📶 Airtel Africa, Starlink Ink $900m Deal

Plus:📈 Nvidia hits $5 trillion

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Innovation Village
October 30, 2025

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Good Morning Valued Subscribers👋

Last week, it was AWS taking a nap and this week, Microsoft Azure said, “Hold my beer.” Suddenly, Teams, Outlook, and a handful of Microsoft 365 services decided to go off-grid, and you could almost hear the collective sigh from offices around the world. It’s funny (and slightly terrifying) how much our daily work depends on invisible servers floating somewhere in the digital sky.

It’s starting to feel like these cloud giants are passing the outage baton from one to another. While we can joke about it now, the truth is, it says a lot about how dependent we’ve all become on digital infrastructure we can’t even see. One glitch up there, and half the world’s workflow grinds to a halt.

But maybe there’s something grounding about moments like this. They remind us that even the biggest players in tech are still figuring it out, just at a massive scale. The future may be in the cloud, but it still runs on human resilience, problem-solving, and a lot of “we’ll fix it soon” energy.

So as we settle into today, here’s to staying adaptable, whether it’s your favourite platform acting up or another surprise the week decides to throw your way. After all, in tech (and life), stability is never guaranteed, but curiosity always pays off.

Let’s dive in👇

Today’s Menu ☕️

📶 Airtel Africa Partners Starlink in $900 Million Digital Expansion Drive
💵 AfricInvest makes landmark investment in The British University in Egypt (BUE)
📈 Nvidia becomes first public company worth $5 trillion
💰 FirstRand expands African footprint with strategic acquisition from UK banking giant
📶 Airtel Money hits $193 billion annualized transactions, eyes 2026 IPO
🏦 TymeBank to rebrand as GoTyme in 2026 amid strategic expansion
💰Old Mutual to acquire majority stake in 10X Investments for $127.4 million
🤖 Moniepoint Launches ‘M,’ an AI Chatbot Built on Data from 10 Million Merchants

 📶 TELECOMS

Airtel Africa Partners Starlink in $900 Million Digital Expansion Drive

Airtel Africa is going big — really big. The telecom giant just announced plans to pump nearly $900 million into its network over the next year, its largest investment ever, and it’s teaming up with Elon Musk’s Starlink to make high-speed satellite internet a reality across Africa.

The goal is to push Africa’s digital future into high gear. Airtel wants faster, more reliable connections — from busy cities to the most remote villages — and this partnership with Starlink means even places without traditional towers or fiber can finally get strong internet access.

The money isn’t just for satellites, though. Airtel is upgrading its 4G and 5G networks, renewing licenses, boosting cybersecurity, and expanding data centers. About $600 million of that investment will go directly into growing and modernizing its infrastructure........…..…continue reading

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💵 INVESTMENTS

AfricInvest makes landmark investment in The British University in Egypt (BUE)

AfricInvest just made a major move in Egypt’s education scene and it’s turning heads. The pan-African investment firm has poured a landmark investment into The British University in Egypt (BUE), one of the country’s top private universities. It’s being called one of the biggest foreign direct investments in Egypt’s education sector so far.

The fresh funding will help BUE expand its programs, upgrade its infrastructure, and strengthen its presence not just in Egypt, but across Africa and the Middle East. The Khamis family — who founded and still lead the university — will stay in charge, while AfricInvest brings the financial muscle and strategic guidance.

Farida Khamis, BUE’s Chair of the Board, says this is about building on her late father’s legacy and pushing the university to new heights. AfricInvest’s team, on the other hand, says they’re backing a vision for world-class, British-style education in Africa — the kind that creates the next generation of leaders and innovators.......…..…continue reading

💰ACQUISITIONS

FirstRand expands African footprint with strategic acquisition from UK banking giant

The financial giant has just announced that its subsidiary, FNB Zambia, is acquiring Standard Chartered Zambia’s Wealth and Retail Banking business. Yep, that means all SCBZ’s personal banking clients, branches, ATMs, and even employees will soon become part of FNB Zambia’s growing family.

