Author: Muindi

Instagram will put ads into the platform’s search results to reach people actively searching for businesses, products, and content. According to Instagram, the ads will appear in the feed that people can scroll to when they tap into a post from search results. “We plan to launch this placement globally in the coming months,” the company said in a blog post. Instagram also announced ‘Reminder’ ads, rolling out to all advertisers as an option in the feed to help advertisers build awareness, anticipation, and consideration for upcoming moments. “People can opt into convenient reminders and receive three notifications from Instagram one day before, 15…

Nairobi-based fashion e-commerce startup Zumi is shutting down. “The current macro environment has made fundraising extremely difficult, and unfortunately, our business was not able to achieve sustainability in time to survive,” said the startup’s co-founder and CEO, William McCarren, in a Linkedin post. “This journey has been the most challenging yet rewarding experience of my life. We started out as an online magazine in 2016 and pivoted into an e-commerce platform for apparel. We persevered through COVID-19, a ban on apparel imports, and countless near-death experiences. Building businesses in emerging markets requires a special blend of ambition, grit, and craziness,…

TransCentury PLC shareholders have approved the conversion of shareholder loans as a mode of payment for rights in the reopened TC Rights Offer. According to TransCentury Extraordinary General Meeting held on March 16, 2023, the resolution received approval from 94.7% of the votes. As a result, this will allow shareholders who hold current shareholder loans to exercise their rights by converting those loans to equity and utilising cash. “Conversion of shareholder loans and cash raised from the Rights Offer will support us in fundraising, and debt reduction efforts, which were major objectives of the Rights Issue,” TransCentury Group Chairman Shaka Kariuki said. “In…

Remittances sent by overseas Kenyan workers decreased 11.5 per cent in February on a month-on-month basis, the Central Bank said. Inflows in February 2023 totalled USD 309.2 million compared to USD 349.4 million in January, showed the CBK’s newly released data on Friday. The cumulative inflows for the 12 months to February 2023 totalled USD 4,026 million compared to USD 3,840 million in February 2022, an increase of 4.8 per cent. Diaspora remittances play an important role in Kenya’s economy as they are one of the significant sources of foreign exchange. “The remittance inflows continue to support the current account and the…

In the past few days, virtually everyone has been talking about Savings and Credit Co-operative (SACCO) dividends. Saccos nationwide released their annual financial results and announced dividends to their members.  March has indeed been a good month for most Sacco members. Due to dividend payouts, the Saccos injected over Ksh 30 billion into the financial ecosystem in March alone. More saccos are lined up to declare dividends and interest rebates until the end of April.  Sacco businesses have gained popularity throughout the country as an alternative form of financial institution. They have become vehicles that give people alternatives to invest…

KCB Group plans to inject an additional Ksh 938.8 million into the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) to help the subsidiary comply with the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) capital adequacy requirements. NBK is currently in breach of its total capital to total risk-weighted assets, with the minimum statutory capital set at 14.5 per cent against the Bank’s ratio of 13.5 per cent, according to a report by Business Daily. However, the lender stated that the capital injection, whose format (equity or debt) is yet to be disclosed, depends on CBK approvals. If approved, KCB Group will be compliant with…