Ahoj,
Victoria from Techpoint here,
Here’s what I’ve got for you today:
- INTERPOL links AI to 55% of cybercrime
- Yellow Card lands fresh $40M funding
- Moment lands $22 million Series A
INTERPOL links AI to 55% of cybercrime
Artificial intelligence is becoming cybercriminals’ favourite weapon in Africa. A new INTERPOL African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2026, released on August 3, found that 55% of reported cybercrimes across the continent now involve AI, allowing criminals to launch scams and attacks that are faster, more convincing and much harder to detect. The report paints a worrying picture of cybercrime evolving from isolated attacks into what INTERPOL describes as an “industrialised, borderless ecosystem.” It also found that cybercrime-related losses across Africa have more than doubled since 2024, jumping from $192 million to $484 million.
Why should you care? Africa is becoming more digital than ever. The continent had more than 1.1 billion mobile subscriptions in 2025, with millions of people relying on mobile money, digital banking and online services every day. Criminals are taking advantage of that shift by using AI to create more convincing phishing emails, fake identities, deepfakes, business email compromise (BEC) scams and automated social engineering attacks. According to the report, online scams remained the most common form of cybercrime in 2025, while banks, telecom operators and government agencies were among the biggest targets. Even more concerning, 72% of the 36 African countries surveyed reported the presence of organised scam centres, particularly in West and Southern Africa.
The report also exposes another problem: many African countries are still struggling to keep up. INTERPOL says cybercrime laws remain fragmented across the continent, while many law enforcement agencies lack the AI tools and expertise needed to investigate increasingly sophisticated attacks. One major weakness is the lack of real-time data sharing between banks, telecom companies and law enforcement, making it easier for criminals to move stolen money before authorities can respond. That’s despite several successful international crackdowns, including Operations Serengeti 2.0, Contender 3.0, Sentinel and Red Card 2.0, which collectively led to more than 1,500 arrests, hundreds of device seizures and the recovery of over $100 million.
As generative AI tools have become cheaper and more accessible, cybersecurity experts have repeatedly cautioned that criminals would adopt them just as quickly as legitimate businesses. That prediction is now becoming reality. Instead of writing scam emails manually or stealing identities one victim at a time, attackers can now automate much of the process using AI. The technology itself isn’t the problem; it’s how criminals are exploiting it. For governments, businesses and ordinary internet users, the message from INTERPOL is clear: cyber threats are evolving rapidly, and Africa’s defences will have to evolve just as quickly.
Yellow Card lands fresh $40M funding
Yellow Card has just landed one of the biggest crypto funding rounds Africa has seen in recent years. The stablecoin infrastructure startup has raised $40 million in fresh funding from investors, including SC Ventures (the venture arm of Standard Chartered), Sony Innovation Fund, Polychain Capital, and Blockchain Capital. Rather than doubling down on crypto trading, the company says it will use the money to expand its stablecoin-powered payment infrastructure, making it easier for businesses to move money across borders, manage treasury operations and hold US dollars digitally.
The raise is significant because it shows investors are increasingly betting on the infrastructure behind stablecoins rather than on speculative crypto assets themselves. Yellow Card wants to become the financial plumbing that helps businesses move money across emerging markets without relying on slow and expensive correspondent banking systems. Through its platform, companies can hold dollars, swap stablecoins, and send or receive local currencies using domestic payment rails in more than 50 countries. The company already holds licences in over 20 countries across Africa, Europe and North America and has partnerships with companies including Mastercard, Coinbase and PayPal.
Victoria Fakiya – Senior Writer
Techpoint Digest
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The announcement also comes as stablecoins are becoming one of the hottest trends in global finance. Over the past year, African fintechs, including Flutterwave and LemFi, have announced initiatives tied to stablecoin infrastructure, while regulators are gradually becoming more comfortable with digital assets that are pegged to traditional currencies like the US dollar. For businesses operating across multiple African markets, stablecoins are increasingly being seen as a practical way to settle cross-border payments, manage foreign exchange exposure and access dollar liquidity without waiting days for international bank transfers.
