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FairMoney Looking to Expand Footprint in Kenya through Umba Acquisition

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FairMoney, a digital bank based in Lagos is in talks to acquire Umba, a credit-led digital bank operating in Kenya, for $20 million in an all-stock deal.

The fintech firm seeks to grow its customer base, particularly in Kenya, solving the challenges faced by many African fintechs due to global funding slowdown.

Founded in 2016, FairMoney has become a well-known Nigerian lender, attracting over $57 million in funding and asserting over 6 million customers. While venturing into India in 2020, recent updates on that expansion remain unavailable.

Launched in 2018, Umba initially focused on retail banking in Nigeria before expanding to offer merchant financing and business banking in both Nigeria and Kenya. While user numbers haven’t been disclosed, they secured a microfinance license in Kenya through a strategic acquisition in 2022.

Obtaining a microfinance license in Kenya is notoriously difficult, with only 14 issued compared to Nigeria’s 600+. For FairMoney, acquiring Umba’s license could offer a faster entry point into the Kenyan market.

Considering Umba’s financial situation, FairMoney’s offer might be enticing. Recent data reveals they generated $335,000 in revenue versus $1.54 million in expenses between January and June 2023. Moreover, after a $15 million Series A funding round in 2022, they secured a $1.55 million bridge round at a significantly lower valuation, aligning with FairMoney’s offer.

This potential deal follows a recent acquisition in the Nigerian fintech space – Carbon’s purchase of SME-focused Vella Finance. This shows the evolving state of African fintechs, where tightened VC funding necessitates consolidation and strategic partnerships.

While acquisition talks are ongoing, Umba may explore other options. Ultimately, this potential deal, if successful, highlights both FairMoney’s expansion drive and the changing dynamics of the African fintech sector in the challenging economic climate.


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Ugo Onwuaso is an ICT enthusiast. He believes technology should be used for general good. He holds a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from the Lagos state University. Dear Reader, Your support matters. But we believe that technology makes life more exciting and helps improve the lives of people around Nigeria and indeed the world. That is why, we have devoted our energy to independent reportage of technology and finance and how they affect lives. Our incisive and analytical view of how technology news affects the daily life help individuals and organizations make up their minds. Quality journalism costs money. Today, we're asking that you support us to do more. Kindly support our effort to deliver technology and finance journalism to everyone in the world. Donate as little as N1,000. Bank transfers can be made to: UBA Plc 1017156876 Communication Week Media Ltd

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AVEVA Showcases Next-Gen Digital Twin Enhancements at Innovation Summit

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Rob-McGreevy, Chief-Product Officer, AVEVA
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AVEVA, a global leader in industrial software, driving digital transformation and sustainability, is setting a new standard for the industrial digital twin by converging all data onto CONNECT industrial intelligence platform.

Rob-McGreevy, Chief-Product Officer, AVEVA

Through enhancements to AVEVA Asset Information Management, AVEVA System Platform and AVEVA PI Data Infrastructure, AVEVA can enable the visualisation of engineering and operations data in one interface, offering organisations the ability to scale digital twin solutions more flexibly and reduce IT overhead.

The new enhancements, showcased at Schneider Electric’s Innovation Summit, will streamline the transfer of data to the CONNECT industrial intelligence platform in the cloud, improving data availability, reducing infrastructure costs, and enabling more precise, scalable analytics for digital twin applications.

Hosted from 22-23rd October the Innovation Summit featured a variety of speakers including Caspar Herzberg, CEO, AVEVA who discussed the role of software and industrial intelligence in accelerating the energy transition and CEO of Schneider Electric, Olivier Blum who shared his vision for the future of AI and energy transformation.

The event offered the opportunity to connect with industry trailblazers and energy technology luminaries for inspiring discussions on the energy transition, AI, and staying agile in fast-changing markets.

At this year’s Schneider Innovation summit, AVEVA showcased its solutions and vision for its industrial digital twin.

The new product enhancements will enable industrial organisations to create scalable, high-fidelity use cases that deliver real-time insight, improve asset reliability, accelerate decision-making, and support enterprise-wide transformation.

By eliminating data silos and enabling seamless collaboration across engineering, operations and IT, this will ensure AVEVA customers can drive better performance, carbon efficiency, and actionable industrial intelligence across the asset lifecycle.

“AVEVA’s technology is being used to aggregate, contextualize and validate asset information following industry data standard rules to provide a trusted digital twin.

“The technology will unify trusted asset information, such as equipment specifications, maintenance records, and engineering documentation, with real-time operational data from sensors, control systems, and industrial processes.

“This convergence happens within the CONNECT platform, built on Microsoft Azure, where contextualized data from AVEVA Asset Information Management and the AVEVA™ PI System™ portfolio is visualised together to unlock more value through AI-powered dashboards and analytics. We’re excited to bring this new software deliverable to the market,” comments Rob McGreevy, chief product officer, AVEVA.

