Company - Afrikan Heroes

The leading Nigerian digital printing company chooses Canon for its digital color printing for maximum versatility

August 8, 2019

KAS Prints will rely on Canon’s innovative technologies to provide its customers with the best innovative printing services.

Canon Central and North Africa (CCNA) world-leader in imaging solutions, is proud to have among its clients KAS Prints, a leading Nigerian digital printing company, and to participate fully in the development of its business objectives.

This collaboration, based on commitment, multi-sector knowledge, secure data management and high value-added solutions that guarantee sustainable innovation, allows them to combine their mutual know-how to provide KAS Prints customers with unique and unmatched services.

Canon’s continued investment in research and development offers KAS Prints confidence that they are using technologies specifically designed to improve their productivity and data security.

Canon appreciates that customer expectations in the digital and printing industries are constantly evolving which has an impact on business models in all imaging sectors. Integrated and intelligent applications allow businesses to reduce the complexity of challenges related to their environment and contribute to positive value creation.

“We have found in Canon a trusted partner with whom we share the same values and is committed to helping us successfully anticipate our customers’ needs especially in our offering of the latest solutions.

Canon’s long-standing experience in the digital and printing world encourages the emergence of innovations that will transform service delivery for our customers. We will be able to quickly adapt to any changes in the printing sector which will enable KAS Prints to maintain its leading position in the digital print market” said Ademola Kasumu – Managing Director and CEO, KAS PRINTS.

Tenaui, the official representative of Canon in Nigeria, was of big support to build this strong relationship between Canon and KAS. “Tenaui is really proud to have a valued partner such Canon and we are working very closely with the team to generate and develop more business in the country” added Yasser Alfara, Managing Director, Tenaui.

“We are very proud to be able to welcome KAS Prints among our customers to whom we have already provided C10000 printers. KAS Prints has a diverse customer portfolio and we are committed to supporting them with increasingly innovative and reliable high-performance state-of-the-art machines.

I am confident that this is the beginning of a mutually beneficial partnership that will last for the foreseeable future, as Canon helps KAS Prints achieve the goal of placing the customer at the heart of service delivery. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Tenaui who continues to support us and have enabled us in recent years to pursue satisfactory growth in Nigeria” concluded Somesh Adukia Regional Sales Office Director, Canon Central and North Africa (CCNA).

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.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Great startups are being created everywhere — Interview with Techstars founder David Cohen

August 7, 2019

David Cohen is the founder and co-CEO of Techstars. He has founded several companies and has invested in hundreds of startups such as Uber, Twilio, SendGrid, FullContact, and Sphero. In total, these investments have gone on to create more than $80 billion in value.

Prior to Techstars, David was a co-founder of Pinpoint Technologies which was acquired by the publicly listed ZOLL Medical Corporation in 1999. Later, David was the founder and CEO of earFeeder, a music service that was sold to SonicSwap. He’s also the co-author (with Brad Feld) of Do More Faster; Techstars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup.

Techstars today has 49 accelerator programs in 35 cities across 16 countries, including in Paris, Berlin, London, and Lisbon. It invests €72 million into nearly 500 startups annually. Last week, Techstars announced they just raised €38 million to accelerate even more startups in Europe and across the globe. Good timing for an interview with Techstars founder and co-CEO David Cohen.

David, please take us back to the very beginning of Techstars. How did it all start and how did the Techstars model change over time?

Brad Feld, David Brown, Jared Polis and I started Techstars in order to create a better way to do early-stage tech investments as well as to improve our local startup community in Boulder, Colorado. I pitched Brad Feld on the concept early on and he committed to invest in our first 10-minute meeting.

We then recruited experienced mentors and in our first year had 302 applicants. Of that first group of 10 companies, 5 had successful exits (and one of the other five is still thriving today).

We then began scaling the platform to what you see today, given the impact on the communities and the success of the approach. In 2012 we increased the amount of capital we invest per company to today’s figures and started doing corporate partnerships (our first one was with Microsoft to power their Kinect and Azure accelerators).

Today we work with around 100 corporate partners. In the last year or so, we’ve launched several new products alongside our accelerators like Techstars Studio, Techstars Talent, and Techstars Ecosystem Development.

Can you share some numbers about the current state of Techstars? Like a number of startups, raised capital, number of exits, etc?

See techstars.com/companies — it’s always up to date — we’re very transparent here. Skip past the top 50 companies to see stats. At the moment, about 7.9 billion in capital raised. 186 exits by M&A/IPO. 1,759 companies that finished Techstars (another few hundred in programs now globally). Their enterprise value is about 22 billion. Check the page mentioned for more stats/data.

