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Happy new week!

If you’re looking for a productivity mantra for the week, you can borrow Tim Cook’s “Must. Do. Win.” In an hour-long all-hands, Tim Cook told Apple’s entire staff that winning in AI isn’t optional. “Apple must do this. Apple will do this. This is sort of ours to grab,” he said.

So go on—this week is yours to grab!

Government

Rwanda is working on a CBDC; pilot runs till October

Following in the footsteps of peers South Africa and Ghana, Rwanda is developing a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

The CBDC is a digital version of its local currency, the Rwandan Franc, issued by its central bank, the National Bank of Rwanda (NBR). A closed-group pilot will run till October, and the launch date of the CBDC announced afterward.

State of play: Nigeria was the first African country to launch a CBDC in 2021. However, that project never caught on; adoption was slow, and there was a fundamental lack of mass education around what the eNaira was created to do.

Rwanda is betting the digital version of its money will attract foreign financial institutions and banks to hold and store reserves, driving availability and adoption from the top down.

Here’s why CBDC is important to Rwanda: The East African country highlighted four main reasons for launching a CBDC, two of which include cross-border payments and a cashless economy.

However, Rwanda still needs to worry about public adoption. People already trust mobile money and cash for their daily transactions. Showing them how to use unfamiliar digital versions of their money requires education, trust, and clear incentives.

Yes, a state-backed system offers stability, but unless it’s easy to access, works offline, and blends into platforms people already use, it risks becoming a shiny tool few actually use.

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Companies

MTN Nigeria crosses ₦10 trillion ($) market cap on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX)

MTN Nigeria (MTNN) reached a significant milestone on August 1. The telco became the second company ever listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) to reach a market capitalisation of over ₦10 trillion ($6.5 billion).

Why is this a big deal? MTN now stands as the most valuable company on the NGX, overtaking Dangote, which was valued at ₦8.9 trillion ($5.8 billion) as of August 1. (Dangote Cement hit the ₦10 trillion market cap back in 2024.) Despite the previous years of reported losses, the achievement solidifies investor confidence in MTN Nigeria’s business strategy and financial health.

State of play: As of the close of trading on Friday, MTNN was valued at ₦480 ($0.31) per share on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. This is a 140% increase in its valuation at the start of the year. The company also reported a profit of ₦414.9 billion ($270 billion) for H1 2025, a sharp increase from the ₦519.1 billion ($338.3 billion) loss for the first half of the previous year.

Zoom out: MTN Nigeria’s strong recent performance may have also brought some renewed investor confidence in its parent company, MTN Group, which is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The group has enjoyed a 69.2% increase in share price since the start of the year.

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Telecoms

Vodacom to spend $34.3 million to improve connectivity in Mpumalanga, South Africa

Vodacom, a leading South African telecom operator, is pumping R620 million ($34.3 million) to boost network infrastructure in Mpumalanga, a province in northeastern South Africa. The investment is aimed at improving connectivity and digital inclusion.

Why does this matter? The telco has invested a total of R1bn ($55 million) in improving network connectivity in the region over the past two financial years. Vodacom says it is mainly focused on ensuring its network is accessible to all South Africans, but improving infrastructure is also an important strategy to maintain competitiveness in the quick-moving telecom sector. MTN, Vodacom’s main competitor, also recently announced $44 million worth of network infrastructure investments in Gauteng, South Africa’s most populous province, and the KwaZulu-Natal province.

Vodacom is looking to speed up its 4G and 5G rollouts, especially in deep rural communities and township areas, which may have uneven access to these services.

Big picture: Vodacom has been exploring multiple options for staying competitive and improving revenue sources in South Africa’s telecom sector. It has also been testing out a “beyond mobile” expansion strategy which it expects will boost overall earnings to 30% by 2030. The telecom operator also has its upcoming $2 billion acquisition deal with Maziv, which is expected to grow its fiber network and ISP reach.

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Banking

Lending rates in Kenya drop to 15.28% in June, its lowest in 17 months

Lending rates in Kenya are coming down.

According to the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), the weighted average lending rate of commercial banks dropped to 15.28% in June, the lowest in 17 months. Since January, the lending rate has declined steadily by 1.36 percentage points.

Why has the rate been sliding downward? The central bank has cut benchmark rates six times since August 2024, to ease borrowing costs for individuals and small businesses

What does this mean for Kenyans? A lower lending rate means cheaper loans. . Easy access to credit means that Kenyans can buy assets and expand their businesses, contributing to the country’s economy.

But the fight has not come easy. After the CBK began cutting interest rates in August 2024, it urged banks to follow suit and make loans cheaper for everyday customers. But banks refused, due to the high defaults in the sector. Banks wanted to hedge their losses by offering high interest rates.

However, after the CBK threatened to issue fines for non-compliance, Kenyan banks are coming around. So far this year, major banks like KCB and Cooperative Bank have all lowered their lending rates significantly, contributing to the historical drop.

But with cheaper loans, Kenyan banks could be making the process for securing capital more stringent. If this is the case, the CBK need not celebrate yet, and tackle an existential plague in the country: loan defaults.

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CRYPTO TRACKER

The World Wide Web3

Source:

Coin Name	Current Value	Day	Month
Bitcoin	$114,240	+ 0.60%	+ 5.64%
Ether	$3,527	+ 2.44%	+ 40.05%
Stellar	$0.408	+ 8.75%	+ 71.73%
Solana	$161.67	+ 0.79%	+ 9.95%

* Data as of 06.50 AM WAT, August 4, 2025.

Events

Bridge And Value and AlexBoyo World (ABW) are hosting a bespoke trade mission to Paris for Nigerian businesses looking to scale into France and the wider European market. From September 22–26, 2025, participants will attend the Spotlight Nigeria Business Forum (8th edition), Europe’s premier Nigeria-focused summit, and BIG 2025, Bpifrance’s flagship entrepreneurship event. The itinerary also includes high-level business meetings, networking sessions with French investors and institutions, and a guided visit to Station F, the world’s largest startup incubator. Registration is open until August 15.

Written by: Emmanuel Nwosu and Ifeoluwa Igbiniode

Edited by: Faith Omoniyi

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