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Kenyan Logistics Startup Amitruck Partners Ecommerce Startup Sky.Garden. What This Means For Startup-Startup Partnerships In Africa

April 19, 2021

Two startups in Kenya, digital logistics startup Amitruck and ecommerce startup Sky.Garden, which have been collaborating since 2019 have just moved their relationship a step higher. Both startups have announced a major reinforcing partnership to defy Covid. This partnership aims to keep economic and social chains alive during lockdown by providing vital services to keep products moving, sustain the economy, and keep business supply chains moving.

“Creating Growth requires teamwork, partnerships, and technology, particularly in our continent. Likewise, creating a better Africa and a better World has to be the mission of an entire army of companies and people. Sky.Garden and the Amitruck team are delighted to be leading the way with shared objectives and values,” Mark Mwangi, Amitruck CEO said.

This Is How The Partnership Will Work

Forming an end-to-end digital chain for goods pick-up, promotion, online sales, provisioning and deliveries to the last mile, the partnership allows more than 6,000 B2B clients to keep their business alive and maintain jobs across many industries.

Both companies have built smart technology with AI (Artificial Intelligence) and ML (Machine Learning) to secure and maintain a competitive edge powered by leading players such as Amazon Web Services and Google.

According to the African Tech Startups Funding Report 2020 released by startup news and research portal Disrupt Africa, the year saw $190 million in investments flow into Kenya, which remains at the top of Africa’s list of recipients. The two companies have recently announced funding from top investment firms and intend to develop their activities further across Africa this year.

“At Sky.Garden we are always delighted to find partners that are eager to disrupt the African market and bring lasting solutions that are continent specific and breed further innovation in the region. We have found that with the innovative logistics platform, Amitruck, and look forward to the leaps and bounds we can achieve together,” states Isaac Hunja, Co-Founder & Managing Director at Sky.Garden

Economies Of Scale

One important implication of the renewed collaboration is the economies of scale which partnerships usually offer. The need for such partnerships has further been highlighted by explosion of tech hubs and startups across Africa. Therefore, finding intersecting areas for possible collaborations can be the one strategy that makes all the difference.

Amitruck-Sky.Garden partnership, for instance, has allowed both startups to circumvent or reduce the harsh economic conditions occasioned by lockdowns.

Another of such partnerships is that between FinTech company, AellaCare and leading health insurance enterprise Hygeia, last year. At that time, people were most concerned about their health status. Government’s policies on health insurance also barely existed. By estimates, about 95 percent of Nigerian adults, for instance, do not have insurance coverage and 77.2 percent of the country’s population have no understanding of what insurance entails. Aware of the fact that it is not one of the leading fintech companies in Nigeria and amidst the fear of being forced to shut down, AellaCare immediately pulled a partnership deal with health insurance enterprise Hygeia which they hope would help bridge the gap between people and health care services in Nigeria with relatively affordable health insurance coverage.

Through the partnership, customers can get Hygeia’s insurance plans on credit via the Aella app, which guarantees tailored financial plans, the flexibility of payments and better-improved healthcare access. Additionally, people can seek and receive needed health services such as General Consultations, Pharmacy Benefits, Ante-Natal Care & Delivery services, Accidents and Emergencies, Surgeries, Outpatient and Specialist Consultations, HIV/AIDS Care and Treatment, Dental Care, Prescription Glasses, Family Planning Services among others.

Amitruck also seems to be aware of the implications of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) on its business model.

The operational phase of AfCFTA which entered into force on the 1st of January, 2021,covers a market of 1.2 billion people and a combined gross domestic product of $2.5 trillion — making Africa the world’s largest free trade area since the formation of the World Trade Organization seven decades ago.

AfCFTA will greatly assist startups in Africa in their quests for international expansion, by reducing the regulatory and financial costs of such expansion.

The combination of Amitruck’s digital logistics and Sky.Garden’s e-commerce is set to unlock barriers and facilitate the accomplishment of trades within the World’s largest economic zone, including not less that 54 countries across the Continent.

Finding Customers In The Time Of Coronavirus: What Startups In Africa Can Do To Survive

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

South African Crypto Investment Startup, Revix, Secures $4 Million

Revix, a crypto investment platform based in Cape Town, has raised $4 million (R58 million) in off-shore funds. The startup’s new funding round is expected to help it develop its business model and launch its mobile app, as well as grow its South African team.

