Author: Staff Writer
MTN Group announced the appointment of Andrew Goodrich as Executive for Banktech in our Group FinTech team, effective 1 June 2022. Goodrich joined MTN in 2019 as a General Manager for Banktech & Beyond Payments division, where he has added immense value in executing our digital banking strategy. “We are delighted to welcome Andrew into his new role within the Group Fintech Team. Andrew is no stranger to MTN and his wealth of experience in the financial sector, will ensure we continue to make a meaningful contribution, as we drive our financial inclusion ambitions on the continent.” said Serigne Dioum,…
To offer its customers the best possible user experience, Volvo Cars is bringing photorealistic visualisation technology into its next generation of electric cars through a new collaboration with Epic Games. The companies are teaming up to bring Epic’s Unreal Engine game engine into upcoming Volvo cars, providing unparalleled high-quality graphics inside the cabin. Epic Games is a leading interactive entertainment and software company probably best known for Fortnite, one of the world’s largest games. Epic Games also develops Unreal Engine, widely considered to be the most advanced real-time 3D creation tool used in various industries beyond games, and which will…
New York-listed IHS Towers, one of the largest independent owners, operators, and developers of shared communications infrastructure in the world by tower count, has completed the acquisition of 5,701 towers from MTN SA. Under the agreement, IHS Towers is also providing Power Management Services to MTN SA on approximately 13,000 sites, including the acquisition portfolio, across South Africa. The deal cash consideration is R6.4 billion on a cash and debt-free basis, excludes IFRS 16 lease liabilities estimated to be R4.6 billion. The acquired assets as well as the provision of Power Management Services across MTN SA’s portfolio are expected to…
International calling app Talk360, which enables people around the world to make reliable and affordable calls to any landline or mobile phone worldwide, has secured $4 million (R63 million) in funding as it prepares to launch a new pan-African payment platform in mid-2022. The seed round of funding was led by leading African venture capital investor HAVAÍC, 4Di Capital and several prominent fintech angel investors. While the Talk360 app is seeing rapid growth on the continent, with a growing number of paying users, accessibility has been an issue for the 500 million underserviced people. Users either don’t have online banking…
Comair has announced that regrettably it is obliged to suspend all British Airways (operated by Comair) and kulula.com flights pending successfully securing additional funding. The company’s business rescue practitioners (BRPs) have advised that the process to raise the necessary capital is in progress and that there is reason to believe such funding may be secured. Once received, the airline will be able to recommence operations, but regrettably under these circumstances, the practitioners have no choice but to voluntarily suspend all scheduled flights until the funding is confirmed. British Airways and kulula.com ticket sales have also been suspended with immediate effect. “We…
IoT.nxt, specialist Internet of Things (IoT) solutions provider and subsidiary of the Vodacom Group, appointed Vasin Govender as its Group CEO, effective 1 June 2022. Govender will take over the reins from Shane Cooper, who served as acting CEO since March 2021. “Vasin was appointed after an extensive executive search as we were looking for an individual who can accelerate IoT.nxt’s tech adoption around the globe. We have projects running in multiple countries in diverse industries but have only scratched the surface of what IoT.nxt’s award-winning technology can deliver,” says Wayne Fitzjohn, Chairman of IoT.nxt and CEO of Investment Holding…
Naspers, through its early-stage tech investment vehicle Naspers Foundry, announced a R40 million ($2.5 million) investment in LifeCheq, a FinTech platform empowering financial advisers to provide quality, holistic financial advice. The investment is part of Naspers’s R1.4 billion commitment to grow South Africa’s early-stage tech ecosystem and marks Naspers Foundry’s fifth fintech investment and eleventh tech transaction since its launch three years ago. LifeCheq plays a critical role in driving financial inclusion in South Africa by democratising access to financial advice – previously only accessible to high income earners. Accessible financial planning and advice are especially important during the current…
Vodacom subsidiary, Nexio today announced an exclusive strategic partnership with Poprush Cloud & Consulting, a differentiated cloud solutions provider. The partnership will further Nexio’s ambitions of becoming the leading cloud service provider in South Africa. With a deep understanding of the challenges of the modern cloud environment, Nexio assists organisations unlock the true value of their cloud investments. It offers complete migration and implementation services to modernise environments and optimise ecosystems. A properly managed multi-cloud architecture helps reduce time, cost, and risks of a company’s digital transformation, giving it the upper hand in a digital economy. Poprush Cloud & Computing…
4Sight’s Asset Simulation team, represented by its subsidiary Simulation Engineering Technologies (SET), has been chosen as one of two South African companies to run simulation projects at Australian Mining Company OZ Minerals’ Prominent Hill Mine. These projects are aimed at testing how simulation can help executives understand the impact of electrification on mine design and production, infrastructure and energy management. 4Sight’s Asset Simulation is now working to create a platform for developing and testing various layouts for the electrification of Prominent Hill’s mining operations. This Electric Mine Simulation crowd challenge was launched by the Electric Mine Consortium, which is made…
Viu South Africa has teamed up with Vodacom to offer customers Viu Premium subscription with Vodacom video data bundles. When signing up for Viu, subscribers will get the Viu Premium subscription plus mobile data at no additional cost, to easily binge-watch Viu content, creating a care-free experience on the go. Viu Daily Premium subscription starts from as little as R5 a day and is bundled with a free 250MB daily recurring video data bundle. The Viu Monthly Premium subscription is R69 per month and it comes with a free 3GB monthly recurring video data bundle. In addition, Viu Premium subscribers…