With the Ukraine-Russia crisis, skyrocketing inflation and investor belt-tightening creating a challenging macroeconomic market in Europe, FinTech firms in the region — much like the rest of the world — have struggled to keep business afloat, resulting in massive headcount reductions and hiring freezes. Many...
Nokia will deploy new digital infrastructure connecting Southern and Eastern Africa. The Finnish telecommunications company announced on Thursday (Feb. 2) that it has been selected by the pan-African technology group Liquid Intelligent Technologies (LIT) to deploy an optical transport network connecting Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, the...
Europe’s airlines are bouncing back from the pandemic-induced collapse of international travel. At least, some of them are. In a recently published trading update, British low-cost airline EasyJet announced an increase in passenger count to 5.43 million in December, representing a “load factor” of 87%....
The Kenyan government is pushing for a nationwide digital ID scheme. But the years-long implementation so far has been beset with complications. The government’s attempts to create a nationwide ID scheme go back years, following close to two decades of consolidating data from different population...
FinTech Optasia, Ecobank and MTN are partnering to launch a mobile money microloan service in Guinea. In a Thursday (Jan. 26) press release, the Dubai-based FinTech announced that the services will be offered to MTN’s subscribers in the country under the Ecobank product name “Prêt...
Czech investment firm McWin is set to acquire a majority stake in restaurant business L’Osteria. In a statement on Tuesday (Jan. 24), McWin said it will purchase a majority stake in the Italian restaurant chain, subject to regulatory approval. Although McWin did not state the...
A digital euro should complement, not replace, other electronic payment methods or cash. So said European Central Bank (ECB) Executive Board Member Fabio Panetta in a Monday (Jan. 23) speech to the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. “Our priority for the digital...
The EURM token is the latest euro-denominated stablecoin endorsed by Spain’s central bank. The new digital euro will be issued by Spanish FinTech Monei, which has been authorized by the Banco de España (BDE) to test the stablecoin in its regulatory sandbox, Spanish media has...
A digital pound consultation is expected to be published in “weeks not months.” The comments were made by city minister Andrew Griffith during a Treasury Select Committee hearing on the crypto industry earlier this month. Asked by the committee chair, Harriett Baldwin, whether the government...