Zdravo,
Victoria from Techpoint here,
Here’s what I’ve got for you today:
- COMESA clears Vodacom’s Safaricom takeover
- Why angel investors aren’t backing down
- Ethiopia bans Birr in crypto P2P trading
COMESA clears Vodacom’s Safaricom takeover
When a regional watchdog gives a big telecom deal the green light, it’s usually a sign that something major is on the move, and that’s exactly what just happened with Vodacom Group and Safaricom. The COMESA Competition and Consumer Commission has cleared Vodacom’s plan to increase its holdings in Kenya’s biggest telecom from 35% to 55% in a deal worth about Sh272 billion. That’s a major regulatory hurdle crossed in a transaction that’s been watched closely across East and Southern Africa.
Under the deal, Vodacom will buy extra shares from the Government of Kenya and from its parent, Vodafone Group, giving it effective control of Safaricom. COMESA said the move won’t hurt competition in the Common Market, a 21-member regional bloc, and won’t go against public interest. That’s a key endorsement for the deal as it navigates tougher regional scrutiny.
So why care? Safaricom isn’t just another telco. It dominates mobile services, data, and mobile money in Kenya and is a cash cow in the region. Its mobile money arm, M-PESA, is one of Africa’s most successful digital finance platforms, and deeper alignment with Vodacom could shape how telecoms and fintech evolve across neighbouring markets too.
The approval also marks a shift in how big mergers are reviewed regionally. Instead of local regulators alone handling it, the East African Community Competition Authority and COMESA are playing bigger roles, making this one of the first major tests of newly strengthened regional frameworks.
The spotlight now turns to other sign-offs the deal still needs, including final nods from national regulators and shareholder approvals. If all goes well, Vodacom’s majority control could accelerate investments, cross-border services and new products across East and Southern Africa.
Why angel investors aren’t backing down
In a year when inflation spooked markets and currencies wobbled across Africa, the continent’s angel investors gathered in Lagos with a different message: we’re not backing down.
Victoria Fakiya – Senior Writer
Techpoint Digest
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In October 2025, more than a hundred angels and VCs met at the J. Randle Centre for Yorùbá Culture & History to take stock of early-stage investing. “We’re the first believers,” ABAN president Yemi Keri told the room, framing angels as the architects of Africa’s economic future. But the mood wasn’t blind optimism. ABAN CEO Fadilah Tchoumba acknowledged that 2025 had forced tough conversations, especially as record inflation and currency devaluations in markets like Kenya, Egypt, and Nigeria made many investors more cautious.
What came out of those conversations was a clear theme: angels and venture capitalists need each other more than ever. Angels fund the risky early days; VCs provide the follow-on capital and potential exits. Without tighter collaboration, startups risk stalling between product-market fit and scale. That pipeline problem is now front and centre for 2026.
Encouragingly, there are signs of progress. Angel cheque sizes are growing, from barely $1,000 a decade ago to $10,000 or more today, and initiatives like Catalytic Africa are stepping in to match syndicate investments and stretch available capital. There’s also talk of a cross-border early-stage SPV to make it easier for angels to invest beyond their home markets. Still, gaps remain. Africa hasn’t produced enough big exits to recycle wealth into the ecosystem, and memories of losses from the 2020–2022 funding frenzy are still fresh.
The message heading into 2026 is clear: more capital will flow, but it will be smarter, more structured, and more collaborative. In today’s market, great ideas alone are no longer enough; founders need sharper execution, clearer paths to profitability, and investors willing to play the long game. For more on where angel investing is headed next and why great ideas won’t cut it anymore, check out Chimgozirim’s latest.
Ethiopia bans Birr in crypto P2P trading
Ethiopia’s central bank just slammed the brakes on a corner of the crypto world that many traders use to move money. Peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto trading in Ethiopian birr is now officially illegal, according to a recent notice from the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE). That means anyone trying to swap crypto for birr on platforms, exchanges, or P2P marketplaces could be on the wrong side of the law unless they get explicit permission from the regulator.
The ban targets birr-paired P2P transactions, the informal way many Ethiopians have been trading cryptocurrencies by directly exchanging local currency for digital assets with other people. Authorities said this kind of trading carries significant risks, from fraud and scams to foreign exchange manipulation and a lack of anti-money-laundering safeguards, and they want to clamp down before an official regulatory framework is in place.
For now, the NBE is encouraging people to steer clear of unregulated platforms and wait for formal rules. It says it’s working on a comprehensive digital asset framework and is consulting with international regulators and local stakeholders on how to do it safely, but until that framework lands, any P2P crypto trading involving the birr remains off limits.
Ethiopia’s crypto scene has been a bit of a paradox. Virtual currencies weren’t legally recognised long before this decision, with the birr remaining the only official currency for transactions. A broader ban on crypto transactions has been in place for some time, even as global interest in digital assets continues to grow and some traders still use P2P channels informally.
The move could reshape how some Africans view crypto in tightly regulated markets. Traders who relied on direct, peer-to-peer exchanges may now have to pause their activity, wait for new rules, or turn to alternative assets. At the same time, regulators are signalling a desire to balance innovation with financial stability and fraud prevention
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Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Victoria Fakiya for Techpoint Africa
