Invest in Africa's Telecom Industry: Airtel Africa Boosts CAPEX Spending to $750m

Airtel Africa plans to boost CAPEX spending to $750m

Highlights

• Airtel Africa Plc plans to increase its capital expenditure to as much as $750 million this year from $656 million in the year through March, as it moves to build its mobile-money business across the continent.
• The wireless carrier plans to further develop its technology platform and distribution infrastructure, Chief Executive Officer Segun Ogunsanya said.
• Airtel Africa, with operations in 14 African countries, is looking to ramp up its mobile money offering in, Nigeria, where the government is promoting cashless payments. The company’s financial service, dubbed Airtel Money, is its fastest-growing division. 

Source: Bloomberg

Our Takeaway

Across Africa, we’re seeing advancements in the telecom industry driven by increasing investments by local and foreign operators like Airtel Africa. More importantly, the company’s focus on mobile money reflects an ongoing industry-wide shift. While voice services had historically been the major source of revenue for telecom operators, data and mobile money present an attractive diversification opportunity that almost every operator is moving to capture. The model is already well-proven in Kenya, where M-Pesa contributes 18% of revenues for the country’s largest telco, Safaricom, even more than data (7%).

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SA to implement stricter regulations for the payments industry

Highlights

• The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) plans to tighten regulations in the country’s payment ecosystem, citing the need for financial stability in the face of disruptive and innovative technologies.
• The move comes at a time when fintech startups and virtual banks are increasingly taking up more market space, despite their tendency to take on more risk than traditional banks due to their ability to scale up rapidly.
• Per the IMF, stricter regulations may make it more difficult for new players to enter the market but it is necessary to regulate payments as an essential service that enables economic activity.

Source: Ventureburn

Our Takeaway

Digital payments have rapidly gained traction in Africa, particularly in countries where traditional banking is limited. Mobile money platforms such as M-Pesa and MTN Mobile Money have transformed the way people access financial services. However, this rapid growth of digital payments has also led to concerns about fraud, money laundering, and other financial crimes. Tighter regulation is needed to guard against these risks, ensure consumer protection, and promote healthy competition in the market. It is crucial for regulators to keep up with the evolving landscape and ensure that the necessary safeguards are in place.

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Moroccan edtech Koolskools raises $960,000 from Azur Fund

Highlights

• Morocco-based edtech Koolskools has secured a $960,000 investment from Azur Innovation Fund. 
• Founded in 2020, the startup runs an educational platform that responds to pedagogical problems with the digitization of various processes, including interactive courses and exercises, content bank, live courses, monitoring of skills, and remediation process.
• This fundraiser will allow Koolskools to consolidate its presence on a national scale and to start its international expansion by acquiring human, technical, and marketing resources.

Source: Wamda

Our Takeaway

As the traditional schooling experience in most African countries remains largely unchanged for years, education technology startups like Koolskools are capturing a market opportunity that lies in upgrading learning models that improve the teaching experience for both learners and teachers. This development bodes well for the continent, where the average literacy rate is estimated at 70%, and access to quality teaching and learning infrastructure lag behind other parts of the world.