Afrobility: Africa Tech and Business

Afrobility: Africa Tech and Business

Olumide Ogunsanwo & Bankole Makanju

Stories and analyses of African technology companies
November 18, 202402:24:40

#77: PiggyVest - How the savings and investment platform is providing financial services across Nigeria

Overview: Today, we’re going to explore PiggyVest - the Nigerian savings and investment platform. We’ll discuss the story across the following areas: African Banking & Neobank context  PiggyVest’s early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential ...

May 15, 202401:42:25

#76: IHS Towers - How the telecom infrastructure company is building and managing towers across Africa and beyond

Overview: Today, we’re going to explore IHS Towers - the African telecommunications infrastructure company. We’ll discuss the story across the following areas:  Telecom tower infrastructure context  IHS Towers' early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning &a...

February 16, 202401:48:53

#75: eTranzact - How Nigeria's pioneering payments and switching platform is serving businesses and governments across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to explore eTranzact - the African payments and switching platform. We’ll discuss the story across the following areas: First, Nigerian payments context  Second, eTranzact's early history Third, Product & monetization strategy Fourth, Competitive positio...

January 23, 202402:43:04

#74: Moove - How the mobility fintech is providing vehicle financing to mobility entrepreneurs across Africa and the rest of the world

Overview: Today, we’re going to explore Moove, the mobility fintech. We’ll discuss the story across the following areas: African mobility and transportation context Moove's launch & early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential exit option...

December 31, 202301:55:51

#73: AFEX (Africa Exchange) - How the commodities exchange is facilitating commodity trade by offering training, credit, storage to farmers & providing investment solutions to financial partners

Overview: Today, we’re going to explore AFEX, the African commodities exchange. We’ll discuss the story across the following areas: African Agriculture context AFEX's launch & early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential exit options Ov...

December 11, 202301:36:25

#72: Nomba (Kudi) - How the Nigerian FinTech is providing Point-of-Sale, agency banking and payment solutions to merchants across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Nomba (formerly known as Kudi) , the FinTech payments solutions provider. We’ll explore the story across the following areas: African & Nigerian SME context Nomba's early history  Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning ...

November 13, 202302:30:55

#71: TymeBank - How the South African Neobank is integrating digital and physical experiences to provide holistic financial services across emerging markets

Overview: Today, we’re going to explore TymeBank - the South African neobank. We’ll discuss the story across the following areas: African & Nigerian banking context TymeBank's launch, early history, growth & fundraising Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning...

October 19, 202302:37:53

#70: Carbon - How the credit-led neobank is providing loans, BNPL and financial services across Nigeria and Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to explore Carbon, the credit-led Neobank. We’ll discuss the Carbon story across the following areas: African lending & consumer credit Carbon's founding & early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential exit...

October 06, 202302:18:07

#69: FairMoney - How the credit-led neobank is providing consumer loans and financial services across Nigeria, India and other developing markets

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about FairMoney, the credit-led Neobank in emerging markets. we’ll explore the FairMoney story across the following areas African lending & consumer credit FairMoney's founding & early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive p...

September 14, 202302:47:46

#68: Branch - From Kiva to providing consumer loans and FinTech services across Africa and other developing markets

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Branch, the FinTech lending company and Neobank. We’ll explore the story across the following 5 areas: African lending & consumer credit Branch's founding early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & poten...

July 27, 202302:18:24

#67: Sabi - How the B2B retail platform is providing business services to informal SMB retailers, distributors, suppliers and manufacturers in Nigeria and Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Sabi, the B2B retail & supply chain services platform. We’ll explore the story across the following areas: Africa’s and Nigeria’s informal retail sector Sabi’s early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & pote...

July 01, 202301:59:39

#66: TradeDepot - How the B2B retail platform is improving the supply chain for informal SME retailers and consumer goods producers across Nigeria and Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about TradeDepot. We’ll explore the story across the following areas: Africa’s and Nigeria’s informal retail sector TradeDepot's early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential exit options Overall Outloo...