What differentiates Techstars from most other accelerators out there. Why and which startups should apply at Techstars?

Our network is global. We have activity in 120 countries annually, with accelerators in 16 countries. 10,000 mentors. An enormous talent network. I think our track record also differentiates us significantly. And, instead of us trying to fund 100+ startups in one room, we fund just 10 in a consistent model in each community that we participate in.

What would you say are the main differences between the US startup ecosystem and the startup ecosystems in Western Europe? What are some of the major changes you are spotting?

In some cases, there are still significant regulatory differences. We run into challenges in some countries with very high legal costs, challenges with employment structures, etc. These seem to be heading in the right direction, but unfortunately today you still can’t think of the EU as “one market” — there are significant operational complexities to invest throughout Europe that still create challenges. However, it’s amazing to see the growth in early-stage funding that is available — this is quite healthy now.

How important is location for the success of a startup? Would you recommend startups to move to one of Europe’s leading startup hubs like London or Berlin, or maybe even to Silicon Valley?

No. We believe that more and more, great startups are being created everywhere. As long as you have a vibrant startup community, you don’t need to move away. Live where you want to live. This is part of the freedom of entrepreneurship.

You just raised €38 million for Techstars to accelerate even more startups in Europe and across the globe. What are your plans and goals for the next 3 years?

We’ve been consistently profitable since inception which has allowed us to get to the scale that we have today. This cash injection won’t be used to invest in startups (we have $500M AUM to do that), but rather to scale our footprint and product offerings. We’ll certainly want to grow to more European locations over the next few years, perhaps doubling our existing footprint in that timeframe. But we’ll also be offering more resources to our founders and partners, such as Techstars Studio, Techstars Ecosystem Development, and Techstars Talent, in the region.

What is your take on equity crowdfunding as an alternative or additional funding source for startups? Do you think it will become more relevant over the coming years?

I’ve always believed it’s a nice addition and we’re supportive of it. I think it’s reached a more or less steady-state, where some startups are able to add on a bit more capital if they want more of the “crowd” involved.

Could you recommend our readers one or two books that helped you during your entrepreneurial endeavors?

Well, we just released the 2nd edition of “Do More Faster” that I wrote with Brad Feld, and of course new to the Techstars series of books is also “Sell More Faster” by Amos Schwartzfarb. Outside of self-promotion, I’m a huge fan of “The Soul of Money” and “Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance” for entrepreneurs.

These excerpts originally appeared on EU-Startups.com

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Ghana Now Has A New Companies Act, 56 Years After The Old Law

August 5, 2019

Businesses in Ghana would now have to face a new legal structure. Ghana’s President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has just given his assent for Ghana ’s new Companies Act to replace the 1963 version. This was after the new Act was brought to him from Parliament on Friday, 2nd August after it was passed by Parliament in May this year.

Here Is All You Need To Know About The New Law

The law, which has 428 pages and 369 clauses, has created a new office to perform functions relating to incorporated partnerships and registered business names.
This new office will be responsible for the appointment of inspectors and will assume the functions of the Official Liquidator under the Bodies Corporate (Official Liquidations) Act 1963.
The office will have financial autonomy and be funded from income sources such as sums of money approved by parliament, fees and charges, proceeds from the sale of the Companies Bulletin, donations, grants, and investment income.
The law also gives room for dissenting minority shareholders to have rights to compel their companies to buy out their shares. Such shareholders will now be entitled to request the company to purchase their share at a fair value.

Ghana’s economic profile; Source: Belt and Road

Under the New Law, The New Age To Legally Own A Business Has Changed

The new law states that an individual can register or start a business at the age of 18, revised downwards from 21 years. One person is enough to form an incorporated company in Ghana as the one or more persons may form an incorporated company by complying with this Act.

No More Ultra Vires Objects

With this new law, the application of ultra vires doctrine to companies in Ghana has been completely abolished. From the provisions of the Companies Act, companies will have the option to state the nature of their businesses or their objects.

The implication is that companies that will state their objects will be restricted to operate within the scope of their objects but those who opt not to state their object will have no restrictions and can do any legitimate business.

Improve Ease of Doing Business?

Ghana ‘s President Akufo-Addo was confident that this new Companies Act will improve significantly the ease of doing business in Ghana, enhance the corporate regulatory and governance framework, and reduce the cost of ensuring compliance for businesses.

“I invite the business community in Ghana, and those from outside our shores, to take advantage of the growing business-friendly environment being created in Ghana, and invest in our country. Let me reiterate that Ghana continues to be a haven of peace, security and stability, indeed, the safest country in West Africa, and legitimate investments are protected,” the President noted.

