Author: Gugu Lourie

Blockchain developer platform Alchemy announced today it has raised $80 million (R1,1 billion) from Coatue and Addition, valuing the company at ½ billion dollars (R7,2 billion). The company’s platform powers over $30 billion (R428 billion) in transactions for tens of millions of users in 99% of countries worldwide. The blockchain company is fast becoming the blockchain world’s version of Amazon Web Services (AWS), the world’s most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform, offering over 200 fully-featured services from data centres globally. Alchemy’s developer platform powers the blockchain industry by providing developers with the tools they need to create mainstream blockchain applications.…

South Africa is among the top countries with the highest perceived risk of job automation, with 53% of respondents saying that the risk of having their job automated has increased over the last year, says Rudi van Blerk, Principal and Recruiting Director at Boston Consulting Group, Johannesburg. He added that this is more than the global average of 41% of respondents fearing job automation. “Additionally, 31% of workers in the digitisation and automation fields have a significantly lower perceived risk of automation in South Africa than 46% globally.” As a result, South Africans are more willing to retrain for new…

The FinTech business of retailer Pepkor, previously Steinhoff Africa Retail, continues to report strong growth. Pepkor informed investors today that its FinTech business increased revenue by 3.1% to R4.5 billion for the six months ended 31 March 2021. The company operates its FinTech division through FLASH and Capfin. Pepkor said revenue growth momentum in the FLASH business continued at double-digits as it invests in new products, channels and geographies. The FLASH business has enabled people in townships and rural areas to start their own businesses using FLASH Business devices while existing shop owners are able to increase their business by…

Woven Planet Holdings, the subsidiary of Toyota, is buying  Level 5, an autonomous vehicle division of Lyft, for $550 million (R7, 8 billion). Lyft is one of the largest ride-hailing companies in the world. This marks the first major deal for the newly established Woven Planet. The deal will bring together world-class scientists and software engineers from Level 5, Woven Planet, and researchers from Toyota Research Institute (TRI), already working together with Woven Planet. The resulting combined “dream team” of approximately 1,200 will represent one of the most diverse, well-resourced and talented groups in this field. “This acquisition advances our…

When Andile Ngcaba – a South African tech entrepreneur and founder of Convergence Partners – moved to Silicon Valley in California, United States, few people paid attention. He set up his office in Mountain View, the suburb, where big tech giants such as Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn are headquartered. Ngcaba was daring enough to swim with the sharks of the tech industry. “If you swim with sharks, make sure you have the appetite of a whale,” to quote Matshona Dhliwayo, a Canadian-based philosopher and entrepreneur. Speaking to TechFinancials, Ngcaba confirms he has “been part of the Silicon Valley community for…

Eventhose with little interest in private equity space have likely heard of Convergence Partners, owned by ICT industry veteran Andile Ngcaba. The Rosebank-based company is a pan-African ICT–focused private equity player, delivering enhanced investment returns while underpinning Continental development. Convergence Partners has a proven record of accomplishment of developing new investment opportunities and actively adding value to investments across the lifecycle of ICT assets. Private equity firms play an essential role in the economy: They can help small enterprises grow and, in turn, generate returns for investors. Brandon Doyle, a co-founder of Convergence Partners, who serves as CEO, told TechFinancials…

MTN’s black economic empowerment scheme, MTN Zakhele Futhi, gets R75 million bailout to avert a cashflow crisis. The liquidity of MTN Zakhele Futhi has been impacted by MTN’s decision not to declare a dividend in its financial results for the six months ended 30 June 2020. The scheme is a ring-fenced special purpose vehicle aimed at facilitating investment by previously disadvantaged South Africans in MTN Group (MTN). MTN had suspended its final dividend as it focuses on faster debt reduction at its holding company even after posting a surge in 2020 earnings. Furthermore, on 10 March 2021. MTN announced that as a result of…

The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority has launched the globally utilised Med Safety App to improve the reporting of adverse effects of medicines and vaccines, thereby promoting pharmacovigilance and medicine safety in the country. The purpose of the data reported through the Med Safety App is to contribute to the understanding of medicines’ safety profiles of marketed medicines, including that of COVID-19 vaccines. The App is designed to simplify and promote the reporting of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs), including adverse events following immunisation (AEFIs). “In an era where mobile technology is predominant, this application will be a huge…

SA’s investment company Founders Factory Africa (FFA) has partnered with Small Foundation, a Dublin-based philanthropic foundation, to design, build and scale over 18 agtech startups across sub-Saharan Africa. As part of the Small Foundation investment, African early-stage agtech Founders and entrepreneurs can apply to join the Founders Factory Africa Venture Scale or Venture Build portfolios FFA will invest cash of $100,000 (R1,4 million) -$250,000 (R3, 6 million) and hands-on technical support to the entrepreneurs to grow their venture A full-time team of digital and technical experts based in Johannesburg, Nigeria, Kenya and London will build and grow the startups across…

YeboYethu, the broad-based black economic empowerment arm of Vodacom, announced that Thebe Investment Corporation had sold its 11,33% stake in the business to Mineworkers Investment Company. YeboYethu said Thebe Investment Corporation, through Main Street, has disposed of its entire beneficial interest of more than 5,99 million or 11,33% shares to Mineworkers Investment Company through MIC Investment Holdings. The details of the deal, such as the price paid by Mineworkers Investment Company, were not disclosed. The Vodacom YeboYethu empowerment scheme was established in 2008 and allowed black people to purchase Vodacom SA shares at a discount. This year marks the thirteen…