INNOVATORS 🎉➥Kenya Introduces Standardized QR Code System for Easy and Secure Digital Payments
The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has announced the issuance and implementation of a new standard, the Kenya Quick Response Code Standard 2023. This standard will guide how Payment Service Providers and banks regulated by the CBK will issue Quick Response (QR) Codes to businesses and consumers accepting digital payments.
➥The YALI AFRICA has partnered with Microsoft Africa Development Center (ADC) to improve the digital skills of young people in the East African region.
The Microsoft Africa Development Centre (ADC) has partnered with the Young African Leaders Initiative Regional Leadership Centre East Africa (YALI) to improve digital skills among the youth.
The two signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to provide digital skills programs and solutions to young leaders in the region.According to the MoU, the ADC will provide YALI participants with capacity-building opportunities in digital skills such as the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, access to its innovation hub at the Microsoft Garage and avail mentorship and training opportunities.
➥YellowCard Seeks to Expand in Nigeria with a Fiat Treasury Management Service
YellowCard, an African-focussed cryptocurrency exchange, is currently seeking approval to broaden its offerings in Nigeria where digital token trading has been partially restricted by regulators.The company, which has a focus on Africa and currently operates in 16 countries on the continent, has commenced talks with Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission to establish a cryptocurrency exchange.
YellowCard also boasts to be the first company in Africa to get a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license on the continent, following a regulatory approval in Botswana in October 2022.
➥StorsPay, a Nigerian Decentralized Retail Investing Platform, Raises $320,000 and Gets Accepted into Techstars NYC Accelerator.
StorsPay, a fintech startup by Nigerian, Sam Alonge, has secured a funding round of US$320,000 and is selected to participate in the Techstars NYC accelerator. The accelerator is supported by the JP Morgan Accelerator. Fintech has developed a decentralized platform for retail lending infrastructure which aims to connect small businesses worldwide with retail investors seeking alternative asset investment opportunities. The platform is designed to provide affordable capital to small businesses that need funding to grow their operations.
➥Nigeria’s Nestcoin launches new digital finance platform for Africans
Nigeria’s Nestcoin, which builds products aimed at making modern finance borderless and trustless, has announced the launch of Onboard, a digital finance platform aiming to provide modern, world-class digital finance services that connect Africans to the global economy.
Nestcoin recognises that traditional finance cannot provide solutions for organizations of the future and truly global citizens. Therefore, over the past few months, it has focused its efforts on building a first-of-its-kind financial solution to power Africa’s economic transformation – Onboard.
IN WEB3🚀 ➥Mastercard launches Web3 user verification solution to curb bad actors.
Global financial services giant Mastercard has launched a new Web3 solution aimed at enhancing user verification standards and “reducing the opportunities for bad actors” in the digital asset space.
The firm outlined that its “building a way for Web3 and blockchain service providers to help secure transactions between users, verified according to standards set by Mastercard.
➥From an AI chatbot to a $150 million valued company.
It's definitely not every day you hear that a business that started as an AI chatbot in 2017 has grown to become a VC-backed company with a $150 million valuation. But that is the story of Nomba, a Nigerian fintech that started as Kudi.AI, a chatbot that helped people process online payments.
This week, Nomba announced that it raised a $30 million pre-Series B round. Nomba started as an AI chatbot because a large part of the market wasn’t tech-savvy
➥Nigeria approves National Blockchain Policy
The federal government on Wednesday in Abuja approved the implementation of the National Blockchain Policy for Nigeria. A blockchain is a decentralized, distributed and public digital ledger used to record transactions across many computers. Such records cannot be altered retroactively without the alteration of subsequent blocks and the consensus of the network.
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, said at the end of Wednesday’s cabinet meeting that the policy was developed in consultation with stakeholders involving more than 50 institutions and personalities.
IN OTHER NEWS 📚➥Samsung Bans Staff’s AI Use After Spotting ChatGPT Data Leak
Samsung has decided to ban the use of popular generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, Google Bard, and Bing, by its employees after discovering staff uploaded sensitive code to these platforms. The company fears that data transmitted to AI platforms, which is stored on external servers, could be difficult to retrieve and delete, and may end up being disclosed to other users.
The Company is however preparing its own internal artificial intelligence tools.
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