မင်္ဂလာပါ,
Victoria from Techpoint here,
Here’s what I’ve got for you today:
- CAK steps back from Vodacom-Safaricom merger review
- Paga brings PayPal payments to Nigeria
- SA telcos sue Home Affairs over 6,500% ID fee hike
CAK steps back from Vodacom-Safaricom merger review
The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has stepped back from formally reviewing Vodacom Group’s planned purchase of a bigger slice of Safaricom, leaving the heavy lifting to regional competition regulators instead. This comes as Vodacom pushes to boost its stake in Kenya’s largest telco from 35% to 55% through a multi-billion-shilling deal.
Under the deal, Vodacom would buy a 15% stake from the Government of Kenya and another 5% from Vodafone itself, in a transaction worth around KSh 272 billion (about $1.6B+s). If completed, it would make Vodacom the controlling shareholder of Safaricom, while the Kenyan state would retain a 20% share and the public about 25%.
Instead of triggering a full local merger review, which would normally involve detailed scrutiny and fees, CAK has said the transaction should be assessed by the East African Community Competition Authority (EACCA) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Competition and Consumer Commission (CCCC) because the companies involved operate in multiple countries and meet regional thresholds.
CAK will still share its views on how the deal might affect competition and consumer welfare in Kenya, but it won’t lead the investigation. That’s a notable shift: it signals that cross-border deals are increasingly being handled at the regional level, a change meant to reduce duplicate reviews and cut compliance costs for businesses.
The regional review is also one of the first major tests of the EAC Competition Act, which only became operational in late 2025. With Safaricom being such a key part of Kenya’s digital economy, especially through mobile money platform M-Pesa, how regulators balance competition, national interest, and investor confidence will be something many stakeholders will be watching closely.
Paga brings PayPal payments to Nigeria
For years, getting money into Nigeria via PayPal has felt like a half-open door. You could send funds out, sure, but receiving payments was another story. That’s starting to change. Nigerian fintech Paga has partnered with PayPal to launch live account linking, giving users in Nigeria a new way to receive international payments and access them locally.
Victoria Fakiya – Senior Writer
Techpoint Digest
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With the integration now live, Nigerians can link their PayPal accounts directly to their Paga wallets, receive cross-border payments from PayPal-supported markets, and withdraw the funds in naira. Once the money hits Paga, users can spend it via card, transfer it to local bank accounts, pay bills, or use it within Paga’s merchant network.
For freelancers, online sellers, and small businesses, this opens up real possibilities. Merchants can now sell to PayPal’s global user base, more than 400 million people, and still cash out locally without jumping through multiple hoops. It’s also a practical option for Nigerians shopping online or getting paid by international clients.
Paga’s founder and CEO, Tayo Oviosu, says the goal is simple: make global money usable at home. Whether you’re earning dollars, pounds, or euros, the integration is meant to remove friction and let users access their funds securely and easily within Nigeria’s financial system.
The move also taps into a long-running gap. PayPal restricted Nigerian users from receiving funds in the early 2000s due to fraud concerns, and while the platform still isn’t fully open to the country, this partnership offers a functional workaround. For PayPal, according to its Middle East and Africa head Otto Williams, working with local players like Paga is part of a broader push to support financial inclusion and help more Nigerians participate confidently in the global digital economy.
SA telcos sue Home Affairs over 6,500% ID fee hike
South Africa’s telecoms industry has taken the Department of Home Affairs to court over a massive hike in ID verification fees. The Association of Communications and Technology (ACT), which represents players like MTN, Vodacom, Telkom, and Cell C, is asking the High Court to set aside new regulations that raise the cost of accessing the National Population Register by more than 6,500%. The rules, signed off by Home Affairs minister Leon Schreiber in mid-2025, pushed the price of real-time ID checks from 15 cents to R10 per transaction.
In simple terms, this is about who pays for digital identity infrastructure and how much. Telcos, banks, and fintechs rely on Home Affairs’ Online Verification System (OVS) to verify customers under the Regulation of Interception of Communication and the Provision of Communication Related Information Act (RICA) and anti-money laundering laws. ACT argues that the sudden price jump will make compliance far more expensive, with costs eventually passed down to consumers who are already under financial pressure.
Why does this matter? Because ID verification sits at the heart of everyday services. Think SIM card registration, opening bank accounts, mobile money, and digital onboarding. ACT says the fee increase risks slowing access to essential services and undermining financial inclusion, especially for lower-income users. It also claims the department introduced the new pricing without proper consultation or a transition period, causing immediate harm to businesses and the public.
The fight has spilt beyond telcos. TymeBank publicly slammed the hike, calling it a “regressive tax” on the poor and warning that it could make serving low-income customers financially unviable. CEO Coenraad Jonker even urged national leaders to intervene. Schreiber, however, hit back hard, accusing the bank of expecting taxpayers to keep subsidising a service it had been paying just 15 cents for, despite the real cost being far higher.
Home Affairs insists the price increase is justified, pointing to what it calls its biggest-ever tech upgrade, a faster, more reliable verification system with real-time checks and cheaper off-peak batch options. For the department, this is about national security, a healthy population register, and laying the groundwork for a future digital ID system. For industry players, the question remains whether fixing the system should come with such a steep bill and who ultimately ends up paying
In case you missed it
- “How to start a business,” “How to be a better person,” top Nigerians’ Google searches in January 2026
What I’m watching
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Opportunities
- Want to learn how to secure your first $50,000 cheque? Attend the Nestuge event happening on January 30, 2026. Apply here.
- Lagos Business School is recruiting a Programme Officer (Delivery and Coordination). Submit a cover letter and your CV here.
- Kuda Technologies is looking for a Head of Product (Credit). Apply here.
- MTN Nigeria is hiring a Specialist – International Remittance (Product Manager). Apply here.
- Moniepoint is hiring for several roles. Apply here.
- Bamboo is hiring a quality assurance manager. Apply here.
- Paystack MFB is hiring for a few roles. Apply here.
- Attend your first tech event in January! Tech Revolution Conference, a two-day event to discuss everything tech, takes place at Landmark Event Centre, Lagos on January 30 and 31, 2026. Get your tickets here.
- Don’t miss the Cavista Technologies Hackathon happening between February 21 and 22. Register your team and go home with cash prizes here.
- Kuda is recruiting a Head of Product (Credit). Apply here.
- Jumia is looking for a Senior Key Account Manager. Apply here.
- MTN is hiring a Specialist, International Remittance (Product Manager). Apply here.
- Don’t Miss the Africa Business Convention (ABC) 2026. It’s Africa’s #1 Business Conference & Investment Expo. It’s between February 3 and 4. Book your seat today here.
- Moniepoint is hiring for over 100 roles. Apply here.
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Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Victoria Fakiya for Techpoint Africa
