ecommerce – Africa Tech Digest

What will commerce look like in Africa over the next decade?

25Sep

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

Africa, ecommerce

What will commerce look like in Africa over the next decade?

With Covid-19 restrictions forcing more people to shop online, e-commerce companies and platforms on the continent have enjoyed a surge in activity. Jumia, for instance, saw a significant uptick in major indicators in the second half of last year. Also, retailers that did not previously have an online presence were compelled to do so. The pandemic essentially propelled widespread growth in African e-commerce. However, there are questions of whether that growth can be sustained in the long run. Juliet Anammah, Group Chief Sustainability Officer and Chairperson of Jumia Nigeria thinks it can. Continue reading Image: Business Fights Poverty

Nigerian businesses can now accept Apple Pay on Paystack

23Sep

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

ecommerce, Mobile Transfers, Nigeria

Nigerian businesses can now accept Apple Pay on Paystack

Paystack, the African fintech company that powers and processes payments for businesses, today announced that it is launching Pay with Apple Pay on its platform. The company, in a statement, called the integration “the fastest, secure way for Nigerian businesses to accept international payments.” Apple Pay, Apple’s mobile payments and digital wallet service, provides users with a secure and private way to pay on their iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches and Macbooks. Despite having a presence in almost every continent since 2014, Apple Pay only made its way into Africa this March through South Africa. Users in the country with Visa, Mastercard and American Express cards can access the payment service from five banks — Nedbank, Absa, FirstRand Bank, Investec and Discovery. Continue read...

Rosenics Technologies’ Future Throttle event unveils deep tech startups and its plans for a drone-powered eCommerce in Africa

20Sep

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ecommerce, Start-ups

Rosenics Technologies’ Future Throttle event unveils deep tech startups and its plans for a drone-powered eCommerce in Africa

From delivery drones to electric cargo vans and an app that detects asphyxia in newborns, the Future Throttle event hosted by Rosenics Technologies on Friday, July 31 2021, unveiled innovative solutions by Africans for Africa. Rosenics Technologies is a Nigerian-based startup that uses deep technology to create products and innovations to help other businesses scale. The company is currently focused on creating drones for logistics applications. The event was also backed by US-based fintech company Betascale, and Ukraine-based remittance company, Brownpay. Ugi Augustine Ugi, CEO of Nugitech, an ICT solutions company, in his opening remark said, the Future Throttle event is to showcase and discuss how technology can be advanced in Africa. Continue reading Image: tec...

How early-stage venture capital firm, Saviu Ventures, is funding Francophone African startups

15Sep

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

ecommerce, Start-ups

How early-stage venture capital firm, Saviu Ventures, is funding Francophone African startups

It can be argued that most of the progress made in the African startup space has been concentrated in one part of the continent. One legacy of colonialism in Africa is language, with the United Kingdom and France colonising most of the continent. As a result, English and French are two of the continent’s most widely spoken languages. That difference is also seen in the developmental gap between Francophone and Anglophone African countries, with the latter significantly ahead of the former. However, the gap has gradually closed as more startups have sprung up in this region in recent years. Continue reading Image: Disrupt Africa

Jumo, MTN launch mobile money loan offering to improve SME credit access in Ivory Coast

15Sep

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

ecommerce, Mobile

Jumo, MTN launch mobile money loan offering to improve SME credit access in Ivory Coast

South Africa-based Jumo has partnered with MANSA Bank and MTN Mobile Financial Services to provide loans to entrepreneurs and small businesses in Ivory Coast. Founded in 2015 and backed by Goldman Sachs, Jumo offers savings and credit products to entrepreneurs in emerging markets, as well as financial services infrastructure to partners such as e-money operators and banks. In Ivory Coast, which is Jumo’s most recent market, the collaboration will see the company introduce its new short-term and small-scale loan product, VitKash, built in partnership with MANSA and offered through MTN’s mobile money platform. Continue reading Image: UNCDF

Egyptian startup Capiter raises $33M to expand B2B e-commerce platform across MENA

