Starbase Technologies has launched Yolly, a new social entertainment platform designed to reward users for watching, streaming and creating content while promoting wholesome digital engagement.

Starbase Technologies

The company said the platform was developed to redefine participation in the digital economy by enabling viewers, creators and brands to earn value from meaningful online interactions.

According to Starbase Technologies, Yolly introduces a reward system powered by Stars, its native digital rewards currency, which users accumulate through activities such as watching videos, live streaming and creating content.

The company said the initiative was built on the belief that everyone contributing to the digital ecosystem should have the opportunity to benefit from the value they help generate.

Unlike conventional social media platforms where monetisation is often restricted to creators with large followings, Yolly allows creators to begin earning from their first stream without meeting follower thresholds.

The platform also provides emerging creators with features including gifting, Boosts and a Founder Creator badge to help them grow their communities from the outset.

Advertisement

Viewers are also eligible to earn Stars through the platform’s Watch+ feature, which rewards users for watching content from their first session.

For brands, the company said Yolly offers an alternative to traditional impression-based advertising by providing verified engagement metrics, real-time performance dashboards and brand safety controls to improve campaign measurement and audience interaction.

Speaking on the launch, the Head of Business at Yolly, Emeka Okenwa, said the platform was designed to create a more inclusive and rewarding creator economy.

He said the rewards ecosystem prioritises wholesome content and genuine community engagement rather than content driven solely by algorithms or viral trends.

“The platform has been developed on the premise that the future of the creator economy should be more inclusive, more rewarding and built around genuine communities rather than algorithms alone,” Okenwa said.

Advertisement

He added that Yolly was created to encourage family-friendly content while providing viewers, creators and brands with a trusted environment to connect, create and grow.

According to the company, the platform features content across entertainment, sports, lifestyle, education, technology and live events.

Starbase Technologies said the launch forms part of its broader vision of connecting creators and innovators through technology solutions that expand opportunities within the global digital economy.

Mcebisi Jonas, Chairman of MTN Group, has called on African leaders and businesses to deepen regional cooperation, warning that no country on the continent can achieve lasting prosperity in isolation.

Mcebisi Jonas, Chairman of MTN Group

Jonas made the call during the MTN Y’ello Chair event held on Aug. 2, where he urged Africa’s largest economies to work together to unlock the continent’s economic potential.

He said the fortunes of businesses operating across Africa were closely linked to the continent’s overall economic performance.

“Our fortunes as MTN are intertwined with the fortunes of the continent. If the continent goes down, we go down. If the continent is lifted up, we also are lifted up,” he said.

According to him, corporate success cannot be sustained where regional economies remain weak or fragmented.

Jonas cautioned major African economies, particularly Nigeria and South Africa, against adopting inward-looking economic policies, stressing that their long-term prosperity depends on stronger collaboration with neighbouring countries.

Advertisement

“If the continent is to be propelled beyond where it is, trade between South Africa and Nigeria must improve.

“If the big economies of the continent are not working together, are not aligned in terms of agenda and are not trading with each other, then you have a problem,” he said.

He advocated the creation of a pragmatic coalition of Africa’s leading economies, comparable to the Group of Seven (G7), to coordinate economic priorities, strengthen regional integration and accelerate development across the continent.

Jonas also called for increased investment in cross-border infrastructure, including energy, transport, logistics and financial systems, to facilitate trade and improve economic resilience.

According to him, Africa’s long-term growth will depend on its ability to function as a cohesive and interconnected economic bloc.

Advertisement

Recent trade figures indicate growing commercial activity within the continent.

According to the African Trade Report 2025 published by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), intra-African trade increased by 12.4 per cent to 220.3 billion dollars in 2024.

The report showed that South Africa remained the continent’s largest intra-African trading nation with 42.14 billion dollars in trade, while Nigeria’s intra-African trade rose significantly to 18.43 billion dollars, from 8.1 billion dollars recorded in the previous year.

Despite the progress, Jonas noted that regulatory bottlenecks, infrastructure deficits and other cross-border barriers continued to limit the full potential of trade among African countries.

He urged governments to pursue policies that encourage greater regional integration, describing continental cooperation as essential for sustainable economic development.

Advertisement

As multiple legal disputes arising from the acquisition of Pan African Towers unfold before Nigerian courts, one name consistently appears across the proceedings: Adefolarin Ogunsanya.

