Latest news with #rural areas
Zawya
22-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Fintech fuels growth for South Africa's grassroots retailers
According to Stats SA, the informal sector is a cornerstone of the South African economy, providing nearly a fifth of total employment. Accounting for roughly half of informal businesses, traders such as spaza shops and tuckshops form a key part of vibrant economies in townships, rural areas and, peri-urban settings. In addition to creating jobs and helping earn an income for millions of families, these businesses bring services closer to people and keep cash circulating in the community. Yet these micro-businesses operate under tough conditions and were historically excluded from digital infrastructure and financial services formal retailers take for granted. Challenges such as low margins, exposure to cash crime, and poor access to financing and working capital put informal traders' resilience to the test. This is where modern fintech solutions and digital technology have a valuable enabling role to play. Simple, affordable devices and mobile connectivity are helping micro-merchants to run better businesses. Fintechs such as Kazang have come to market with solutions that enable micro merchants to profit by vending prepaid services as well as improve efficiencies through digitalisation. We have seen first-hand how these digital tools are reshaping the township and rural economies. Here are some ways these solutions make a difference. 1. Creating new revenue streams Transactions are small and margins are low in the informal sector. Value-added services (VAS) terminals enable merchants to sell prepaid services such as electricity, airtime, data, lottery tickets, and gaming vouchers. The merchant earns commission on each transaction, improving revenue and profits. 2. Boosting customer footfall and loyalty Informal traders can attract more foot traffic by offering a single place for customers to shop for basics as well as draw cash, pay bills, or purchase prepaid services. This gives traders a chance to upsell and grow their baskets — without spending more on advertising or stock. Once customers know they can withdraw cash, pay DStv, or recharge electricity from a local vendor, they will keep coming back. 3. Reducing reliance on cash At Kazang, around 60,000 of our 90,000 devices now accept card payments, with many also supporting cash-out functionality. Merchants can also use a digital wallet linked to a Kazang terminal to pay suppliers from wallet funds. Less cash on hand means less exposure to theft; it also reduces fees associated with cash withdrawals and deposits. 4. Enabling access to financial services When a merchant uses a VAS terminal regularly, they will start to build a digital transaction record. That opens the door to microloans, insurance, and other financial services that were previously out of reach. By helping informal businesses go digital, we can lay the groundwork for future access to working capital and growth finance. 5. Driving economic growth and consumer benefit A successful network of informal traders helps to foster more prosperous communities. Customers no longer need to travel long distances or pay taxi fares to withdraw money, buy electricity, or make bill payments. This translates to tangible savings in time and transport costs for consumers, while keeping money circulating within local economies. Affordable fintech tools bring the best modern tech to the informal market Businesses are bringing modern fintech tools to the informal market, enabling small traders to digitise, diversify, and grow. These solutions are designed to be easy to use, affordable, and accessible, bringing financial services to the doorsteps of excluded South African populations while helping informal traders to grow their businesses. All rights reserved. © 2022. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
CNET
14-07-2025
- Business
- CNET
Starlink Doubled Its Speed In 2 Years. It Still Doesn't Meet the FCC's Definition of Broadband
Starlink is nearly twice as fast as it was two years ago, according to a new report from the speed test site Ookla. (Disclosure: Ookla is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.) Median download speeds from the satellite internet provider have steadily ticked up over the past few years, going from 53.95 megabits per second in 2022 to 104.71Mbps today. That's an impressive feat considering Starlink added about 5 million customers over the same period and recently passed the 6 million mark globally. Ookla "The fact that Starlink's median download speeds nearly doubled from Q3 2022 until Q1 2025 is definitely a notable and impressive development," Sue Marek, editorial director at Ookla, told CNET. "It indicates that their ongoing efforts to expand their satellite constellation's capacity is making a difference." Starlink accomplished that by drastically increasing its capacity. At the beginning of 2022, the company had about 1,761 satellites in orbit; today, that number stands at 7,607, according to Jonathan McDowell, an astronomer who maintains a catalog of space objects. SpaceX, the company that owns Starlink, has said it eventually hopes to have as many as 42,000 satellites in space. It's going to need them. Recent changes to the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program could funnel as much as $20 billion in government subsidies to Starlink for providing internet in rural areas. But many industry experts are skeptical that Starlink can add millions of new customers without sacrificing speed. Locating local internet providers That's a reasonable concern. Ookla's data shows that only 17.4% of Starlink customers are currently getting internet speeds that meet the FCC's definition of minimum broadband speeds: 100Mbps download and 20Mbps upload. That's also a requirement to receive BEAD money. While most subscribers are meeting the 100Mbps download speed threshold, Starlink's median upload speeds are just 14.84Mbps. Latency, or the time it takes data to get from your computer to where it's going, is also on the high side -- 45 milliseconds (ms) compared to 12ms for the country as a whole. CNET recommends around 50ms or lower for activities like online gaming. In October 2024, Maine began offering free Starlink dishes to residents in its 'hardest-to-reach locations.' I asked Brian Allenby, the senior director with the Maine Connectivity Authority, if he was concerned about Starlink hitting that 100/20Mbps benchmark in a previous interview. "We have a very granular level of reporting through the Starlink portal, and it has all been compliant," Allenby said. "So we don't have immediate concerns about that." A representative for Starlink didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. States that qualify for a free Starlink dish had higher speeds The Starlink experience can vary dramatically depending on where you live. Last week, the company instituted a "demand fee" of $500 in the Pacific Northwest to combat congestion in high-use areas. In other states with more capacity available, it's giving customers the $349 satellite dish for free. Ookla took a look at the areas where Starlink is offering free equipment and found that all of them, except West Texas and Alaska, had median download speeds over 100Mbps. South Dakota, Rhode Island and Wyoming had the highest percentage of customers meeting the 100/20Mbps benchmark, while Alaska, Mississippi and Louisiana had the lowest.