President Akufo-Addo added that more needs to be done to complete the country’s business reform agenda, and the Corporate Restructuring and Insolvency Bill, which is currently before Parliament, will, amongst others, provide the avenue to help resuscitate distressed, but viable business entities and establishments from liquidation and their ramifications.

To download Ghana’s new Companies’ Act, click here

With the coming into effect of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and with Ghana playing host to the secretariat, the President indicated that the country is going to be the hub for African trade and investment, bringing in its wake more jobs, expanded conferencing and hospitality services, enhanced aviation and other transportation services, and related allied businesses.

“Consequently, the timing of our business law reforms could not have been more propitious,” he added.

President Akufo-Addo also launched the GARIA Trust Fund, which is designed to be the principal financing vehicle for GARIA and will be managed by an independent Board of Trustees.

“I am going to ask the Ministries of Finance, Trade and Industry, and Business Development to see to what extent they can properly assist the Fund. In the meanwhile, I am personally donating GH¢50,000 as my modest contribution to the Fund,” he added.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Africa’s Biggest Company Is Investing Over $30 Million in U.S. Education Platform

July 27, 2019

This is a big shot from Naspers, Africa’s biggest company, which in terms of GDP, would be richer than the West African country of Liberia. Naspers is invading the US disruption market, leading a $30 million investment round in Brainly, a U.S. startup that allows learners to help each other with homework problems in different parts of the world.

Here Is What You Need To Know

The Cape Town-based Naspers has led the latest $30 million investment round in Brainly, a U.S. startup that allows learners to help each other with homework problems in different parts of the world.
The students earn points for the quality of their answers and can enter leadership-boards in different subjects such as history, mathematics, and others.
Naspers Ltd., Africa’s biggest company by market value and soon to be one of Europe’s largest listed technology companies, is investing more of its $10-billion cash-pile in educational platforms.

“At Naspers, we back companies seeking to address big societal needs like education, helping them to achieve global scale,” said Naspers Ventures Chief Executive Officer Larry Illg. “Brainly has the potential to serve the needs of hundreds of millions of students around the world, and has shown strong growth in the U.S. and high growth markets such as India, Indonesia, Turkey and Brazil.”

The cash from the current funding round will be used to update the platform and expand its base in the U.S., where it has already managed to make money from the service.
Brainly is also expanding into India, where Naspers also led a $540 million funding round into another educational tech company Byju in December last year. The Brainly platform is growing at around 200% a year. Before the Byju investment, Naspers’s education investments have all been in the U.S. and includes other online learning platforms such as Udemy.
Naspers also led $540 million funding round in India’s Byju

Naspers first invested in Brainly in 2016. Runa Capital and Manta Ray have also invested in the latest funding round.

A $32 million initial investment in Tencent Holdings Ltd. back in 2001 transformed the South African newspaper and Pay TV business into one of the largest technology investors globally.

Its 31% stake in the Chinese game-maker is worth $140 billion, compared with its total market value of $110 billion in Johannesburg.

The valuation gap motivated a decision for Naspers to list its internet businesses on the Euronext in September to close that discount.

From the pie chart above it is clear that majority of revenue for Naspers comes from Internet services, which contributed 69.34% to NPN’s revenue, second biggest revenue earner was E-commerce with 15.2% or $1.987 billion dollars followed by video entertainment, with 14.1% or $1.834 billion.

Naspers’ Money At A Glance

A look at the financial results for the 6 months ending in September 2018, as revealed by Naspers in its financial statement shows:

Operating Revenue: $3.34billion
Cost of providing services and sale of goods :$1.981billion
Selling, general and administration expenses: $1.284billion
Operating profit: $49million
Share of equity accounted investment (basically Naspers’ share of Tencent profits as rest of equity-accounted results are negligible compared to Tencent’s contribution): $2.098 billion
Taxes: $317 million
Profit for the period: $3.454 billion

Read Also: South Africa ’s ‘Uber of Cleaning Services’ Gets $2 Million Investment From Naspers

Per-share statistics:

Diluted headline earnings per share: $6.32
Dividend yield: 0.24%
Cash per share: $7.32
Net asset value per share: $62
Cash generated from operations per share: $0.54

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Prioritize Maintenance, Repair, and Operations (MRO) strategy to manage costs for your company

July 14, 2019

By Brian Andrew

It does not matter if times are good or bad – waste is never welcome at any proactive business. Business is primarily driven by profit and efficiency, and waste is an attack on both. But many businesses, particularly among manufacturers, overlook a major cost hidden among their operations: that of MRO (maintenance, repair, and operations) procurement.

