Author: Kaluka wanjala

Summary The Catalyst Fund has announced an investment of $1.8 million in 9 climate tech startups in Africa. This investment not only reaffirms the fund’s commitment to climate adaptation. It also expands its portfolio to 19 companies operating in 8 different markets including Kenya, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. The second round of investments by The Catalyst Fund is tailored to address critical climate-related challenges from agriculture, healthcare, energy access, and waste management. The selected startups showcase a spectrum of solutions, including a solar cold chain system for small-scale aquaculture in Kenya, affordable telemedicine health services…

Samsung has officially launched the Galaxy S24 series in Kenya. The official retail prices for the S24 series start at Ksh 175,000 for the base model 8/256GB model and goes for as high as ksh 277,000 for the Galaxy S24 Ultra at 12/512GB variant. The series has been on pre-order the last 3 weeks. Galaxy AI The Galaxy S24 series is not just another smartphone; it represents the future of AI-powered devices. Anthony Hutia, Head of Mobile Experience at Samsung Electronics East Africa, stated, “The Galaxy S24 series demonstrates our initial step toward a new era of AI phones that…

Summary Kenyan-based electric mobility company, Roam, has secured a total of $24 million in funding. this consists of $14 million in a Series A funding round and $10 million in debt commitment. The Series A funding was led by Equator Africa and featuring contributions from At One Ventures, TES Ventures, and others. The additional $10 million debt commitment came from the U.S. Government’s International Development Finance Corporation (DFC). Before this, the last major Seed round by Roam was in November 2021 when the company raised $5 Million through an investment round led by At One Ventures. Roam designs, develops and…

Opera has today announced that MiniPay wallet has surpassed 1 million users across Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana. MiniPay is a self-custodial dollar stablecoin wallet is integrated into the Opera Mini browser for Android users and is built on the Celo blockchain. The wallet enables fast and easy payments with very low transaction fees, allowing users to save, send, and receive funds instantly on their mobile phones. The key features of MiniPay include offering sub-cent fees through the Celo network. Currently live in Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana, MiniPay plans to expand to South Africa and other countries. The partnership between MiniPay,…

Summary Visa hosted its first Africa Fintech Accelerator Program’s Demo Day in Nairobi, featuring innovations from emerging fintech startups across 18 African countries. Launched in June 2023, the program seeks to expand Africa’s expanding startup community by providing expertise, connections, technology, and investment funding. The event brought together key ecosystem players, funding partners, angel investors, and venture capitalists to witness the first-cohort startups showcase their diverse innovations. These startups, selected from over 1,000 applicants, spanned various subsectors such as merchant payment solutions, lending infrastructure, Banking-as-a-Service, and B2B marketplaces. Kenyan startups took center stage during the Demo Day, with Duqha, Power,…

Summary Computers for Schools Kenya (CFSK) has joined forces with MaMa Doing Good and Huawei Kenya to kick start a digital literacy initiative aimed at empowering women in the Joyful Women Organization. This partnership seeks to bridge the digital divide by equipping women with essential skills and knowledge to thrive in today’s digital world. The beneficiaries of this initiative will further share their skills with other women in their groups. Also Read: DigiTruck mobile computer lab seeks to train 10,000 youth in Kenya annually At the core of this initiative is the Women Empowerment Program, a curriculum designed by CFSK…

Summary BasiGo has today announced the appointment of Mr. Moses Nderitu as the Managing Director for its operations in Kenya and the promotion of Ms. Doreen Orishaba to Managing Director for BasiGo Rwanda. Mr. Moses Nderitu, who previously served as BasiGo’s Chief Revenue Officer, has been a key person advocating for electric mobility in Kenya. His role as Chief Commercial Officer saw the successful introduction of E-bus technology to the Kenyan matatu sector. This resulted in over 450 reservations from its partner operators. He also played an important role in establishing the Electric Mobility Association of Kenya (EMAK). Commenting on…

Summary Sophos has today announced its status as a Leader in the IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Modern Endpoint Security for Midsize Businesses 2024 Vendor Assessment. This evaluation assesses the solutions and business strategies of 16 prominent modern endpoint security vendors. Sophos Endpoint, safeguarding over 300,000 organizations globally against advanced threats, boasts a number of anti-ransomware, anti-exploitation, behavioral analysis, and other cutting-edge technologies that proactively thwart threats. IDC’s report commends Sophos Endpoint for integrating an “expansive set of protection technologies” as standard features, including host-based firewall and IDS/IPS, device control, DLP, and encryption. Notably, Sophos earns praise for its commitment to strengthening…

Xiaomi has today officially unveiled the Redmi Note 13 Series in the Kenyan market. The Redmi Note is the company’s most popular series globally. In Kenya, this series will have the standard Redmi Note 13, Redmi Note 13 Pro and Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G. The phones will be available for Ksh 27,499, Ksh 41,999 and Ksh 73,999 respectively.  These phones are really good and my favourite is the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G. The price is a bit high compared to what the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G was available for. You can blame the depreciating shilling for this…

Branch and Solv Kenya have announced a strategic partnership that seeks to boost the growth of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Kenya. The partnership aims to provide loans, business development support, and market linkages to Kenyan MSMEs, ultimately bridging the credit gap and accelerating business opportunities for entrepreneurs across the nation. Under the partnership, Branch will extend loans and working capital of up to Kshs. 1 million to MSMEs on Solv Kenya’s platform, facilitating improved cash flow and stock financing from suppliers and distributors. Rose Muturi, the Managing Director of Branch East Africa, emphasized during the partnership announcement…