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\n <\/div>\n![\"Fincra](\"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/\ud83d\udc68\ud83c\udfff\u200d\ud83d\ude80TechCabal-Daily-\u2013-OPays-IPO-hits-a-wall-TechCabal-1.jpg\")
\n <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\nWelcome to November. \u2600\ufe0f<\/strong><\/p>\n A quick correction before we get into today\u2019s newsletter. In Friday\u2019s TC Daily<\/a>, we described Yango Group as a \u201cRussian-founded mobility company operating in Africa.\u201d We have since corrected that description to \u201cDubai-based technology group.\u201d<\/p>\n Elsewhere, November began with some good news for 15 young women in Northern Nigeria. Financial Services Innovators (FSI), with support from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has selected them for five-week software testing internships after an eight-week training programme that drew 590 applications.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ninety-five women completed the programme, learning everything from test-case design to application programming interface (API) testing, and the 15 top performers will now get hands-on industry experience with GoAssurify.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s dive in.<\/p>\n \n Read smart insights about Francophone Africa\u2019s tech ecosystem\u2014weekly.\n <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n On Saturday, OPay shelved<\/a> its planned $304 million US IPO, a day after pricing its shares at $19 each. The Nigeria-focused payments company said a regulatory inquiry in an undisclosed foreign jurisdiction forced it to abandon the listing, leaving a planned $4 billion valuation in limbo.<\/p>\n What happened? <\/strong>OPay had planned to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday. Its American Depositary Shares were priced at $19, but trading never started. The company withdrew the offering after consulting its underwriters, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and Standard Bank.<\/p>\n In a statement, OPay said the inquiry concerns a jurisdiction unrelated to its core business. It has not named the regulator or explained what it is investigating.<\/p>\n Why does it matter? <\/strong>OPay is one of Nigeria\u2019s largest payments companies, with over 50 million users. Its proposed listing would have given US investors a way to buy into one of Africa\u2019s biggest fintech businesses.<\/p>\n The withdrawal also shows how a regulatory issue outside a company\u2019s main market can derail access to public capital. SoftBank\u2019s backing did not prevent that.<\/p>\n Explain it like I\u2019m new here: <\/strong>OPay was selling American Depositary Shares (ADS). These let US investors trade securities linked to a foreign company on an American exchange without buying shares in the company\u2019s home market.<\/p>\n What to watch: <\/strong>OPay has not said when, or if, it might revive the initial public offering (IPO). It is also not clear what the foreign regulator is investigating. Until the company provides more detail, investors have little basis for assessing whether the problem is temporary or could affect its plans to list.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Pay with OPay is live on Fincra. Customers approve payments straight from their OPay wallet, and you get confirmation back on your site. Available now for NGN collections! Upgrade your business today with<\/strong> Fincra pay with OPay<\/a>. Egypt has spent years saying it wants to make more of the cars it drives. Now its first locally assembled electric vehicle (EV) has rolled off the line.<\/p>\n What happened?<\/strong> State-owned El Nasr Automotive has begun producing<\/a> the MAGE EV, the electric version of Chinese automaker Dongfeng\u2019s MAGE, at its Helwan factory in Cairo, Egypt. SN Automotive, a joint venture between El Nasr and Al Safy Group, Dongfeng\u2019s Egyptian agent, handles production.<\/p>\n About 45% of the car is locally sourced. El Nasr wants to produce 3,000 units in the first year and gradually increase both production and the share of Egyptian-made parts.<\/p>\n Explain like I\u2019m new here:<\/strong> Egypt does not just want more EVs on its roads. It wants more of those vehicles to be made in Egypt.<\/p>\n Launched in 2023, Egypt\u2019s Automotive Industry Development Programme (AIDP)<\/a> rewards manufacturers that produce more cars locally, increase local content, and invest in cleaner vehicles. The country wants local value added to reach 60% and annual vehicle production to exceed 100,000 units.<\/p>\n The wider car market is already recovering. Egyptians bought<\/a> 135,445 vehicles in the first eight months of 2026, up 25.8% from the same period last year.<\/p>\n Between the lines:<\/strong> Assembly is the easy part. At 45% local content, more than half of the MAGE EV still comes from abroad. Egypt now wants factories to produce batteries, motors, and other components locally, because that is where more jobs and industrial value sit.<\/p>\n There is also an awkward policy problem. Fully imported EVs enter Egypt without customs duties, while manufacturers still pay duties on imported batteries and electric motors used to build cars locally. The government is now considering removing those duties for factories.<\/p>\n Zoom out:<\/strong> Egypt\u2019s EV push is becoming an industrial policy, not just a clean-transport policy. Getting the first car off the line is useful. But making more cars in Egypt is the real prize.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Airtel Kenya, the country\u2019s second-largest telecom operator, has paid $65 million (KES 8.4 billion) for 100 MHz of 5G spectrum<\/a>, securing the airwaves it needs to expand its network over the next 25 years. The purchase comes as Kenya\u2019s 5G market grows, but also as Airtel tries to close the gap with Safaricom and put years of licencing disputes behind it.<\/p>\n What happened? <\/strong>Airtel acquired 100 megahertz (MHz) in the 3500 MHz band, one of the main frequency ranges used to deploy 5G networks globally.<\/p>\n The purchase gives Airtel more room to carry data traffic, serve more customers, and improve connection speeds. It also gives the operator a long-term asset for its network expansion plans.