MTN Nigeria Launches Pan-African Tech Accelerator with US$65k Fund
MTN Nigeria has unveiled a ₦100 million ($65,200) accelerator program targeting early-stage startups across Africa, including Ghana.
The “From Africa, for Africa” initiative, opening for applications ahead of its September 2025 launch, will select ventures in fintech, agritech, AI, and cybersecurity for a 12-week hybrid program based in Lagos.
According to official records, participants gain equity-free funding, mentorship, and access to MTN’s cloud infrastructure and MoMo payment APIs. MTN Nigeria’s Chief Enterprise Officer Lynda Saint-Nwafor described the initiative as “a launchpad to greatness,” emphasizing its focus on scalable digital solutions. The program aligns with MTN’s broader ₦3 billion investment in Nigeria’s 3MTT skills project, which trained 90,000 Nigerians.
Read more: https://www.newsghana.com.gh/mtn-nigeria-launches-pan-african-tech-accelerator-with-us65k-fund/
Revenue-based lending by fintechs to SMMEs taking root in SA
A study by the SA Reserve Bank has found that revenue-based financing has emerged as a significant alternative to traditional lending for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with the research giving further insights into SA’s informal market.
The working paper by the Bank, penned by Dominic Russel, Claire Shi and Rowan Clarke, looked into data from more than 100-million transactions from a South African fintech platform.
Only 23.4% of young Nigerians save using fintech apps- report
Amid inflation, income volatility, and rising cost of living, young Nigerians are turning to fintech in growing numbers. However, the latest Nigeria Financial Habits Survey 2025 reveals that while adoption is widespread, usage remains shallow, and expectations are rapidly evolving.
The report, compiled by research studio Column and based on responses from over 1,100 young, mobile-first Nigerians, offers a revealing picture of how fintech tools are used across the country and what users want.
From automated savings to unified dashboards, the message is clear: digital finance is not just an app. It has become a lifeline.
Read more: http://technext24.com/2025/07/06/23-young-nigerians-save-fintechs/
NIBSS, AfricaNenda Advocate Homegrown Solutions For Financial Inclusion
With more than 400 million Africans still excluded from the formal financial system despite growing mobile phone and fintech innovations, the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) and AfricaNenda Foundation has called for inclusive homegrown payment solutions to promote financial inclusion on the continent.
This charge came as policymakers and financial system leaders from over 10 African countries converged to study Nigeria’s progress in instant payments and explore scalable solutions for their regions.
The managing director and chief executive of NIBSS, Premier Oiwoh, urged African governments to abandon legacy frameworks and take ownership of their digital payment journeys. “It is time for Africa to cast off the remnants of colonial-era thinking and take bold ownership of its financial future by building payment solutions by Africans, for Africans.”
CBDC pilot projects seeing adoption in Ghana and Thailand – Giesecke + Devrient
Herborg provided an overview of the report released by G+D in collaboration with OMFIF, which collected responses from 34 central banks worldwide, including the Bank of Ghana, Bank of Thailand, and European Central Bank, and in-depth interviews with senior representatives concerning the implementation of CBDCs into the mainstream banking ecosystem.
G+D has been working on several pilot projects to launch retail CBDCs. Explaining the revolutionary potential of CBDCs, Herborg stated that CBDCs can transfer the benefits of cash into the digital world, and would be a public means of payment without transactions fees or the need of a commercial bank – they will be an alternative method of payment comparable to PayPal, Visa, and Mastercard, intended to expand accessibility and inclusivity. “It’s this idea of transferring the capabilities of cash into digital world,” Herborg commented.
In its Kenya comeback, Luno targets crypto users who feel left out of risky P2P platforms
Luno, the UK-based crypto company which operates in South Africa, Nigeria—and recently, Uganda—now has a fourth horse to back in its Africa race: Kenya. On June 23, the company announced its re-entry into the East African country after a 2014 exit, expanding its regional presence.
Luno, operating as BitX, first entered Kenya in 2013. It was one of the first startups to offer cryptocurrency trading services in the country, alongside then-competitors—both foreign and local startups—such as Kipochi (which shut down after Safaricom blocked its access to M-Pesa), BitPesa (now AZA Group), and early peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplaces such as LocalBitcoins and Paxful.
The market Luno is returning to ten years later radically differs from the one it left behind. Over the past decade, Kenya has grown into East Africa’s most active cryptocurrency market. The rise of mobile money platforms like M-Pesa, coupled with increasing smartphone penetration and youth-driven digital adoption, has made Kenya a fertile ground for the sector.
Read more: https://techcabal.com/2025/07/04/luno-targets-kenyans-who-find-p2p-risky/