June 16, 202301:55:55

#65: Wasoko (Sokowatch) - How the B2B retail platform is providing services and improving the supply chain for informal retailers across Kenya and Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Wasoko (Sokowatch) We’ll explore the story across the following areas: Africa’s and Kenya’s informal retail context  Wasoko's early history Wasoko's Product & monetization strategy  Competitive positioning & potential exit options ...

June 02, 202302:12:35

#64: Twiga Foods - How the AgriTech supply chain company is connecting SMB retailers and smallholder farmers to improve food logistics across Kenya and Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Twiga Foods. We’ll explore the story across the following 6 areas Africa Agricultural context Kenya farming & market access context Twiga Foods’ early history Twiga Foods’ Product & monetization strategy  Twiga Foods’ Competitive position...

April 14, 202302:24:08

#63: Yoco - How the South African FinTech is scaling Point-of-Sale and other payment solutions to merchants across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Yoco, the South African Point-Of-Sale FinTech company. We’ll explore the story across the following areas: South African payments context Yoco’s early history Yoco’s Product & monetization strategy Yoco’s Competitive positioning & potential...

March 11, 202301:46:14

#62: DPO Group - How the FinTech payments platform went from bootstrapping for 8+ years to strategically acquiring multiple companies, and exiting to Network International for $288M

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about DPO Group. We’ll explore the story across the following areas African payments context DPO group’s early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential exit options overall outlook. This episode was recorded on Ma...

February 03, 202301:52:56

#61: MFS Africa (Onafriq) - How the payments network hub is connecting telcos & financial institutions to increase interoperability across Africa and beyond

Overview:  Today, we’re going to talk about MFS Africa. We’ll explore the MFS Africa story across the following 5 areas: African payments context MFS Africa’s early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential exit options Overall outlook. This episode w...

January 19, 202301:52:45

#60: M-Kopa - How the asset financing platform is providing access to consumer products across Kenya & Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about M-Kopa, the African asset financing platform. We’ll explore the M-Kopa story across 5 areas: African electrical power context M-Kopa's early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & exit options Then we'll end with our vi...

December 18, 202202:27:53

#59: Africa Tech - 2023 & Beyond (Creator Roundtable #2)

Overview: Today, we’re going to have a creator roundtable to discuss the African tech ecosystem. We’ll discuss the biggest 2022 moments in Africa Tech & our hopes for the tech ecosystem in 2023. This episode was recorded on Dec 10, 2022 Companies discussed: Flutterwave, FTX, 54gene, Swvl, C...

November 03, 202202:30:52

#58: Reliance Health - How the HealthTech platform is providing insurance & health services across Nigeria & Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Reliance Health, the African HealthTech company - we’ll explore the Reliance Health story across the following areas: African health context Reliance Health's early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential exit ...

October 26, 202202:06:57

#57: African InsurTech - How consumer insurance platforms are providing insurance across Africa

Overview:  Today we’re going to talk about African Insurtech. We’ll discuss the consumer insurance landscape & analyze InsurTech players. This episode was recorded on October 17, 2022 Companies discussed: Reliance Health, BIMA, Naked Insurance, Pineapple Insurance, Amenli, Creditas, Minu...

September 30, 202201:49:12

#56: Thrive Agric - How the Agriculture platform evolved from crowdfunding to supporting smallholder farmers across Nigeria & Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Thrive Agric, the Nigerian Agricultural technology company - we’ll explore Thrive Agric's story across 5 areas: First we'll start with some context about African agriculture Thrive Agric's launch & early history Product & monetization strategy Co...

August 28, 202202:00:21

#55: Apollo Agriculture - How the AgriTech platform is supporting smallholder farmers to scale across Kenya & Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Apollo Agriculture, the Kenyan AgTech company - we’ll explore the Apollo story across the following areas African agriculture context Apollo's launch & early history Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & exit options Overa...

