Author: Staff Writer

RMB acted as Mandated Lead Arranger & Bookrunner for IHS Holdings (IHS Towers) $600 million or R10.2 billion syndicated term loan facility. IHS Towers is one of the largest independent owners, operators and developers of shared communications infrastructure in the world by tower count, and is the largest independent multinational towerco solely focused on the emerging markets. IHS Towers has nearly 40,000 towers across its 11 markets and a strong track record of delivering growth. “RMB is proud to facilitate strategic investments that have a powerful economic impact,” Conny Konopi, Debt & Trade Solutions Transactor says,. “IHS Towers focuses exclusively…

South African early-stage venture capital firm, 4Di Capital, has today announced the second closing of its new $25 million or R425 million seed fund – created in partnership with DotExe Ventures in Mauritius – with an undisclosed raise from Mauritian-based conglomerate, IBL Group, via its investment vehicle, IBL Link Investments Ltd. The announcement establishes a close working relationship between the three organisations, while creating a new presence in Mauritius for the venture capital firm. This follows an initial close of $8 million or R135 million from the SA SME Fund, with capital targeting seed and post-seed stage startups in South…

Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA) announces that Klaus Eser, currently Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Executive Director Finance and Controlling, will retire and be succeeded by Taryn Woodbridge, effective 1 December 2022. “I’m very pleased to welcome Taryn Woodbridge to the leadership team at Mercedes-Benz South Africa as the company’s first female Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director Finance and Controlling,” said Chief Executive Officer of Mercedes-Benz South Africa and Executive Director Manufacturing, Andreas Brand. “Taryn brings on board vast industry experience and will certainly make an even greater impact within the business to ensure we continue to meet our strategic…

The Shoprite Group is the first South African retailer to pilot a heavy-duty electric truck as part of its fleet, and 28-year-old Robin Jooste from Colorado Park, Mitchells Plain has been selected to drive it. The vehicle, a Scania Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV), is 100% electric, therefore has no reliance on fossil fuels and emits no carbon dioxide. The refrigerated truck can hold approximately 16 pallets, has nine batteries, solar panels fitted to its roof and a fully electric cooling system which is also powered by the battery packs of the vehicle. With a range in the region of 350km,…

Global tech company Zoho announced today that it will be opening a new office in Johannesburg to accommodate its growing employee base in the country and cater to its customers. The company has seen the net new customer growth of 75% in South Africa in 2021, and doubled its employee base since opening its first office in Cape Town. In addition, Zoho and the Institute of African Royalty (IAR), a startup and SME incubator, have entered into a strategic partnership to remove access barriers to enterprise technology for small and medium businesses, and help them in their digital transformation journey.…

Africa Data Centres, a business of Cassava Technologies, a pan-African technology group, announced today that it is building its first data centre in Kigali, Rwanda. The data centre will have 2MW of IT load and will be purpose-built to meet growing demand in the region. “It is an exciting time for Africa Data Centres,” says Tesh Durvasula, the company’s CEO. “Our decision to build a data centre in Kigali was an easy one, given Rwanda’s robust economic recovery post the COVID-19 pandemic and the Government of Rwanda’s focus on digital transformation”. “This latest announcement adds to and complements our existing…

Liquid Intelligent Technologies, a business of Cassava Technologies, a pan-African technology group, officially announces the launch of its operations in Nigeria. As a one-stop shop technology company offering high-speed connectivity, cloud and cyber security services with unmatched resilience and scalability, Liquid Intelligent Technologies entry into Nigeria will give new impetus to the country and region’s digital transformation journey. “We were the first African company to lay over 100,000 km of fibre network across the African continent, and we plan to extend our reach into Nigeria. Expanding our operations here reiterates our interest in working with the government to achieve the…

The first batch of over 100 South African solar industry practitioners received training from Huawei this week in Johannesburg, South Africa, marking the official kick-off of Huawei’s “Thousand Digital Power Talents Programme“. The programme aims to upskill more than 1 000 solar practitioners across Sub-Saharan Africa. With the theme “Together, for a Better and Greener Africa”, the programme was a significant milestone in Huawei’s effort to drive growth and expand the ecosystem for Africa’s solar sector. Sector stakeholders including John van Zuylen, CEO of Africa Solar Industry Association (AFSIA), and Dr. Rethabile Melamu, CEO of South African Photovoltaic Industry Association…

Large numbers of South African school-goers face significant digital and literacy gaps. Through its DigiSchool programme, Huawei supports NGO Click Learning’s efforts in addressing the problem. Merely 49% of South African schools have some form of connectivity, of which only 20% use it for teaching and learning, while the remaining for administration. Supporting initiatives like DigiSchool also underscores Huawei’s commitment to connecting more unconnected people and organisations to foster positive social change. “Many people around the world remain unconnected. So connecting them is the first step. This will give them greater access to knowledge, digital skills training, and opportunities,” said…

MTN Zambia today launched our 5G network, becoming the first mobile operator in Zambia to offer 5G services commercially after successfully undertaking trials of the transformative technology over the past 11 months. “The launch of this ultra-fast communication capacity serves as a clear indication of MTN’s commitment to being a major player in Zambia’s digital economy,” said Mcebisi Jonas, MTN Group chairman. “We look forward to continuing to work together to meaningfully impact the growth and development of Zambia.” MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita said MTN Zambia was the Group’s third operation in Africa (after Nigeria and South Africa) where…