Kacha Joins Digital Finance Triad


Kacha Joins Digital Finance Triad

The first private payment instrument issuer Kacha Digital Finance Services officiated its services four years after incorporation and receiving a permit. Kacha is the third payment issuer to officially launch a service that allows users to deposit, withdraw, and transact using a mobile application or through a USSD code and offers a long list of digital finance services trailing the state-owned Telebirr and two-month-old M-pesa. The CEO Abraham Tilahun believes it will be a crucial step towards accelerating financial inclusion. He expressed his hope to enhance accessibility, interoperability and inclusivity during the opening ceremony at Skylight Hotel while partnering with Diredawa Microfinance Institution to facilitate services to residents of Dire Dewa City. The company has completed interoperability agreements with several commercial banks with Nib Bank, Global Bank Ethiopia and Buna Bank being the latest ones. Martha Hailemariam, an advisor at the Central Bank, indicated the importance of aligning digital financing to robust customer security and privacy, championing the digital National ID as a crucial element of this objective.   Editors' Note: This article was updated from its original form on October 24, 2023.


Radar

Tech Ministry Falters as Audits Expose Mismanagement, Unmet Ambitions

The Ministry of Innovation & Technology is under scrutiny after an audit revealed lapses in project management and financial oversight. This raised questions about governance standards within a Ministry central to the country's tech-driven growth ambitions. According to the Federal Auditor General, the Ministry has completed only 11pc of its planned projects with its overall financial administration standing at 37.4pc for a year-long project that commenced in 2022. Budget mismanagement an...


Radar

Central Bank Keeps Lending Lid Tight as Inflation Squeezes Economy

The Central Bank has reaffirmed its decision to maintain an 18pc cap on credit growth, reinforcing a commitment to tighter monetary policy during persistent inflation and economic uncertainty. The National Bank of Ethiopia's (NBE) monetary policy committee cited ongoing concerns over inflation, which stood at 19.9pc year-on-year (YoY), and liquidity imbalances as reasons to uphold the restriction on lending. Bankers and analysts interpret this move as evidence of regulators' determination to...


Radar

Ethio Telecom Expands Services with DStv Streaming

Ethio telecom enters the entertainment pool with bundled DStv streaming services through high-speed broadband internet and mobile data packages. The partnership with MultiChoice Ethiopia aspires to merge the telecom's fiber broadband and mobile network with DStv's content. Subscribers can access DStv channels through mobile data or fiber broadband bundles, with discounts of up to 35pc through Telebirr or My Ethiotel (*999#) and up to 26.5pc at sales centers for fiber broadband bundles. Acc...