Court filings involving the Board Chairman and DPI partner raise broader questions about shareholder influence, corporate governance and executive independence following the 2023 acquisition.

The relationship did not begin in conflict. According to court filings, former Pan African Towers CEO Azeez Amida played a leading role in identifying and engaging investors after the company’s shareholders decided to pursue a sale.

The filings state that negotiations led by Amida culminated in the acquisition of Pan African Towers by Development Partners International (DPI), Verod Capital Growth Fund III LP and African Development Partners International LLP in a transaction later recognised as African Deal of the Year. Less than three years later, the same acquisition has become the subject of three separate court cases, bringing its governance arrangements under judicial scrutiny.

According to separate Federal High Court filings, the Management Incentive Plan (MIP) was more than a compensation proposal—it was a key factor in Amida’s decision to select the DPI, Verod and African Development Partners consortium to join him in acquiring Pan African Towers from Chapel Hill Denham, Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund and Prime Infrastructure West Africa.

Advertisement

The affidavit states that Amida held discussions with several investment firms before ultimately recommending the consortium.

He alleges that he made it clear from the outset that management would retain a minimum 5% equity interest following the acquisition, a proposal the consortium accepted through the MIP and accompanying Term Sheets. According to the pleadings, that arrangement distinguished the consortium from competing investors and ultimately secured Amida’s support for the transaction.

The court documents place Board Chairman Adefolarin Ogunsanya at the centre of those negotiations. Among the exhibits is an email from Ogunsanya forwarding a document titled “PAT – MIP analysis.xlsx,” described as “an excel working of the incentive scheme,” together with an invitation to walk Amida through the proposed structure.

The MIP projected that Amida’s proposed 5% equity participation could generate returns exceeding $30 million, which he alleges formed a significant part of his decision to proceed with the consortium.

According to the claimant, those equity arrangements were never implemented after the acquisition closed, giving rise to the separate Federal High Court action in which he seeks damages exceeding $30 million.

Advertisement

DPI, Verod and their respective limited partners are yet to file a substantive defence more than twelve months after the suit was commenced.

According to filings governance tensions emerge after acquisition which Amida’s defence is in contention that governance dynamics changed significantly after the acquisition.

The filings allege that shareholder representatives and board members became increasingly involved in operational matters ordinarily reserved for executive management, particularly procurement and commercial negotiations, including advocating sourcing decisions involving companies in which they held interests.

The defence identifies Board Chairman Adefolarin Ogunsanya as one of the directors involved in those discussions, alleging that governance and procurement disagreements became a defining feature of the relationship between management and the new ownership structure. Those allegations remain disputed and will ultimately be determined by the court.

According to the filings, following the appointment of a new Chief Financial Officer, Amida deliberately stepped away from final expenditure approvals because of governance concerns and the potential for conflicts of interest.

Advertisement

Instead, the defence states that payments followed the company’s established approval process, with departmental reviews culminating in final approval by the Chief Financial Officer, who was hired by the consortium and remains in the company till date.

The defence argues that many of the expenditures now challenged were processed under that framework. It further notes that the Chief Financial Officer responsible for those approvals remains with Pan African Towers and has since been promoted, a fact Amida contends is relevant to the court’s assessment of responsibility for the approval process.

The defence disputes that the transactions were unilateral decisions by the former CEO, arguing that the expenditures passed through multiple approval layers involving Human Resources, Finance, Procurement, Executive Management and, where necessary, the Board. Internal emails, approval workflows, WhatsApp communications and financial records have been listed among the evidence to be relied upon at trial.

The defence further contends that the hospitality, investor engagement and related business expenses were recognised in the company’s audited financial statements and approved through established corporate processes before later becoming the subject of litigation.

Board Chairman Adefolarin Ogunsanya’s recurring role across the various proceedings is one of the more notable features of the litigation.

Advertisement

According to the pleadings, he participated in negotiations surrounding the Management Incentive Plan, later signed the October 2024 query issued to Amida before the Mutual Separation Agreement, and subsequently declined a demand for an amicable settlement in the National Industrial Court dispute.

Amida now alleges that Pan African Towers’ Federal High Court action is retaliatory and intended to pressure him in connection with his earlier proceedings against DPI, Verod and other parties involved in the acquisition. Those allegations remain contested and will ultimately be determined by the courts.