“We aim to blur the lines between investing in traditional asset classes, such as stocks, as well as the emerging alternative investment sectors, such as AI, biotech, 5G, eSports, and cryptocurrencies. We want to empower everyday people to safely invest in emerging themes, technologies, and asset classes in an effortless way. We’re building a behavioural loyalty model that incentivises investors to undertake smart investment decisions, such as diversifying their investment portfolios, growing the investment community, improving their financial knowledge, and making smart long-term investment decisions, while being rewarded for doing so,” said Sean Sanders, CEO, Ravex.

Revix claims to be the first investment network in South Africa to deliver a behavioural loyalty and rewards program through which consumers can receive points that can be exchanged for Bitcoin.
Ravex’s CEO also claimed Revix is the first South African fintech to be admitted into the prestigious 6-month accelerator program.”

Jocelyn Weber, Director, X-Labs and Berkeley’s Blockchain Xcelerator, explained why Revix was chosen to participate in the global accelerator:

“The accelerator is renowned for partnering with businesses that target global societal challenges by using novel technologies. Revix has created a platform that has the potential to break down the barriers to access within this alternative investing space.”

Revix has also been chosen for the Qatar Fintech Hub (QFTH) Wave 2 Incubator and Accelerator Programs.

Which Investors Invest In African Blockchain And Crypto Startups? Here Is A List.

Revix crypto

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

Nigerian Solar Energy Startup, Shyft Power Solutions, Raises $3.1m Seed Round

SHYFT Power Solutions, a Lagos and San Francisco-based company that develops IoT and software to improve distributed energy resource performance and operational efficiency in emerging markets, has raised an additional $3.1 million in seed funding, bringing its total seed round to $3.8 million.

“I founded SHYFT to build the technology that can enable and accelerate this transition, and ensure that on the path to reliable energy access, the use of cleaner solutions can mitigate carbon emissions as well. We are fortunate to have investors supporting us where their sector and global experience will be invaluable,” Ugwem Eneyo, Co-Founder & CEO SHYFT said.

Here Is What You Need To Know

The SoftBank Vision Fund’s Emerge Program and Total Carbon Neutrality Ventures led the funding round, which included participation from other investors such as Lofty Inc, Samurai Ventures, and Urban US Ventures.

SHYFT intends to use this new round of funding to double its team in West Africa over the next year, with an emphasis on improving AI capabilities for device optimization using its data and algorithms. In addition, the company will seek to form corporate alliances and grow into other African markets that face similar energy challenges.

Why The Investors Invested

The Emerge Program of the SoftBank Vision Fund was launched in 2019 to provide selected startups with the resources, networks, and funding they need to take their businesses to the next stage. Total Carbon Neutrality Ventures is dedicated to identifying, financing, and nurturing high-potential startups that will help to achieve a low-carbon future.

“Energy is an essential need for all, yet it is estimated that more than 3.5 billion people globally lack access to affordable and reliable electricity. SHYFT’s technology will play a critical role in a global movement to democratize the way people manage their power sources. They’ve developed data-driven software that enables homeowners and businesses in emerging markets to make smarter decisions on their energy use in order to cut costs and reduce emissions. We are delighted to support SHYFT’s momentum as Ugwem and the team continues to expand their impact and help build a better energy future for the world,” Ademidun Edosomwan, Managing Director, Emerging Markets at Total Carbon Neutrality Ventures (TCNV), said.

Read also: American Petroleum Institute (API) Partners African Energy Chamber to expand Natural Gas and Oil Industry Standards and Initiatives

A Look At What The Startup Does

Stanford engineers created SHYFT to address the challenges of providing and scaling safe, secure, and accessible energy solutions in emerging markets with inadequate grids or limited access to energy.

SHYFT’s initial target is Nigeria, which is on track to become the world’s third most populous country after China and India, but where an inefficient grid has led to widespread reliance on generators, which account for nearly 8x the grid’s capacity.

SHYFT’s customers and strategic partners include Daystar Power Solutions and Aspire Power Solutions, two of Nigeria’s largest and fastest-growing renewable energy firms. The company started ramping up sales across Nigeria with their customers over the past year after passing vital IEC safety training for their controllers.

