e-commerce Archives - Page 2 of 3

11Jan

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Tech

Afrikrea Secures US$6.2M in pre-Series A Round and Rebrands to “ANKA” to Export Africa

Leading Ivorian e-commerce company closes oversubscribed round to scale its mobile product suite across multiple retail channels 11 January, 2022. Abidjan, Côte D’Ivoire - Afrikrea, the e-commerce platform for “all things made of Africa'', has announced the successful completion of a US$6.2M pre-Series A round led by Investisseurs & Partenaires and the rebrand to “ANKA”, its all-in-one solution for selling anywhere, shipping globally and receiving payments quickly. The new investment includes participation from Alibaba’s Executive Vice Chairman Joe Tsai, BESTSELLER Foundation, VestedWorld, Enigmo, Groupe Prunay and Rising Tide Africa. They join existing investors SAVIU Ventures (who is also participating in the round), Lofty Inc, Kepple Africa, Consonance, id4 Ventures and Thierry Pet...

17Dec

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Fintech, South Africa News

Financial Inclusion across Africa starts here

Africa’s first digital in-store lay-by app is aiming to create financial inclusion throughout the continent – starting in South Africa. Local fintech startup LayUp is taking the lay-by process into the 21st century - for merchants and consumers - with a mobile app and rollout of a terminal app via payment & merchant solutions provider Dashpay, which will make the app accessible to millions of potential customers at thousands of POS points, nationwide. Nearly 24% of adults in South Africa are unbanked and R12bn in cash is believed to be held outside of the banking system. COVID-19 related lockdowns have sent unemployment figures soaring to an estimated 7.6 million, meaning that nearly 30 million people are locked out of the South African economy. More people are being forced to turn to...

16Dec

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

African News, Kenya News

Jiji Kenya Wins as the Mobile App of the Year| Shopping and E-commerce in the Mobile App and Summit Awards, 2021

Jiji, one of the most popular e-commerce sites in Kenya and the largest online classifieds in Kenya, has scooped the Mobile App of the Year, Shopping and E-commerce category. The award was presented to Jiji Kenya during the Mobile App and Summit Awards, 2021, which was held at the PrideInn, Westlands, on Friday, 10th December 2021. The Annual Mobile App Summit and Awards recognize and celebrate the best practises in mobile app design, animation, and user experience across a range of categories, including and not limited to news, entertainment, shopping and e-commerce, agri-tech, travel, health and lifestyle, education, games, social and communications, transport and logistics, gambling, food, and beverage. Jiji Kenya has continually set itself as a leader in the e-commerce industry thro...

10Oct

By Jana BothaNo Comments

Kenya News, Main, South Africa News, Startups

Africa: tax implications of digital transformation in the consumer goods and retail sector

By Jana Botha, Tax Consultant, and Prenisha Govender, Associate, Tax Practice, Baker McKenzie Johannesburg The pandemic-fuelled growth of the digital economy and unabated demand for online retail products across Africa have led to extensive disruption in the Consumer Goods and Retail Sector (CG&R) sector. Due to a growth in demand for online retail, CG&R companies in Africa have been rapidly adapting their digital operating models, and multinational e-commerce platforms operating in the region have attracted a record number of new customers. This digital transition, and resultant growth in the e-commerce sector, has tax implications for digital CG&R businesses operating in Africa. The OECD’s Pillar One and Two Multilateral international tax changes currently being implemente...

25Jul

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

SA’s e-commerce surge poised to benefit small, independent retailers

Consumers head online for niche products, better service, and quick delivery South African consumers are heading online in greater numbers as the e-commerce shopping experience increasingly offers more choice and convenience than can be found at traditional big-brand, brick-and-mortar retailers, says Mike Farquharson, Managing Director of online courier aggregator Rush. Statista market and consumer data projects that 31.6 million South Africans could be converted to online shopping by 2024. According to FNB, the average e-commerce spend already increased by 30 percent in the first half of 2020 compared to the year prior while Rand Merchant Bank expects the sector’s value to surge by 150 percent, to R225 billion, within the next five years. “These findings suggest that shifts in sho...

