Visa to support financial education in South Africa with US$200k

SOUTH AFRICA – Visa, the global financial services giant, has announced that it recently signed a partnership with the Financial Services Consumer Education Foundation (FSCEF) worth US$200,000 to support financial education in South Africa.

The partnership is specifically focused on two financial education programmes namely The Financial Literacy Speech Competition for Schools and the Financial Literacy for Students in Tertiary Institutions. The financial education programmes are anticipated to reach approximately 7500 young people.

The FSCEF is a local non-profit organisation established in 2004 by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (previously known as the Financial Services Board). It aims to fund consumer initiatives that will help to increase financial literacy and equip people with the information, tools, and knowledge required to make smarter financial decisions.

The Financial Literacy Speech Competition for Schools is targeted at school learners in quintiles 1, 2 and 3 schools (no-fee schools) across all nine provinces in South Africa. The programme consists of four rounds, which include school, district, provincial and national rounds. The winner of each round progresses to the next round.

The Financial Literacy for Students in Tertiary Institutions is targeted at first-year students at five institutions. For most students, this is the time they are required to start managing their finances independently, and for most, if not all, it is the first time they are exposed to credit.

Topics will include Money Management (the importance of financial literacy), Debt Management (credit score and how to handle your finances) and Wealth Creation (savings and investment, scams, and tips on starting a business.

Solar energy company Karmsolar raises funds for expansion plans

EGYPT – KarmSolar, a leading private power utility and solar energy company, has raised a new round of capital to fund its local and regional expansion plans.

KarmSolar aims to spearhead the growth of the private solar energy market in Egypt through the introduction of innovative and integrated solutions across the industrial, agricultural, commercial and tourism sectors.

The new investment round is supported by US-based Synergy Consulting as the sell-side advisor, and will be used to support existing power generation and distribution businesses and enable new verticals such as solar water desalination solutions provider KarmWater and electric mobility venture KarmCharge to flourish.

“Through the minority stake sale, we are seeking a new partner to join KarmSolar’s current shareholders and its strategic shareholder, EDF Renouvelables, in supporting the next stage of our journey,” said Ahmed Zahran, CEO and co-founder of KarmSolar.

“These are exciting times for the future of smart, connected utility platforms and we plan to be at the forefront of this paradigm shift in our region.”

Cameroonian digital business card provider Taaply raises US$500k

CAMEROON – The Cameroon-based Taaply, which began life digitising business cards, has raised US$500,000 in funding as it announces the release of a new app and website update.

Launched in 2021, Taaply is a digital business card solution aimed at cutting down on carbon emissions in Africa. Its new website features new and exciting products to help customers further digitalise and manage their social and professional connections while revolutionising the customer data-sharing experience.

The recent funding, app and website updates and improvements will enable Taaply to effectively compete for the growth opportunities in the healthcare and health insurance markets, the startup said.

“In this way, Taaply hopes to meet the growing demand from both private and business customers for the full range of fixed and mobile healthcare services,” it said.

Taaply is currently active within several countries in Africa, Europe and North America, and plans to expand beyond its currently marketed products.

Car service app 3atlana secures seed round to enhance its AI system

EGYPT – 3atlana, a car service app located in Egypt, has secured a six-figure seed round from Ghabbour Auto, a renowned automotive manufacturer in Egypt, to enhance its AI system.

The business will utilise the additional cash to further its AI technology, which will enable it to keep offering its customers cutting-edge vehicle service options. Over 9,500 automobiles have been serviced by 3atlana, and the app has been downloaded more than 25,000 times to far.

Despite being a new company, 3atlana has taken part in a number of incubator and accelerator programmes, including Flat6Labs Cairo and the Enpact Covid-19 Relief Program. Additionally board partners with 3atlana are Flat6Labs Cairo and Ghabbour Auto.

Sherif El Adham, Ahmed Hassan, and Amr Hesham established 3atlana in 2020 with the goal of facilitating crucial auto services that drivers may require, such as scheduling maintenance, roadside assistance, and connecting to neighbouring service providers.

Users will have access to door-to-door services through the 3atlana app, where an engineer and mobile vehicle centre will be dispatched to their location, and they will be able to buy spare parts with a three-month warranty. With its resale automobile service, 3atlana can evaluate the vehicle for potential customers who want to acquire a used car, providing them with the peace of mind they want.

E-commerce startup el-dokan completes US$550k pre-seed round

MEA – el-dokan, the first-of-its-kind startup in the Middle East to provide enterprise e-commerce technology, has announced the successful completion of a US$550,000 pre-Seed round headed by a group of local and regional investors including EFG EV and Flat6Labs, 500 Global, and Hala Ventures.

According to Ahmed Maher, co-founder and CEO of el-dokan, the key reason for the company’s ability to earn the trust of investors and close its pre-Seed round is that el-dokan is among the very few companies that focus on building advanced software using cutting-edge technologies such as headless, composable e-commerce architecture.

Walid Hassouna, CEO of valU, Egypt’s leading buy now pay later (BNPL) platform, expressed his delight at the successful conclusion of the company’s maiden investment round, which included EFG EV as one of its early supporters. “

El-dokan, which launched in Egypt in late 2020 by Ahmed Maher, Mohammed Shirt, and Sherif Alaa, primarily targets major merchants and chain stores looking to extend their e-commerce market share, enhance sales, and automate operations.

Using “headless e-commerce technology,” el-dokan provides the best technological framework for tech teams to create highly configurable e-commerce with maximum flexibility, allowing businesses to adapt faster to changing business demands and keep up with the rapid changes in e-commerce.

With 300+ open API endpoints, it also targets software businesses and developers that deal directly with organisations wishing to construct their e-commerce sites quickly and cost-effectively.

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