Showing 67 results for:
Popular topics
One of Africa’s most prominent tech founders is stepping back into the spotlight with a new artificial intelligence (AI) venture. Karim Jouini and Jihed Othmani, his co-founder of Tunisian fintech startup Expensya, have launched Thunder Code, a generative AI-powered software testing platform. TechCrunch reports that the France- and Tunisia-based startup has already raised $9 million in seed funding. The return to startup life comes nearly two years after the duo sold Expensya to Swedish software firm Medius in 2023, according to the outlet. Although the terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, sources familiar with the matter told TechCrunch that they estimated it to be more than $120 million, marking one of the biggest African tech exits to date. From Promising Exit To New Beginnings Following the acquisition, Jouini assumed the role of chief product and technology officer at Medius. Neither he nor Othmani intended to return to entrepreneurship. However, Jouini’s exposure to the...
Carrot Credit, a Nigerian fintech company, recently announced via LinkedIn that it has raised $4.2 million in seed funding to expand its lending platform, which enables users to borrow against digital investment assets. The funding round was led by MaC Venture Capital, a firm that’s known for investing in diverse founders, as AFROTECH™ previously reported, with additional participation from Partech Africa and Authentic Ventures. When making the announcement, Carrot Credit stated that the funding will be used to support the company’s efforts to grow its team, enhance its credit infrastructure, and strengthen integration with digital investment platforms across Africa. Borrowing Without Selling: A New Credit Framework According to its website, Carrot Credit offers a unique approach to lending by allowing individuals to use their financial assets, such as stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), government bonds, or cryptocurrencies, as collateral. Users can access up to 40% of the value...
Klarna’s plans to go public may need to be on standby. The Sweden-based fintech company has reportedly had a loss of $99 million in Q1 2025, according to Tip Ranks. In comparison, it saw a loss of $47 million in Q1 2024. There are several reasons for this decline. For one, customer credit losses increased by 17%, totaling $136 million, according to its Q1 report. However a spokesperson told The Tab this statistic was to be expected. “Bear in mind that we made 13% more loans than a year ago so, all else being equal, you’d expect credit losses to increase by at least 13%,” the spokesperson mentioned. Klarna And Artificial Intelligence While Klarna replaced human roles with artificial intelligence (AI), as AFROTECH™ previously reported, this decision was driven by a desire to increase operational efficiency and reduce overhead. As a result, 700 customer service representatives were replaced with tools that leveraged OpenAI. Tip Ranks notes that this move did help the company meet its...
UX designer Roderick Wilkins strives to make the tech industry more inclusive. Tech Journey The Quincy, FL, native has always had a deep interest in technology and began fixing computers at a young age, which guided his educational pursuits at Florida A&M University (FAMU). He earned a bachelor’s degree in information technology in 2019 and went on to Louisiana State University, where he earned a master’s in digital media art and engineering with a focus on UX in 2021. “When you open that app and you see the first screen, you’re scrolling and you’re interacting with it, I always say someone had to design that,” Wilkins told AFROTECH™. “So I would say, within UX, there are designers, which is what I am, and someone designed that whole page that you’re seeing and you’re interacting with.” While UX includes various verticals one can explore — such as research and accessibility — Wilkins’ interest in graphic design aligned with his goal of becoming a UX designer, which was affirmed...
Symphonic Capital has launched its inaugural fund targeting overlooked founders in fintech and health care. Symphonic Capital’s Inception Sydney Thomas, who always displayed an “entrepreneurial spirit,” founded the venture capital (VC) firm in 2022. Having already dedicated years to being a serial investor, her work in venture capital began in 2016. It was during that time that she observed a common pattern: Many firms placed broad bets on numerous founders, accepting that most would fail in hopes that a few would yield outsized returns. However, she believed it was possible to have a more refined approach that would put more early-staged founders in a better position. “While it is still incredibly risky to work in early stage, a way to actually de-risk your investment is to have a much more structured and focused support strategy with those companies that increases the likelihood that they graduate from pre-seed to seed, and increases the likelihood that they graduate from seed to...
