Author: Kaluka wanjala

Safaricom is evolving into what it now describes as a purpose-led technology company with a clear ambition to lead Africa’s digital transformation by 2030. Part of this shift is the focus on artificial intelligence, intelligent infrastructure and ecosystem building. This was recently highlighted at Safaricom Decode 4.0. According to Safaricom’s Group Chief Technology Officer James Maitai, the company’s long-term strategy is closely tied to building the foundations of a modern digital economy. “Decode sits at the heart of Safaricom’s vision to become Africa’s leading purpose-led technology company by 2030.” The platform is part of a broader effort to bring together…

Google has announced a major redesign of its Hustle Academy programme. The updated initiative is delivered in partnership with UpSkill Universe and targets individuals across Sub-Saharan Africa looking to build practical artificial intelligence (AI) skills. Previously focused on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the Hustle Academy has trained over 18,000 businesses through bootcamp-style sessions covering business strategy, digital tools, leadership and AI. The Hustle Academy is now open to students, employees and job seekers. The redesigned programme introduces a more flexible learning format that combines Short, 60-minute webinars for accessible, bite-sized learning and more immersive bootcamps for deeper, hands-on training. …

Liquid C2 has unveiled Africa’s first Partner Experience Centre powered by Google Cloud in Johannesburg. The new facility aims to push partners and resellers past conventional distribution methods. It provides an immersive, practical space for them to create, experiment with, and implement solutions specifically designed for the African market. Central to this effort is a structured onboarding process. This journey guides partners toward achieving official Google Cloud accreditation and certification. At the core of the initiative is a structured onboarding journey that helps partners achieve official Google Cloud accreditation and certification. Participants will work alongside specialist engineers to build bespoke…

Verto has introduced US-dollar business accounts for companies that are doing business between the United States and Africa. The accounts are designed to offer a more stable way to receive, hold and move funds. This is particularly beneficial for companies operating across multiple jurisdictions. “This responds to a clear gap in the market,” said Ola Oyetayo, CEO of Verto. “We are seeing businesses that are properly registered and investment-backed struggle to maintain banking relationships simply because they operate across borders, including in African markets.” Verto says its new accounts are tailored for US-based firms with African operations, startups expanding across…

Kenswitch and Visa have partnered to help advance payment innovation and strengthen the country’s domestic processing and settlement ecosystem. The partnership brings together Kenswitch’s national payments infrastructure and Visa’s global expertise in digital payments to support financial institutions, merchants, businesses and consumers across Kenya. The two organisations plan to explore opportunities in payment innovation and merchant acceptance, including collaboration around Visa’s Value-Added Services. These services are designed to help financial institutions, fintechs, and businesses enhance payment security, prevent fraud, expand digital acceptance and leverage data for growth and efficiency. The collaboration will also focus on modernising payment processing, card services,…

LOOP is taking a different approach on its lifestyle commerce strategy this Easter by combining device financing, retail discounts and event access through its in-app marketplace, LOOP Discover. The core of this campaign is a Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) offer that allows customers to purchase the Samsung Galaxy S26 in instalments via LOOP FLEX. This is bundled with incentives such as a free Galaxy Watch 8 or Galaxy Buds 4 through select dealers. The campaign offers a clear look into LOOP’s broader ambition of evolving from a digital banking app into a full-fledged lifestyle and commerce platform. LOOP says…

The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has just published its most recent Quality-of-Service (QoS) performance report, covering the financial year 2024–2025. The report has positioned Safaricom at the top of the country’s mobile network rankings, even as the broader industry continues to experience a downward trend in overall performance. The regulator monitors mobile operators as part of its consumer protection mandate eveluating performance using a framework introduced in 2017. This framework assesses networks based on End-to-End testing (drive and walk tests), Network Performance (NP-QoS) and Quality of Experience (QoE) based on customer surveys. According to the report, Safaricom recorded an…

At Safaricom Decode 4.0, Safaricom previewed My OneApp, a new unified platform designed to merge the M-PESA and MySafaricom apps into a single app. According to Safaricom, the biggest friction point for users today is it’s fragmentation and notn lack of features. Customers end up switching between the M-PESA app and the MySafaricom apps to check balances, buy bundles, pay bills and manage financial services. That’s exactly what My OneApp aims to fix. “We love the apps, we love the features, but we don’t love the switch.” Safaricom is also pushing personalization powered by AI beyond convergence. The app introduces…

At Safaricom Decode 4.0, Safaricom PLC made a subtle shift in how it describes its flagship product, M-PESA. M-PESA is now being positioned as a core layer of Kenya’s digital financial infrastructure. Speaking during the fintech session, Esther Masese Waititu, Chief Financial Services Officer at Safaricom, said the platform is evolving beyond money transfers into a broader economic engine. “We are not just building a movement of money. We are creating a digital lifestyle and ecosystem,” she said. Since its launch, M-PESA has played a key role in expanding financial access across Kenya. Safaricom says financial inclusion has grown from…

Truecaller has crossed 500 million users worldwide. The company added more than 50 million users in 2025 alone. “This is an important milestone for us, but it also says something bigger about the world we live in,” said Rishit Jhunjhunwala, CEO of Truecaller. “More and more people need help navigating spam, scams, and unwanted communication every day. Reaching 500 million users shows the scale of that need, and the trust people place in Truecaller to help make communication safer. Our commitment remains focused on continuously strengthening Truecaller with smarter technology and new capabilities that protect users before, during, and after…