Techpoint Africa Podcast

Today's podcast travelled through three countries: Nigeria, Togo, and Senegal. Although the last one could more correctly be tied to Francophone Africa, but let's not get into technicalities.

First on the list is Kuda, more popularly known as "the bank of the free", and its recent circular to customers informing them that they would start charging a ₦50 stamp duty charge on all deposits above ₦10,000. Understandably, Nigerians had quite a bit to say on this decision, and we did too.

Timestamps

04:38 - Kuda Bank introduces ₦50 stamp duty

13:24 - Togo's e-Visa platform

19:26 - Wave lays off 15% of its staff

Useful links

Togo completes its e-Visa platform

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Wave, a Stripe-backed African fintech valued at $1.7 billion, cut 15% of its staff in June

Oui Capital's form for laid-off Wave employees

This episode was produced by Ogheneruemu Oneyibo

Email us your feedback at [email protected]. Visit www.techpoint.africa for more stories.

By now, it's no more news that Elon Musk officially intends to pull out of the Twitter deal. Not that anyone is surprised, but things could get really interesting.

On the Techpoint Africa Podcast, we discussed Ghana's bid for a digital currency and Kenya Power's plans to enable customers to share electricity units.

Timestamps

07:53 - Ghana plans to test e-cedi

18:05 - Kenyans electricity token sharing plans

Useful links

This episode was produced by Ogheneruemu Oneyibo

Email us your feedback at [email protected]. Visit www.techpoint.africa for more stories.

E-hailing company, Bolt, has launched its African headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya and the question in the mind of some Nigerians is, why not Nigeria?

On Today's episode of the Techpoint Africa Podcast, we kick things off with Bolt's decision to set up its African headquarters in Kenya. While Oluwanifemi and Emmanuel shared opposing views on whether Nigerians should be bothered about the news or not, the verdict remains Kenya was a better option. 

Timestamps

3:57 - Bolt establishes African headquarters in Kenya

13:50 - Autochek acquires CoinAfrique

23:15 - Central African Republic launches Sango Coin

Useful links

This episode was produced by Ogheneruemu Oneyibo

Email us your feedback at [email protected]. Visit www.techpoint.africa for more stories.

Internet shutdowns on the African continent have come to be a norm. So much so that in 2020, Sub-Saharan Africa lost $237.4 million to Internet censorship.

In Central Africa, the Sudanese government shut down the Internet in the country on Thursday, June 30, 2022, due to protests against the military government. This is at least the fifth time this is happening since 2019, and as Emmanuel says, it is "brute hammer tactics."

Timestamps

3:39 - Sudan Internet shutdown

8:03 - Flutterwave's new hires

21:00 - MTI $1.7 billion fraud

Useful links

Various reports suggest that cybersecurity attacks on companies have increased since the pandemic. Previously, organisations such as the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Salem University, and Mount Kenya University have been discovered to have weak cybersecurity.

This week, a group, RansomHouse, announced that they were responsible for a data breach at the retail giant, Shoprite. While Shoprite has previously acknowledged these attacks, it raises concerns over the security of customers’ data.

3:42 - ShopRite hack
18:18 - MTN accuses Nigerian banks of fraud

If you are a Big Brother Naija fan (BBN), then you should know one of the headline sponsors for last year’s edition, Abeg.

Well, on today’s edition of the Techpoint Africa Podcast, we talk about its rebrand to Pocket and its approval in principle of a Mobile Money Operator (MMO)License.

2:09 - Abeg rebrands to Pocket

11:18 - Kune Food shutdown

25:01 - Kenyan president rejects ICT Bill

If you're a constant listener of the Techpoint Africa Podcast, you've probably heard Chimgozirim talk about a drop in startup funding globally. However, it seems funding in the African startup ecosystem is about to become a daily affair again in Africa.

0:54 - African startups hit all-time funding record

10:03 - Elon Musk recommits to Dogecoin

20:40 - Amazon funding Nollywood

We've got some big news for you; this is the 100th episode of the Techpoint Africa Podcast!!! And of course, we are celebrating. To find out more, listen to today's podcast.

We loved reminiscing about all the iterations we've gone through in the last three years, including doing video. But that's not all we discussed.

0:05 - Celebrating 100 episodes of the Techpoint Africa Podcast

12:10 - Amazon bringing its eCommerce service to Nigeria and South Africa

23:17 - Uganda is going to space, finally

This week has been an eventful one for the African tech ecosystem; from possible policies to CSI Miami-like moves, we had quite a bit to discuss on today's Techpoint Africa Podcast.

1:28 - Lagos government to adopt Startup Bill

13:11 - NITDA's code of practice for online platforms

23:08 - Kenya launches $34.1m forensic lab

This episode was produced by Ogheneruemu Oneyibo and edited by Múyìwá Mátùlúkò

Email us your feedback at [email protected]. Visit www.techpoint.africa for more stories.

Hardly a day goes by without a story on cryptocurrencies or the blockchain. This time, the Nigerian Stock Exchange plans to adopt blockchain technology to settle transactions. 

Temi Popoola, CEO of the Nigerian Exchange, believes that this development will encourage more young people who are major adopters of cryptocurrencies to use the NSE. However, Oluwanifemi and Chimgozirim argue that the technology used for settlement is not responsible for the low patronage among the younger audience. 

Following that, we discussed Kenya’s plan to regulate “tech practitioners” in the country following a bill passed by the parliament.

5:32 - A blockchain-powered stock exchange

20:07 - Regulating tech practitioners in Kenya

This episode was produced by Ogheneruemu Oneyibo and edited by Múyìwá Mátùlúkò

Email us your feedback at [email protected]. Visit www.techpoint.africa for more stories.