What's inside?
• Nigeria fines Binance $10B
• Kenya & Namibia are 'greylisted' by FATF
• Egypt's Moneyhash raises $4.5M
• QIA launches $1B USD fund for VC's
AND MORE!
Making the news
Nigeria levies fine of $10B on Binance amidst investigation into the exchange's reported allowance of "illegal transactions" - 2 execs arrested
"Nigerian authorities have imposed a $10 billion fine on Binance, the global crypto exchange at the center of a crypto crackdown in the country, a presidential aide told the BBC on Friday morning. Authorities have accused Binance of benefiting from “illegal transactions,” the aide said in the interview. The fine comes barely 48 hours after news broke that security agenciesdetainedtwo executives of the global crypto exchange." Continue reading on Techcabal.
Uganda's microfinance regulator protests move to Ministry of Finance
"Uganda’s microfinance sector’s regulator, the Uganda Microfinance Regulatory Authority (UMRA), has protested a plan by the government to move it into the Ministry of Finance. The regulator was established by the Tier 4s and Moneylenders Act 2016 as an independent body. A new bill before the country’s parliament now seeks to rationalise the structure of government agencies, including moving UMRA to Treasury. The regulator now says its work will not be carried out effectively within the ministry." Continue reading on The Kenyan Wall Street.
Kenya and Namibia's financial systems 'greylisted' by international crime watchdog
"The country has been grey listed after an assessment revealed a deficiency and interventions to address the enhanced monitoring of the country’s financial system by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Kenya underwent an assessment conducted by the Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG) in 2022 which revealed a mixed picture. According to Brenda Guchu, Manager, PwC Kenya, being on the grey list sends a message to the global financial system to exercise caution in dealings with the country." Continue reading on The Kenyan Wall Street.
Startup Activity
Egypt - Fintech startup MoneyHash raises $4.5M seed round to expand its business team and growth
Nigeria - Fintech startup BFREE raises $3M to assist in increasing margins for its largely automated collections service
Nigeria - Fintech startup Mamamoni raises $250K to scale its network of female agents
South Africa - Solar marketplace startup Hohm Energy raises $8M seed funding round to help the company attain sustainable profitability
Investor Activity
Other tech news...
Featured Read
Are these accelerator programs wasting African startups' time? - Ethel Cofie's Blog
"The common thread? None of these companies appear to be gasping for the breath of acceleration—they need cold, hard cash." Continue reading.
Partners in the news
Founders Factory Africa hosts second edition of The African Pre-Seed Podcast Live in Nairobi
Strike partners with Yellowcard to roll out seamless on and off ramps for fiat in 7 African countries
"We’re excited to announce that Strike customers can now seamlessly access local fiat on- and off-ramps and trade Bitcoin & USDT, across 7 African countries through Yellow Card's Payments API integration!" Learn more.
AFTS in the headlines
AFTS Lead Organizer, Andrew Barden, speaks at Nation Digital Summit at Lake Naivasha, Kenya
