Market Intelligence OP-ED - What do SAG Ventures and Balloon Ventures have in common? The intermediary trap Prince Nwadeyi's published research and Joshua Bicknell's operational experience expose the same problem: entrenched incentive structures don't serve those closest to real economic activity.
Impact Investing OP-ED - M-KOPA’s decade of discovery: when patient capital buys time to pivot M-KOPA’s lengthy path to profitability shows how patient capital can buy the time (and permission) to pivot until the real business emerges.
Fintech POD - April Long on why chasing 'impact' almost killed her fintech whilst bulk traders quietly transformed Africa-China trade Pyxis CEO April Long reveals how her obsession with serving SMEs blinded her to the aggregators actually moving $286 billion in trade - and why accepting this reality saved her venture.
Fintech OP-ED - The education of April Long: a Chinese entrepreneur's humbling lessons building for Africa's $286 billion trade gap After a decade in East Africa, fintech founder April Long reflects on the tough pivots, misread assumptions, and modest wins behind building Pyxis for Africa-China trade.
Cybersecurity OP-ED - A little less propaganda, a little more cybersecurity science The drive of young mathematician Tswelopele Moshe to bridge theory with practical consulting solutions reflects a deeper quest for a more scientific approach to cybersecurity, challenging industry norms.
African Tech Roundup Vietnamese-style Africa-focused Fintech Innovation With Quan Le of Binkabi Binkabi CEO Quan Le unpacks how blockchain tech and Vietnamese smarts could usher in a profitable era of increased international trade participation for African farmers.
African Tech Roundup Accion's Michael Schlein on Financial Inclusion, Fintech & Impact Investment Sceptics Accion CEO Michael Schlein explains why he's bullish on fintech startups and shares how his organisation is leveraging investments in tech-led microfinance innovation to reach the more than two billion people who are currently invisible to and/or poorly served by the global financial system.