The crypto market is surging following a major regulatory shift. According to CNBC, XRP jumped 10% to $2.49 after Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has dropped its case against the company. This decision marks the end of a four-year legal battle that has shaped the industry’s regulatory landscape and fueled speculation about a broader shift in the SEC’s approach. Ripple’s Long-Awaited Victory Speaking at the Digital Assets Summit in New York, Garlinghouse reflected on the drawn-out legal fight, calling it a painful yet necessary battle for the industry. “It’s been almost four years and about three months since the SEC originally sued us, certainly a painful journey in lots of ways,” Garlinghouse said. “I really deeply believed that we were going to be on the right side of the law and on the right side of history.” The SEC sued Ripple in 2020, alleging that the company sold XRP as an unregistered security. Ripple scored a...
African fintech platform Mansa has secured new funding. Mansa, founded in 2023 by Mouloukou Sanoh (CEO) and Nkiru Uwaje (COO), enables seamless cross-border payments and instant transactions for its customers. Its offerings include competitive exchange rates, virtual card processing to support cash flow management, and automated matching of financial transactions to bank statements. This is made possible by leveraging a stablecoin infrastructure, its website mentions. “We’re starting by being the primary liquidity provider to the biggest payment companies across emerging markets,” Sanoh explained to TechCrunch. “From there, we can handle payouts and also offer additional services like foreign exchange. The goal is to create a one-stop payment platform where they can finance their payments, settle transactions instantly, and access foreign currency seamlessly — all in one place.” The inception of Mansa, based in Dubai, UAE, originated from Sanoh experiencing issues receiving money...
Fintech platform Raenest has raised new funding to support African businesses. The company, founded in 2022 by Victor Alade, Sodruldeen Mustapha, and Richard Oyome, offers a range of services, including virtual and physical dollar cards, international transfers, invoicing for global payments, the ability to create USD, GBP, and EUR bank accounts, and currency conversion, among other features listed on its website. Raenest’s original platform was structured as an Employer of Record (EOR), helping foreign companies pay employees on the continent while remaining compliant, TechCrunch reports. The founders recognized a deeper-rooted issue, leading them to update Raenest to assist the continent’s gig economy and businesses directly. “A U.S. company might not care if a payment is delayed by five days, but for someone in Nigeria or Kenya, that’s a big deal — especially when converting to local currency becomes another hurdle,” Alade told TechCrunch. Looking ahead, Raenest intends to secure...
Ohio’s only Black-owned bank — and the first established and approved in the U.S. since 2000 — has tripled its assets since inception. Columbus Business Journal reports Adelphi Bank was founded in January 2023 and is led by Chairman and CEO Jordan Miller, who had spent over three decades in business and initially retired in 2019 as Central Ohio president for Cincinnati’s Fifth Third Bank. He returned to the industry to get Adelphi up and running with a mission of dismantling financial inequities and helping customers create streams of income without bias. He is joined by Kevin Boyce, co-founder and vice chairman. Upon its launch, Adelphi received local support from large corporations in central Ohio. “It feels like family,” Miller expressed, according to the outlet. “Banks can be intimidating places.” Columbus-based Adelphi Bank currently offers certificates of deposit, checking and savings accounts, and loans for personal use. It plans to provide home mortgages in 2025. For...
Saquon Barkley has expanded his portfolio ahead of Super Bowl LIX, set for Feb. 9, 2025. The running back, wearing a No. 26 Philadelphia Eagles jersey, is heading to New Orleans, LA, to face the Kansas City Chiefs — a rematch of the 2022 Super Bowl matchup, ESNP reports. Barkley has combined his passion for sports and business and will be featured in a Super Bowl ad for Ramp, a financial operations platform that provides exclusive perks to over 30,000 customers. These perks include smart accounts payable, which processes bills in seconds, corporate cards, vendor management, procurement, travel booking, and automated bookkeeping. Customers have saved upwards of $2 billion through Ramp, CEO and Co-Founder Eric Glyman mentioned in a press release. For these reasons, Barkley is not only endorsing the company through the commercial but is now an investor in the platform, the press release reported. “I’ve always believed a winning mindset applies to every part of life. If you want to...