31May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Kenya News, Main, Nigeria News, Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)

Women Can Add $14.57 Billion to E-Commerce in Africa: IFC Research

Africa’s e-commerce market could grow by more than $14.5 billion between 2025-2030 according to an IFC report published today. The report finds this can be achieved by increasing the number of women selling on online platforms and by providing them with better training and financial support to help them match sales made by men. The report, Women and e-commerce in Africa, found that COVID-19 has accelerated the growth of e-commerce and digital entrepreneurship in Africa and that more women have embraced digital business. However, it also noted that more can be done to promote women’s entrepreneurship and help women overcome e-commerce challenges. For example, e-commerce marketplace platforms are well-positioned to target women-owned businesses with training, and to encourage women’s partici...

19May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Events, South Africa News, Tech

A challenging, risk driven environment awaits us

As many parts of the world deal with the Third Wave of Covid-19 infections, there are growing concerns that South Africa may face harsher lockdown measures in the future as the country ramps up its vaccine roll out program. This will have a telling impact on society and will only accelerate the reliance on ecommerce business models as the public prioritizes their health and safety. Unfortunately, this also means that there will be a challenging, risk driven environment ahead of us when it comes to fraud. This was highlighted at the Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS) & Insurance Crime Bureau International Fraud Summit which was held virtually on 19 May 2021. Increased Risk “We are really reaching a critical point when it comes to the economy and the extreme measures that...

Afrikrea Launches ANKA to Power Global African E-Commerce

28Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Business, Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)

Afrikrea Launches ANKA to Power Global African E-Commerce

Ivorian company partners with DHL and Visa and builds SaaS Platform for omnichannel global selling for African micro retailers Afrikrea, the e-commerce platform for “all things made of Africa”, is launching ANKA - an all-in one SaaS solution to provide a seamless ecommerce, payments and global shipping online service for thousands of micro retailers and businesses on the continent and around the world, as it continues to power e-commerce for Africa. Launched to coincide with Afrikrea’s fifth anniversary of operations, ANKA (meaning “Ours” in Bambara and Djoula) allows merchants to easily: Sell via a customised online storefront (like Shopify), social media platforms or by links such as on Gumroad and also the Afrikrea marketplace. This is carried out via an omnichannel dashboard with ...

16Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

SA shoppers are online. Retailers need to meet them with an exceptional experience

Consumers are embracing the e-commerce experience in growing numbers and corporate South Africa is taking serious notice, according to Geoff Hardy, Head of Digital, Immersion Group, a global team of experience design experts. Across the globe online sales have surged, while locally online transactions on Black Friday alone grew by more than 60%, and a recent study released by Mastercard found that 68% of South Africans are shopping more online since the beginning of last year. “The Covid-19 pandemic undoubtedly accelerated prevailing trends as well as consumer behaviour and preferences by as much as a decade. This extraordinary industry-wide transformation is a forecast of the future of South African retail,” notes Hardy. He says a solid digital footprint and strategy have become non-negot...

Why ecommerce matters for small businesses in SA

14Mar

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

Why ecommerce matters for small businesses in SA

There has been a permanent change in the way that people shop and, in turn, the way that businesses need to operate. In the absence of brick-and-mortar stores being open during the lockdown, as well as a general fear of crowded malls when things were able to re-open, South Africa’s ecommerce sector exploded. According to Trevor Gosling, Co-founder and CEO of Lulalend – financing partner to South Africa’s small- to medium-enterprises (SMEs), he has seen a phenomenal growth in ecommerce businesses who have connected with them for SME financing. Between the period of October 2020 and February 2021, Lulalend saw an 86% increase in loans made to ecommerce businesses and online retailers in comparison to the same period between 2019 and 2020. “The loans were strongly linked to growth-related req...