Year: 2019

WhatsApp to roll out a new feature to block others from adding you to groups

WhatsApp forwarding

In a very much welcomed move, Facebook-owned WhatsApp has announced that it will roll out a feature in the coming weeks that gives users much more control over group chats in the app. The company will soon add a new privacy tool to the app that allows a user to block anyone from adding them to a group chat. The feature comes as concerns have mounted over the past few years that WhatsApp group chats are being used to spread fake news and disinformation. Under the new controls, a user…

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Online Marketplaces new potential job creation.

Staff Writer
COVID 19 Read consumer

Online marketplaces such as Jumia, Souq, Uber, and Travelstart could create around 3 million new jobs by 2025 across Africa. This is according to findings of a new report released today by Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Titled ‘’How Online Marketplaces Can Power Employment in Africa’’ the report notes that these digital platforms, which match buyers and providers of goods and services, could also raise incomes and boost inclusive economic growth with minimal disruption to existing businesses and workforce norms. Speaking during the launch of the report, Patrick Dupoux, a senior…

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MTN launches new ‘world first’ WhatsApp-based Airtime Top-up service

Staff Writer

MTN says it will become the first mobile network in the world to let customers buy airtime and data bundles and check their balances directly on Facebook-owned messaging platform WhatsApp. The service, MTN Chat, will help customers manage their accounts “off a secure and convenient platform they already know and love”, said Mapula Bodibe, MTN SA’s consumer business executive. “It’s imperative that companies focus on improving self-service experiences to retain and grow customers and this is an important step for MTN,” Bodibe said. Calling it a world first for the…

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Miss.Africa Digital Celebrates New International Women’s Day.

Staff Writer

DCA Trust celebrated the Women’s Day by launching the 2019 Miss.Africa Digital Seed Fund Application Drive. Parallel to my advocacy on the philosophy of positive “tech disruption”, and how it has the ability to create a welcome change in our societies, if we regularly engage in doing something out of our comfort zone for our mind, body and spirit, I’m a great believer that we will find ourselves in a much better space as human beings, as well as be more effective in our work.” 2019: Year of work-life-balance, –…

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MPESA option now available on Aliexpress App

Staff Writer

AliExpress. Shopping online can seem like a daunting task to some people, especially considering the  limited payment options and security issues that bog online transactions. Alibaba-owned e-commerce platform, AliExpress, has slowly but steadily gained popularity in Kenya as the platform opens up the Chinese vast goods market to Kenyans. International shopping in Kenya has mainly relied on third-party services such a Vitumob or Something Random, that aim to connect locals to the well-established platforms like Amazon but recently we have seen these shopping websites make an effort to directly reach…

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PesaPal adds new payments options.

Electronic payments firm PesaPal has added payment options in its integrated mobile money processing platform for shoppers and those making utility payments. The company said its users will be able to leverage on its new app — dubbed PesaPal Mobile — to buy airtime, pay bills, book flights and holidays, purchase event tickets and pay school fees. It has partnered with Safaricom’s M-Pesa, Visa and MasterCard to enable the payments “Available on both Android’s Google Play Store and Apple‘s App Store, the app is geared towards consumers looking to simplify…

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Net Giants including Facebook, Telegram & Signal, new cryptocurrencies plan.

SAN FRANCISCO — Some of the world’s biggest internet messaging companies are hoping to succeed where cryptocurrency start-ups have failed by introducing mainstream consumers to the alternative world of digital coins. The internet outfits, including Facebook, Telegram and Signal, are planning to roll out new cryptocurrencies over the next year that are meant to allow users to send money to contacts on their messaging systems, like a Venmo or PayPal that can move across international borders. The most anticipated but secretive project is underway at Facebook. The company is working…

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Uber introduces new electronic chip from NTSA.

Staff Writer

Taxi-hailing firm Uber has introduced a new safety measure that requires vehicle owners to first acquire an electronic chip windscreen sticker from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA). The sticker allows identification and authentication of car ownership before they are certified to offer its service. Uber in a notice to vehicle owners last week said starting March 1 all vehicles were required to have the NTSA’s Radio Frequency Identification sticker before receiving a go-ahead for further inspection at partner stations AutoXpress or Kingsway Tyres. In the latest safety drive,…

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Cryptocurrency new bottomed in December

A technical indicator that incorporates both bitcoin’s price and trading volume is signaling the cryptocurrency may have bottomed in December. The money flow index (MFI), also known as the volume-weighted relative strength index, is used to identify buying and selling pressure and oscillates between zero to 100. A rising MFI indicates an increase in buying pressure, while a falling MFI is considered a sign of increasing selling pressures. Essentially, the MFI validates or confirms price trends. Many times, however, the indicator diverges from the prevailing market trend. For instance, BTC dashed hopes…

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New: Naspers Ltd. spun off African pay-TV unit.

Staff Writer

Naspers Ltd. spun off African pay-TV unit MultiChoice Group Ltd. at an initial valuation of about 42 billion rand ($3 billion), enabling the continent’s biggest company to focus on its current incarnation as a global internet-technology firm. MultiChoice shares started trading at 95.5 rand in Johannesburg, and was at 96.15 rand as of 9:13 a.m. Naspers, which makes up almost a fifth of Johannesburg’s stock exchange, traded 2.3 percent lower at 3,069.99 rand after the spin off. Key Insights MultiChoice’s valuation could eventually settle at about $5 billion to $6…

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