Author: Insider Editor

Madica, a pre-seed investment programme focused on African startups, has added three new companies to its portfolio, committing up to $600,000 in total funding. The latest investments span Tanzania, Kenya, and Nigeria, as the programme continues its push to expand access to early-stage capital beyond Africa’s traditional startup hubs. Each of the selected startups Kilimo Fresh, Hakimu, and Biovana will receive up to $200,000 in funding, alongside entry into Madica’s 18-month structured support programme. Beyond capital, the cohort will benefit from hands-on mentorship, executive coaching, access to global investor networks, and immersion trips designed to connect founders with other innovation…

Kenya absorbed 4.6 billion cyber threat events in the three months to December 2025, marking its sharpest quarterly spike in at least three years, according to a Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) report. The figure is up from 842 million in the previous quarter a 441% jump in just one reporting period signalling mounting pressure on the country’s cybersecurity systems as its digital economy expands. Threats surged across all categories. System vulnerabilities dominated at 4.37 billion events, rising 463%, while mobile application attacks climbed 303%. Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) incidents recorded the steepest increase, jumping over 1,100% in the quarter. Despite…

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has replaced its Commissioner General, Humphrey Wattanga, in an abrupt leadership change that comes at a sensitive moment for the country’s revenue drive. In a statement on Wednesday, the tax agency said its board would not renew Wattanga’s contract. He has been sent on terminal leave with immediate effect, ending a tenure closely linked to efforts to strengthen tax compliance under President William Ruto’s administration. The KRA board, chaired by Ndiritu Muriithi, did not give a reason for the decision but commended Wattanga for his “dedicated service and leadership,” noting his role in internal restructuring…

Kenyan asset financing startup, M-KOPA says it has extended more than ZAR 370 million ($22.5 million) in credit to low-income consumers in South Africa since launching in 2023, underscoring how device financing is reshaping access to the digital economy. Women account for a large share of that growth, making up 49% of M-KOPA’s 105,000 customers. The company’s 2025 impact report shows that 36% of female customers are first-time smartphone users, compared to 24% of men. Based on a survey of 452 customers and sales agents conducted by Caribou, the report found that 64% of users rely on their devices to…

For some borrowers, it means constant phone calls, frozen accounts, workplace visits, threats, and even public shaming. In response to these practices, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) in 2025 introduced stricter penalties, including fines of up to ₦100 million or 1% of annual turnover for lenders that rely on harassment to recover loans. Behind the scenes, these defaults accumulate into non-performing loans (NPLs), quietly eroding lenders’ balance sheets and limiting their ability to extend new credit. Against this backdrop, Nomba and Globus Bank say they have built a lending model designed to prevent such outcomes and early…

Safaricom has begun moving users from its standalone M-PESA app to a new unified platform, My OneApp, in a push to bring its growing digital ecosystem under a single roof and strengthen its position in Kenya’s increasingly competitive fintech market. The company introduced My OneApp on April 2 at its Decode 4.0 engineering summit, positioning it as the next phase of its digital strategy. The app, which has been in public beta for months, signals a shift away from Safaricom’s previously fragmented approach where services were spread across multiple apps towards a more integrated user experience. From April 3, M-PESA…

MTN Group awards its Nigeria CEO, Karl Toriola, performance shares valued at about ₦463.7 million ($335,000), underscoring the company’s effort to retain senior leadership in one of its most important markets. The award was disclosed in a regulatory filing on Tuesday and forms part of MTN’s long-running Performance Share Plan, which grants equity to top executives across the group. Under the scheme, Toriola received 28,704 shares valued at R5.5 million, with additional incentives tied to MTN Nigeria’s local compensation structure pushing the total value higher in naira terms. The share-based reward reflects a broader strategy to link executive pay to…

After 17 years at the helm of Paga’s Nigerian operations, Tayo Oviosu is stepping away from the day-to-day running of the business to take on a broader role as Group CEO, marking a significant leadership shift at one of Africa’s longest-standing fintech companies. In his place, Opeyemi Oyinloye, who currently serves as general manager of business operations, has been named Acting CEO of Paga Nigeria. His appointment is subject to regulatory approval from the Central Bank of Nigeria. Oviosu’s new role will see him focus on scaling the company beyond Nigeria, with plans to expand into other African markets while…

Many Africans living in the United Kingdom, Europe, and North America, learning a native language is more than an academic exercise, it is a vital way to reconnect with heritage, identity, and culture. Yet mainstream language apps often provide generic models that struggle to capture the tonal subtleties, conversational rhythms, and cultural nuances of languages such as Yoruba, Igbo, or Hausa. Adebola Onabanjo, a UK-based creative technologist, is tackling this challenge with Asalingo, an AI-driven, speech-first platform designed specifically for African languages. Unlike conventional apps that rely heavily on text-based lessons and memorization, Asalingo emphasizes practical, conversation based learning. Users…

SirMapy and Co.’s decentralized autonomous organization (SMC DAO), a community of crypto traders and Web3 investors, has acquired Nigerian crypto startup Bread Africa in an all-cash deal reported to be in the six-figure range. The transaction adds to a growing wave of acquisitions in Nigeria’s digital asset space, reflecting ongoing consolidation in the country’s crypto ecosystem. For Bread Africa, the acquisition builds on an existing relationship with SMC DAO. CEO Iam Etefia previously sold two ventures Peniwallet and Peniremit to the DAO in 2023 for $250,000. Founded in 2025, Bread Africa offers a web-based crypto application that converts digital assets…