India's Flytxt signs mobile marketing deal with Warid

[Walter Wafula] Uganda mobile operator Warid Telecom has contracted India's Flytxt, a provider of global real-time closed loop mobile marketing solutions, to manage its marketing campaigns. 28 Aug 2012 16:36

Barclays, Absa to combine African operations

Barclays Bank and its subsidiary, Absa, say they are engaged in negotiations to combine the majority of the Barclays Africa operations. 21 Aug 2012 11:41

Digital pay TV company eyes Kenya's key towns

[Carole Kimutai: @CaroleKimutai] Kenya's digital pay TV market is becoming more competitive with the aggressive entry of StarTimes Media Kenya, a company that recently launched its services in Kenya's capital Nairobi and second city Kisumu. StarTimes has now launched in Mombasa, the third city as part of its plans to reach seven major towns in Kenya by the end of 2012. 17 Aug 2012 14:33

[Executive Check] GOtv eyes expansion in Africa as it marks one year of business

[Walter Wafula] GOtv, a low cost pay television service owned and operated by MultiChoice Africa celebrates its first year in business in four markets. Patricia Kiconco, the country manager GOtv Uganda speaks about the performance of the brand and its future plans for Africa. 15 Aug 2012 15:49

Kenya's cinema business is about thinking without the box

[Carole Kimutai: @CaroleKimutai] Like the films they show, the story of Kenya's cinema industry has very interesting story lines, complete with new characters, a beginning and an end. In 2010, one of Nairobi's landmarks - the Kenya Cinema, run by Fox Entertainment Group, was closed after it went out of business. 14 Aug 2012 11:05

Kenya's retailers sound alarm over increased pilferage

[Carole Kimutai: @CaroleKimutai] If you are a shopper in Nairobi and you walk into Nakumatt Lifestyle, you will notice something - baby milk is stored in a glass cabinet, under lock and key. That key is in the custody of one employee. These security measures by Nakumatt and other retail outlets are as a result of increased cases of operational losses occasioned by shoplifting and general theft. The losses (shrinkage) industry players fear could be a case of an emerging organised pilferage ring targeting local supermarkets. 6 Aug 2012 10:10

Banking sector goes digital with online event

[Carole Kimutai: @CaroleKimutai] The newly rebranded industry body Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) has turned to social media in a strategy aimed at creating a platform where members of the public can engage senior executives in the banking sector. The online event is part of a wider plan by the industry umbrella body to engage stakeholders and increase awareness and knowledge about the banking industry. 17 Jul 2012 11:33

SBV Services expand their operations into Africa

SBV Services, who has been providing its cash operations services to the Nigerian market for over five years, is also active in Lesotho with plans being afoot to extend its footprint further into Africa, including Uganda and Namibia. 10 Jul 2012 09:27

Michael Dearham joins 'Cote Ouest Audiovisuel'

Cote Ouest Audiovisuel, a distributor of audiovisual rights for and from Africa, has welcomed aboard Michael Dearham as senior vice president of the group and general manager of the Mauritian office. 12 Jun 2012 11:05

Kenya's retail sector seeks development policy

[Carole Kimutai: @CaroleKimutai] For the fifth year running, the National Economic Survey has identified the retail and wholesale trade sectors as key growth drivers of Kenya's economy. In 2011, the wholesale and retail trade sector showed a growth of 7.3%, beating the manufacturing, building and construction, agriculture, transport and communication sectors. 6 Jun 2012 12:03

E-commerce in Africa: Not quite ready for take-off

Lack of bandwidth is not the only factor hampering the development of e-commerce and online business in Africa, says Peter Harvey, founder and managing director of PayGate, an online payments solution provider. Harvey adds that the continent also needs a much more sophisticated financial infrastructure. 5 Jun 2012 13:00

Comztek opens office in Mauritius

Comztek, an African communications distributor, has announced the official opening of an office in Mauritius as of June 2012. 31 May 2012 14:51

African top bankers honoured at AfDB annual meetings

Africa's top bankers gathered in Arusha, Tanzania, to celebrate the 6th edition of the African Banker Awards, under the patronage of the African Development Bank (AfDB). Olusegun Agbaje, managing director of Guaranty Trust Bank, Nigeria scooped the prize for African Banker of the Year. 31 May 2012 13:20

Airtel Uganda announces new calling rates

Airtel Uganda has announced its new harmonized calling rates to all African destinations, cutting costs for Ugandans who communicate with family, friends and business associates across the continent. 24 May 2012 14:03