable city of the future. Here, its approach to mobility also looks beyond the company’s core business. With the unveiling of the electrified bicycle Concept DYNAMIC CARGO and the e-scooter Concept CLEVER COMMUTE, the BMW Group engineers are once again demonstrating their unrivalled ability to transfer know-how from the automotive sector to concepts for micromobility vehicles. Concept DYNAMIC CARGO Bicycles offer great flexibility of use, produce zero emissions and are one of the fastest and most efficient means of transport in…
On the back of Cape Town being recognised as the tech capital of Africa, topping international rankings for foreign direct investment strategy, Ian Lessem, Managing Partner at HAVAÍC – investors in early-stage, high-growth technology businesses – says several other African cities are quickly emerging as leading startup and investment hubs to watch. “Startups in Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt and South Africa raised a total of US$625 million last year. Of those, Kenyan startups raised US$191 million, the most of any other African country, according to Disrupt Africa’s African Tech Startup Funding Report for 2020. Distinct startup geographies are emerging in Africa,…
The recently-released ‘State of Mobile Fraud in Africa’ report by Paris-headquartered Evina reveals that 19% of mobile payment transactions in Africa were made without the user’s consent from January 2021 to June 2021. Professional cybercriminals from around the world targeting Africa’s one billion mobile phone users also remain a significant problem in particularly vulnerable countries such as Angola and Egypt where 34% and 25.5% of mobile transactions were identified as suspect, respectively. The latest Evina report helps mobile stakeholders understand the scale of the mobile fraud challenge with key data on mobile fraud in Africa. “When it comes to fighting…