Samuel Gikandi’s Departure from Africa’s Talking: A TechMoran Report
Africa’s Talking, a key player in Africa’s tech infrastructure, has seen a significant change in leadership with the departure of its founder and CEO, Samuel Gikandi. The company, established in 2010, has played a crucial role in enabling developers to access and integrate telecom infrastructure into their applications, a service vital for businesses operating across the continent.
Africa’s Talking: From Startup to Key Infrastructure Provider
Gikandi, along with his co-founders, identified a critical need for businesses to easily incorporate SMS, USSD, and mobile payments into their services. Africa’s Talking emerged as a solution, providing APIs that allowed developers to send bulk SMS messages, create customer support systems, facilitate mobile transactions, and manage large-scale campaigns. This fueled the growth of various sectors, including banking, fintech, e-commerce, and even government services. After years of organic growth, the company secured $8.6 million in Series A funding in 2018, attracting investment from prominent firms such as the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Orange Digital Ventures, and Social Capital, signaling its growing influence and potential.
Gikandi’s exit marks a turning point for Africa’s Talking, a company that has become an indispensable component of the African tech ecosystem. The change in leadership prompts questions about the future direction of the company and its continued impact on the continent’s digital landscape.
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