James Saruchera, co-founder of Afrik. (Image source: Afrik)

Afrik introduced its decentralised financial and governance platform at the Global AI Summit in Rwanda, an exclusive gathering hosted by president Paul Kagame and the Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR)

Designed to drive Africa’s Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), Afrik enables the financing of green energy and AI-driven projects by leveraging blockchain and artificial intelligence. The platform creates a transparent funding mechanism through a globally tradable digital asset, opening up access to capital from both institutional and individual investors.

Empowering African innovation

“Africa is poised to lead global sustainability in the Fourth Industrial Age. The continent holds 30% of the world’s mineral resources, vast renewable energy potential, and a young, growing workforce. Moving beyond the outdated model of extractive economies, The Afrik Foundation aims to unlock capital to accelerate green innovation and energy projects,” commented James Saruchera, co-founder of Afrik. “By providing African nationals with financial leverage in global markets, Afrik fosters prosperity through greater transparency, governance, and security in investments.”

Afrik’s model empowers communities and governments to fund development on their own terms. “The Global AI Summit highlights the need for Africa to take ownership of its technological and economic destiny. AI, blockchain, and decentralised finance will define the continent’s next growth phase. Afrik is a solution that integrates these technologies to empower communities and governments to finance development on their own terms,” Saruchera adds.

Co-founder Jean-Marc Bourreau emphasised the platform’s innovation, “Afrik enables funding through a digital asset that is globally tradable, that includes innovative features, such as smart contracts, and that will help African economies to direct more resources towards the private sector involved in 4IR. The objective is to boost productivity in Africa and close the economic development gap with the most advanced economies. Afrik is about developing Africa at the speed of AI.”

Afrik has received support from prominent figures across fintech and policy. Arlinda Peixoto, CEO of Pagali, said, “Afrik aligns strongly with the need for African self-reliance and economic independence, leveraging digital transformation to break dependency on external financial structures. By integrating technology and finance, it positions Africa to take advantage of AI-driven economic models, blockchain technology, and decentralised financial systems. Crucially, the emphasis on broad discussions, feedback, and inclusivity suggests an effort to create a grassroots movement rather than imposing a top-down solution.”

Patrick Sergant, a leading lawyer in Dakar, called it “the most innovative instrument I have seen for the financing of Africa’s development.”

“Africa has the potential to lead in AI and digital infrastructure, but it must control the economic frameworks that power these sectors. Afrik offers a borderless financial model that allows African innovation to be funded by African capital. Afrik marks a pivotal shift toward an Africa-driven economic model built on financial sovereignty and equitable access to capital. The insights gained from the Global AI Summit will further inform Afrik’s mission as it prepares to introduce its funding platform to the market,” concluded Saruchera. 

Also read: Africa leads mobile money growth – GSMA report

PalmPay partners with Verve to launch its debit card in Nigeria, enhancing financial access for millions of users. (Image source: Palmpay)

PalmPay, a top digital bank and fintech platform focused on emerging markets, has introduced the PalmPay Debit Card in Nigeria through a collaboration with Verve, Africa’s largest domestic card network

This launch marks a significant step in PalmPay’s journey from being a mobile wallet known for fee-free transfers and cashback rewards to evolving into a full-service digital banking platform. Now offering a comprehensive financial ecosystem that includes payments, savings, credit, insurance, and card services, PalmPay continues to expand its reach.

Designed for Nigeria’s mass market, the PalmPay debit card offers innovative features such as savings interest on deposits and merchant rewards. With no maintenance fees, an easy in-app application process, and nationwide delivery, PalmPay aims to convert millions of its 35 million users into cardholders this year. The card, which supports both debit and contactless payments, is accepted at all Verve network merchants.

“This launch is another step forward in our mission to deliver accessible, reliable and rewarding financial services,” said Sofia Zab, chief marketing officer at PalmPay. “With the PalmPay Debit Card, we are expanding our ecosystem and enabling our users to pay and earn rewards at even more touch points, including across offline and online commerce. And for merchants, this opens up new opportunities to reach millions of Nigerian digital consumers and collaborate with us to build reward-driven experiences that boost loyalty and sales.”

In addition to the standard debit card, PalmPay is introducing PalmPay Premium, a new rewards program and card designed for high-volume users. It provides exclusive benefits such as priority customer support, advanced financial tools, and special merchant perks.

PalmPay has over 35 million users, a growing network of 1.1 million agents and merchants in Nigeria, and operations in Tanzania, Ghana, and Bangladesh. Processing up to 15 million transactions daily, PalmPay is developing a next-generation financial ecosystem aimed at empowering businesses and consumers in emerging markets.

“At PalmPay, we believe that building a thriving digital economy requires collaboration. From lending and insurance providers to card schemes like Verve, our ecosystem is powered by strategic partnerships,” said Jiapei Yan, chief commercial officer of PalmPay. “The launch of our debit card is another example of how we are combining cutting-edge technology with our partner strengths to deliver inclusive financial services at scale - and in doing so we empower businesses targeting Africa to grow faster, reach more customers and unlock more revenue streams.”

Vincent Ogbunude, managing director of Verve International, added, “We are proud to partner with PalmPay on this important milestone. Our alliance reflects our shared mission of accelerating financial inclusion and delivering payment innovation that meets the needs of African consumers.”

