Unicorn payments, Ethiopian dynamite & the end of Russia in Africa?

a QCX Africa publication

Hi QCX People!

Political and military events in the USA and Russia have had all eyes and ears these last weeks, but things are still going down across the African continent, including knock-on effects of the Russia-Wagner coup.

As always, the greatest opportunities arise from the greatest apparent travesties.

Africa’s darling unicorn, Flutterwave, partners with MSFT (VentureBurn)

• Why it actually matters: Flutterwave’s partnership with a massive institution like Microsoft Azure presents a realistic mechanism by which to achieve financial inclusion at the scale that is necessary for Africa.

  Africa population: 1.43 BILLION >>> a few banks and a few fintechs
  
  VS
  
  UK population: 69 MILLION >>> 100+ banks and 100’s of fintechs
  
  'Hold up, wait a minute, somethin' ain't right here'
  - rapped by Masego

• Summary: Flutterwave, a large Nigerian payments startup and Microsoft have joined forces to build a cutting-edge payments platform on Azure, bringing significant advancements to Africa's payments industry. The partnership will drive secure and seamless payment solutions for merchants across the continent.

Marketing Insight: Your online shop’s conversion rate could be affected if you don’t provide different ways for customers to pay that are suitable for the specific area you are advertising in.

Demolition by dynamite in Addis Ababa (Africa is a Country)

• Why it actually matters: Africa is rapidly urbanising. Big African cities are getting bigger faster than infrastructure can keep up, to the extent that important cultural centres are being sacrificed for the sake of economic prosperity.

• Summary: In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, a culture-rich, money-poor neighbourhood faces demolition in six months. This reflects a recurring pattern of demolitions in the city. Locals and foreigners are debating the loss of cultural spaces against he city's development initiatives which have transformed the urban landscape (but often exclude and marginalise the local population).

Marketing Insight: If you focus on selling your products or services in cities that are becoming more modern and attracting wealthier residents, you will likely earn more money in return on investment (ROI) because people living there have more money to spend. So, make sure to regularly check where your GEO targeting is relevant to ensure you’re targeting areas that have recently become more prosperous.

Wagner Group & Russian military in Africa: What’s next? (AllAfrica)

• Why it actually matters: After the attempted coup in Russia by the private military group - Wagner - the security of nations like Mali and CAR are now in question. If the Wagner fighting forces are expelled, war and unrest may break out again.

• Summary: Uncertainty surrounds Russia's Wagner Group in Africa after a mutiny in Russia. Its presence and control are questioned, but its lucrative operations are crucial for Moscow. The future depends on Prigozhin and the fate of the group's sub-companies. Mali (among other countries), who initially welcomed Wagner's presence, now question its control and reliability.

Marketing Insight: Avoid placing your ads alongside news stories about the military to protect your brand from being connected with military-related matters.

Fact: ‘Q’, ‘C’ and ‘X’ are the English denotations for the 3 most common linguistic clicks in African languages. If you can say all three clicks, three times in a row fast, you can legally call yourself African.