South Africa News Archives - Page 14 of 72

1Aug

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Fintech, South Africa News

How Scan to Pay is unleashing the power of QR code payments in South Africa

The QR code payment industry has seen a surge in adoption in recent years, with estimates suggesting a global market value of USD$9.98 billion in 2022. QR codes are seeing a marked increase in popularity in South Africa as well, says Pieter Roux, President Payment Strategy at Ukheshe. From the brand evolution of Masterpass to Scan to Pay, Powered by Ukheshe, our Scan to Pay data shows a growing demand for mobile payments as more consumers use their mobile devices – from entry-level devices to high-end smartphones – for payments with an average of 12 million transactions per month. QR codes are a powerful method of digital enablement as they work on almost any mobile handset with a camera which allows almost anyone to scan a QR code. However, what makes Ukheshe’s Scan to Pay so unique is ...

1Aug

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News, Tech

Innovation through diversity: Empowering women in the SA tech sector

By Mia Odendaal, Marketing Manager at Ecentric Payment Systems In South Africa’s tech industry, significant strides have been made in recent years to drive innovation through diversity. However, the journey towards cultivating a truly inclusive and supportive environment for women is far from complete. Despite this progress, a pressing need exists for further advancements in creating a welcoming space that empowers and embraces women in our tech industry. While some women may lack the confidence that they can compete with their male counterparts, one should not forget the role that unconscious bias plays in how boys and girls are introduced to the tech industry from a young age. The former might be given opportunities to attend technology classes while the latter is often pigeon-holed in...

28Jul

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Events, South Africa News, Startups

SA Innovation Summit 2023: Igniting Africa’s Innovation Frontier Over 3000 innovators are expected to gather in Cape Town on 27 – 28th of September

Africa's tech landscape is ripe with opportunities for local startups, presenting the potential for tremendous growth and innovation. As AI, blockchain, renewable energy, and other cutting-edge advancements continue to shape the continent's future, African entrepreneurs find themselves at the forefront of groundbreaking solutions. To seize these opportunities and expand their impact, startups seek a platform that connects them with problem solvers, mentors, and stakeholders who can bolster their growth. In the heart of this thriving tech ecosystem, the renowned SA Innovation Summit celebrates its 16th edition, emerging as a vital catalyst for progress. From the 26th to the 29th of September 2023, thousands of visionaries, disruptors, and thought leaders will converge in Cape Town. The fou...

26Jul

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

South African businesses demonstrate resilience in Q1 2023 – Experian Report

Businesses are finding ways to adapt to loadshedding South Africa narrowly missed a technical recession with surprise GDP growth Interest rate hikes led to increase of credit extension through unsecured lending The Experian Business Debt Index (BDI), which reflects the relative ability for business to pay their outstanding suppliers/creditors, indicating the overall health of businesses in the economy, declined at a better-than-expected rate for Q1 of 2023. The decline to 0.721 from an upwardly revised 1.086 reading for Q4 2022, is attributed to a better-than-expected economic performance for the period. “Three months ago, one had been contemplating an economic scenario of substantial decline due to a significant intensification of load-shedding through Q1. However, the impact ...

20Jul

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Business, South Africa News

Why you shouldn’t only be thinking ROI

By Arjen de Bruin, Managing Director at OIM Consulting In its most literal sense, ROI – or return on investment – is a profitability metric that refers to the business value derived from spend. It involves dividing an investment’s profit by its cost and is generally expressed as a percentage. So, if my ROI is 1:20, it essentially means that for every rand I spent, I received R20 in profit; also known as a hella good investment! In theory, ROI could also include those metrics that are often less tangible and harder to quantify, such as value or benefit creation, which may or may not have a rands-and-cents figure attached to it. The challenge is that – in a behavioural change context – it is not always that easy to quantify these benefits without a clear framework in place, and so we all...

Virgin Atlantic Appoints Marc Harding As South Africa Country Manager

13Jul

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

African News, Business, South Africa News

Virgin Atlantic Appoints Marc Harding As South Africa Country Manager

Virgin Atlantic is delighted to announce the appointment of Marc Harding as Country Manager for South Africa. Marc joined Virgin Atlantic 23 years ago and held various roles in the operations and commercial departments across Johannesburg and Cape Town. For 13 years, Marc's core position has been part of the commercial team from Account Manager to Sales Manager, leading the South African Sales team, focussing on customers, driving and delivering revenue, leading to his new appointment. Marc's passion and commitment to Virgin Atlantic over the past 23 years have been made evident by the numerous accolades and awards from trade partners and within the business, with a career highlight as Global Sales Person of the Year in 2019. Earlier this year, Liezl Gericke was appointed Head of Interna...

13Jul

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Business, Main, South Africa News

Positivity lies on a foundation of sustainability

Sustainability is more than a box to tick, it is the foundation of a more positive and economically inclusive future for South Africa, says Jonas Bogoshi, Chief Executive Officer at BCX. Sustainability has become the foundation for business growth and economic prosperity. The World Bank believes that organisations focusing on sustainability through measurable objectives and aligned environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals can change the wealth of a nation. Investopedia believes it is a route organisation can take to improve their own long-term viability while improving their investment profile and making a measurable contribution to society. And the Green Business Bureau, along with McKinsey, believe that achieving the objectives of a sustainable business is challenging, but has t...

30Jun

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

CCM in South Africa: Bringing Customer Centricity and Business Value into the Same Conversation

By Wayne Toms, Chief Executive Officer at GhostDraft Much has been written about the potential for technology to improve a business’ prospects by driving efficiencies and competitiveness. But often, when frantically shovelling at the coalface, business leaders and decision-makers need something more tangible than a promise. For instance, banks and financial services institutions are faced with immense due diligence challenges in the aftermath of the FATF’s greylisting of this country. This comes on top of existing know-your-customer requirements and regulatory requirements and compliance obligations. And almost every industry is striving to serve an ever-more-demanding customer. Businesses need to find technology solutions that can address evolving customer needs while simultaneously del...

30Jun

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News, Tech

The sky’s the limit for cloud security

By Jan Bouwer, Chief of Digital Platform Solutions at BCX The digital era has opened new vistas for individuals and businesses with cloud computing being a critical driver of digital transformation. But as with everything, there is a downside to cloud technology, the biggest threat being security. Every business, big or small, and every individual using the cloud and digital products is at risk of being hacked. It is estimated that cybercrime will cost the global economy around $10.5 billion and new threats are emerging all the time. Ransomware attacks have increased by about 435% year-on-year and new viruses/malware are emerging every seven seconds. This equates to a million new variants every day! It was against this background that the Cloud and Security Conference 2023 was held at Jo...

Everything you need to know about QR code payments

30Jun

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Fintech, South Africa News

Everything you need to know about QR code payments

by Paul Selibas, Division President at Ukheshe If there’s one thing almost no one leaves home without, it’s their mobile phone. How many times have you forgotten your keys or worse still, your wallet, and been left stranded at the shops? Now you don’t need your purse or your wallet, or even a bank card to go to the store. All you need is your cell phone. The world of payments has come a long way since cheque books. From manual credit card imprinters to early credit and debit card terminals, we now have contactless, safe and secure payments via a scanning process between the customer’s mobile device or smartphone and a QR code at the vendor’s point of sale. Scan to Pay powered by Ukheshe is the largest QR ecosystem in South Africa and as such is tried and tested by millions of merchants...