Christian H. Kaelin (Chairman, Henley & Partners) Global leader in residence and citizenship by investment, Henley & Partners, have released the global 2024 Henley Passport Index, in which an unprecedented six countries share the top spot with visa-free access to a record-breaking number of destinations. Four EU member states — France, Germany, Italy, and Spain — join Japan and Singapore in boasting the most powerful passports in the world, with their citizens able to visit an astonishing 194 destinations out of 227 around the globe visa-free. The two Asian nations have dominated 1st place on the index (which ranks all the…
Author: Admin
Bruce Nsereko Lule (General Partner, Seedstars) Seedstars Africa Ventures has received a $30 million capital commitment from EIB Global, an arm of the European Investment Bank, which becomes the first major institutional investment for its first Pan-African venture capital fund. The new commitment follows a $8 million investment from the fund’s anchor investor French private equity firm LBO France. The fund targets to close at between $80 million and $100 million to back seed and series A startups, and offer follow-on funding up to Series B, bridging an extensive capital gap, and supporting startups beyond accelerator programs. The VC firm’s…
Jack Ma (Founder, Alibaba) Leading platform for global business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce and part of Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group (AIDC), Alibaba.com, is set to launch its latest Smart Assistant features powered by artificial intelligence (AI) at CES in Las Vegas, NV from January 9-12, 2024. The Smart Assistant, an AI-powered global sourcing tool, is an intuitive personal guide to sourcing that helps small business owners discover new opportunities, stay up-to-date on trends, seamlessly track orders and more in a single, efficient touchpoint. It caters to both newcomers and seasoned entrepreneurs in the dynamic world of global commerce. First announced at CES and coming…
Travel writer, Alexandrea Sumuel: “Discover the Top 10 cities in Spain for digital nomads” Spain has launched a new visa program catering to digital nomads who seek to blend their remote work arrangements with travel. This program allows non-resident freelancers and remote workers to immerse themselves in Spanish culture, architecture, cuisine, and nightlife while staying connected to their jobs. According to the VisaGuide Digital Nomad Index – a comprehensive listing that evaluates and ranks countries based on their suitability for digital nomads – Spain is the top country for digital nomads, with a score of 4.50. Spain is followed by…
British entrepreneur, Mustafa Suleymen (Co-Founder, Inflection AI) The 10 richest British AI entrepreneurs now have a combined net worth of more than ÂŁ2.3 billion ($3 billion), according to new analysis by the UK’s Evening Standard, in a sign that the UK’s growing artificial intelligence industry is set to generate huge wealth for the economy. The Evening Standard Tech Rich List is a ranking of the top 100 wealthiest British founders and directors of tech companies, first published in March 2023 to highlight the growth in entrepreneurial tech talent in the UK. The wealth estimate models use real-time market data to keep…
Kingsley Madu (Founder, Expedier) 📸cbc.ca Nothing prepared Kingsley Madu for what he had to deal with when he emigrated to Canada in 2019. From the moment he and his family landed at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport, he was faced with financial struggles. While he had money, he didn’t have any credit. When their plane landed in Canada, Madu said he couldn’t even book an Uber to drive his family and their luggage to a hotel because he didn’t have a Canadian credit card. Madu ended up paying cash for a limousine. After arriving at the hotel, he was told that without a credit card, he would…
Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity – 2023 winners (L-R): CĂ©cile Bibiane Ndjebet (activist and agronomist – Cameroon); Bandi “Apai Janggut” ( customary community leader – Indonesia); LĂ©lia Wanick Salgado (environmentalist, designer, and scenographer – Brazil) 📸 Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation The 5th edition of the Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity is now open to nominations in recognition of individuals and organisations leading society’s efforts to tackle the single biggest challenge facing humanity today: climate change. Applauding outstanding contributions to climate action and climate solutions that inspire hope and possibility, the Prize has, since inception, awarded €4 million to different approaches to tackling climate…
At #10: Olajide Olatunji (Boxer and content creator) earned US$24 million In 2023, the world’s Top 50 content creators earned an eye-watering $700 million in total through platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. Here are the Top 10, and the impressive numbers scored: 10. Olajide Olatunji (KSI): The Multi-Talented Star Earnings: $24.0M Followers: 112M Engaging in music and boxing, KSI showcased his diverse talents with an impressive 112 million followers across platforms, and $24 million in earnings. 9. Matt Rife: Comedic Virtuoso Earnings: $25.0M Followers: 28.4M Matt Rife, a comedian, amused 28.4 million followers and earned $25 million in 2023. 8. Sean McLoughlin: Gaming…
MNT-Halan secured the largest amount of funding in Africa for 2023. Co-Founders (L-R): Ahmed Mohsen and Mounir Nakhla (CEO) Despite the funding slowdown experienced by startups across Africa in 2023 (compared to the record-breaking years of 2021 and 2022), Africa still witnessed over $5 billion in startup funding in 2023. These are the top 10 most-funded startups in Africa for the year 2023: 1. MNT-Halan – $400 million: Egypt’s largest and fastest growing lender to the unbanked and underbanked, MNT-Halan was the most funded startup after it raised $400 million in equity and debt financing from local and global investors…
📸 @TonyElumelu The current rate of change working its way across the world is making it hard for individuals and organisations to sustain their resilience. But not so for super-entrepreneur, Tony Elumelu – Chairman at Heirs Holdings, at United Bank for Africa (UBA) Group, at The Tony Elumelu Foundation, and at the Transcorp Group. In a LinkedIn message today, he writes: “Today in Benin Republic🎏 meeting with President Patrice Talon and his lovely wife Claudine Talon, also featuring Gogo Lee đź’•.” Responding to Elumelu’s post, environmental health specialist, Simeon Ubelejit,had this to say: “In the realm of leadership, transcending boundaries…