From zero-fee transfers and high-yield savings to instant credit, insurance, and now debit cards, PalmPay is redefining digital banking in emerging markets—offering a personalized, comprehensive, and inclusive financial experience. With its infrastructure, broad user base, and extensive reach, PalmPay provides international businesses with a trusted platform to scale in Africa’s fast-growing digital economy.

Brady Corporation unveils the i7500, a 76mm core label printer with auto-calibration, reducing waste and setup time to 40 seconds. (Image source: Brady Corporation)

No calibration, no formatting, no ribbon fumbling, no trial & error, no waste - the new i7500 redefines the 76mm core premium printing experience in electronics, electrical, manufacturing and laboratory industries.

Fed up with old-school high-volume label printing? The new BradyPrinter i7500 reimagines 76mm core high precision label printing.

The identification specialist Brady Corporation’s new BradyPrinter i7500 for 76mm core label rolls automatically adjusts all of its settings when new consumables are loaded. Ready to print in just 40 seconds, the printer also removes all calibration waste by printing the first label right.

Set up, don’t touch?

The approach in most industries to high volume, high precision thermal heat transfer 76mm core (3’’ core) label printing to date has almost always been “set it up and don’t touch”. Crucial for traceability and compliance, yet excruciating to set up and calibrate, the 76mm core label printing experience has been a notorious pain point for many manufacturing, electronics, electrical and laboratory industries.

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Ready in 40 seconds

Not anymore. In a new proprietary printer model, global identification specialist Brady Corporation removed all label printing hassle to redefine the 76mm core label experience. “The new BradyPrinter i7500 does not require users to adjust sensors, heat settings, define label dimensions or waste labels in calibration”, says Ömer Adisen, product manager benchtop printers & software at Brady Corporation. “We call it LabelSense. The technology reduces the frustrating trial and error of manual printer calibration to print readiness in just 40 seconds. That includes loading Brady consumables, designed so they can only be loaded the right way.”

Efficient, flexible printing

The new BradyPrinter i7500 with LabelSense technology makes high precision 76mm core label printing a lot more intuitive, and efficient. There is no need to maintain multiple printers just to avoid the classic consumable and calibration hassle. “All optimal settings are already preloaded and the printer automatically recognises every Brady consumable. The i7500 offers considerable print flexibility by enabling users to switch from printed circuit board labels to rating plates, raised profile labels and cable sleeves, or between relevant specialised laboratory labels, in just 40 seconds. Even when loading the tiniest 3.18mm QR-coded labels, the i7500 prints the first label right, reducing waste and supporting sustainable label printing practices.”

Open core

In addition to auto-calibration, the BradyPrinter i7500 can print 76mm core labels from any manufacturer in manual mode. “When considering a switch to the new label printing experience provided by the BradyPrinter i7500, there is no need to devalue current label stock. The BradyPrinter i7500 can print any 76mm core labels, from any manufacturer, with great speed and precision.”

Software compatible

When combined with Brady Workstation label design, the software instantly recognises the dimensions of loaded Brady consumables for fast and intuitive label creation. Next to label design protection, Brady Workstation also includes an easy scan to print app and a data automation app to print labels at the right time with the right ERP-system data. The BradyPrinter i7500 supports print languages like ZPL, and can print labels via other label design software.

Premium printing redefined

“The new BradyPrinter i7500 defines a new premium high precision printing experience for 76mm core labels”, Ömer says. “Fully automated calibration enables printing on different consumables within 40 seconds. Supported by a clear user interface on a large on-board screen, the i7500 prints a wide range of labels without any hassle. We can provide a hands-on demo at your premises to show your teams just how intuitive label printing can be.”

Discover the BradyPrinter i7500 >>

Are you wondering how to choose the right label for your application? Download the free guide now >>

BRADY Africa

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Network International and Airtel Money partner to roll out digital payment solutions across Africa, starting with Uganda and expanding in 2025. (Image source: Network International)

Network International, a key player in digital commerce across the Middle East and Africa, has partnered with Airtel Money to introduce digital payment solutions across major African markets, starting with Uganda

Additional rollouts are planned for the rest of Africa and Francophone nations in 2025.

Under this collaboration, Network will support Airtel Money with transaction processing, card management, fraud prevention, API sandbox, reconciliation and settlement, and online access for users.

Transforming payment ecosystems 

Dr Reda Helal, group managing director – Processing, Africa and Co-Head Group Processing at Network International, stated, “We aim to cover significant ground on our Airtel rollouts this year after going live in Uganda and make greater strides for our outsourced payments services in Africa. We are excited to add value to Airtel’s capabilities, continue driving the success of Mobile Network Operators, and contribute to financial inclusion across the continent.”

Ian Ferrao, group CEO, Airtel Money - Airtel Africa PLC Airtel Group, added, “We are delighted with this major milestone in our partnership and are eager to keep on innovating and elevating our customer experiences with the support of Network’s digital payments expertise. Together, we will pave the way for more citizens to gain access to the continent's growing digital economy.”

Network International offers a broad range of payment technology solutions for merchants and financial institutions, covering acquiring, processing, and value-added services. Operating in 50 MEA countries, it serves over 40 African markets.

Airtel operates telecom and mobile money services in 14 African countries, primarily in Central and West Africa. The company has a customer base exceeding 140 million, including nearly 60 million data users and over 36 million Airtel Money customers.

Also read: Airtel Africa empowers Nigeria’s youth in tech