For AVEVA Asset Information Management, the new enhancements will bring together trusted asset contexts, accessible through the CONNECT visualisation offering a single flexible and unified UI to visualise trusted engineering, asset and maintenance data. From P&IDs, drawings, and documents to real-time sensor readings, process events, and historical performance metrics, teams can view and analyse all relevant data in one place.

Meanwhile, AVEVA PI Data Infrastructure, is an ever-advancing modern and flexible foundation for rapidly connecting, contextualising and acting on industrial insights from operations data.

Its sophisticated data management capabilities continue to drive value across enterprises and new enhancements ensure enhanced hybrid connectivity, visualisation and analytics for AVEVA’s industrial digital twin.

“Our collaboration with AVEVA continues to evolve,” said Dayan Rodriguez, Corporate VP for Manufacturing, Microsoft. “By expanding the capabilities of the AVEVA portfolio and of the CONNECT platform on Microsoft Azure, AVEVA is unlocking new possibilities for industrial digital twin—bringing together trusted asset information and real-time operational data to deliver AI-powered insights, seamless visualisation, and enterprise-wide scalability.”


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MTN Unveils YelloTide Campaign to Spark Joy and Unity This Holiday Season

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After days of online conversations and speculation, MTN Nigeria has officially unveiled its much-anticipated Festive campaign, YelloTide, a nationwide celebration aimed at spreading joy, kindness, and connection across the country.

The campaign officially kicks off this week, following a three-day teaser that had Nigerians across social media guessing what MTN had up its sleeve. Now, the wait is over.

According to the brand, the initiative will unfold in three major phases designed to light up the festive season with colour, community engagements, and giving spirit.

Activities begin with Y’ello Santa, a three-day activation held from Thursday, November 13 to Saturday, November 15, 2025, in six key cities: Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja, Enugu, Kano, and Ibadan. Each stop will feature surprise appearances, and special giveaways, turning everyday spaces into pockets of celebration.

Onyinye Ikenna-Emeka, Chief Marketing Officer, MTN Nigeria, said: “This season, we want to bring the smiles back. We want people to remember what it feels like to come together, celebrate each other, and share happiness. From city centres to small communities, we’re taking the celebration to where Nigerians are.”

The campaign will run through the festive period into early 2026, combining physical activations, digital engagement via the MTN portal – yellotide.mtn.ng, and heartfelt community moments.

With millions of Nigerians already interacting online and city-wide celebrations set to begin, MTN’s festive campaign is shaping up to be one of the most unifying and memorable projects of the season.


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Girls Slug it Out for N5m Prize in Glo Innov8 STEM Finale

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The race is down to three as the Glo Innov8 National STEM Competition for Girls approaches its grand finale. The competition, organized by the Glo Foundation, Globacom’s corporate social responsibility arm, will take place at the Mike Adenuga Centre (Alliance Française), Ikoyi, Lagos.

From over 200 schools that entered nationwide, 20 were initially shortlisted, and 10 went on to compete for a place in the finals. The three schools that made it to the last stage are Ephraim High School, Isolo Campus, Lagos; Regina Pacis International School, Onitsha, Anambra State; and Peakfield Academy, Jos, Plateau State.

Hundreds of students across several states, including Plateau, Kano, Lagos, Rivers, Edo, Borno, Kebbi, Nasarawa, Ondo, Oyo, Anambra, FCT, Delta, Kaduna, and Adamawa submitted entries after the Glo Foundation’s nationwide call for participation.

The initiative, designed as a STEM-driven challenge, was launched to mark this year’s International Day of the Girl Child — celebrating creativity, innovation, and inclusion among young women in science and technology.

According to the Glo Foundation, “The competition is aimed at inspiring young girls to Compete, Innovate, and Win — while strengthening their confidence and expanding their knowledge in STEM subjects.”

The winning school will take home ₦2,000,000 cash prize, with each of its two student representatives receiving a brand-new laptop and the Teacher/Mentor/STEM Coordinator earning ₦200,000. Runners-up will also receive valuable consolation prizes.

The three judges of the virtual stage expressed delight at the quality of presentations from the top 20 schools. Tosin Olabode praised the participants’ creativity, saying, “I was particularly impressed by the prototype presentations — some schools clearly did their homework.”

Another judge, Amina Gabriel, highlighted the diversity of ideas, noting, “The schools presented innovative solutions addressing issues in agriculture, security, waste management, and firefighting. The prototypes ranged from apps to robots, making the competition truly engaging. I’m grateful to Glo Foundation for giving me the chance to support young girls in STEM.”

On her part, Sharon Ibejih added that “this competition has showcased a highly competitive next generation of women leaders in STEM. It’s a brilliant platform to nurture problem-solving and innovative thinking among students.”

As the final stage approaches, anticipation is high for what promises to be a memorable showcase of brilliant young Nigerian girls and a testament to Globacom’s commitment to empowering the next generation of innovators.

 


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