Three Major Reasons Why CanGo, The East African Delivery Startup Folded Up So Soon

SHYFT Power Solutions

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

Why South African Businesses Adopted Hybrid Cloud at Increasing Rate In 2020

April 18, 2021

There is new evidence to show that South African businesses adopted hybrid cloud at an enormous rate in 2020 coinciding with the lockdown. This was according to a report by Nutanix, a leader in private cloud, hybrid, and multicloud computing of the local data from its third global Enterprise Cloud Index survey, showing how South African companies compare with the rest of the globe regarding their hybrid cloud adoption in 2020.

Rowen Grierson, Sales Director, Sub-Saharan Africa, Nutanix

South African organisations are still transitioning to a hybrid cloud infrastructure, and for most organisations, these transitions do not happen overnight. Legacy applications may justify keeping older infrastructure for a time or require re-platforming skills that organisations may not have access to. According to the report, 50% of South Africa organisations run private cloud-only or a non-integrated mix of private, public and traditional infrastructure models.

Key Findings show that hybrid cloud is the ideal IT operating model for most respondents in South Africa and elsewhere, with most IT respondents (88%) locally and globally (87%) reporting that the hybrid cloud is the ideal infrastructure model for their organisation.

South Africa is ahead in decommissioning or evolving its legacy data centres. Only 14% of respondents locally reported running traditional non-cloud-enabled data centres exclusively compared to the global average of 18%. Penetration in South Africa is expected to drop to just 3% within the next five years, while the use of hybrid cloud is expected to increase by 31% over the same period.

IT shops in South Africa favour private cloud and hyperconverged infrastructure, with local respondents reporting that they are running more applications in private clouds (38%) than public (29%) than their global counterparts who report a slight preference for public clouds. This may explain why South Africa is also ahead in hyperconverged infrastructure deployments, with 57% indicating that they have either fully deployed or are in the process of deploying it.

Another 33% plan to do so in the next 12 to 24 months. Comparatively, over two-thirds (69%) of global ECI respondents running hybrid cloud said they’re also operating or in the process of deploying hyperconverged infrastructure; by contrast, 40% of those running mixed-model infrastructures and 50% of those running traditional said they too will roll out HCI.

A strong customer focus is driving infrastructure changes in South Africa, and 62% of respondents cited the ability to better support their customers as the reason to move to cloud-enabled infrastructure, compared to a 46% global average. Interestingly, while cost savings were less important globally, more respondents in South Africa selected it as a factor (51%) than any other country polled (the second highest being the UK at 45%).

The global pandemic has also raised IT’s profile, and accelerated cloud adoption as 82% of South African respondents said that COVID-19 has caused IT to be viewed more strategically in their organisations. As a result, 60% reported an increase in hybrid cloud investment compared to 46% globally. Local respondents specifically stated that their top priorities, because of COVID-19, are implementing 5G (61%), improving IT infrastructure (55%), improving business continuity (54%) and work-from-home capabilities (53%). Something the local Nutanix team confirms, as use cases for these technologies are on the rise.

“The data speaks for itself and is a firm testimony to what we see unfolding in the local market. That is that private clouds that marry themselves to a hybrid or multicloud universe are the preferred future infrastructure for African businesses,” said Rowen Grierson, Sales Director, Sub-Saharan Africa, Nutanix.

“If we consider the data, the next five years in Africa will be an exciting time for IT and the cloud. While we still face challenges such as data sovereignty, compliance and a sparse public cloud footprint, we are turning this to our favour as we lead the charge in hybrid cloud adoption.

“There is a wealth of opportunity in the region, and whether or not a single IT model ends up being the only infrastructure, it’s clear that companies in Africa have a clear view of how the cloud journey will unfold in their business,” ends Grierson.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Three Cybersecurity Challenges Triggered by COVID-19 Lockdown

The global COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the everyday operations of businesses and as a result, the cyber risk still remains a grave concern as many business practices have been compromised. The ZA Central Registry organisation, which is the administrator of South Africa’s .za domain name, recently warned that South Africa is a global target for international fraudsters and cybersecurity measures are more important now than ever before.

“It is essential for businesses to be aware of the nature of these cybercrimes and technology countermeasures to protect their businesses, especially when considering the cybersecurity challenges that have occurred during lockdown”, says Riaan de Villiers, Cybersecurity Expert and Business Analyst at LAWtrust.

