TechCentral

South Africa’s payments ecosystem is evolving at a rapid pace. PayInc – previously BankservAfrica – sits at the core of the country’s payments infrastructure. As the builder and manager of the PayShap instant payment rails, PayInc is central to the Reserve Bank’s plans to drive digital inclusion through payment modernisation.

In this episode of the TechCentral Show, Stephen Linnell, CEO of PayInc, tells TechCentral’s Nkosinathi Ndlovu about the strategy behind the rebrand to PayInc and how that fits into the utility’s vision of the payments ecosystem in South Africa and the broader Southern Africa region.

Linnell delves into:

• PayInc’s new ownership structure with the Reserve Bank taking over 50% ownership from the private banks;

• How the Reserve Bank’s participation will help PayInc achieve its goals;

• An assessment of PayShap since its 2023 launch and what comes next;

• What the proposed inclusion of non-bank players including fintechs, retailers and telecommunications operators in the national payments and settlements system means for the economy;

• The efforts PayInc is making to implement instant payments at a regional level; and

• Emerging payment technologies like central bank digital currencies and stablecoins.

Don’t miss this informative discussion. TechCentral

South Africa’s payments ecosystem is evolving at a rapid pace. PayInc – previously BankservAfrica – sits at the core of the country’s payments infrastructure. As the builder and manager of the PayShap instant payment rails, PayInc is central to the Reserve Bank’s plans to drive digital inclusion through payment modernisation.

In this episode of the TechCentral Show, Stephen Linnell, CEO of PayInc, tells TechCentral’s Nkosinathi Ndlovu about the strategy behind the rebrand to PayInc and how that fits into the utility’s vision of the payments ecosystem in South Africa and the broader Southern Africa region.

Linnell delves into:

• PayInc’s new ownership structure with the Reserve Bank taking over 50% ownership from the private banks;

• How the Reserve Bank’s participation will help PayInc achieve its goals;

• An assessment of PayShap since its 2023 launch and what comes next;

• What the proposed inclusion of non-bank players including fintechs, retailers and telecommunications operators in the national payments and settlements system means for the economy;

• The efforts PayInc is making to implement instant payments at a regional level; and

• Emerging payment technologies like central bank digital currencies and stablecoins.

Don’t miss this informative discussion.

Not every organisation that has migrated to the cloud has reaped the rewards promised in terms of faster development and deployment cycles, simplified infrastructure management, and most importantly, a reduction in costs.

Some are going as far as repatriating their infrastructure back into on-premises environments, perhaps because they understand it better and they find they can more reliably predict their costs there.

Deon Stroebel, chief innovation officer at cloud computing specialist LSD Open, argues against this move, saying that issues relating to cost and efficiency are better solved in the cloud than outside of it.

In this episode of TCS+, Stroebel delves into:

• The biggest mistakes companies make after migrating into the cloud;

• The real difference between just running an application on the cloud versus building it in a truly cloud-native way;

• The mindset shift that comes with cloud adoption and why on-premises thinking should not be applied in a cloud environment;

• How containerisation and DevOps help businesses make their cloud deployments more efficient;

• The cost and performance benefits of modernised cloud infrastructure;

• How to use observability tools to monitor cloud usage; and

• How ensuring their cloud environments prepare businesses to adopt new technologies like AI quickly.

This conversation is not to be missed! TechCentral

Not every organisation that has migrated to the cloud has reaped the rewards promised in terms of faster development and deployment cycles, simplified infrastructure management, and most importantly, a reduction in costs.

Some are going as far as repatriating their infrastructure back into on-premises environments, perhaps because they understand it better and they find they can more reliably predict their costs there.

Deon Stroebel, chief innovation officer at cloud computing specialist LSD Open, argues against this move, saying that issues relating to cost and efficiency are better solved in the cloud than outside of it.

In this episode of TCS+, Stroebel delves into:

• The biggest mistakes companies make after migrating into the cloud;

• The real difference between just running an application on the cloud versus building it in a truly cloud-native way;

• The mindset shift that comes with cloud adoption and why on-premises thinking should not be applied in a cloud environment;

• How containerisation and DevOps help businesses make their cloud deployments more efficient;

• The cost and performance benefits of modernised cloud infrastructure;

• How to use observability tools to monitor cloud usage; and

• How ensuring their cloud environments prepare businesses to adopt new technologies like AI quickly.

This conversation is not to be missed!

The Invigilator, the developer of a South African application that helps educational institutions monitor web-based assessments to prevent cheating, recenty secured US$11-million (R195-million) in funding to help it expand internationally.

In this episode of the TechCentral Show, Nicolas Riemer, co-founder and CEO of The Invigilator, joins TechCentral’s Nkosinathi Ndlovu to discuss how the start-up is going to use the cash injection to take on international markets.

He also gives insight into the app’s software and the company behind it.

In this episode, Riemer delves into:

• How The Invigilator app got started during the Covid-19 lockdown;

• The markets it plans to expand into internationally;

• The challenges of developing an app like The Invigilator in the South African market and why this may have set the company up for international success;

• How the app uses AI to minimise network and storage demands while improving outcomes;

• Barriers to The Invigilator’s adoption, like resistance from students, and how they were overcome; and

• The future technologies Riemer is most excited about in the ed-tech space.

Don’t miss the conversation! TechCentral

The Invigilator, the developer of a South African application that helps educational institutions monitor web-based assessments to prevent cheating, recenty secured US$11-million (R195-million) in funding to help it expand internationally.

In this episode of the TechCentral Show, Nicolas Riemer, co-founder and CEO of The Invigilator, joins TechCentral’s Nkosinathi Ndlovu to discuss how the start-up is going to use the cash injection to take on international markets.

He also gives insight into the app’s software and the company behind it.

