Author: Staff Writer

South Africa’s Naspers through its Naspers Ventures division and EQT Ventures have invested €30 million (R474 million) in Dott, a European micro-mobility company. EQT Ventures is European multistage venture capital fund with commitments of just over €566 million. Other investors include existing investors Axel Springer Digital Ventures, Felix Capital, FJ Labs, U-Start Club, and angel investors. Dott is a micro-mobility European start-up founded by Maxim Romain and Henri Moissinac, gathering the most experienced team in mobility and tech in Europe. Its mission is to beautifully design micro-mobility for safety, comfort, and durability, to make green travel an easy choice for…

The BMW Group and Daimler have signed a contract to jointly develop technologies for driver assistance systems, highly automated driving on highways, and automated parking. This cooperation was initially announced in February and now finally an agreement has been signed by both German car automakers. In addition, further talks are planned to extend the cooperation to higher levels of automation in urban areas and city centres. This underscores the long-term and lasting nature of the undertaking, which will extend to encompass a scalable platform for automated driving. The non-exclusive cooperation is also open to other OEMs and technology partners, with…

Frogfoot Networks, a licensed open access fibre network provider, announced on Wednesday it is rolling out fibre infrastructure in Protea Glen, Soweto, in a phased approach, with up to 20 000 homes and business, standing to benefit from access to affordable, reliable broadband connectivity. The areas being covered as part of the infrastructure rollout are Protea Glen East and West, with work starting in the West. This region will be divided into 10 Zones, while Protea Glen East will comprise 11 zones. Work on the project is set to commence in early July, and it is expected that the first…

VALR, a Johannesburg-based cryptocurrency trading platform with over 50 cryptocurrencies, announced on Wednesday that it is launching Ethereum-Rand (ETHZAR) trading to allow customers to buy and sell Ether. The company said the Ether-Rand (ETHZAR) trading will go live on 11 July at 11:11 a.m. In the last three weeks we have facilitated over R170 million worth of Bitcoin trades, VALR’s Co-Founder & Chief Product Officer, Badi Sudhakaran said. “Today we are excited to announce the launch of our second ZAR trading pair: ETHZAR,” he added. VALR is financially supported by ex-FNB CEO Michael Jordaan and US-based Bittrex. Bittrex is one of the…

uKheshe, South Africa’s economic and convenient QR cash card, on Tuesday announced the launch of the uKheshe Health Benefits card, an innovative and affordable medical aid solution for as little as R99 per month. Available from 1 July, uKheshe Health offers a host of rich benefits to bring greater healthcare inclusion for individuals and families, including cover for private ground and air ambulance, private stabilisation and hospitalisation cover as a result of an accident or emergency. uKheshe Health is available in two benefit options: Individual at R99 per month offers unlimited emergency medical services, R25,000 trauma cover, and R300,000 private…

4 Africa Exchange (4AX) announced on Tuesday that as part of their 6-month succession and handover over plan, Fay Mukaddam has stepped down as the CEO. Sean Emery, CEO of RainFin, has been appointed as interim CEO of the exchange, it said. Mukaddam remains an active shareholder in 4AX and continues to support the business operations in other positions, as well as is leading a rigorous recruitment process for her successor. “When I accepted the founding CEO role, I was excited about the challenge of leading this disruptive business out of the business plan phase to evolve into operating reality,”…

EOH announced on Tuesday it has entered into an agreement with German listed RIB Software SE (RIB) to sell 70% of Construction Computer Software (CCS) for R444 million. The JSE-listed technology group said the transaction will be facilitated through its wholly owned subsidiary, EOH Mthombo. The companies have also entered into a reciprocal put/call option, in terms of a shareholder’s agreement, for the disposal of the remaining 30% of the issued share capital of CCS at the same multiple applied to 31 December 2022 adjusted EBITDA.  The sale is capped at $30 million (R424 million). The company said 90% of…

The Gauteng Provincial Government wants to turn the province into a hub of Fourth Industrial Revolution. This was announced by Gauteng Premier David Makhura on Monday when he delivered his first State of the Province Address (SOPA) following the 6th General Election in May. “Our dream is that Gauteng should be a hub of Fourth Industrial Revolution skills and a centre of excellence for digital economy breakthroughs such as Artificial Intelligence, cryptocurrency, and big data,” Makhura said. At a packed University of Johannesburg campus in Soweto, Makhura said Gauteng — as the engine of South Africa’s economy — will contribute…

Black Beard, a South African tech solutions builder, has joined forces with local female tech champions, GirlCode in an initiative designed to collect and utilise old tech devices known as Tech Relief. Tech Relief aims to collect and distribute ‘old’ technological devices that are collecting dust in drawers around the world. These still equipped yet slightly outdated devices can be used to address the burning need for technological learning tools in educational institutions and initiatives, especially in underprivileged areas. To meet this need – Tech Relief has created a platform, in association with GirlCode, for the public to donate old…

MINI South Africa’s first local edition of the MINI Clubman, called the Modern African Gentlemen edition, made its stylish debut at a gala event in Johannesburg on Thursday, 27 June. It is the result of an exhaustive and comprehensive campaign to determine: “What is a modern African gentleman?” MINI South Africa then teamed up with artist Baba Tjeko, musician Langa Mavuso, and award-winning film and commercials director Tebogo Malope to help it interpret these findings into designs that could be applied to a special edition of the MINI Clubman for South Africa. Only 20 units of the MINI Clubman Modern African Gentlemen edition –…