Here’s a Quick Look at the Top 3 Cybersecurity Challenges Triggered by Lockdown:

An increase in cybercrime attacks: Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting users working from home, hoping to compromise their credentials that they can then reuse to gain access to the user’s corporate network.

Surge in demand for enhanced identity and access management: since many people have been working from home, interest in identity and access management solutions has surged. Identity and access management acts as a foundation for organisations to build an improved cybersecurity posture. It also allows IT (Information Technology) departments to implement multifactor authentication and single sign-on solutions across a range of approved I.T. applications.

Rise in Business Email Compromise (BEC): fraudsters are increasingly using email-based cons to catch unaware businesses off-guard. Business Email Compromise is a global phenomenon and a form of cybercrime that uses email fraud to target businesses, individuals and administrations.

“Cybercriminals have always been opportunistic but during the South African lockdown they have been especially persistent. To mitigate risk during lockdown, it is recommended to enforce virtual private network connectivity to corporate resources and implement multi-factor authentication as much as possible,” concludes de Villiers.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Kenya Competition Authority Calls Safaricom to Share Telco Infrastructure

Following incessant calls by Kenyan Senators on the need to split Safaricom’s telecoms business from its financial business, the Kenya’s Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has approached Parliament with new laws that would require the country’s telco’s – mainly Safaricom – to share their private infrastructure on a commercial basis.

CAK Director-General, Francis Wang’ombe Kariuki

“The authority’s view is that ab initio infrastructure provisions in the sector should have been separated from the mobile network operators. Primarily regulations should have been developed to ensure that third parties provide the infrastructure. Unfortunately, this did not happen,” says CAK Director-General, Francis Wang’ombe Kariuki.

“It is with this reality that we opine regulations should be promulgated and enforced in regard to infrastructure sharing on a commercial basis and in case of dispute, the sector regulator [Communications Authority of Kenya] may act as the arbiter.”

According to Business Daily, Safaricom has the broadest national coverage, was the first to launch the cutting-edge 5G technology and has been spending more than Sh30 billion each year on its infrastructure – more than any of its competitors.

Senators in Kenya believe that Safaricom should split into two firms – Mobile Services and M-PESA. According to The Star, a split would see the mobile telephony service regulated by the Communication Authority of Kenya (CAK) and the M-Pesa division regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK).

It was reported recently that senators believe there should be a level playing ground for the likes of Telkom and Airtel Kenya who operate at the mercy of Safaricom as they owe it billions of shillings.

“The market is not competitive any more. The other operators should be allowed to operate, by giving the dominant operator its right, but also allowing the others to operate, and allow innovation in the country,” says Senator Petronilla Were of the ICT committee.

Senator Irungu Kang’ata echoed this sentiment, saying “in Kenya, you have a situation where one single player dictates how much you are going to pay for data bundles, for calls and Short Message Service because it controls almost 90 per cent of the market”.

Senator Enock Wambua urged Safaricom to confirm whether it is a communication company or a banking institution. “I would suggest that Safaricom is split into two. Safaricom the communication company, regulated by the Communication Authority of Kenya (CAK), and the M-Pesa division regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Uganda-based Healthtech Startup, Neopenda, Raises $1.4m Funding

Neopenda, a public benefit company based in Uganda and Chicago, USA has announced a new $1.4m post-seed round of funding through convertible note financing led by Assiduity Capital and Sorenson Impact Foundation, as well as the CE Mark approval of its neoGuard device.

“This new funding will help expand the impact of neoGuard. Now that we’ve been granted a CE Mark, we can widen our distribution and save more lives,” she continued, “Because of their focus on healthcare in emerging markets, Assiduity Capital and Sorenson Impact Foundation are the perfect partners to support our next phase of growth,” Sona Shah, Neopenda CEO, said.

Here Is What You Need To Know

With the new round of funding, Neopenda will expand its team of four new hires after securing $1.4 million in post-seed funding, accounting for 70% of the company’s post-seed round.

As the Business Operations Lead, Brittany Stubbs has joined the team. Vivian Mwanza will be in charge of business growth in Kenya. The team plans to add two additional members in supply chain and engineering.

