Author: Elan
The European Central Bank (ECB) is moving closer to a pilot for a digital euro, with Executive Board Member Piero Cipollone outlining plans to begin selecting payment service providers (PSPs) in early 2026, ahead of a 12-month test scheduled for the second half of 2027.Cipollone on Wednesday held an executive committee meeting of the Italian Banking Association. He said the pilot would involve a limited number of payment service providers, merchants and Eurosystem staff. Selection of participating providers is expected to start in the first quarter of 2026.Cipollone said the digital euro will be designed to ensure it protects European…
Yesterday, February 17th, 2026, MTN Group made a significant announcement about plans to fully acquire IHS Towers in a deal valued at $6.2 billion. MTN already owns 24.7% of IHS Towers, but wants to buy back the remaining 75% for $2.2 billion in an all-cash deal— MTN Group will source $1.1 billion from available liquidity and debt, while another $1.1 billion in cash will come from IHS’s balance sheet. MTN Group President and CEO Ralph Mupita views the acquisition as a “pivotal step in further strengthening MTN Group’s strategic and financial position for a future where digital infrastructure will become…
OpenAI has introduced a new Lockdown Mode in ChatGPT, designed to limit some features in exchange for stronger security controls. The company says most users do not need to enable it.Lockdown Mode is aimed at people facing elevated digital risk, including journalists, activists, and users working in sensitive environments. It reduces how much ChatGPT can access, execute, or retrieve outside of the app.What Lockdown Mode in ChatGPT changes?When enabled, Lockdown Mode in ChatGPT restricts several capabilities. Web browsing is limited to cached content. ChatGPT cannot pull live information from the internet, reducing the risk of unintended data exposure. The tradeoff…
As Gen Z continues to dominate cultural conversation and spending power, Penquin, one of South Africa’s leading brand and communication agencies, is urging brands to rethink how they show up in 2026. According to Nicole Glover, Executive Creative Director – Digital at Penquin, the old playbook of flashy campaigns and creator collabs is losing its grip. “Gen Z isn’t waiting to be entertained by brands,” says Glover. “They’re watching how brands behave when no one’s clapping. They don’t cancel brands anymore, they mute them. Quietly. Permanently. If your values disappear the moment they threaten profit, Gen Z sees that instantly, and…
African startups raised $3.9 billion across more than 500 deals in 2025, according to a report by the African Private Capital Association. The industry group for venture capital and private equity investors said the year’s performance signaled that Africa’s startup scene had entered “a phase of disciplined stabilization” after previous years marked by declining investment. African investors accounted for a new high of 45% of the total sum raised — up from an average of 23% between 2022 and 2024 — with corporates and African development finance institutions leading the charge. Another notable trend in 2025 was that venture debt…
Qatar Airways looks to build on Kenya Airways partnership – African Business Qatar Airways looks to build on Kenya Airways partnership – African Business
Leading tower infrastructure company IHS Tower has announced a proposed agreement that will seal its merger with MTN Group. The deal, valued at approximately $6.2 billion, will see MTN take full control of the entire stake. According to a disclosure on Tuesday, seen by Technext, IHS Towers noted that its Board of Directors has “unanimously” approved the agreement and the transaction, and has recommended the same move to its stakeholders. The tower company explained that both MTN and Wendel, a long-term IHS Towers shareholder, have voted in support of the transaction. With both votes, over 40% shareholder support is needed…
On January 23, during the centenary celebrations at Mang’u High School, one of Kenya’s oldest national schools, about 50 kilometres from Nairobi, three banking booths drew steady traffic from students and parents. Representatives from Co-operative Bank of Kenya, Equity Bank and KCB Group were issuing prepaid cards pitched as a modern way for parents to manage pocket money. I passed through each booth where desk agents explained the mechanics and pricing. Co-operative’s CoopPay card costs KES 350 ($2.17), Equity’s student prepaid card costs KES 500 ($3.88), and KCB’s equivalent costs KES 600 ($4.65). The products look similar on the surface,…
Your AMD Ryzen processor almost certainly isn’t running as fast as it could, and the fix is a single BIOS toggle you’ve likely never touched. Precision Boost Overdrive (PBO) is one of several BIOS settings that can hold back your CPU’s full potential. It lets your CPU push past its default power limits to boost for longer, yet most motherboards ship with it disabled. I’ve had PBO enabled on my Ryzen processor for a while now, and I think leaving it off is a waste of perfectly good performance. It’s free headroom that your chip already supports, and I see…
Adesuwa Okunbo Rhodes, founder and managing partner of Aruwa Capital Management** For the best experience, download the free Africa Private Equity News app Android | iOS **The International Finance Corporation has disclosed a proposed investment of up to $8 million in the Aruwa Capital Fund II, managed by Aruwa Capital Management.Aruwa Capital Fund II is a generalist private equity fund focused on small and medium enterprises in Nigeria and Ghana. The fund has a target of $50 million with a hard cap of $60 million.IFC’s proposed commitment would be in the form of equity and would not exceed 20% of…