In most African countries, access to credit remains limited for many small businesses, with the reasons ranging from the inability to pay collateral and lack of credit history to unfavorable lending criteria and high-interest rates. Banks and governments have tried to address this gap across different African markets by implementing several loan initiatives, but there’s […]
South African digital lender Lulalend to launch banking product off the back of $35M Series B by Tage Kene-Okafor originally published on TechCrunch
Tiger Global believes India is likely to produce the highest equity returns globally, its partner Scott Shleifer said on an investor call Tuesday, even as he admitted the investor giant has made way more money in China and the U.S. “We think it will be the best place to invest,” said Shleifer of India. “We […]
Tiger Global’s India returns ‘way below average’ but firm remains bullish, says Scott Shleifer by Manish Singh originally published on TechCrunch
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman believes AI can help usher in “unbelievable abundance,” but he says he wants to ensure that such abundance is shared. Toward that end, Altman has embraced a theory of 19th century political economist Henry George, who in his own lifetime worried about wealth amassing in the hands of the few following […]
ValueBase, backed by Sam Altman’s Hydrazine, raises $1.6 million seed round by Connie Loizos originally published on TechCrunch
MUFG, Japan’s largest bank by market cap, announced today the launch of a $100 million fund focused on Indonesian startups. The fund, a collaboration between MUFG subsidiaries MUFG Innovation Partners, MUFG Bank and Indonesian commercial bank Danamon, is called MUFG Innovation Partners Garuda No. 1 Limited Investment Partnership. The fund, which is the third one […]
MUFG, Japan’s largest bank, launches $100M fund for Indonesian startups by Catherine Shu originally published on TechCrunch
Snapchat has more than 2 million paid subscribers on its Snapchat+ program, the company said during its latest earnings report. Snap noted that the paid plan, which costs $3.99 a month, is a part of “diversifying” its revenue pipelines. The social network first launched Snapchat+ in June 2022 in countries like the US, Canada, the […]
Snapchat now has more than 2 million paid subscribers by Ivan Mehta originally published on TechCrunch
Egyptian fintech and e-commerce ecosystem MNT-Halan has raised up to $400 million in equity and debt financing from local and global investors as it continues to serve underbanked and unbanked customers in the North African country. The round includes $260 million in equity financing and $140 million through two securitized bond issuances secured within the […]
Egyptian financial services provider MNT-Halan valued at $1B in $400M funding by Tage Kene-Okafor originally published on TechCrunch
Superstrata’s e-bike is a strange specimen — there’s no two ways about it. In some ways that makes sense; the bike’s concept, borne out in seamless 3D-printed carbon fiber, springs from an equally strange premise. We’ll get into that. Talking to Sonny Vu, founder of Superstrata’s parent company Arevo, the bikes were crafted not out […]
Superstrata e-bike review: Rebel without a cause by Taylor Hatmaker originally published on TechCrunch
Tesla recorded a $204 million impairment loss in 2022 on its bitcoin holdings, according to regulatory filings. The loss was offset by $64 million in profits from bitcoin trading, leaving the automaker with a net loss of $140 million. Tesla had invested $1.5 billion in bitcoin during the first quarter of 2021, stating that it […]
Tesla records $204M loss from bitcoin in 2022 by Rebecca Bellan originally published on TechCrunch