TechNigeria: A weekly digest of what went down in Nigeria’s tech space

Towntalk, Zone, Shopify, ATS London, Moody, Nestcoin, NITDA, Nomba, Treepz, An Nisa, IBM, Eighty6, were some of the names that made the headlines in the tech ecosystem this week.

Nigeria’s Towntalk has announced plans to invest in data infrastructure as the world seeks to manage rusk and protect data.

Also, in the latest rating made by Financial Times, Zone, a blockchain network for payments, has been named Africa’s Fastest Growing Blockchain Company in 2023.

Let’s get into details.

A Canadian multinational e-commerce company headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, Shopify, has announced the layoff of 20% of its workforce.

This comes on the heels of selling the logistics arm of its business to 10 year old Flexport in what it says was informed by its decision to focus on its primary line of business.

The CEO of Shopify, Tobias “Tobi” Lütke, made this known in a memo seen by Ripples Nigeria on Friday, titled “Important team and business changes.”

In the latest rating made by Financial Times, Zone, a blockchain network for payments, has been named Africa’s Fastest Growing Blockchain Company in 2023.

The rating has also been upheld by Statista, a leading market insights development institution.

By becoming the first blockchain company in Africa, Zone joins one of the few Nigerian fintechs to feature on the prestigious list.

Nigeria’s Towntalk has announced plans to invest in data infrastructure as the world seeks to manage rusk and protect data.

This is revealed in a post from the team on Friday, noting that it planned to build a data infrastructure that leverages “hard to collect” location data and implements AI methodologies.

According to the startup, to achieve its ambition, it will develop a range of risk protection solutions for security, logistics and agriculture companies in Africa.

Organizers of leading African tech event in Nairobi and London, Africa Tech Summit (ATS), has announced plans to host the latest edition of its investors networking summit.

The body made the announcement in a statement seen by Ripples Nigeria on Thursday, May 4, 2023.

According to the team, the event is scheduled to hold in June at the London Stock Exchange.

 

The Innovation for Ecosystem Restoration Africa 2023 programme has opened applications for Africans looking to key into its restoration scheme.

The program, which is run by Village Capital, comes with the support of Moody’s Corporation, a global Capital market player.

According to the team, the program aims to support entrepreneurs promoting ecosystem restoration by addressing deforestation, land degradation, water scarcity, loss of biodiversity, and adverse climate change.

 

Nigeria’s fintech startup, Nestcoin, has announced the launch of Onboard, a digital finance platform aiming to provide digital finance services that connect Africans to the global economy.

The startup, which builds products aimed at making finance borderless made the announcement on Thursday.

According to the Fintech player, the need to argument traditional financial services with technology has become urgent as the world evolves.

 

The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, has disclosed that the Federal Government has approved a nationwide blockchain policy.

Pantami said this on Wednesday, stating that the policy was passed after consultations with stakeholders, comprising 56 institutions and figures.

The approval will lead to the integration of Nigeria’s economy with blockchain technology, “Nigeria has institutionalized blockchain technology, with all its components and types, with today’s approval of the National Blockchain Policy,” Pantami said.

 

Nigerian Fintech startup, Nomba, which was formerly doing business as Kudi, has announced raising a fresh US$30 million pre-Series B funding round.

The round, which is expected to “support the delivery of bespoke payment solutions for African businesses,” was announced in a press statement seen by Ripples Nigeria on Wednesday.

Ripples Nigeria gathered that that the startup was co-founded by Yinka Adewale and Pelumi Aboluwarin in 2017.

READ ALSO:TechNigeria: A weekly digest of what went down in Nigeria’s tech space this week

 

A programme designed to support cleantech innovation and entrepreneurship in emerging and developing economies, Global Cleantech Innovation Programme, has opened application for its latest programme in Nigeria.

The organization made the call for applications in a statement on Wednesday, explaining that it offers to support individuals who are passionate about clean technologies.

According to the statement, the programme will give priority to individuals with ideas tackling climate change and making a positive impact to reduce global warming.

 

Nigeria’s mobility company, Treepz, has re-launched its consumer facing app as a new offering for the African market.

The marketplace, according to the startup, in a statement, will allow car owners to rent out their vehicles for short to long-term periods, as well as providing a more affordable and sustainable option for mobility in Africa.

The startup noted that the launch was inspired by the growth in the industry as over 600 million Africans have been estimated to be living in urban areas with less than 44 cars per 1,000 people.

 

A Kenyan women-only taxi service, An Nisa, has announced plans to make an expansion into Saudi Arabia, a development after its milestone of securing about 10,000 users in its home market.

The announcement was made by the startup in a press statement seen by Ripples Nigeria on Tuesday.

The startup, which was founded by Mehnaz Sarwar in 2018, operates as an app-based startup since last year, and has now garnered more than 10,000 users.

 

The International Business Machines Corp through its CEO, Arvind Krishna, has recently announced that its hiring plan will slow down.

The IBM CEO stated this during a recent chat with press, noting that about 7,800 jobs could be replaced by Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the coming years.

According to Krishna, about 30% of non-customer-facing roles in IBM could be replaced by AI and automations in five years.

 

A UAE-based B2B startup, Eighty6, has closed a $3.7 million Seed round to further its ambition as a leading online procurement platform for restaurants.

The startup disclosed the new development in a statement seen by Ripples Nigeria on Tuesday.

According to the statement, the round saw the participation of Sanabil 500 MENA Seed Accelerator Fund and prominent GCC family offices.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now