Dumela,
Victoria from Techpoint here,
Here's what I've got for you today:
- Quizac’s acquisition a week after announcing its shutdown
- Binance expands services in Africa
- Nigeria-South Africa feud goes mobile
Quizac’s acquisition a week after announcing its shutdown
Remember this? This startup turned down $250k, and now it's shutting down
In an unexpected twist, Quizac, the edtech startup, has been scooped up by Tekedia Capital, an investment syndicate. Both sides are keeping tight-lipped about the price tag on the deal.
According to Tade Samson, talks about the acquisition moved quickly, wrapping up in less than a week.
Quizac, launched in 2019 by Samson, Tobi Awogbemi, Hussein Alayo, and Babatunde Caleb, made waves by creating gamified learning content for African students through a network of contributors.
By 2021, they expanded to offer learning solutions to corporate organisations. Despite attracting nearly 13,000 learners, they struggled to make money. While they eventually identified corporate clients as a more profitable market, they ultimately decided to shut down.
Tekedia Capital, known for investing in a wide range of sectors with companies like OurPass, Mecho Autotech, and Vetifly, saw the potential in Quizac. The acquisition allows Tekedia to bring gamified learning into its platform, aligning it with their mission to enhance learning experiences.
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The founders of Quizac will step away from the company post-acquisition, but the existing team will stick around to ensure a smooth transition.
Samson shared that although all good things eventually end, for Quizac, this acquisition by Tekedia Capital feels like a new beginning. He’s excited that Quizac will continue its mission and expand into new markets beyond Africa, now benefiting from Tekedia Capital's resources and data.
Binance expands services in Africa
Binance is expanding its services in Africa by launching a new feature that lets users in Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia trade crypto using mobile money.
Partnering with Transfi, a Web3 payment company, Binance has introduced the One Click Buy and Sell (OCBS) feature. This tool allows users to seamlessly buy and sell crypto assets straight from their mobile money accounts, making transactions faster and more convenient.
This move aligns with Binance’s broader mission to make cryptocurrency more accessible, particularly for the unbanked and underbanked in Africa, and to boost financial freedom globally.
In July 2024, Binance already added support for trading in local currencies — like the Ghanaian Cedi (GHS), Ugandan Shilling (UGX), Zambian Kwacha (ZMW), and Tanzanian Shilling (TZS) — on its app and website.
Binance has implemented strict Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols and robust security measures to keep users’ assets and data safe.
This new feature is tapping into the growing popularity of mobile money in these countries. For example, as of January 2024, nearly 60% of Ghanaians aged 15 and older had mobile money accounts. In Zambia, mobile money was used for 56% of all retail payments in 2023.
With 45% of Africa’s adult population unbanked as of 2021, Binance is making significant strides on the continent. The platform saw a 28.61% increase in crypto-to-crypto trading volumes from January to April 2021 and processed an estimated $117.1 billion in on-chain value between July 2022 and June 2023.
Even though Binance faces regulatory challenges in some African countries like Nigeria, the African cryptocurrency market is projected to hit $3.1 billion in 2024, with the number of users expected to reach nearly 54 million by 2025, according to Statista.
Nigeria-South Africa feud goes mobile
The ongoing online feud between South African and Nigerian netizens has taken a wild turn with the new "Bolt for Bolt" trend, sparking yet another internet battle.
It all started with some South Africans who, in a petty move, began pranking Nigerian Bolt drivers by booking rides and then cancelling them.
In retaliation, some Nigerians have started pulling the same stunt on drivers in South Africa.
Yahaya Mohammed, Bolt's Country Manager in Nigeria, told Techpoint Africa that the company is aware of the fake ride requests happening between individuals in both countries. He assured that they've taken steps to tackle the issue by limiting cross-country ride requests and blocking those involved from using the app.
Despite Bolt's actions, the prank escalated into a full-blown rivalry yesterday, with both sides wasting drivers' time and money by cancelling rides.
Some Nigerian users on X have linked this trend to the controversy surrounding Chidinma Adetshina, a Nigerian-South African law student who withdrew from the Miss South Africa pageant due to backlash over her nationality. Her exit has only added fuel to the fire, leading to this prank war on the Bolt app.
Now, people on X are divided — some are calling for peace, pointing out how this online feud is hurting innocent drivers who depend on these rides to make a living.
Others think Bolt should make it impossible to book rides in a country you're not physically in, exposing a pretty big flaw in the app.
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Have a fun weekend!
Victoria Fakiya for Techpoint Africa.