When Shenzhen-based Transsion Holdings IPO’d last month no one predicted that it would surge a stunning 64% on its opening day of trading in Shanghai, pushing the company’s valuation to around $7 billion.
But it really shouldn’t have come as a surprise given that Transsion’s suite of mobile phone brands is now dominant in Africa with more than 50% of the market.
But Transsion isn’t some kind of outlier. Beijing-based StarTimes has tens of millions of PayTV customers across the continent, Huawei, of course, built 70% of Africa’s 4G network and Transsion-Netease joint venture Boomplay is the top mobile streaming music service on the continent.
And, of course, then there’s eCommerce behemoth Alibaba who’s just now starting to ramp up its engagement in Africa by making it easier for traders to sell goods on their platform to buyers in China.
There’s a lot going on in this space and it feels like the pace is picking up very fast. No one follows the tech trends in Africa more closely than Andile Masuku, co-founder/Executive Producer/host of the popular African Tech Roundup Podcast.
Andile joins Eric & Cobus to talk about the huge opportunities and the potential risks that come with China’s surging presence in the African technology sector.
About The African Tech Roundup:
- Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/african-tech-roundup/id1152011645
- Web: https://www.africantechroundup.com/
- Twitter: @africanroundup
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/africantechroundup
Show Notes:
- Pandaily: Why are Chinese tech firms taking over Africa? by Caleb Kantai
- Deutsche Welle: Investing in Africa’s tech infrastructure. Has China won already? by Chiponda Chimbelu
- Financial Times: China is cornering Africa’s eCommerce market by David Pilling
- Foreign Policy: For Africa, Chinese-Built Internet Is Better Than No Internet at All by Amy Mackinnon
Andile Masuku is a Zimbabwean broadcaster and entrepreneur based in Johannesburg, South Africa. He produces and presents a portfolio of syndicated audio podcasts— including the African Tech Roundup and storytelling podcasts for the BBC World Service. He also develops and executes content strategy and tactical media plays for leading companies. His syndicated opinion editorials offer readers around the world accessible African perspectives on the continent’s digital transformation journey.
Andile also speaks widely and advises high net worth individuals and leading brands and businesses around the world on media strategy, market-entry and investment pipeline development focused on Sub-Saharan Africa.