July 22, 202202:01:01

#54: Swvl - How the bus mobility platform became one of the largest transportation companies in Africa

Overview:  Today, we’re going to talk about Swvl, the Egyptian and Dubai based mobility platform. We’ll explore the Swvl story across 5 areas: Egypt transportation context Swvl's early history Product & monetization strategy Swvl's SPAC public offering Overall outlook. This episode w...

July 08, 202202:01:50

#53: Konga - How the Ecommerce platform initially grew and eventually reset across Nigeria

Overview: Today, we discuss Konga, the Nigerian e-commerce company. We’ll explore the Konga story across 5 areas: We'll give some context about the Nigerian e-commerce sector Konga's early history Product & Monetization strategy Konga sale Overall outlook This episode was recorded on July...

June 14, 202201:49:32

#52: OLX Africa - How the Classifieds platform initially grew and eventually shut down across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about OLX -  the classifieds & marketplace platform. We’ll explore the OLX Africa story across 4 areas: OLX's early history OLX's growth in other emerging markets OLX Africa's early history & Naspers acquisition Naspers OLX exit from Africa Th...

May 20, 202201:42:15

#51: Jiji - How the Classifieds platform became the largest marketplace in West & East Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Jiji - the African classifieds platform. We’ll explore the Jiji story across 6 areas: Classifieds platforms in other emerging markets Classifieds platforms in Africa Jiji’s early history Jiji’s product & monetization strategy Jiji’s competitive posit...

May 06, 202202:28:20

#50: Wave - From Sendwave remittances to disrupting Francophone Africa with mobile money & financial services

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Wave, the African consumer payments company. We’ll explore Wave’s story across 5 areas: We'll start with some context about payments in Africa Wave's launch & early history Wave's Product & monetization strategy Wave's competitive...

April 15, 202201:55:49

#49: Glo (Globacom) - How the private telecommunications company expanded across Nigeria & West Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about Globacom - The Nigerian telecommunications company. We’ll explore the Globacom story across 5 areas: Nigerian telco sector context Globacom's early history Globacom's telco & non-telco businesses Globacom's potential exit options Outlook This epis...

April 01, 202201:43:39

#48: Telkom - How the former South African monopoly evolved to provide telecommunication services across Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about Telkom - The South African telecommunications company. We’ll explore the Telkom story across 5 areas: South African telecoms sector context Telkom's early history We'll deepdive into Telkom's primarily telco & non-telco businesses Telkom's operating &...

March 18, 202201:44:22

#47: Vodacom - How the South African Telco became one of the largest telecommunications companies in Africa

Overview:  Today we’re going to talk about Vodacom - The South African telecommunications company. We’ll explore the Vodacom story across 5 areas: South African telecoms sector context Vodacom's early history Vodacom's telco & non-telco businesses Vodacom's operating & financial perf...

February 06, 202202:22:43

#46: MAX (Metro Africa Xpress) - How the mobility tech platform is providing transportation & delivery services across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about MAX - the Nigerian mobility tech platform. We’ll explore Max's story across 6 areas: Context on motorbike transportation platforms in other emerging markets Background on Nigeria transportation Max.'s launch, early history, growth over time & fundrai...

January 13, 202201:59:33

#45: Gokada - How the mobility tech platform is providing delivery & transportation services across Nigeria

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Gokada - the Nigerian mobility tech platform. We’ll explore the Gokada story across 5 areas: African ridesharing context Gokada's launch, early history, growth over time & fundraising Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & ...

December 17, 202102:51:03

#44: Pathao - From Ride Sharing & Food Delivery to building the largest mobility platform in Bangladesh

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Pathao - the largest mobility tech platform in Bangladesh. This episode was co-hosted with Shammi Quddus and recorded on Nov 21 & Dec 5, 2021. Conversation highlights: (10:15) - Motorbike sharing platforms in emerging markets - GoJek (11:00) - Bang...

