Absa eyes merchant bank in Nigeria; Terra hires ex-SpaceX lead; DStv adds sports
Absa Group is exploring turning its Nigerian representative office into a merchant bank, which would allow it to take corporate deposits, give loans, and offer investment banking and project finance. The move requires regulatory approval and would place Absa in a competitive market dominated by Access Holdings, Zenith Bank, First Bank, and South African rivals Standard Bank and FirstRand. Nigeria’s banking market was valued at ₦10.5 trillion (about $7.7 billion) in 2025.
Terra Industries, a Nigerian defence-tech startup that raised $52 million in seed funding this week, has appointed Ben MacWilliams - former SpaceX executive who led Starlink’s market access across Africa - as vice president of strategy. He will oversee market entry, licensing, and government partnerships for Terra’s autonomous drones, sentry towers, and unmanned ground vehicles, as the company expands manufacturing from Ghana to the Gulf, South America, and South Asia.
MultiChoice launched SuperSport Extra 2 (channel 217) and rebranded several Variety slots into sport-specific channels, while planning to shut down four entertainment channels including M-Net Movies 1 and Mzansi Boskop on September 16, continuing its shift toward a sports-first offering after losing over 1.2 million subscribers in 2025.
Starting October 1, WhatsApp Business in South Africa will charge per-message fees: 12 cents (about $0.0075) for transactional alerts and 62 cents (about $0.0379) for marketing messages. The change affects businesses using the API; in Nigeria the marketing rate is significantly higher at about $0.0516 per conversation.
The Naira Life Conference on August 22 at The Jewel Aeida, Lekki, Lagos will focus on making, growing, and protecting money, with tickets still available.
Crypto prices as of August 20: Bitcoin $69,556 (+8.2% day), Ether $2,251 (+17.8% day), XRP $1.10 (+10.5% day), Solana $84.92 (+10.5% day).
SOURCE: https://techcabal.com/2026/08/20/techcabal-daily-absa-but-make-it-nigerian/