Hi Fintech friends 👋, Happy New Year 🎉

Here are the highlights of what happened in African Fintech this week;

• It has been a slow week with no fundraising deals in Fintech.
•  A Singapore-based VC opened its first MENA office, setting sights on Africa.
• Africa’s largest bank partnered with Union Pay to boost e-commerce in African countries.
• One of the largest African payment startups laid off staff a month before its CEO’s departure.
• An African Agri-fintech founder could receive a 45-year jail term after being charged with securities fraud.

💸 Fundraise and Exits

No Fintech deals were announced this week.

💰 Venture Funds

• Golden Gate Ventures opened first MENA office in Saudi Arabia, setting sights on Africa.

🚀 Partnerships & Product Launches

• Nigeria based Carbon launched an AI powered Business Bank .

• Standard Bank Group partnered with Union Pay to facilitate e-commerce in several African countries.

• inDrive aimed to launch financial services to help drivers in developing markets.
• Tanzania Based Swahilies launched digital business courses for SMEs.

📰 News of the Week

• Cellulant laid off staff in December, one month before CEO’s departure.

Akshay Grover, who took the helm as CEO of Cellulant, a prominent African payment company in 2021, is stepping down this month due to personal reasons. Peter O’Toole, the CFO, will assume the role of Acting CEO. The company intends to enhance its leadership team in the upcoming months.

In December 2023, Cellulant underwent its third round of layoffs, shortly before CEO Akshay Grover's sudden departure. The exact number of affected employees is undisclosed. Additionally, four high-profile executives left the company in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Cellulant, having raised over $50 million since its inception, boasts payment infrastructure across the continent. It seamlessly integrates over 370 payment methods, operates in 35 markets, and holds licenses with physical offices established in 19 countries.

📑 Read of the week

• Five trends to watch out for in African tech in 2024 (Techcabal)
• How ‘Doing Hard Things’ Put Chipper Cash Back On Track (Chipper Cash) .
• Last year was a tough period for African growth-stage startups and 2024 presents a mixed bag (Techcrunch) .
• 💳🚀Africa’s hidden growth opportunity: betting on venture debt (Medium) .
• 10 predictions for digital payments in 2024 (dejiolowe) .

📖 Other News, Reads, and media

• Tingo founder could receive 45 years jail term after being charged with securities fraud.
• Nigeria’s naira stablecoin scheduled to go live on February 27, 2024 .
• Nigerian startups borrowed over $415 million out of $2.1B funding in 10 years .

• Cleantech and fintech attracted most debt funding in Africa.

• Kuda hit ₦55.8 trillion(~$61.4 billion) in transaction value within four years.

🎥 VIDEO INTERVIEWS/DISCUSSIONS

• Interview with Obi Emetarom, The Fintech Pioneer Building Africa's Future With Blockchain at Appzone.

• The Crossover Show 2023 - an annual recap of the most significant moments in African tech.

🦉 Tweet of the Week

🎯 Fintech Opportunities

• MTN is hiring for Fintech Revenue Assurance Analyst.
• PalmPay is hiring for Online Acquiring Key Account Manager.

Made in Tanzania 🇹🇿 with 💚

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