December 04, 202102:34:23

#43: Africa Tech - 2022 & Beyond (Creator Roundtable #1)

Overview: Today, we’re going to have a creator roundtable to discuss the African tech ecosystem. We’ll discuss the biggest 2021 moments in Africa Tech and our hopes for the ecosystem in 2022. This episode was co-hosted with Justin Norman & Samora Kariuki and recorded on Nov 28, 2021. Compan...

November 22, 202102:09:35

#42: Andela - How the engineering hiring platform is connecting companies with software developers in Africa & emerging markets

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Andela - the software developer recruitment platform. We’ll explore the Andela story across 6 areas: Labor markets in Africa context Andela's founding and early history Fundraising & Growth Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning ...

November 04, 202102:04:33

#41: SafeBoda - How the Ugandan motorbike hailing platform is delivering mobility services across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about SafeBoda - the Ugandan motorbike hailing platform. We’ll explore the SafeBoda story across 7 areas: Motorbike hailing platforms in other emerging markets (GoJek/GoTo) African mobility context SafeBoda's founding & early history Fundraising and growth...

October 17, 202101:50:58

#40: Fawry - How the Egyptian payments platform became one of the largest Tech companies in Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Fawry - the Egyptian payments platform. We’ll explore the Fawry story across 6 areas: Egypt context Founding and early history Fundraising & Growth Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning Overall outlook. This episode was reco...

October 03, 202101:56:16

#39: BIMA (Milvik) - How the HealthTech company is providing insurance & medical services across emerging markets

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about BIMA - the HealthTech insurance company. We’ll explore BIMA's story across 6 areas: African Health care status & context BIMA Health founding and early history Fundraising & Growth Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning &...

September 19, 202101:58:15

#38: 54gene - How the HealthTech platform is building diverse datasets to improve diagnostic and treatment outcomes across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about 54gene - the genomics HealthTech company. We’ll explore the 54gene story across 6 areas: African Health care status & context 54gene early history Fundraising & Growth Product & monetization strategy Competitive positioning & potential ex...

September 05, 202102:01:46

#37: mPharma - How the HealthTech supply chain platform is providing services to pharmacies & patients across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about mPharma - the Ghanaian prescription drug inventory management company. We’ll explore the mPharma story across 6 areas: African Health care status & context mPharma founding and early history Fundraising & Growth Product & monetization strateg...

August 22, 202101:40:17

#36: Helium Health - How the HealthTech infrastructure platform is supplying services to health care providers across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Helium Health - the Nigerian HealthTech infrastructure company. We’ll explore the Helium Health story across 6 areas: African Health care status & context Helium Health founding and early history Fundraising & Growth Product & monetization st...

August 15, 202101:30:37

#35: MultiChoice - How the South African Pay TV pioneer became the largest entertainment provider across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about MultiChoice - The African video entertainment provider. We’ll explore the MultiChoice story across 5 areas: South African video entertainment market context MultiChoice's launch & growth over time MultiChoice's product & monetization strategy Com...

July 25, 202102:41:49

#34: Kuda Bank - How Nigeria’s most popular Neobank is scaling to offer financial services to “every African on the planet”

Overview: Today, we’re going to discuss Kuda Bank - the African neobank. We’ll explore the Kuda story across 6 areas: Neobanks in other emerging markets (Brazil & NuBank) African & Nigerian banking context Kuda's launch, early history, growth over time & fundraising Kuda's product&nbs...

July 11, 202102:14:54

#33: Chipper Cash - How the FinTech platform started from African remittances to become the fastest unicorn in Africa Tech history

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Chipper Cash - The African Fintech payments & remittances player. We’ll explore the Chipper story across 6 areas: Intra-Africa remittances context Global remittances (outside Africa to Africa) context Chipper Cash’s launch, early history, growth &...

