Newsletter 0811023

Newsletter 08112023: WeWork South Africa not affected by US counterpart bankruptcy

BUSINESS

WeWork South Africa not affected by US counterpart bankruptcy

WeWork South Africa has announced that it is not be affected by the bankruptcy of its US operations. In fact, it says that it is looking to expand its operations. There are currently three WeWork offices in South Africa – one in Cape Town and two in Johannesburg.

It put out this statement in reaction to the Group’s announcement on Monday that it's filing for bankruptcy in both the US and Canada. It however said that WeWork’s locations outside of the U.S. and Canada are not part of this process and that WeWork’s franchisees around the world will not be affected by the bankruptcy proceedings….Continue reading

INVESTMENTS

JOBJACK Secures $2.5 Million Investment to Transform Entry-Level Job Market in South Africa

JOBJACK, a pioneering online platform dedicated to simplifying the search for entry-level jobs, has recently announced a significant milestone, raising R45 million (approximately $2.5 million) in a pre-series A funding round. The round is spearheaded by Next176 and includes the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, known for their impact-focused investments.

Co-founded by Christiaan van den Berg and Heine Bellingan in 2018, JOBJACK has emerged as a leading web-based portal that connects job seekers with entry-level positions free of charge. The investment is set to boost the company’s reach and capabilities across South Africa……Continue reading

USAID Grants $1.5 Million to BasiGo for Electric Bus Pilot Program in Rwanda

In a landmark move for sustainable transport in East Africa, BasiGo has received a grant of USD 1.5 million from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through its Development Innovation Ventures program. This funding is a major boost to BasiGo’s ongoing efforts to introduce electric buses in Kigali, Rwanda, as part of a pilot program aimed at proving the cost-effectiveness and operational viability of electric public transport in the city.

The pilot program, slated to start road testing in November, will see BasiGo’s electric buses deployed across various routes in Kigali in partnership with prominent bus operators, including Kigali Bus Service, Royal Express, and Volcano. The goal is not just to test these buses but also to demonstrate the sustainable and economic benefits they can bring to the city’s transport infrastructure…..Continue reading

ORA Technologies raises $1 million in pre-seed funding round

ORA Technologies, Moroccan tech company, announced that it has successfully secured $1 million in a pre-seed funding round. The raise was achieved over three rounds and solely through private investors within the last eight months.

Founded in 2023 by Omar Alami and six others, Ora technologies has a super app, ORA Maroc, that offers multiple features, including P2P transactions, an e-commerce platform, on-demand services, chat functionality, social networking. It is expecting to launch a digital wallet soon……Continue reading

EXTRA! EXTRA!! READ ALL ABOUT IT 🔥

Nigerian Hilda Baci detroned by Irish chef Alan Fisher in Japan

Alan Fisher (Ireland), an owner and chef of a restaurant in Japan, has broken two cooking-related Guinness World Records titles.

First up, he's claimed the longest cooking marathon (individual) after clocking in a time of 119 hours 57 minutes. That is more than 24 hours longer than the previous record held by Nigerian chef Hilda Baci.

Alan then claimed the longest baking marathon (individual), with a time of 47 hours 21 minutes. The previous record holder was Wendy Sandner (USA) with a time of 31 hours 16 minutes.

What's even more impressive is that Alan took on both attempts back to back, meaning he was at work in the kitchen for over 160 hours with just over a day of rest in between!

APPOINTMENTS, RESIGNATIONS

Appointments 

• The owner of Makro, Game and Builders retail brands, Massmart, has appointed Walmart executive Srividya Pandya as Senior VP for Group e-commerce....……..Continue reading

Resignations

• Flutterwave’s CFO, Oneal Bhambani, has announced his resignation from the fintech startup. He joined the company from American Express in May 2022…..Continue reading

• Vincent Maher, MultiChoice’s Group Executive for Digital, has left the company, and his last day was 27 October 2023…..Continue reading