MTN Ghana Commences Payment of Q1 Customer’s Mobile Money Interest, Applications are Ongoing for 2019 FbStart Accelerator Program Season 2 and More

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To begin the week, we have a summary of the Big 5 news for you.

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Applications are ongoing for the second edition of the 2019 FbStart Accelerator program. The cohort is open to startups who use either Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Data Science or Augmented Reality. Interested startup teams from Ghana and Nigeria with existing products or technical expertise should apply here.

MTN Ghana has started paying mobile money subscribers the interest for the first quarter of 2019. They plan to issue out a total of $3.33 million to the 10.6 million mobile money subscribers. The interest payment is a good way MTN Ghana encourages their mobile money subscribers to invest in financial securities.

Kudos to Publiseer! The Nigeria-based digital distribution platform has made the final list for the Halcyon Incubator Fall 2019 Fellowship. They came 16 out of the 423 applicants that applied for the fellowship. If selected at the end of the program, they stand a chance to win $10000 stipend, 5-month rent-free accommodation and more. The final pitch event will hold on the 14th of May 2019.

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A Rwandan service startup that is famous for its ‘smart Business in a Box’ solar-powered kiosks, has established 10 outlets in Uganda. The kiosks enable low-income citizens who do not have access to electricity and internet to charge their devices, purchase airtime, make digital payments, buy WiFi connectivity and other intranet services offline. The kiosks are located around Kampala and the refugee camps of Arua district.

Payitup, a Zimbabwean fintech startup has secured a $13 million series A fund from a company in London. They will partner to ensure compliance with regulators and provide value-added services to their customers. The CEO said that the second round of fund will be raised after they complete their system development launch.

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