June 28, 202101:49:14

#32: African FinTech lending - How consumer loan platforms are providing credit across Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about consumer lending in Africa. We start by discussing lending in other emerging markets, discuss Africa’s credit landscape, analyze lending tech companies across Africa & end with our overall outlook. This episode was recorded on June 27, 2021. Companies...

June 14, 202101:22:30

#31: African Sports betting & gambling tech - The rise & expansion of betting services across Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about Sports betting & gambling tech in Africa. We share some context about betting in developed and emerging markets, analyze betting tech companies across Africa & end with our overall outlook. This episode was recorded on Jun 13, 2021. Companies di...

May 31, 202101:15:11

#30: Paga - How one of Nigeria’s earliest FinTech companies is providing financial services across emerging markets

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Paga, the fintech payments company. We'll discuss its founding, early history, growth, impact & end with our overall outlook. This episode was recorded on May 30, 2021. Companies discussed: Paga, Safaricom (M-Pesa), bKash, GTBank, First Bank, Chipp...

May 16, 202101:55:13

#29: bKash - How the FinTech payments platform became Bangladesh’s largest tech company

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about bKash - The largest Fintech player in Bangladesh. We start with some background on Bangladesh, discuss bKash’s founding, growth & impact on Bangladesh's economy. We also discuss what other emerging markets can learn from the bKash story & end with o...

May 03, 202101:15:53

#28: Sendwave - How the mobile remittances service scaled from Y Combinator to a $500M WorldRemit exit

Overview: Today, we're going to talk about Sendwave - the mobile remittances service that was acquired by WorldRemit in 2020-Aug. We start with the context of African remittances, discuss Sendwave's early history, growth, acquisition by WorldRemit & end with our overall outlook. This episode wa...

April 19, 202101:20:50

#27: Takealot - How the South African online retailer became one of the largest e-commerce platforms in Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Takealot - the largest ecommerce platform in South Africa & one of the largest across Africa. We'll start by giving some context of e-commerce in South Africa, discuss Takealot's early history, Naspers' 2018 acquisition of Takealot, analyze Takealot bu...

April 05, 202101:20:36

#26: African AgriTech - Early opportunities for technology to scale Agriculture across Africa

Overview: Today, we discuss the opportunity for Agriculture technology to make a difference in Africa. We'll start with some context of African Agriculture, discuss AgriTech in developed and emerging markets, analyze Agritech players across Africa & end with our overall outlook. This episode wa...

March 22, 202101:30:00

#25: Crypto trading exchanges (African WealthTech Pt 3) - How cryptocurrency platforms are providing decentralized financial services across Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to discuss cryptocurrency trading in Africa. We start with the global context of cryptocurrency, review crypto trading exchanges in Africa & end with our overall outlook. This episode was recorded on Mar 21, 2021. Companies discussed: Coinbase, BitPesa, Xend, Buy...

March 08, 202101:34:18

#24: Neobanks (African WealthTech Pt 2) - How TymeBank, Kuda & other digital banks are delivering banking services across Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to discuss the rise of Neobanks in Africa. We’ll start with reviewing Neobanks in other emerging markets, discuss the landscape of neobanks across different African regions & end with our general thoughts and outlook. This episode was recorded on Mar 7, 2021. Com...

February 22, 202101:39:10

#23: Stock trading services (African WealthTech Pt 1) - How retail investment platforms are racing to build the African Robinhood and Zerodha

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about WealthTech & the rise of retail investing platforms in Africa. We’ll start with some context of stock market trading, review investment platforms in India & China & then dive into Africa's personal investing landscape. This episode was recorded ...

February 08, 202101:29:04

#22: African Corporate VCs & Softbank - Why African corporates are not investing in tech startups

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about African Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) using Softbank as a reference point. We'll talk about Softbank's early history, transition from operational to investment company, and finally dive into the current state and future potential of CVC in Africa. This ep...