MRO or indirect procurement concerns those many small parts needed to keep equipment running. It’s fundamentally a supply chain/procurement discipline, but not often considered as a cost centre. Individual MRO items – small parts in big machines such as light bulbs, safety switches, connectors, push buttons, power supplies, etc. – tend to be inexpensive and not attract much attention. Yet as a pool, MRO procurement can represent a significant purchase base for companies.

The days of MRO being overlooked are numbered. According to a survey conducted by RS Components and UK-based CIPS (the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply), the focus is on to reduce MRO spend. Over half cited pressure on operation budgets or reducing inventory costs, followed by asset performance (42%) and continuous improvement (38%) as motivations.

This message is less apparent in the South African market, but given the current tough economic conditions, it’s well worth discussing. What can local businesses do to curb their MRO spend?

Taming MRO

Many businesses underestimate the amount they spend on MRO products over the course of a year. They also rarely understand the significant hidden costs associated with MRO procurement. In reality, the overall process of procuring a part can be double that of the actual part. Our research shows that an organization spends £2 on the MRO procurement process for every £1 spent on the MRO product itself. Bigger footprints such as multiple locations amplify this effect. South African patterns are unlikely to buck the trend.

What causes such a poor ratio? It may be because too much time is being spent on finding the cheapest product, or using the wrong strategies, for example, category management and contracts negotiated on price alone to manage unplanned indirect spend. This may negate any actual savings made as extra processes and delays accrue costs.

Another reason is that MRO purchases often happen under the radar and tend to ignore official procurement channels. It may seem faster for an engineer on the floor to quickly acquire a spare part and get operations running again, using a convenient supplier. But amplify this over many instances and the purchases can compound into astounding inefficiencies.

Every company can meet this challenge with a good MRO strategy. It requires a new way of thinking and saving: a successful MRO strategy relies on all stakeholders involved in indirect procurement to collaborate. It must focus on improving the whole process of buying parts, involving stakeholders such as engineering, operations and finance functions, with buy-in at the c-suite level.

The strategy itself should aim for several objectives, which may include:

Reducing ‘maverick’ spend, where the user selects vendors outside the agreed supplier framework.

Consolidating suppliers so procurers can make quick decisions without having to consider the bigger MRO picture.

Procurement teams must communicate with users to understand what they need – this ensures suppliers with appropriate catalogues are chosen.

Deploying an integrated eProcurement system to streamline ordering processes, which in turn will help users change their own procurement habits.

Reducing items held in storage by only keeping critical spares and the items that will be used on a regular basis and then using suppliers that deliver on demand. This frees up working capital and space in your premises.

Without MRO, production can grind to a halt. A small part can stop everything for practical, health & safety, compliance or many other reasons. But sometimes the can-do attitude to keep lines going can result in inefficient MRO procurement choices.

Don’t disturb that spirit on the work floor that keeps your business moving. Instead, establish an MRO strategy that compliments proactive workforce attitudes while establishing a framework which pursues efficiency and significant cost savings. Partner with a supplier who can develop these solutions with you and support you on the journey of taming your MRO procurement.

By Brian Andrew, is Managing Director South and Sub-Saharan Africa at RS Components.

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.

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/

Behold Jumia, The German Company That Became A Nigerian Fraud

May 11, 2019

From being the first successful African startup to list on the New York Stock Exchange, now to the first fraud to ever make its way to the floor of the American Stock Exchange from Africa.

It appears Jumia is in for a big trouble. Citron Research, the American research firm that publishes reports on firms that Citron Research founder, Andrew Edward Left thinks are overvalued or are engaged in fraud is saying, in a twelve-page document, that it has never seen such an obvious fraud as Jumia’s first Initial Public Offering, held from the 11th of April, 2019, in its 18 years of publishing.

Also See: As Jumia Goes Public, Key Points Every Entrepreneur Should Know

‘‘ Jumia is the worst abuse of the IPO system since the Chinese RTO fraud boom almost a decade ago. Worse than being “the most expensive” US listed eCommerce company, Jumia reported financials show us a stagnant business that has burned through $1 billion and has moved the suckers game to the US Markets,’’ the report stated.

As the media in the US is naively anointing Jumia the “Amazon of Africa”, the media in its home country of Nigeria has a plethora of articles discussing the widespread fraud in this Nigerian company. Not even that elusive Nigerian prince can cover this one up.

What Went Wrong?