13Sep

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ecommerce, Start-ups

Egyptian startup Capiter raises $33M to expand B2B e-commerce platform across MENA

Funding startups that help manufacturers and sellers distribute products and merchants access them on a single platform keeps increasing across Africa. Today, Cairo-based B2B e-commerce startup Capiter continues that trend by raising a $33 million Series A round. The investment was co-led by Quona Capital and MSA Capital. Other participating investors include Savola, Shorooq Partners, Foundation Ventures, Accion Venture Lab, and Derayah Ventures. Capiter was launched in July 2020 by Mahmoud Nouh and Ahmed Nouh. Speaking with TechCrunch, CEO Mahmoud Nouh says Capiter solves problems around reach and insights for suppliers and manufacturers. Continue reading

12Sep

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

Africa, ecommerce

ECOWAS Member States Meet to Review Development of the African Trade Observatory

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso, September 12, 2021/APO Group/ -- The ECOWAS Commission, in collaboration with the International Trade Centre (ITC), organized the 2nd virtual Regional Workshop on the African Trade Observatory (ATO) on 8 September 2021 for Experts from Ministries of Trade and National Statistics Agencies, as well as representatives of Customs Authorities to review status of development of the Observatory.The African Trade Observatory, is one of the five African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) operational instruments along with the rules of origin; the online negotiating forum; the monitoring and elimination of non-tariff barriers; and the digital payment system, that was launched at the African Union 12th Extraordinary Summit held in July 2019 in Niamey – Niger. Continue...

What will it take to build the future of e-commerce in Africa?

12Sep

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Africa, ecommerce

What will it take to build the future of e-commerce in Africa?

From the early days of trade by barter to the days of online shopping, commerce has come a long way. Consumers no longer have to wait long periods to get their goods delivered or limit themselves to trading within their environs. Now, consumers can place orders from the comfort of their homes and have them delivered in a short time, ranging from a few hours to a few days. This increase in convenience has led to a corresponding increase in consumer spending. In Africa, the average spending by online shoppers has risen steadily over the years. How much progress has the industry made? In 2020, the African e-commerce market was estimated to be worth $20 billion, and between 2014 to 2018, the number of online shoppers on the continent increased annually, at an average growth rate of 1...

Nigerian one-click checkout platform OurPass raises $1M pre-seed, wants to build ‘Fast for Africa’

11Sep

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ecommerce, Nigeria, Start-ups

Nigerian one-click checkout platform OurPass raises $1M pre-seed, wants to build ‘Fast for Africa’

We like to buy things online ranging from e-commerce stores to subscription-based sites. However, no one enjoys the hassle when you have to always re-log into different sites and stores. I mean, shopping can be a whole lot more fun if a fast logging and checkout system existed across all your favorite online stores. In the U.S., high-flying startup Fast already caters to this need. Although the company is building a global product, it is limited in Africa, and OurPass has taken an interest to build one for the market. The Nigeria-based startup, which describes itself as the “Fast for Africa”, has also closed a $1 million pre-seed round to scale across the country. The round was led by Tekedia Capital and angel investors from Fortune 500 companies, the company said. E-commer...

Zip acquisition of Payflex means Africa is ripe for BNPL disruption

4Sep

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

Africa, ecommerce

Zip acquisition of Payflex means Africa is ripe for BNPL disruption

Australian buy now, pay later (BNPL) company Zip this week acquired South Africa-based BNPL player Payflex for an undisclosed amount. It’s a piece of news that once again highlights the hype around BNPL services and the quest for global dominance among the leading players. This year we have covered BNPL services from the likes of Afterpay, Klarna and Affirm. And tech and payments giants Apple, Square, PayPal and Visa have joined in the action, too, massively funneling cash to their respective BNPL initiatives (for one, Square acquired Afterpay). Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. are key markets for BNPL services. The U.S. market is so big that the number of BNPL service users is expected to hit 45 million by year’s end, representing an 81% growth from last year. But desp...