Good morning, folks!

Agritech startup Bandim Online has beat four others to win the Seedstars Bissau pitch event. Bandim Online provides a web and USSD platform which gives a customer full visibility of products available from a farmer thereby preventing post-harvest losses. 

Be-Bound is holding a blockchain startup competition in Cameroon at ActivSpaces on Oct. 27 – 28. The competition is being organized in partnership with Will & Brothers, DroneAfrica and Societe Generale’s Innovation Lab. Interested applicants can apply here before Oct. 17.

MTN may no longer conduct an IPO in Nigeria. The telco is said to be considering other ways to list its shares in Nigeria due to ‘current market conditions’ according to a report by MyBroadBand. The company may now do a ‘listing by introduction’ on the country’s bourse. It is still battling a $10 billion dispute in Nigeria although the Central Bank is now seeking an amicable resolution.

The 2018 MED Innovant competition is now open for start-ups and entrepreneurs with solutions to improve urban experiences with digital tools. The competition is organized by the Euroméditerranée Public Planning Agency. Apply here before Oct. 14 (link in French). 

Electric vehicle company, Ampersand is piloting its electric motorcycle taxis in Rwanda. The taxis are expected to be more affordable than their petrol alternatives and will be ready for commercial launch in Rwanda in late 2019. Ampersand is backed by Factor[e] Ventures and the UK’s DFiD through its Frontier Technology Livestreaming Programme. 

In order to position the company for future growth, Liquid Telecom SA is introducing a new operating model which will lead to job losses. The new operating model is technology-driven and will include the automation of a number of tasks. The company is currently consulting with the employees who may be affected.

Amref Health Africa has picked six African healthcare startups to participate in its Innovate for Life Fund Accelerator. They include Kenya’s Baobab Circle and Ujuzi Fursa Africa, Nigeria’s Baby Grubz and Tiny Hearts Technology, Uganda’s Joelex and Zimbabwe’s Wastinnova.  

The 6th Angel Fair Africa event is holding in Maputo from November 29 – 30. The event which seeks to connect entrepreneurs with carefully selected investors has facilitated a total investment of about $23 million since its inception. 20 entrepreneurs, 60 investors alongside 10 partners are expected to attend this year’s event. Find out more here. 

The BTNG Hackathon 2018 is taking place on Oct. 27 & 28 with support from Microsoft.  The event is focused on creating solutions that will solve the problems of conducting successful elections in emerging economies with the centre of interest being the upcoming 2019 Nigerian elections. Register to attend here and volunteer/sponsor here. 

Africa’s Talking is building an incubator for software engineers through its AT Labs unit. AT Labs pairs its engineers with its partner companies to help them tackle specific problems. The company will take a 20% – 40% in the companies it supports. The engineers get a salary, office space and business support services. AT Labs is present only in Nairobi at this time but the program will be rolled out in other countries where it operates.  

Flutterwave has launched in Uganda. The company recently held a meet and greet with 50 founders and merchants in Kampala to discuss its flagship product, Rave. In July, Flutterwave announced that its team was integrating with local payment service providers in Uganda. 

YCombinator has announced that it’s increasing its standard deal from $120,000 to $150,000 for the same equity of 7%. The new deal now comes on a post-money safe cap. YC say it is revising the deal to make fundraising as simple, fast, cheap and clear as possible for founders.

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