Newsletter 25102023

Newsletter 25102023: Husk Power raises $103 million to expand its minigrid operations across Africa and Asia

FUNDING

Capital Film Productions announces ₦500 million fund to continue nurturing Nollywood talents

Capital Film Productions, a film investment firm, has launched the Act-3 Film Fund, a ₦500 million fund, with a primary focus on supporting the vibrant creative forces driving the African film industry, starting with Nollywood.

Established by Adim Isiakpona, a former Google employee, and Hamza Kassim, a business opportunity manager at Shell, CFP possesses a clearly defined vision: democratising film investment and providing financial backing to promising filmmakers, enabling them to produce top-tier cinematic works that cast a global spotlight on Africa’s flourishing film industry.

Over the past three years, Capital Film Productions has been actively involved in nurturing filmmakers and contributing behind the scenes to the success of several explosive Nollywood films. CFP has financially invested in and supported blockbuster productions such as ‘Brotherhood’ and ‘Gangs of Lagos.’...…Continue reading
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Husk Power raises $103 million to expand its minigrid operations across Africa and Asia

Husk Power, a net-zero energy company serving rural Asia and Africa, announced that it has raised $103 million in equity ($43 million) and debt ($60 million) to grow its fleet of solar minigrids. In fact, it raised $43 million in Series D funding and used the Series D equity to secure an additional $60 million in debt from several finance institutions, including the European Investment Bank (EIB), and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).

In the next five years, Husk plans to utilize the fresh funding to add over 1,400 new minigrids. It is currently operational in Nigeria, Tanzania and India……Continue reading

PLATFORMS

Google Chrome is testing a new feature to automatically hide users’ IP addresses

When you use your browser, your IP address is visible to websites, online services, and threat actors who can use that information against you for tracking and other privacy-invading actions. At the same time, IP addresses are also necessary for things like traffic routing and fraud prevention.

If you’re not one of the approximately 3 billion people currently using Google’s browser, a forthcoming privacy upgrade could change that.

Chrome already uses site isolation, sandboxing, and predictive phishing protections on default to protect users from sites that might try to steal your passwords or use malware. Now Google is allegedly preparing a new privacy feature for its web browser that obfuscates users’ IP addresses — helping to stop prying eyes tracking your data across the web..….Continue reading

SOCIAL MEDIA

Meta is reportedly promoting Threads on Facebook to drive user engagement

Meta is intensifying its growth-hacking efforts for Threads, a Twitter competitor, in a bid to enhance user engagement. The social network is promoting its latest app by automatically cross-posting Threads posts to users’ Facebook feeds, as confirmed by the company on Monday.

This strategy is consistent with Meta’s approach of using the Facebook feed to promote new features, including those from its other apps. For instance, the company has integrated Instagram Reels into recommendations on Facebook’s feed for some time, and it allows businesses on WhatsApp to purchase ads appearing in Facebook feeds. However, unlike those initiatives, the promotion of Threads posts on Facebook does not appear to offer an opt-out feature.....….Continue reading

OTHER STORIES

• WellaHealth, a Nigerian health-tech startup, has unveiled Healthsend Africa’s expansion into Kenya, following the subsidiary’s successful launch in Nigeria four months ago.…..Continue reading

• Bitcoin rose by nearly 10% on Tuesday to $34,872, its highest in nearly a year-and-a-half, on mounting speculation that an exchange-traded bitcoin fund is imminent. That followed a 10% surge on Monday, when bitcoin posted its best day in almost a year, and the bullishness spread across the wider crypto market and into related stocks…..Reuters

• Apple has announced a special virtual event for later this month. The event, believed to focus on the introduction of new Macs, will take place on Monday, October 30. It will be a virtual event, streamed via Apple’s website, at the spooky Halloween Eve time of 5 p.m. PT/ 8 p.m. ET…….9to5Mac