Telecom
Kwara Raises $3M for Seed Expansion and Signs Deal to Reach Over 4,000 Credit Unions
Kwara, a Kenyan fintech digitizing credit unions (Saccos), has more than doubled its customer base over the past year and plans for huge growth in the coming years after raising a $3 million seed expansion and an exclusive Digital Solutions Distribution Agreement signed with the Kenya Union of Savings & Credit Cooperatives (Kuscco), the national umbrella organization that represents Saccos.
Techcrunch in its report noted that, following the Kuscco partnership, Kwara will have connections to a pool of over 4,000 Saccos for its Banking-as-a-Service product. As part of the exclusive deal, Kwara will also acquire Kuscco’s subsidiary IRNET, a software company and provider for Saccos, for an undisclosed amount.
According to Kwara, the Kuscco deal comes at the right time in his plan to double-down on Kenya, especially as it comes right after the $3 million seed round extension. Joining the round were existing investors DOB Equity, Globivest and Willard Ahdritz, founder of Kobalt Music. New supporters One Day Yes, Base Capital, and fintech executives including Mikko Salovaara, Revolut’s CFO, also joined the round. The new funding brings the total seed fund raised by the startup to $7 million after first round investments from Breega, SoftBank Vision Fund Emerge, Finca Ventures, New General Market Partners and other VCs.
“We believe we have barely scratched the surface of the Kenyan market. And so we’re really going to invest in products and services that deepen our relationship here,” Cynthia Wandia, co-founder and CEO of Kwara, told TechCrunch.
“The reason (of the deal) is clear, firstly it is an opportunity to generate leads and sell our core product so quickly and deepen our competitive advantage. We are entering into an exclusive partnership, which also means that no other technology company can market with Kuscco. They’re counting on us, but we’ve been able to prove we can do it as we continue to grow,” said Wandia, who co-founded the fintech in 2019 with David Hwan.
Kwara, which also has a presence in South Africa and the Philippines, has grown its customer base to 120 from 50 at the end of 2021 and has maintained 100% customer retention – a testament to the value it brings to its customers. The automated onboarding process, according to the startup, has ensured customer success and growth.
Kwara’s product upgrades credit unions’ back-office operations, helping them move away from tedious paper-based processes and physical branches, and opening up new avenues for them to recruit new members and create novel products.
The company also has a next-gen neobank app that gives members of partner credit unions access to additional services like instant loans and third-party services like insurance. The neobank app’s user base, which also allows users to deposit funds directly into their Sacco accounts and track their finances and payments, has grown 35-fold since it launched last year.
The fintech plans to add more features for the Saccos and additional products for the members.
“We continue to deliver more or less enterprise-grade features for the big saccos that are well capitalized, the ones that are the same size and level as some of the banks. There are specific features that they need and specific capabilities that they need to take care of, so we will continue to invest in those. And then invest in the neo-banking experience by adding more features that help members create a personalized view of their own goals and really work towards achieving them. Third-party partnerships that add value to those end customers,” Wandia said.
“We believe that every time a sacco member leaves their sacco to obtain another service simply because the sacco does not provide it, is a missed opportunity for that member to actually benefit from the returns from that product . Any revenue generated from these products actually goes back to members as dividends,” she added.
Credit unions are formed by people with a common interest or members of an industry, such as farmers or teachers, who buy shares in the institution, save money, and borrow. They are particularly popular in developing regions because of their low-interest loans and the ease of borrowing compared to conventional banks.
Amazon, the world’s largest e-commerce and cloud computing powerhouse, announced plans Wednesday to eliminate 16,000 jobs globally, escalating a restructuring drive first flagged in October with 14,000 earlier cuts.
Amazon
The layoffs, hitting corporate ranks across multiple divisions, aim to slash management layers, boost accountability, and dismantle bureaucracy, Senior Vice President Beth Galetti stated in an internal memo. Despite booming holiday sales and $21 billion quarterly profits on $180 billion revenue, Amazon seeks to redirect resources toward massive artificial intelligence investments amid slower post-pandemic growth and rising costs.
Galetti explained that while some teams finalised October adjustments, others required extended reviews, pushing total reductions toward 30,000—the firm’s largest ever. CEO Andy Jassy, pursuing leaner operations since 2021, has long signalled AI’s role in shrinking white-collar headcount, with corporate staff—about 350,000 of 1.5 million total—bearing the brunt, sparing warehouses.
The move mirrors Big Tech’s broader belt-tightening as firms recalibrate pandemic-era hiring binges against economic headwinds, AI disruption, and policy uncertainties under President Donald Trump. Amazon’s October cuts struck 2,000 in Washington state—including engineers, recruiters, analysts—and 1,500 in California, with fresh impacts undisclosed by location.
Jassy emphasised culture over pure finances in prior notes, blaming rapid expansion for excess layers after workforce doubling during COVID lockdowns fueled online shopping surges. Recent U.S. hiring slowdowns—to 50,000 jobs in December—underscore corporate caution amid AI’s job-shifting potential and tariff worries.
Analysts note the cuts free capital for AI dominance, pitting Amazon against rivals in generative tools despite no immediate financial distress. Ex-workers have decried impersonal processes, often learning via media leaks, highlighting tensions in Earth’s “best employer” shedding talent en masse.
As tech pivots to AI frontiers, Amazon’s aggressive pruning signals a new era: fewer bodies, sharper focus, betting machine smarts eclipse human scale in the post-boom landscape.
Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force smashed a sophisticated cybercrime ring Wednesday, arresting six suspects accused of hacking a major telecommunications company and looting airtime and mobile data worth a staggering N7.7 billion.
The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, disclosed in a statement that the suspects breached the telecom giant’s core billing and payment systems by compromising internal staff login credentials, enabling them to siphon off vast quantities of airtime and data for illicit resale.
Named in the arrests are Ahmad Bala, Karibu Mohammed Shehu, Umar Habib, Obinna Ananaba, Ibrahim Shehu, and Masa’ud Sa’ad – a mix of northern and southern names hinting at a cross-regional fraud network that preyed on Nigeria’s digital backbone.
Police swooped on the gang’s hideouts in coordinated raids across Kano and Katsina states in October 2025, with a final takedown in the Federal Capital Territory, recovering two mini-plazas masquerading as legitimate retail outlets stocked with over 400 laptops, about 1,000 mobile phones, and a Toyota vehicle.
Investigators also froze substantial sums in the suspects’ bank accounts, tracing the dirty money trail back to the diverted resources that left the unnamed telecom firm reeling from unauthorised activities reported in a desperate petition.
The breach, described by police as a “calculated assault on critical infrastructure,” allowed the hackers to manipulate the company’s systems undetected for months, offloading billions in airtime and data bundles through underground channels and raking in illicit profits.
Hundeyin vowed that the net was widening, with forensic experts combing through digital footprints and financial ledgers to expose any remaining accomplices or beneficiaries in what he called “one of the largest telecom heists in recent Nigerian history.”
Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, praised the crack team from the National Cybercrime Centre for their “relentless professionalism,” urging telecom firms to bolster cybersecurity amid a surge in digital predation.
As the suspects cool their heels awaiting arraignment under the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention) Act, the case underscores Nigeria’s growing battle against tech-savvy fraudsters targeting the N1.7 trillion telecom sector that powers millions of daily transactions.
Industry watchers warn that such breaches erode investor confidence and hike operational costs, ultimately passed onto consumers already grappling with soaring data tariffs in Africa’s most populous nation
As Africa and MENA’s startup ecosystems transition from post-correction resilience into a new phase of disciplined growth, the Africa Startup & VC Landscape Preview (ASVLP 2026) will convene leading founders, investors, policymakers, and ecosystem builders on January 29, 2026, for its second annual, agenda-setting virtual forum.
Following a challenging global venture cycle, 2025 marked a notable rebound across the African ecosystem, with startups raising an estimated $3.2–$3.3 billion over the full year.
The recovery was accompanied by significant structural shifts: Kenya emerged as the leading destination among Africa’s “Big Four” markets for the first time, while Nigeria recorded a year-on-year funding decline, reflecting changing investor preferences, macroeconomic pressures, and a broader recalibration toward capital efficiency and sustainability.
Sectorally, fintech remained the most funded vertical, while climate & energy, AI-enabled solutions, healthtech, and infrastructure-adjacent businesses gained increasing attention. Across Africa and MENA, development finance institutions (DFIs) and family offices played a more pronounced role in anchoring funds, deploying catalytic capital, and supporting blended-finance structures, reshaping how early-stage and growth capital is mobilized.
ASVLP 2026 is designed to translate these data points into forward-looking strategy.
The forum will bring together venture capitalists, angel investors, LPs, DFIs, family offices, founders, corporate leaders, and regulators from Africa, MENA, Europe, and North America to assess 2025 outcomes and chart priorities for 2026.
The program will feature keynotes, fireside chats, panels, and deep-dive roundtables, including discussions on:
· The 2026 Africa & MENA FinTech Landscape, focusing on security, profitability, regulation, and growth frontiers
· Emerging Fund Managers, capital formation, and LP alignment
· Talent, operator depth, and institutional capacity as constraints to scale
· Regulatory evolution and cross-border market integration
A major highlight of ASVLP 2026 will be the Final DealRoom Pitch Session, where a curated group of high-potential startups will present to an experienced panel of investors.
• Founders can apply to pitch via: bit.ly/ASVLP-DR-Founders
• Investors seeking DealRoom access can request entry via: bit.ly/ASVLP-DR-Investors
Confirmed speakers for ASVLP 2026 include Khaled Ismail (HIMangel), Idris Ayodeji Bello (LoftyInc Capital), Zachariah George (Launch Africa), Tosin Faniro-Dada (Breega), Selma Ribica (FirstCircle Capital), Maha Mandour (COREangels MEA), Joe Kinvi (Borderless), Remi Prunier (Orange Ventures MEA), Karima El Hakim (Plug and Play Tech Center), Souheil Guessoum (President, The Confederation of Citizen Employers – Algeria (CAPC)), Remi Prunier (Partner, Orange Ventures, MEA), Maha Mandour (COREAngels MEA), Ali Hussein (President, Kenyan FinTech Association), Patrick Okebu (CIO, Interswitch Group) among other leading voices shaping capital, policy, and innovation across the region.
“The conversation has shifted,” said Uche Aniche, Convener of ASVLP. “It’s no longer about whether capital will return to Africa and MENA, but what kind of capital, deployed with what discipline, and in service of which long-term outcomes. ASVLP exists to help the ecosystem make sense of that transition.”
Participation in ASVLP 2026 is free but strictly by invitation.
Interested participants are encouraged to repost the official announcement on LinkedIn and comment #ASVLP2026 to receive a private registration link. They could also email [email protected] and request invite.
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