In this episode, Riemer delves into:

• How The Invigilator app got started during the Covid-19 lockdown;

• The markets it plans to expand into internationally;

• The challenges of developing an app like The Invigilator in the South African market and why this may have set the company up for international success;

• How the app uses AI to minimise network and storage demands while improving outcomes;

• Barriers to The Invigilator’s adoption, like resistance from students, and how they were overcome; and

• The future technologies Riemer is most excited about in the ed-tech space.

Don’t miss the conversation!

AI has advanced at breakneck speed in the last few years, with most knowledge workers using the technology to enhance their work in some shape or form.

Most of this computing has been happening in the cloud. However, the advent of the neural processing unit, or NPU, has made it possible to move AI computation to the edge, which not only improves speeds but also protects personal and company data.

In this episode of TechCentral’s TCS+, we were on location at the Maslow Hotel in Sandton where HP recently hosted its 2025 Future of Work event. The event brings together industry leaders, decision-makers and innovators and explores the evolving landscape of work in the age of artificial intelligence.

Ertug Ayik, vice president and MD for Middle East and Africa at HP, connects the dots between the company’s new AI-infused product line and broader concepts shaping the way in which work is being done.

Ayik delves into:

• HP’s shift from a product focused company to a solutions and services outfit;

• Why on-device AI processing capability has become a priority for HP;

• The advantages on-device AI have for performance, security and power efficiency;

• HP’s strategy for South Africa and the African continent;

• Key initiatives HP is driving across Africa; and

• What to expect from HP in the coming years.

Don’t miss the conversation! TechCentral

AI has advanced at breakneck speed in the last few years, with most knowledge workers using the technology to enhance their work in some shape or form.

Most of this computing has been happening in the cloud. However, the advent of the neural processing unit, or NPU, has made it possible to move AI computation to the edge, which not only improves speeds but also protects personal and company data.

In this episode of TechCentral’s TCS+, we were on location at the Maslow Hotel in Sandton where HP recently hosted its 2025 Future of Work event. The event brings together industry leaders, decision-makers and innovators and explores the evolving landscape of work in the age of artificial intelligence.

Ertug Ayik, vice president and MD for Middle East and Africa at HP, connects the dots between the company’s new AI-infused product line and broader concepts shaping the way in which work is being done.

Ayik delves into:

• HP’s shift from a product focused company to a solutions and services outfit;

• Why on-device AI processing capability has become a priority for HP;

• The advantages on-device AI have for performance, security and power efficiency;

• HP’s strategy for South Africa and the African continent;

• Key initiatives HP is driving across Africa; and

• What to expect from HP in the coming years.

Don’t miss the conversation!

Paratus Group executive chairman Barney Harmse joins the TechCentral Show to share the story of the telecommunications group’s rise from small beginnings in Angola and Namibia more than 20 years ago and how it became one of Southern Africa’s biggest ICT infrastructure players.

Paratus started life in Angola in 2003, evolving from a local internet service provider into a pan‑African telecoms powerhouse. Co-founded by Harmse with Schalk Erasmus, Rolf Mendelsohn, Martin Boese and Miles October, it grew rapidly and now has infrastructure across the region, including in Zambia, Botswana, South Africa, Mozambique, the DRC and Namibia.

This week, it officially launched the first privately owned mobile network operator in Namibia, which will compete directly with the state-owned incumbents.

Today the business works closely with the likes of Starlink, Google and Meta Platforms and plays a significant role in long-distance, metropolitan and access networks across the region. It also helped land Google’s Equiano cable on the Namibian coast.

In this lively interview with TechCentral editor Duncan McLeod, Harmse unpacks the Paratus story, touching on:

• What building telecoms infrastructure across the vast reaches of Southern Africa has entailed, including memorable moments along the way;

• The company’s financial backers, and its capital-raising plans – including a possible future listing in New York;

• Why it built a network of long-distance fibre across Southern Africa;

• Paratus’s relationship with Elon Musk’s Starlink, and why it’s a key role player in the launch of the low-Earth orbit satellite provider’s offering across the region;

• The launch of the mobile network in Namibia and why it’s a significant development in the Paratus story; and

• The opportunities still ahead for Paratus Group.

Don’t miss a great interview! TechCentral

Paratus Group executive chairman Barney Harmse joins the TechCentral Show to share the story of the telecommunications group’s rise from small beginnings in Angola and Namibia more than 20 years ago and how it became one of Southern Africa’s biggest ICT infrastructure players.

Paratus started life in Angola in 2003, evolving from a local internet service provider into a pan‑African telecoms powerhouse. Co-founded by Harmse with Schalk Erasmus, Rolf Mendelsohn, Martin Boese and Miles October, it grew rapidly and now has infrastructure across the region, including in Zambia, Botswana, South Africa, Mozambique, the DRC and Namibia.

This week, it officially launched the first privately owned mobile network operator in Namibia, which will compete directly with the state-owned incumbents.

Today the business works closely with the likes of Starlink, Google and Meta Platforms and plays a significant role in long-distance, metropolitan and access networks across the region. It also helped land Google’s Equiano cable on the Namibian coast.

In this lively interview with TechCentral editor Duncan McLeod, Harmse unpacks the Paratus story, touching on:

• What building telecoms infrastructure across the vast reaches of Southern Africa has entailed, including memorable moments along the way;

• The company’s financial backers, and its capital-raising plans – including a possible future listing in New York;

• Why it built a network of long-distance fibre across Southern Africa;

• Paratus’s relationship with Elon Musk’s Starlink, and why it’s a key role player in the launch of the low-Earth orbit satellite provider’s offering across the region;

• The launch of the mobile network in Namibia and why it’s a significant development in the Paratus story; and

• The opportunities still ahead for Paratus Group.

Don’t miss a great interview!