Yellow Card has been building towards this moment for years. Founded in 2019, the company started as a cryptocurrency exchange before gradually repositioning itself as a stablecoin infrastructure provider. It raised a $15 million Series A in 2021 and a $40 million Series B in 2022, followed by a $33 million Series C in 2024, as it shifted its focus towards enterprise payments. The latest funding suggests investors believe that strategy is paying off, especially as demand for stablecoin-based financial services accelerates globally.
The deal also says something bigger about Africa’s fintech ecosystem. Venture funding has become harder to secure over the past two years, yet investors are still writing large cheques for startups building core financial infrastructure instead of consumer-facing apps. For Yellow Card, the goal is no longer just helping Africans buy and sell crypto; it’s becoming the rails that banks, fintechs and global businesses use to move money across emerging markets. If that vision succeeds, the company could become one of the continent’s most important financial infrastructure providers in the stablecoin era.
Moment lands $22 million Series A
MultiChoice’s fintech bet is paying off. Moment, the payments startup created by MultiChoice, Rapyd, and General Catalyst, has raised a fresh $22 million Series A funding round to accelerate its expansion across Africa. The investment was led by AlphaCode Venture Partners, with backing from existing investors General Catalyst, MultiChoice, and Canal+, which became MultiChoice’s new owner after completing its acquisition in 2025. The latest raise brings Moment’s total funding to $55 million, underscoring growing investor confidence in the startup’s ambition to simplify digital payments across the continent.
The funding matters because Moment is no longer just the company processing payments for DStv, GOtv, and Showmax. Since launching in 2023, it has expanded into a standalone payments infrastructure business serving enterprises across Africa. Per CEO Joel Yarbrough, the startup now processes 600,000 transactions every day and reaches up to 10 million people each month. Its platform helps businesses accept recurring payments and multiple local payment methods while overcoming challenges like unreliable internet and power outages that often disrupt digital transactions across Africa. The fresh capital will be used to expand into more markets and strengthen its payment infrastructure.
MultiChoice first announced Moment in May 2023 as a joint venture with Rapyd and General Catalyst to solve one of Africa’s biggest commerce problems: fragmented payments. At the time, the broadcaster was already processing about $3.5 billion in payments annually across more than 50 African markets, giving the startup an immediate customer base. What began as an internal payments solution has since evolved into a fintech serving businesses beyond the MultiChoice ecosystem, proving that the company was building much more than a billing platform for its streaming services.
The raise also reflects where investors are placing their bets in Africa’s fintech ecosystem. Rather than backing another consumer payments app, they’re increasingly funding companies that build the infrastructure powering digital commerce behind the scenes. Payment infrastructure has become one of the hottest segments in African fintech because every digital business, from streaming platforms to eCommerce companies and banks, depends on reliable payment rails. Moment’s growth suggests investors believe that solving Africa’s payments complexity could become a much bigger business than simply collecting subscription fees.
For MultiChoice, the investment is another sign that its strategy of building adjacent technology businesses is beginning to pay off. The broadcaster has spent years trying to diversify beyond pay television as subscriber growth slowed and competition from global streaming platforms intensified. If Moment continues its current trajectory, it could become one of MultiChoice’s most valuable assets outside its entertainment business, while giving Canal+ another fast-growing fintech business to add to its expanding African portfolio.
In case you missed them
- This Kenyan startup says it is building the Upwork and Fiverr of Africa
- Kenya’s draft AI policy is open for public feedback. Here’s what stands out
What I’m watching
- Trauma Doctor: Waiting For Time To Heal You Is A Mistake | Dr. Gabor Maté
- Voyeurs are not interested in intimacy | Alain de Botton
Opportunities
- Moniepoint is hiring for over 100 roles. Apply here.
- Follow Techpoint Africa’s WhatsApp channel to stay on top of the latest trends and news in the African tech space here.
Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Victoria Fakiya for Techpoint Africa