January 25, 202101:43:24

#21: uLesson - How the EdTech platform is bridging the educational gap across Nigeria & Anglophone Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about uLesson - the African EdTech platform. We'll start with some context about education in Africa & Nigeria, talk about uLesson's early history, fundraising, product strategy & end with our views on its future outlook. This episode was recorded on Jan...

January 11, 202101:22:47

#20: Paystack - How the FinTech payments platform went from Y Combinator to a $200M Stripe exit in 5 years

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Paystack - the African payments infrastructure company that was acquired by Stripe in 2020 October. We’ll give some context of the Nigerian payments sector before 2015, Paystack's founding, early history, acquisition by Stripe & end with our views on i...

December 28, 202000:52:32

#19: Africa Tech - 2021 & Beyond

Overview: Today, we’re going to discuss the future of the African tech ecosystem. We’ll discuss our hopes for African entrepreneurs, startups, investors & tech businesses in 2021 and end with a quick discussion of future podcast plans. This episode was recorded on December 27th, 2020. Compa...

December 13, 202001:20:49

#18: Flutterwave - From Y Combinator to becoming one of Africa’s largest FinTech platforms

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Flutterwave - the African payments infrastructure company - we’ll give some context of the Nigerian payments sector before 2014, Flutterwave's founding, early history, growth over time & end with our views on its future outlook. This episode was record...

November 30, 202001:16:03

#17: Interswitch - How the pioneering Nigerian FinTech & payments platform became one of the most valuable private companies in Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Interswitch, the African fintech payments company. We'll discuss its founding, early history, growth, place in the broader African fintech ecosystem & end with our views on its future outlook. This episode was recorded on Nov 29, 2020. Companies di...

November 16, 202001:15:32

#16: Iroko TV - How the Nollywood video platform is overcoming challenges to deliver African entertainment around the world

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about IROKO TV, the Nollywood video platform, we'll give some background on the Nigerian cinema industry, talk about IROKO's founding, early history, different businesses over time and our views on its future outlook. This episode was recorded on Nov 15, 2020. ...

November 02, 202001:12:15

#15: Orange - How the former French monopoly telco entered & expanded in Francophone Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about Orange - The 2nd largest telco in Africa, we’ll discuss its French founding, global expansion, success in Africa, non-telco businesses & end with our views on its future outlook. This episode was recorded on Nov 1, 2020. Companies discussed: Orange ...

October 18, 202001:23:46

#14: African HealthTech - Emerging opportunities for technology to provide better, faster & cheaper health care across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about the opportunity for technology to make a difference in African healthcare. We'll start with the context of health in Africa, deepdive into health verticals and African companies, investigate Health Tech in other developing countries & how technology ca...

October 05, 202001:18:26

#13: Airtel - How the world's second largest telco expanded from India to Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about Airtel - The third largest telco in Africa (& second largest telco in the world), we’ll discuss its founding, early history, success in India, expansion into Africa, non-telco businesses & end with our views on its future outlook. This episode was r...

September 21, 202001:07:40

#12: Innovation Hubs (CcHub, iHub & others) - How African incubators, accelerators & co-working spaces are nurturing entrepreneurship and building the tech ecosystem

Overview: Today, we discuss how African innovation hubs are nurturing entrepreneurship, the history of CCHub / iHub & end with our views on the future outlook of African innovation hubs Companies discussed: CcHub, iHub, Entrepreneur First, Y Combinator (YC), TechStars & Station F Bu...

September 07, 202001:25:29

#11: African EdTech & lessons from Byju's - The story of the world's most valuable EdTech company & the emerging opportunities for technology to scale education across Africa

Overview: Today, we’re going to talk about Byju's & Edtech in Africa. We'll start with some context about African education, discuss Byju's success in India as a reference point, major edtech African players & the future of the African edTech ecosystem   Companies discussed: Byju’s...

August 24, 202001:09:29

#10: MTN - How Africa's largest Telco grew to dominate Africa and expand to other emerging markets

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about MTN - The largest telco in Africa, we’ll discuss its founding, early history, success in Africa, global expansion, diversification into non-telco businesses & future outlook Companies discussed: MTN Group (M-Cell, MTN Nigeria, MTN Irancell), Investc...