The deal isn’t just about numbers — though they’re impressive: we’re talking ZMW 5.2 billion in deposits, ZMW 1.6 billion in loans, and ZMW 3.8 billion in wealth assets. More importantly, it gives FNB a stronger footing in Zambia’s wealth and retail segment, helping it move from a strong player to a dominant one.

FirstRand’s CEO, Mary Vilakazi, called it a “perfect fit,” saying the acquisition boosts FNB Zambia’s scale and brings in great talent...........…..…continue reading

📶 TELECOMS

Airtel Money hits $193 billion annualized transactions, eyes 2026 IPO

Their mobile money arm, Airtel Money, is now moving a mind-blowing $193 billion a year in transactions! Yep, billion with a “B.” That puts it right up there with the biggest fintech players on the continent — and it’s about to get even bigger. Airtel just confirmed plans to take Airtel Money public in 2026.

The company’s CEO, Sunil Taldar, says this growth comes from a mix of great customer experience, smarter operations, and cost efficiencies — basically, Airtel is firing on all cylinders. Fintech revenue jumped 30%, the user base hit 49.8 million, and people are spending more on the platform than ever before.

We also need to understand that data revenue has now overtaken voice as Airtel’s biggest money-maker. That’s huge. With smartphone use rising fast across Africa, Airtel’s network is becoming the backbone of both internet and mobile money........…..…continue reading

🏦 BANKING

TymeBank to rebrand as GoTyme in 2026 amid strategic expansion

Come 2026, TymeBank will officially rebrand as GoTyme, aligning with its international family already making waves in the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia. The move signals more than a name change — it’s TymeBank saying, “We’ve grown up.”

Since launching in 2018, the bank has become a true South African fintech success story — over 11 million customers, profitable since 2023, and valued at a solid $1.5 billion after a big funding round led by Nu Holdings (the company behind Brazil’s Nubank).

But the story doesn’t stop there. TymeBank is now stepping deeper into traditional finance territory. Through a partnership with Sanlam, it’s buying half of Sanlam Personal Loans — a R5 billion loan book — and launching a new venture to offer personal loans with built-in insurance. That’s a smart play in South Africa’s booming unsecured lending market......…continue reading

💰INVESTMENTS

Old Mutual to acquire majority stake in 10X Investments for $127.4 million

Jurie Strydom, CEO of Old Mutual

If you’re not familiar, 10X is one of South Africa’s rising stars in passive investing — think low-cost, tech-powered investment products that make saving and investing simple for everyday people. The company’s been on a serious growth streak too, jumping from R3 billion to over R68 billion in assets under management and now serving 60,000+ clients.

With this deal, Old Mutual isn’t just buying into a company — it’s buying into the future of investing. 10X will keep its brand and management team, but will now have Old Mutual’s muscle behind it to scale faster, especially in the self-directed retail market.

Old Mutual’s CEO, Jurie Strydom, says the acquisition strengthens their position in rules-based and passive investment solutions — basically, investments driven by data and discipline rather than constant human tinkering. It’s a smart way to give investors more control and lower fees........…continue reading

🤖 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Moniepoint Launches ‘M,’ an AI Chatbot Built on Data from 10 Million Merchants

Moniepoint just did something pretty groundbreaking — they built an AI chatbot called “M” to help anyone, from journalists to policymakers, understand Nigeria’s informal economy in plain language. And honestly, it’s kind of genius.

Moniepoint isn’t just another fintech. Since 2015, they’ve quietly built the backbone of small business payments in Nigeria, serving over 10 million users and processing more than $22 billion every month. That means they’ve got more real-time insight into how Nigeria actually runs — who’s selling what, where money’s flowing, and how small businesses are surviving — than almost anyone else, including the government........…continue reading

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Jessica .C. Adiele
Innovation Village