This line-up of stories will help you discover the latest happenings around the tech world, today.
1. Saudi Arabia invests $120M to advance gaming, esports industry
At the LEAP 2024 technology conference held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s National Development Fund (NDF), in collaboration with the Social Development Bank (SDB), has unveiled the establishment of two venture capital funds totaling $120 million to foster the burgeoning gaming and esports sectors.
This development falls under the auspices of the Gaming and Esports Financing Programme, in partnership with the Saudi Esports Federation.
To be managed by IMPACT46 and Merak Capital, the fund is poised to provide equity investments to gaming and esports enterprises as developmental capital, with the overarching objective of bolstering domestic content creation and expediting industry growth.
Speaking on the development, Dr. Stephen Grove, Governor of NDF, said: “The exponential global growth witnessed by the gaming and esports realm has translated into substantial revenue streams and employment opportunities.
“Leveraging Saudi Arabia’s youthful demographic and other favorable investment factors, NDF and our partners are committed to pioneering innovative financing mechanisms for this sector. Our aim is to ensure its financial resilience and contribute to the Kingdom’s economic diversification and employment generation endeavors.”
Trivia: Which term describes figuring out a solution to a technical problem?
A. Troublefixing
B. Troublesolving
C. Troubleshooting
D. Troublezapping
Find answer below
2. Telegram introduces option for users to convert personal accounts into business accounts
Instant messaging app, Telegram, has unveiled a new feature allowing users of the messaging platform to transform their personal accounts into business profiles.
The new offering provides additional functionalities tailored for enterprises such as listing location and operating hours, particularly advantageous for small-scale cafes and store proprietors.
In a statement issued by Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, seen by Ripples Nigeria on Thursday, March 7, 2024, the transition marks a significant enhancement for users seeking to engage in commercial activities within the platform.
Among the array of features accompanying business accounts are the capability to organize chats with color labels, employ automated greetings or away messages, and utilize shortcuts for prompt responses, thus optimizing communication efficiency.
According to Durov on Telegram’s forthcoming plans, he said: “Telegram Business accounts will seamlessly integrate chatbots as virtual assistants to manage various chat interactions, leveraging AI technology to revolutionize customer service automation.”
3. French fintech unicorn, Qonto, acquires Regate
Qonto, the Paris-based business banking startup, has announced acquiring Regate, an accounting and financial automation platform.
Laura Pallier, co-founder of Regate, confirmed this in a statement seen by Ripples Nigeria on Thursday March 7, 2024.
Initially specializing in online business accounts and debit cards tailored for small and medium enterprises, Qonto has since diversified its offerings to include invoicing tools, expense management features, and extensive integrations within the fintech ecosystem.
Known for its seamless integration with leading accounting software platforms such as Sage, Cegid, and ACD, Regate focuses on enhancing financial automation processes.
The acquisition follows Qonto’s recent purchase of its German competitor Penta, through which it migrated Penta’s clientele onto its own platform.
“Despite achieving a threefold increase in revenue in 2023,” remarked Laura, “we decided to sell the company to propel ourselves to the next level when Qonto approached us.
“Our discussions were robust, and we firmly believe that consolidating our efforts into a unified platform catering to both SMEs and their accountants offers a more cohesive solution than disparate products.”
With this acquisition, Regate’s 100-strong workforce will merge with Qonto’s existing 1,400 employees to form a new business unit focused on financial tools for accountants.
Trivia Answer: Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting is the process of diagnosing the source of a problem. It is used to fix problems with hardware, software, and many other products.
The basic theory of troubleshooting is that you start with the most general (and often most obvious) possible problems, and then narrow it down to more specific issues.
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