Why The Investors Invested

“The Sorenson Impact Foundation is proud to partner with Neopenda in its goal to bring life saving medical devices to both emerging markets. We believe that the impact potential is huge as infant and adult lives can be improved while advancing healthcare procedures and efficiency globally,” said Meredith Shields, Managing Director of the US-based impact investor.
Read also:Ghana-based VC Again Leads A $200k Seed Round In Fintech Startup BezoMoney

Assiduity Capital is a venture capital firm based in Amsterdam, Netherlands, which in invests primarily in healthcare.

“Our ultimate goal is to develop products and services with the power to transform healthcare.As active, patient, and long-term investors, our partnership comes with an engaged and supportive approach that brings expertise, network, and capital to help companies realize their full potential,” the VC states.

Speaking further on the investment, Managing Director Handson Chiweshenga at Assiduity Capital said:

“We are excited to partner with Neopenda as the need for accessible healthcare grows in emerging markets. Neopenda’s product solutions offer alternatives that can help accelerate healthcare accessibility and quality.”

A Look At What The Startup Does

Neopenda, a medical monitoring system created by biomedical engineers Sona Shah and Teresa Cauvel, was established in 2016 to address the challenges of low-resource areas in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The devise, a wireless, wearable vital signs monitor, monitors a critically ill newborn’s heart rate, respiratory rate, peripheral blood oxygen saturation, and temperature, allowing caregivers to catch preventable and treatable conditions sooner. The system has been modified for use with adult COVID-19 patients in the last year.

In Europe, Neopenda recently obtained CE Mark approval. With this EU MDR certification, the company can sell its neoGuard product in any country that accepts EU product standards for high levels of safety, health, and environmental protection.

“Receiving the CE Mark is an essential step in the growth of Neopenda, and we are happy to have the validation of the safety and effectiveness of the neoGuard monitor,” Teresa Cauvel, CTO, said.

In remote patient trials, Neopenda is currently leading additional clinical research for its neoGuard product.

What Does 2021 Hold In Store For African Startups?

In finance, a convertible bond or convertible note or convertible debt is a type of bond that the holder can convert into a specified number of shares of common stock in the issuing company or cash of equal value. It is a hybrid security with debt- and equity-like features.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

Peach Payments Raises More Funding to Accelerate Growth in South Africa

April 17, 2021

Efforts by South African fintech startup Peach Payments to expand its products offering and reach yielded a boost recently with an additional investment to capitalise on its accelerated growth over the last year. Peach Payments enables businesses to easily accept payments on their websites and mobile apps, integrating with leading e-commerce platforms like WooCommerce, Shopify, Wix and Magento. The startup has already expanded into Kenya and Mauritius, and has been working on scaling its presence to other countries across the continent after securing investment last year led by UW Ventures, in partnership with Allan Gray.

It has now raised a new round of funding, again led by UW Ventures in partnership with Allan Gray, alongside Launch Africa Ventures and other existing investors. Peach Payments co-founder Rahul Jain said the investments were earmarked for growth acceleration outside of South Africa as well as scaling up the business’s current products and services, and operational and engineering teams.

“This new investment round is a great indicator of the confidence our investors have in our core business model and hypothesis. Peach set solid growth targets for itself in 2020, and we far outperformed those expectations. While COVID-19 and the acceleration of digital commerce provided strong tailwinds for the business – we doubled down during 2020 and invested heavily into identified growth areas to make the most of the opportunities,” he said.

“These investments effectively mean that we are able to not only meet the demand that the current environment provides but also create enhanced services for our customers – in South Africa and beyond its borders – as well as the technical and staff resources required to meet that demand. It is optimal for us to grow now.”

Peach Payments saw a 400 per cent increase in customer acquisition last year and revenue growth of 130 per cent. Co-founder Andreas Demleitner said while the startup’s original vision to “bring a world-class payments solution to businesses in Africa” had not changed, it has expanded to “meet the customer where they do business digitally, be it on an e-commerce site, app, SMS, or mobile phone, and make it easier for them to succeed”.

Demleitner said growth into Africa is key, and while scaling up current operations in Kenya and Mauritius, the team is investigating opportunities in other East and West African countries. Harry Apostoleris, co-founder at UW Ventures, said Peach Payments’ growth over the last year reflected the company’s commitment to supporting merchants in building and adapting their businesses, especially during the digital acceleration experienced over the last 12 months.

