Daily Investor Update November 1 2022

Nigerian proptech SmallSmall raises $3m seed for expansion

Highlights

• SmallSmall, a Nigerian proptech startup, has raised $3 million in seed funding — $2 million in equity and $1 million in debt.
• The startup provides renters access to monthly rent payments while offering landlords a way to vet tenants, increase income, and manage properties. Since 2018, it’s recorded over 476,000 registrations while 80,000 people are on the waiting list.
• Currently in Lagos, the company plans to use the funds to expand into other Nigerian cities, including Port Harcourt, Enugu, and Jos, by the end of the first quarter of 2023.

Source: TechCrunch

Our Takeaway

Proptech is beginning to heat up in Africa. Unlike many other traditional industries, the real estate and property space has mostly stayed the same over the decades. But in recent times, the ongoing technology wave has seen a number of African startups emerge with a vision to give the sector a face-lift. For SmallSmall, it sees an opportunity in addressing the inefficiencies that have marred Nigeria’s rental system for years, affecting how landlords and renters transact.

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Surge in data revenue lifts MTN Nigeria’s 9-month profit

Highlights

• MTN Nigeria Communications Plc has posted a N269 billion profit after tax for the nine months ended September 2022, showing a 22.1% growth year-on-year, largely driven by a jump in data revenue.
• The company’s subscribers showed a significant increase in data consumption, and MTN’s data revenue jumped by 49.1% to N549.6 billion from N368.6 billion recorded last year.
• Overall, the company’s revenue for the period stood at N1.45 trillion, a 20.7% increase compared to N1.20 trillion recorded in the same period last year.

Source: Nairametrics

Our Takeaway

While voice service had historically been the major source of revenue for telecom operators in Nigeria and broadly Africa, data is expected to take that position in the next few years as more people come online, consume and spend more on data. Estimates suggest that internet penetration in Africa is likely to grow at a faster rate than elsewhere in the world over the next decade. It’s good news for telcos—and their investors—as MTN’s latest figures already show data revenue inching to become parallel with its revenue from voice services. 

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Gold hovers near one-week low as the US dollar steadies

Highlights

• Gold prices were flat early Tuesday, after touching their lowest levels in more than one week, as the dollar held firm ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s policy meeting, where the central bank is likely to deliver another oversized interest rate hike.
• Spot gold was listless at $1,633.69 per ounce as of 12 midnight, having earlier touched its lowest level since October 21, a report from CNBC says.
• Spot silver rose 0.2% to $19.18 per ounce, platinum dipped 0.1% to $924.51 and palladium gained 0.9% to $1,856.91.

Source: CNBC

Our Takeaway

Gold prices are highly sensitive to the movement of the United States dollar (global receive currency) and interest rates in the country, as these determine the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding metal. The Federal Reserve (America’s central bank) is expected to gear up its fight against rising inflation this week, raising rates further, even as debate intensifies over when to downshift to smaller interest rate hikes so as to avoid sending the world’s biggest economy out of control.