<\/p>\n Why does this matter? <\/strong>According to the Communications Authority (CA), Kenya\u2019s 5G subscriber base reached 2.1 million in June 2026<\/a>, up from 1.2 million in the previous year. More customers are using 5G, and operators need enough spectrum to accommodate that demand.<\/p>\n Airtel is also competing against Safaricom, which launched commercial 5G services in October 2022. Airtel followed in July 2023. Safaricom had 803 5G sites in March 2024, compared with Airtel\u2019s 690.<\/p>\n The spectrum purchase gives Airtel more capacity to compete, but it doesn\u2019t automatically mean better coverage, since that depends on how much it spends on equipment, sites, and network upgrades.<\/p>\n Explain it like I\u2019m new here: <\/strong>Think of spectrum as the road on which mobile data travels. Operators need government permission to use specific portions of these radio frequencies.<\/p>\n More spectrum means more room for data traffic. The 3500 MHz band is particularly useful for 5G because it can deliver high speeds and substantial network capacity.<\/p>\n The bigger question: <\/strong>Airtel has spent more than a decade dealing with uncertainty over its operating licences. It has now secured a 25-year operating licence in 2026, but regulatory approvals for other authorisations were still pending in August.<\/p>\n The $65 million purchase settles one part of its 5G expansion plans. Can Airtel now turn that investment into a serious challenge to Safaricom?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n South Africa\u2019s creator economy may look informal, but the taxman does not see it that way. The South African Revenue Service (SARS), the country\u2019s taxman, is reminding influencers, YouTubers, podcasters, and other creators that money from brand deals is taxable, and so are many of the free phones, hotel stays, flights, and other perks they receive in exchange for content.<\/p>\n What happened?<\/strong> SARS has published<\/a> new guidelines telling creators to declare income from sponsorships, affiliate marketing, advertising, subscriptions, and brand partnerships.<\/p>\n Declarable payment does not have to be cash only, according to the taxman. Products, travel, accommodation, vouchers, and other benefits digital creators receive can also count as income when provided in exchange for promotion.<\/p>\n For example, a creator paid R30,000 ($1,800) for a campaign, plus a R20,000 ($1,200) phone and R10,000 ($600) hotel stay, could have R60,000 ($3,600) in gross income to declare.\u00a0<\/p>\n Explain like I\u2019m new here: <\/strong>This is not a new influencer tax. South Africa\u2019s existing tax rules already cover income received in cash or in kind. SARS is spelling out how those rules apply to an industry where a creator can be paid without money ever hitting a bank account.<\/p>\n This is South Africa\u2019s latest effort to formalise its creator economy, similar to ride-hailing\u2014another gig economy. In January, the country\u2019s digital technologies regulator said it was mulling plans<\/a> for regulating podcasts; however, with its hands full, especially with the failed AI policy<\/a> in April, which has since morphed into a contentious political affair, the regulator has seemingly relegated that plan to the back burner.<\/p>\n In SARS\u2019 case for influencers, it wants to ensure there are no loopholes. The tax agency collected<\/a> a record R2.01 trillion ($120.4 billion) in the 2025\/26 financial year and is targeting R2.144 trillion ($128.4 billion) this year. Bringing more informal and digital income into the tax net is part of that wider compliance push.\u00a0<\/p>\n Creators may not contribute a huge share of that revenue, but SARS clearly does not want income earned through posts, brand deals or freebies slipping through simply because it does not look like a traditional salary or payment.<\/p>\n Between the lines:<\/strong> SARS now describes creators and influencers as \u201cmodern entrepreneurs.\u201d That means creators may need to start thinking like small businesses: keep proper records, track what they receive, declare taxable income, and check whether provisional tax or VAT rules apply.<\/p>\n Our read here is that record-keeping could be the biggest headache for influencers. Cash payments are easy to track (and declare as tax), but creators may now have to put a value on free trips, hotel stays, and other perks they once treated as gifts. Clearer rules would be key here, as SARS seeks additional revenue from South Africa\u2019s digital economy.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Source:<\/p>\n ![\"today's](\"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/\ud83d\udc68\ud83c\udfff\u200d\ud83d\ude80TechCabal-Daily-\u2013-OPays-IPO-hits-a-wall-TechCabal-2.jpg\")
\n<\/div>\nOPay\u2019s US debut hits a regulatory wall<\/h3>\n
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<\/a>\n Upgrade your business today
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\n <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\nEgypt rolls out its first locally assembled EV<\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Airtel Kenya pays $65 million to catch up on 5G<\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Creator Economy<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
South Africa tells influencers: free perks can be taxable<\/h3>\n
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<\/a>CRYPTO TRACKER<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The World Wide Web3<\/h3>\n
![\"CoinMarketCap](\"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/\ud83d\udc68\ud83c\udfff\u200d\ud83d\ude80TechCabal-Daily-\u2013-OPays-IPO-hits-a-wall-TechCabal-5.jpg\")
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<\/span>Bitcoin<\/td>\n![\"in](\"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/\ud83d\udc68\ud83c\udfff\u200d\ud83d\ude80TechCabal-Daily-\u2013-OPays-IPO-hits-a-wall-TechCabal-7.jpg\")
\n<\/div>\n![\"Email](\"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/\ud83d\udc68\ud83c\udfff\u200d\ud83d\ude80TechCabal-Daily-\u2013-OPays-IPO-hits-a-wall-TechCabal-8.jpg\")