Mastercard has agreed to settle a discrimination lawsuit impacting its minority employees. According to a press release, the fintech company had allegedly been underpaying its female, Black, and Hispanic employees. T he class-action lawsuit — which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York — claims 7,500 employees in job levels 4-10 across the United States dating back to September 2016 were impacted. Details in the lawsuit share that the women and people of color received less compensation for conducting equivalent work to their male and white counterparts, the New York Times reports. The major fintech company had agreed to pay a $26 million settlement prior to the lawsuits filing on Jan. 14, 2025. The settlement now awaits approval from the court. “We are very pleased to have reached this nationwide settlement with Mastercard, which we believe represents a fair compromise,” Cara E. Greene, partner at Outten & Golden LLP and lead counsel for the...
Moove, marketed as an “African-born, global mobility fintech,” has announced an acquisition. The company, founded in Nigeria by Ladi Delano and Jide Odunsi, enables delivery drivers to finance vehicles and start driving with partners like Uber in three simple steps: apply, get verified, and drive. TechCrunch notes that Moove launched with 76 cars in Lagos in 2020 and has expanded to 36,000 cars. Per the company’s website, over 52,787,109 trips have been completed. Additionally, it is available in 19 cities across six continents. Over the years, Moove has secured significant funding. In 2023, $8 million had been by Absa Corporate and Investment Banking to reach Ghana, bringing its total investment from the bank to $28 million, Fintech Global reports. In March 2024, $100 million had been raised in a Series B round led by Uber to further its expansion, TechCrunch mentioned. The company has also attached a sustainability mission to its business model, seeking to create “the largest and...
Hip-Hop icon RAKIM is aligning himself with artificial intelligence (AI). According to a news release, the rapper, who released the studio album “G.O.D.’s Network” in 2024, is now the founder of the fintech platform Notes Technology, which will benefit artists by providing them access to loan and credit providers to fund creative projects, AI-powered education around financial literacy and entrepreneurship, and fintech tools to manage capital and income. By merging music, finance, and technology, Notes seeks to empower artists with the tools they need to succeed and maintain control over their careers. “With Notes, getting ‘paid in full’ is beyond just the money, it’s also about the knowledge and understanding of the urban music game from a position of being conscious of how it all works as a business, and how to leverage that to thrive and succeed as independent urban music artists and creators,” RAKIM said in a statement shared on the company website. Notes Technology’s other...
African fintech company Moniepoint has received strategic funding from Visa. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, Moniepoint was reportedly the fastest-growing fintech company in 2023 and 2024. Launched by Tosin Eniolorunda (CEO) and Felix Ike (chief technology officer), the fintech company has a banking app that connects customers to a “debit card that always works,” Eniolorunda said in a YouTube video. Moniepoint’s offerings include: Banking accounts Loans Expense cards Instant payouts Accounting and bookkeeping solutions Moniepoint’s business model has been an overwhelming success. In fact, it processes over 1 billion transactions monthly, with total payments volume exceeding $22 billion, according to a press release shared with AFROTECH™. As it looks to expand its efforts, the company has received a strategic investment from Visa. “We are thrilled to announce Visa’s investment in Moniepoint,” Eniolorunda said, per the press release. “Visa’s backing is a strong endorsement of our...
Jay-Z will be launching a groundbreaking partnership, marking a first in the United States. Billboard reports that Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, a full-service entertainment company, has partnered with South Korean fintech company Musicow to introduce “the first Music Equity Service Provider in the United States.” This will give U.S.-based music fans a rare opportunity to obtain partial ownership of songs created by their favorite artists, while also earning a share of the revenue generated from sales. This will be made possible by giving artists the ability to fractionalize their royalty revenue and sell shares of their tracks to individual investors, creating an all-around win for everyone involved. “The music industry is evolving into a shared ecosystem where fans and creators can earn together,” Roc Nation Vice Chairman Jay Brown said in an interview with Billboard. “Our mission is not only to support and empower artists by providing the tools and services they need to build a better...