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Revitalizing Off-Grid Solar: Why Africa’s PAYGo Sector is Ready for a New Dawn
Africa's off-grid solar sector, particularly pay-as-you-go (PAYGo) solar, has passed through a period of disillusionment among investors, as profitability has remained elusive. But as Chris Emmott at Acumen, Audrey Desiderato at Mirova and Bankole Cardoso at Delta40 Venture Studio argue, the sector nevertheless stands on the cusp of becoming a mature industry with real and sustainable impact. They explain why they remain optimistic about the future of PAYGo solar as impact investors, and why it's time for honest conversations and compromise from all stakeholders — including companies and their investors — about how the industry can move into the next stage of its development.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Finance, Investing, Technology
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BII Provides $100 Million Towards Green Investments and Financial Inclusion in Africa
The funding aims to drive sustainable growth by facilitating lending to climate-related projects and women-led enterprises, expanding financial inclusion, and helping to close the region’s $42bn gender financing gap.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Finance, Transportation
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Oze Secures New Funding to Expand Lending Management Solution Across Africa
The undisclosed round will support the company’s efforts to scale its Lending Management System (LMS), a solution designed to help financial institutions provide unsecured digital loans to small businesses.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- corporations, digital finance, fintech, lending, microfinance, MSMEs, scale
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The Global Aid Industry is Repeating the Mistakes that Caused the 2008 Financial Crisis: A Warning from a Former Leader at Lehman Brothers
In 2008, the failure of a single institution, Lehman Brothers, triggered a global financial crisis — not because of Lehman alone, but because of the unseen interdependencies that held the world’s financial system together. According to David Davies at AgUnity, a leader at Lehman Brothers during the 2008 crisis, America is in the process of making the same catastrophic mistake in global aid. He explains why the collapse of USAID threatens to bring down the deeply interconnected global aid system, impacting hundreds of millions of people — and urges private foundations, philanthropists and impact investors to step up.
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Press Release: Triple Jump Receives EIB Financial Inclusion Grant to Support Oxfam Novib Investees’ Climate Resilience in Sub-Saharan Africa
Triple Jump and ONF will support up to six microfinance institutions (MFIs) with the fund they from Financial Inclusion Fund (FIF).
- Categories
- Finance
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Nigeria-Born Banking Startups Target Emerging Market Gig Workers
The startups are not banks in themselves, but partnerships with lenders licensed by central banks make them de facto digital banks.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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M-PESA Safaricom, Dashen Bank & CashGo Partner to Enhance Remittances in Ethiopia
M-PESA, Dashen Bank, and CashGo launch a seamless international remittance service, enabling Ethiopians to receive money instantly into mobile wallets.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology, Telecommunications
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Safaricom Ethiopia’s M-PESA Revenue Dips Despite 245% Jump in Registrations
Safaricom launched M-PESA in Ethiopia in August 2023 with Kenya extending its M-PESA Global service to the country to facilitate cross-border money transfers.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology, Telecommunications
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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