| South Africa | Google Wallet launches in South Africa. Google Wallet, formerly Google Pay, has launched in South Africa, its first African market. Customers will be able to save their payment cards on Google Wallet and make mobile payments through the service. Google Wallet is currently available through six banks including Nedbank and ABSA. IT News Africa |
| | EDITOR'S NOTE | In Issue 84 of the newsletter, when Apple Pay launched in South Africa, we highlighted the fact that Android holds a lion's share of operating systems in mobile phones in the country. This dominance extends to the rest of the continent and presents an opportunity for Google to compete for payments in Africa.
We also noted that despite the obvious opportunities, payments are still a two-sided network, involving both customers and merchants. We wrote: “Adoption of this new payment method will rely just as much on customer preference as it will on retailers enabling Apple Pay functionality at the points of sale."
Success for Google Pay will go beyond just pre-loading the app on existing software but also demonstrating clear benefits to consumers and merchants. |
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| Egypt | valU acquires Paynas for an undisclosed sum. Egypt's valU, which allows merchants to offer their customers instalment payment options, has acquired Paynas, an HR and Payroll startup. This follows a $12.4 million investment into valU by the Saudi-based Alhokair Family in June 2022. Techpoint |
| | EDITOR'S NOTE | There is obvious potential for product cross-selling between both companies. Merchant acquisition and growth is a key lever to scaling a BNPL business and this acquisition allows valU to achieve this while also diversifying into other value-added services. |
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| Africa | The state of KYC in Africa. In this extensive report, Smile Identity shares key stats on Know-Your-Customer (KYC) practices in the African countries they operate in. Smile Identity |
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| Egypt | Subsbase raises $2.4 million in seed funding Egypt's Subsbase, a recurring revenue management platform, has raised $2.4 million in seed funding. The round was led by Global Ventures and will be used to ramp up sales and marketing efforts as well as hire for key roles. TechCrunch |
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| Nigeria | Ajo Money raises $500k in funding from Tekedia Capital. Tekedia |
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Share a tip | Do you have an announcement, event, or job posting you'd like to share, or have you come across an interesting bit of African fintech news recently? Hit reply and let me know! I might be able to include it in next week's newsletter. |
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