August 10, 202000:59:49

#9: OPay (Opera Pay) - From Web Browser & Fintech to blitzscaling and building Africa's Super App

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about OPay - The African Payments startup, we’ll discuss its early history, initial focus on African payments, blitzscale attempt to become Africa’s Super App & OPay's future outlook. This episode was recorded on August 9, 2020 Companies discussed: Oper...

July 26, 202000:58:43

#8: Reliance Jio - How India's largest company enabled a mobile revolution & how Africa can also have a "Jio Moment"

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about the potential for a Reliance Jio moment in Africa. We'll start with some context of the Reliance parent group, its telco subsidiary - Reliance Jio (& its digital services subsidiary Jio Platforms) & their impact on India. Then we'll end by discussin...

July 13, 202000:43:31

#7: Internet access & Technology censorship - Why and how African governments are increasing internet restrictions

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about technology & Internet censorship in Africa. We’ll discuss internet access across African countries, how censorship works, examples of censorship and end with our views on internet censorship across Africa. This episode was recorded on July 12, 2020 ...

June 29, 202000:45:17

#6: Safaricom - How Kenya’s largest telco drove M-Pesa to become the most successful mobile financial platform in Africa

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about Safaricom - The largest telecom carrier in Kenya. We’ll discuss its early history, M-Pesa launch, M-Pesa success, attempted M-Pesa global expansion & Safaricom's future outlook   Companies discussed: Safaricom, Vodacom, Vodafone, Telkom, MTN &a...

June 15, 202000:58:19

#5: Naspers - How Africa’s largest company went from newspaper publishing to Tencent and Prosus

Overview: In this episode, we talk about Naspers - The South African conglomerate, investment group & most valuable company in Africa. We’ll discuss its early history, transition from newspaper publisher to tech investment firm, Tencent investment, broader investment portfolio & Naspers' fu...

June 01, 202000:52:49

#4: African Mobility Tech (Uber, Taxify & others) - How ridesharing is changing transportation across Africa

Overview: In this episode, we discuss ridesharing in Sub-Saharan Africa. We discuss transportation in major African cities, the entry, impact & business models of ridesharing platforms & end with our views on the future outlook of ridesharing platforms Companies discussed: Uber, Bolt / ...

May 18, 202000:49:14

#3: Transsion (Tecno, Infinix & Itel) - From Shenzhen China to dethroning Samsung & Huawei to become Africa's top phone seller

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about Transsion - The Chinese phone manufacturer that has sold the most phones in Africa since 2017. We’ll discuss its early history, entry & success into Africa, progress in other developing markets, eventual 2019 IPO & Transsion's future outlook  ...

May 03, 202000:47:53

#2: Jumia - From Rocket Internet to Unicorn IPO. What’s next for the ‘Amazon of Africa’?

Overview: Today we’re going to talk about Jumia - The largest ecommerce player in Africa. We’ll discuss its founding, seminal points in its history, eventual 2019 IPO & Jumia's future outlook. This episode was recorded on May 3, 2020. Companies discussed: Jumia, Africa Internet Holding (A...

April 20, 202000:46:58

#1: African Fintech - 2018 to 2020 startup investments funding boom in Africa

Overview: This episode covers major recent fintech investments in Africa. We start with some context on why fintech is important, why the majority of Africans are unbanked, discuss the early history of mobile money & then discuss the largest fintech investments in 2018 and 2019 Companies di...

April 19, 202000:03:13

#0: Introduction to Afrobility - What to expect from the podcast

Overview: Today we’re going to give an introduction to the podcast, we’ll talk about our backgrounds, why we wanted to make this podcast together and what you can expect from Afrobility in the future We’d love to hear from you. If you have feedback, topics you’d like to hear, or just want to sa...