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The China-Funded Mobile Browser That’s Zeroing in on the African Market

by Eric Olander

Four years ago, Opera was most famous for Opera Mini, a simple data compression browser, gaining traction in African countries with high data costs. Today, Opera’s software holdings have developed into an interconnected nexus spanning file sharing, news, digital payments, ride hailing, food delivery and news.

What fueled Opera’s rise was a change in ownership. In 2016, a China-based tech conglomerate led by Qihoo-360 purchased a quarter of the Opera’s software from its Norwegian owners.

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