Author: Brand Spot

In its Spirited war against tax evasion, the Kenya Revenue Authority has gone after Mr. Gao Fei who is the director of the New X-TIGI Technology company Limited. The company deals with the wholesale and distribution of X-Tigi branded smartphones chargers, phone covers etc. According to the KRA, Mr. Fei was charged at the Milimani Law Courts with three counts of failure to submit tax returns and pay taxes amounting to Kshs. 194 Million. “He was charged with failure to declare and remit taxes for a period of eight months that was commensurate to the company’s sales. He denied the…

Nairobi will for the first-time host an international bootcamp dubbed Coding School (CS), a program aiming to equip future programmers with critical 21st-century coding skills. The Coding School, is supported by Boeing, the world’s largest aerospace company and leading manufacturer of commercial jetliners, defense, space and security systems, and service provider of aftermarket support and run by ThinkYoung, a Brussels-based think tank that focuses on empowering the youth, has selected Nairobi as the first African country to host the coding boot camp following successful editions in Belgium and the Netherlands. This year’s edition will take place between 10th and 14th October…

A few months ago, Microsoft opened the first Africa Development Centre in Kenya. This is one of the two sites where ADC will be located. The other one will be in Lagos, Nigeria. Through the Africa Development Centre, Microsoft plans to recruit African engineering talent to develop innovative solutions that span the intelligent cloud and intelligent edge. With university graduates not finding jobs locally, such opportunities are needed for opening up the continent to the world and creating opportunities for locals. To head operations in Kenya, Microsoft has appointed Jack Ngare as the managing director for Africa Development Centre in…

There is an updated version of this post here. Safaricom Home Fibre service has been available in Kenya for a little over two years. The service has had is fair share of problems over the years with some users complaining of unreliable speeds when they have multiple devices connected. Safaricom has previously said that it had fixed the problem but the issue was still there for some users. The numbers of those complaining about the speeds has gone down and this may be an indication that the problem had been fixed. To add more customers to Home Fibre, Safaricom has…

Over the years, LG Electronics (LG) has fine-tuned its premium LCD TV offerings. LG’s advanced televisions have been rebranded under the NanoCell TV name to highlight their NanoCell Display technology. LG’s NanoCell TVs provide a clear and distinct brand identity, which emphasizes their capabilities to provide a more vivid array of colors and outstanding picture quality from a range of perspectives. Until recently, larger families and groups would have to sit strategically to ensure they were in view of the TV. With the introduction of IPS displays, consumers can now benefit from wide viewing angles and watch content with ease.…

In Kenya, there are about 14 million people who have access to the Internet. By the share of users among the entire population, the country ranks 129th in the world. This had happened primarily due to the fiber-optic Internet introduction in 2009. The cables allowed the country to make a big leap providing citizens with low-cost access to the Internet both from computers and mobile devices. The Internet grown to a global scale like any other mechanism is becoming more vulnerable. Despite the advanced technologies, the Internet freedom issue is on the agenda in Kenya nowadays. That’s exactly why more…

According to Euromonitor, the world’s fastest growing economies by 2030 will be in Africa. This consequently makes the continent the next big e-commerce market. And as this positive narrative continues to place Africa as a top investment destination, the need for advanced logistics systems has become inevitable. The growth of e-commerce will significantly depend on the quality and efficiency of logistics networks; from intra and cross trade to financial transactions in payment of goods and services. When writing the African e-commerce story, I often leap at the chance to explore only the enviable milestones the continent has made. Nevertheless, there…

Earlier this week, IBS Bank announced a partnership with Visa to deepen its payments services in Somalia by going live with its acquiring business on the Visa platform. Through this partnership, IBS Bank will accelerate its banking services by accessing Visa’s global footprint to offer customers more convenient, secure and reliable ways to access and spend their funds. IBS Bank Chief Executive Officer Mahat Mohamed said “We went live with Visa acquiring in May this year and within a month we have seen an outstanding response in the market. In our first month, we have had 341 transactions (ATM withdrawals)…

40% of Kenyans using global mobile browser Opera Mini access online social media site Facebook, says a 2019 State of Mobile Web Report for Africa. The report which gives a detailed look at the digital landscape of the African region further details that eight out of ten people access Facebook on a daily basis with Opera Mini registering on average 73 million browsing results to social media platforms in Q1-2019 in Africa. According to the report, the most browsed category of websites were social media platform domains such as Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, followed by search engine websites like Google, and entertainment…

LG Electronics has contributed Ksh 4M towards P.C.E.A Kikuyu Hospital’s Orthopedic Rehabilitation Unit for the 13th year running. The donations will assist the unit to acquire prosthetics, for over 100 incapable patients as well as generate awareness on the plight of persons with physical impairments. Mr. Janghoon Chung, LG East Africa MD noted that the demand for affordable prosthetics far outweighs the supply in the country, a fact that is further complicated by financial constraints of most patients. “There are currently about 45 million amputees worldwide. More than half a million of them are in Kenya and the numbers keep…