“We are excited to continue supporting the company’s mission and their ambitions of building an enduring pan-African enterprise underpinned by world class technology,” he said.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Sendmarc Receives Further Support to Elevate its Cybersecurity Operations

South Africa’s cybersecurity email protection and compliance startup Sendmarc has received follow-on investment from Kalon Venture Partners as it looks to build on strong recent growth. Founded three years ago by Sam Hutchinson, Keith Thompson and Sacha Matulovich, Sendmarc provides the setup, implementation and reporting functionality for a global email protection standard known as DMARC.

Sendmarc Co-founder Sam Hutchinson — Sendmar Co-founder Sam Hutchinson

This protocol is designed to give email domain owners the ability to protect their domains from unauthorised use, such as impersonation attacks or email spoofing. By accelerating the implementation of DMARC, Sendmarc enables organisations to protect themselves as well as their customers and suppliers.

Sendmarc first raised funding from Kalon Venture Partners, a South Africa-based Section 12J venture capital company, in January of last year, but since then it has seen strong growth. This year alone it has seen an average of 30 per cent month-on-month growth, and it is processing around 400 million emails per month on its platform. Customers include 35 JSE-listed companies as well as some international clients.

With further growth in mind, it has now taken on follow-on capital from Kalon, with which it plans on entering international markets while continuing to build its presence in South Africa.

“We welcome the support and continued commitment of Clive Butkow and the Kalon team. Sendmarc looks forward to further expanding our team and scaling the Sendmarc business into global markets,” said Sam Hutchinson, chief executive officer (CEO) of Sendmarc.

Kalon Venture Partners CEO Butkow said the Sendmarc team was “exceptional”.

“Kalon’s strategy is to invest in the best teams building innovative scalable technology. The Sendmarc team tick all of these boxes – they continue to show exceptional leadership ability while building on outstanding tech innovation and showing exceptional growth in revenue,” he said.

“This follow-on round is testimony to the Sendmarc team’s ability to deliver a solution solving a large problem across industries. Sendmarc is the solution that makes the internet a safer place and prevents phishing and spoofing which reduces the cloning of emails for malicious intent. A very real threat and an essential and much needed security solution for every business.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Airtel Leaves Ghana, Sells Business To Ghanaian Government

The Government of Ghana, Bharti Airtel (Airtel), and Millicom International Cellular S. A. (Millicom) (through their respective subsidiaries) have announced that the definitive agreement for the transfer of ‘AirtelTigo’ (Airtel Ghana and Millicom Ghana) to the Government of Ghana on a going concern basis has been signed. The Ghanaian government would buy all of AirtelTigo’s shares, as well as all of its clients, properties, and liabilities, under the proposed agreement.

According to the agreement, the deal will include a smooth acquisition by the Ghanaian government, after which AirtelTigo will become a State body and function as such.

The unsustainable non-controlled JV will be handed over to the GoG, who are committed to reviving the business by making appropriate investments and operating it while safeguarding the interests of the company’s clients, workers, and other stakeholders. The deal is conditional on the mutually agreed-upon terms being met, and Airtel, Millicom, and GoG will work quickly to complete it.

Telecoms survey 2017.gif — *Source: Geopoll*

A Battered Presence In Ghana

In 2017, Airtel and Millicom combined their Ghana operations, creating the country’s second-largest mobile carrier.

The regulator approved the merger on the condition that the Ghana government have the ability to purchase a share in the new company in the future.

Airtel has previously stated that in markets where it is not among the top two players, it would consider acquisition options, including exit.

AirtelTigo is a joint venture between ‘Airtel’ and ‘Millicom’ wherein Airtel holds a non-controlling 49.95% share in AirtelTigo. But the joint venture has fallen behind MTN and Vodacom in the West African country.

According to Airtel’s quarterly results ending September 30, 2020 the company’s Ghana operations had 5.1 million customers. Over the past four years, the company has been losing money, and Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (Ebidta) for the quarter dropped to $1.1m from $1.3m in the previous quarter ending June 30. During the quarter, overall revenue remained unchanged at $15m, and data customers as a percentage of total customers fell to 56.2 percent from 59.4 percent in the previous quarter.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

Airtel leaves Ghana Airtel leaves Ghana