LATEST TECH NEWS: Africa’s FinChatBot raises $1.6m to expand into Europe. 2 other things and a trivia you need to know today, November 13, 2020

These latest stories from the tech space will keep you updated with trends today.

1. Africa’s FinChatBot raises $1.6m to expand into Europe

South Africa-based startup FinChatBot has raised a US$1.6 million funding round to help it expand into Europe and West Africa. The startup, a creator of conversational artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for the financial services industry, was established in 2016. Since inception, FinChatBot develops solutions that have become key conversation and customer service channels for most financial service providers in South Africa. Industry insights revealed that the startup now services more than 20 top-tier financial service providers, including banks and insurers, helping to sell and service financial products with no human intervention.

Speaking on growth of the company, the board stated that FinChatBot is now well-established in South Africa as it looks to scale internationally. On its clientele, the company serves ventures including MTN Financial Services, Sanlam, Santam, Hollard, MiWay and Bidvest Insurance. Meanwhile, the board noted that the investment round was led by French investment holding company Saviu Ventures, the Mauritius-based Compass Venture Capital, and South African venture capital firm Kalon Venture Partners. On return investment, both Compass Venture Capital and Kalon Venture Partners participated to solidify their positions, having previously invested in FinChatBot in 2018.

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Tech Trivia:

Pick the odd app in the pack

A. TikTok
B. Likee
C. Skype
D. Instagram

Answer: See end of post.

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2. Egypt’s dreevo hits 100k shipments milestone

One of Egyptian logistics startup, dreevo, has announced recording new highs as it marked delivering more than 100, 000 shipments for over 200 merchants since its launch in May. For the past 6 months, dreevo has been providing last-mile delivery solutions for e-commerce merchants. Although, initially formed to empower e-commerce entrepreneurs, dreevo also provides a wide range of last mile delivery solutions and services that can be custom-tailored to suit a variety of alternative business models. Beyond logistics, the company also facilitates services including door-to-door delivery, warehousing, and pick-up stations.

Read also: LATEST TECH NEWS: Kenya’s Turaco closes $2m seed funding to scale. 2 other things and a trivia you need to know today, November 12, 2020

Recall that press, last month, reported on dreevo’s pre-seed raiser from EF Logistics, a third-party logistic services provider. Speaking on the development, Sameh Shaheen, chief executive officer (CEO) of dreevo, linked the popularity of the service with the sizeable gap it was launched to fill. He said: “The gap is the growing market of e-commerce in the region and increasing demand for having a logistics partner who can cater for the required service level and provide full solutions that fit the merchants’ needs and provide a seamless experience for the consumers.” Adding that, what has helped the company sustain its merit and unique selling point was the fact that their company’s “technology provides the merchants the option to track the full cycle of the package, and they can even stream the location where the package was delivered.

3. Nigeria’s Xend launches decentralised finance platform

After closing $1.5m funding, Nigerian startup Xend Finance has launched a decentralised finance (DeFi) platform. The platform, according to press, targets credit unions and cooperatives. Although the company, last year, took part in the Google Launchpad Africa accelerator and the Binance Incubation Programme, it has moved steps ahead developing a platform that gives everyone access to the global money market so members can save and invest in stable currencies. According to the board, Xend Finance platform also allow users to create their own credit unions and cooperatives, eliminating traditional middle men, while earning up to 15 per cent annual percentage yield on their savings.

The startup launched its platform after raising US$1.5 million in funding from investors including Binance Labs, Google Developers Launchpad, AU21 Capital, Ampifi VC, JUN Capital, TRG Capital, and Sandeep Nailwal, among others. Speaking on the development, Aronu Ugochukwu, the startup’s chief executive officer (CEO) noted that “Traditional credit unions have a number of limiting drawbacks, including only one per cent annual percentage yield returns.” However “unlike credit unions, Xend Finance is not limited by geographic location, low liquidity, or absence of deposit insurance.” The company’s groundbreaking technology fixes these problems and, according to reviews, is safe, secure, open to all, and transparent.

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Tech Trivia Answer: Skype

Among the short video apps, Skype is odd. As a leading telecommunication app, Skype is a telecommunications application that specializes in providing video chat and voice calls between computers, tablets, mobile devices, the Xbox One console, and smartwatches over the Internet. Skype also provides instant messaging services. Users may transmit text, video, audio and images.

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