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Techstars-Backed BlackCopper Set Out to Disrupt Lending, Now It Owes Investors ₦1 Billion
Despite its bright start and significant press coverage, BlackCopper soon faced an existential crisis: it could not recover over 60,000 loans disbursed to customers.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- digital finance, failure, fintech, lending, startups
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UBA Gets Sh37 Billion Loan From Parent for SMEs
UBA Kenya joins the growing list of lenders directing money towards small businesses.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Under-Leveraged Best Practices for Scaling Productive Use of Energy Appliances: Part 2 — Financing Options
Productive Use of Energy (PUE) appliances are the subject of growing attention in the development sector, but manufacturers and distributors are facing a number of challenges and misconceptions that are limiting uptake of these devices. In the second article of a two-part series exploring best practices for selling PUE appliances, Thomas Charoy and Lucie Klarsfeld McGrath at Hystra discuss the affordability challenge, sharing solutions for handling the high level of working capital and financial skills required to offer financing options to end-users.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Energy, Finance, Technology
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American Express Sets its Sights on Expansion and Innovation in Nigeria and Beyond
The company plans to increase its presence in Africa, with a current operation in 30 countries and a goal to expand to 42 countries in the sub-Saharan region.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- digital payments, lending
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The Future of Digital Credit: A Recent Report Explores How to Make its Second Decade More Impactful Than its First
The first online lending platforms began emerging roughly two decades ago, and since then, the global digital credit market has grown to reach many formerly excluded customers. But according to Dan Cassara, previously at CEGA, this growth has raised concerns about over-indebtedness, exploitation and scams. As the market looks toward the coming decades, he shares a recent report that investigates digital credit — particularly Mobile Instant Credit and airtime loans — and explores approaches that can better protect consumers and support their financial health.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Mobilizing Capital in the Low-Cost Private School Sector: Key Insights Two Years into an Innovative Partnership
One in five children in sub-Saharan Africa are out of school, and without scalable solutions, the region — like other emerging markets — won’t meet SDG 4’s goal of education for all. Mauricio Rincon and Mathieu Fourn at Opportunity International, and Alvaro Ma at Oikocredit argue that affordable non-state schools can help address this need — but only if they're supported by financial institutions and impact investment. They share learnings from a partnership between Opportunity and Oikocredit that is directing millions of dollars in capital to these schools, along with capacity building and other support.
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Float, a South African Buy-Now-Pay-Later Startup, Secures $11 million to Launch its Card-Linked Installment Platform
Float encourages responsible credit card usage and, at the same time, helps merchants to grow their sales.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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TDB Group Grants $2 Million to MPower Ventures Zambia to Enhance Access to Modern and Affordable Energy Solutions in Zambia
MPower Zambia plans to expand its range of plug-and-play household solar devices and market-driven productive assets.
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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