📲Nigeria Moves to Mandate Local Offices for Bloggers, Social Media Firms

Today’s Menu ☕️

📲 Nigerian Senate Pushes Bill Requiring Bloggers, Social Media Firms to Open Local Offices
💼 Quidax, Busha launch SEC-regulated cNGN stablecoin in crypto expansion
💰 Yango Group unveils $20 million venture fund to boost startups across emerging markets
🏦 Egypt’s Grinta secures funding and acquires Citi Clinic for expansion in Egypt
💰 Google Gemini Introduces Canvas and Audio Overview for Smarter Collaboration

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📲 SOCIAL MEDIA

Nigerian Senate Pushes Bill Requiring Bloggers, Social Media Firms to Open Local Offices

In a bold move to tighten regulation of the digital space, Nigeria’s Senate has advanced a bill that would require bloggers and social media companies to establish physical offices within the country. The bill, sponsored by Senator Ned Munir Nwoko, successfully passed its second reading and is now under further review.

The proposed law seeks to amend the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, mandating that social media platforms and data processors maintain a physical presence on Nigerian soil. Officially titled “A Bill for an Act to Alter the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, to Mandate the Establishment of Physical Offices within the Territorial Boundaries of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by Social Media Platforms, and for Related Matters, 2024” (SB. 648), the legislation has been progressing through the Senate since its introduction in November 2024.....…continue reading

🪙 CRYPTOCURRENCY

Quidax, Busha launch SEC-regulated cNGN stablecoin in crypto expansion

The first regulated stablecoin tied to the Naira in Nigeria, cNGN, has been listed on Quidax, a cryptocurrency firm that was granted a provisional license in August 2024.  The action highlights Nigeria’s changing approach to crypto legislation, striking a balance between control and the expanding use of digital currencies. It comes one month after Busha, another provisionally-licensed crypto firm, launched the cNGN. 

With the potential for expanded use in payments, transfers, and digital currency exchanges, the March 12 listing will enable Quidax users to send and receive cNGN between wallets.  Nigeria’s government appears to be more interested in incorporating cryptocurrency into the financial system than in limiting it, as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is in charge of cNGN’s implementation....…continue reading

🪴STARTUPS

Yango Group unveils $20 million venture fund to boost startups across emerging markets

Yango Group, a prominent global technology company dedicated to integrating advanced technology into local communities, has officially launched Yango Ventures, a corporate venture fund aimed at empowering promising startups across Latin America (LATAM), Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan (MENAP), as well as other high-growth regions where the company operates.

Yango Ventures specifically targets early-stage startups, ranging from Seed to Series B funding, within the Online-to-Offline (O2O), Business-to-Business Software as a Service (B2B SaaS), and FinTech sectors. The fund begins with an initial capital of $20 million, but it is structured for scalability, with plans to expand its capital base in alignment with the burgeoning entrepreneurial ecosystems in dynamic, high-growth markets..........…continue reading

💰FUNDING

Egypt’s Grinta secures funding and acquires Citi Clinic for expansion in Egypt

Cairo-based startup Grinta, a fintech-enabled B2B technology platform focused on digitizing the pharmaceutical supply chain, has successfully secured an undisclosed amount of funding and made a significant acquisition as part of its strategy for further expansion.

Founded in 2021 by a team of innovators—Mohamed Azab, Yosra Badr, Ali Youssef, and Hamza Mohamed—Grinta operates as a managed marketplace that aims to modernize the pharmaceutical supply chain by empowering independent pharmacies. The platform offers an end-to-end solution that provides access to a comprehensive range of traceable pharmaceutical and medical products sourced from multiple vendors. In addition to product access, Grinta also offers services such as fulfillment, demand planning, and inventory financing, thereby streamlining operations for pharmacies........…continue reading

🤖 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Google Gemini Introduces Canvas and Audio Overview for Smarter Collaboration

Google is expanding the capabilities of its Gemini AI platform with the introduction of two innovative features: Canvas and Audio Overview. Both are designed to make content creation and consumption more intuitive and efficient.

Canvas offers users an interactive workspace for drafting, editing, and refining both written content and code. By working directly with Gemini’s AI, users can co-create speeches, essays, reports, and even web prototypes or Python scripts. While Audio Overview is an AI-powered tool that converts documents, research, and slides into engaging podcast-style discussions....…continue reading

OTHER STORIES

• Gaia expands portfolio with strategic acquisition of stakes in three renewable energy plants…..continue reading

• Twelve South African startups selected for Injini Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship……continue reading

• Egyptian fintech company ValU prepares for IPO following board approval…..continue reading

• MultiChoice Group to raise prices on DStv and Showmax in South Africa, with significant increases for football fans…..continue reading

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