The deal is that Jumia lied. Not one. But so many times, said Citron. The research firm claimed it has finally laid its hands on Jumia’s most confidential documents before the IPO, and from all indications, Jumia’s equities seem to be the most worthless ever to be sold on the New York Stock Exchange.

‘‘When a company markets to investors ahead of its IPO and then a few months later omits material facts and makes material changes to its key financial metrics to make the business seem viable, this is SECURITIES FRAUD,’’ the report read.

Now These Are What The Firm Claimed To Have Found:

1. ‘‘In order to raise more money from investors, Jumia inflated its active consumers and active merchants figures’’

The inflation came by way of 20–30% increase in the number of Jumia’s active consumers and active merchants, Citron noted.

”The most disturbing disclosure that Jumia removed from its F-1 filing was that 41% of orders were returned, not delivered, or cancelled. This was previously disclosed in the Company’s October 2018 confidential investor presentation. This number is so alarming that it screams fraudulent activities,” the report noted.

”Instead, Jumia disclosed that “orders accounting for 14.4% of our Gross Merchandise Volume were either failed deliveries or returned by our consumers” in 2018. Assuming 41% of orders were returned, not delivered, or cancelled in 2018, this implies that almost 30% of orders were cancelled in 2018. Since Jumia primarily sells consumer electronics, which should not have this high of a cancellation rate, it wreaks of fraud.”

2. ‘‘Just before IPO, a Jumia MD was questioned by Nigerian Police over Allegations of Fraudulent Diversion of Funds’’

It doesn’t look like Citron is out for a joke. The firm claimed Jumia’s fraud starts from the top to the bottom.Jumia Co-CEO, Jeremy Hodara, the firm claimed, has engaged in extremely questionable related party transactions that the SEC should immediately question. It went on to provide a sequence to these questionable transactions.

In February 2016, four of Jumia’s subsidiaries were sold to Jumia’s CEO, Hodara for 1 euro each.

Despite only generating revenue of 238 thousand euro and net losses of over 3 million euro in 2017, Jumia reacquired these businesses in 2018 from Hodara for an undisclosed price.

During the same year, Jumia acquired Jumia Facilities, a payroll and support services operation based in Dubai, from Hodara for an undisclosed price.

”…many top directors of Jumia were engaging in serious acts of fraud including diverting money that was supposed to be used for projects into their own bank accounts and using director owned private companies to accept Jumia orders while receiving advance payments but never fulfilling the orders. In some cases, these fraudsters were relatives of senior management and “the directors would sweep the case under the carpet in order to avoid public scrutiny”.

Jumia’s Stocks Came Tumbling Down On The New York Stock Exchange

Now, it appears Citron Research now has laughed the last and the best laugh. Jumia’s investors are pulling out!

Jumia’s share price has dived sharply since Citron’s report.

In the seven hours of trading on Thursday, Jumia’s shares lost 18% of its value.

The Bottom Line

From all indications, it appeared Citron Research was out to disparage one country — Nigeria — and possibly block further companies there from getting approval to list on the New York Stock Exchange in the future. The firm even went as far as mentioning that Jumia learned the hard way that Nigeria, Jumia’s largest and most important market, is not an easy place to do eCommerce for plenty of reasons including logistics, poverty, and a culture of corruption. It went ahead to cite the recent divestment of Naspers(a South African company), which it described as ‘‘the smartest and largest tech investor in Africa’’ from Konga, another online eCommerce company in Nigeria.

‘‘This was not due to a lack of funds or a short-term investment horizon,[after all,] Naspers has $12 billion of cash on the balance sheet and its original investment in Tencent ([in which it] still owns >30%) dates back to 2001… Rather, this decision was a reflection of Naspers’ bearish view on the Nigerian eCommerce market vs. a bullish view on South African eCommerce. Since its Konga exit, Naspers announced plans to invest over $300 million in South African tech businesses,’’ Citron noted.

No matter how you see it, the report appeared to have gone after Nigeria rather than focus more intensely on Jumia. After all, although Nigeria is Jumia’s biggest market, its S1 filing (which Citron claims to have studied) indicates that Jumia Group is not a Nigerian company as it is led by French founders, incorporated in Germany and headquartered in Dubai.

Citron Research is sending a message to American and international investors that Jumia is not only a fraudulent company which ‘‘not even that elusive Nigerian prince’’ can deny, but also that they are throwing their money into the wrong country where it is ‘‘not easy…to do eCommerce…because of …a culture of corruption.’’ (NB: ‘Nigerian Prince’ is a reference to the notorious Nigerian internet fraudsters, popularly known as Yahoo! boys)

Whether Jumia comes out of this unscathed, only time would tell.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh, a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organisations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.