Business Archives - Page 2 of 43

Jun282018 by Alex ReeceNo Comments

Amazon beats Walmart to acquire PillPack, an online pharmacy in bid to disrupt pharmaceutical industry

Amazon has today announced an acquisition that underscores how it also hopes to have a more direct — and more commercial — role in the world of healthcare in the coming years. The company has purchased PillPack, an online pharmacy the lets users buy medications in pre-made doses. This news come only a week after after appointing a CEO for its healthcare joint venture with Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan. “PillPack’s visionary team has a combination of deep pharmacy experience and a focus on technology,” says Jeff Wilke, Amazon CEO of Worldwide Consumer, in a news release. “PillPack is meaningfully improving its customers’ lives, and we want to help them continue making it easy for people to save time, simplify their lives, and feel healthier. We’re excited to see what we can do together o

Jun202018 by Lynn WandiaNo Comments

M-Pesa Pushing Against Tax Hike on Mobile Money Services in Kenya

Business, Governance

A proposed tax increase on mobile money transfers in Kenya is drawing protests from several services, including M-Pesa. As part of a new tax proposal to raise government revenues, Kenya’s government is pushing to raise duties on mobile cash transfers by 2%. The government expects to net around $270 million in additional revenues and claims the extra income will fund a universal health care program to cover all households by 2022. But Safaricom-owned M-Pesa says the move could take a big toll, as it will “negatively impact mobile-led transfer services and payments” and reverse the gains of financial inclusion by making it more expensive to conduct business transactions and make payments using mobile money services. Since it was launched in 2007, M-Pesa, the largest mobile money

Jun132018 by Lynn WandiaNo Comments

Kenya’s Boxlight Electronics is the first to accept Bitcoin payment in Kenya

Business

Cryptocurrency burst in the mainstream when the price of one bitcoin (BTC) reached a new all-time high of $19,783.06 spurring a massive worldwide interest in the blockchain-supported technologies. Like betting, the Cryptocurrency craze has caught up with Kenya and is exciting discussions among citizens who are now putting millions of money at stake in a potentially high-reward gamble. Notably, a recent research by Citi notes that Kenya is among the few countries in the world with the highest per capita holding of Bitcoin. As it stands now, there is no denying that cryptocurrencies have come a long way and a variety of businesses both online and offline are now accepting bitcoins as payment. Such popular worldwide stores include Microsoft, overstock, Newegg, Dell among others. In Ke...

Jun122018 by Lynn WandiaNo Comments

Kenya’s EatAtIt launches to help users reserve a table or order food & drinks online

Business, Startups

Kenya’s EatAtIt has launched to allow users to order food, drinks and reserve a table easily and more conveniently via its online platform taking on incumbents EatOut, a restaurant discovery platform, Quick Eats and Jumia Food, food delivery platforms.ach Wanyamba, Eat At It Platform, aims to help restaurants reach out to more customers by giving them a platform to market themselves. Restaurants can use the platform to share info and photos and tell their stories to sign up customers. For potential users, the platform aims to link them to over 70,000 restaurants, cafes and coffee/tea houses found in Kenya so that they enjoy their meals and drinks conveniently. “Our aim is to have as many restaurants and bars as possible listed, thereby providing users with a comprehe

Jun72018 by Lynn WandiaNo Comments

First Bank partners WorldRemit for digital money transfers to Nigeria

Business, Technology

Digital money transfer service WorldRemit has joined forces with First Bank of Nigeria Limited (First Bank) for instant money transfers to all First Bank accounts in Nigeria. The new strategic partnership considerably expands WorldRemit’s footprint in the country and allows its customers in over 50 countries to send money to First Bank accounts directly from their phones. The deal supports WorldRemit’s plan to serve 10 million customers connected to emerging markets by 2020. First Bank is collaborating with WorldRemit in a bid to drive convenience and ease of banking for its customers as well as provide the much-needed push for financial inclusion initiatives. With a diaspora of over 15 million people living in countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and German