2019 MOBEX Awards Launched, FBI to Investigate FaceApp, and Japan-South Korea Tensions Deepen

Africa

Yolanda Cuba leaves Vodafone for MTN

Former Vodafcom Ghana CEO, Yolanda Cuba, has been announced as Group Chief Digital and Fintech Officer at MTN, it has been reported. The new executive will lead MTN Group’s digital solutions and financial services efforts to become a digital operator. With revenue from voice businesses looking to fall further, MTN is planning ahead by focusing on digital services. Yoland Cuba would be tasked with bringing 15% of MTN revenue through its digital and fintech services over the next few years. MTN Group also hopes to increase digital, business-to-business, and financial services revenues to 90% of overall returns.

2019 MOBEX Awards launched

The 2019 MOBEX Africa Tech Expo & Innovation Awards has been launched and will take place from 29th to 31st August, 2019. Nominations for this year’s awards have been extended to other African countries including Senegal, Kenya, and Nigeria, it has been reported. The MOBEX Awards recognizes and rewards individuals and organisations contributing to the ICT ecosystem. This year’s MOBEX will be held at the Kempinski Gold Coast Hotel in Accra, and will be of the theme: “E-Finance: Future of Payments and Banking.” The MOBEX Awards are categorized under four main areas, namely, Consumer and Social Good, Governance, Fintech, and Enterprise. Deadline for submitting nominations is Friday 16th August, 2019.

The Americas

FBI called to investigate FaceApp

Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, has called on the FBI to investigate FaceApp. FaceApp allows users to alter photos and make them look older or younger. Since it went viral, concerns have been raised over its Russian ownership, with Schumer worried over US data falling into the hands of “hostile foreign power,” according to reports. Wireless Lab, the company behind FaceApp has denied storing data of users. “Even though the core R&D team is located in Russia, the user data is not transferred to Russia,” it said. Chuck Schumer is not so sure. “I have serious concerns regarding both the protection of the data that is being aggregated as well as whether users are aware of who may have access to it,” he said in a letter posted on Twitter.

Lawmakers question Facebook’s Libra plan

US lawmakers have criticised Facebook’s plans to launch a cryptocurrency, a Reuters report has said. The lawmakers worry that Facebook’s inadequate handling of consumer data makes it difficult to believe they are capable of protecting financial data of that magnitude. The power that Facebook would wield with its Libra is great, some lawmakers said. “If Facebook’s plan comes into fruition, the company and its partners will wield immense economic power that could destabilize currencies and governments,” Maxine Waters, chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee, said. Facebook said financial data would be held by its subsidiary, Calibra, and would only share data with third-parties if it had consent. Carolyn Maloney urged the social media giant to begin with a 1 million-user pilot to be overseen by US financial regulators. Facebook declined to make any commitment.

Europe

Data of Bulgarians stolen from tax office

A trove of data holding almost all the personal information on Bulgarian adults has been stolen in a cyber-attack, the BBC has revealed. This involves information of millions of Bulgarians lodged at the tax agency. Personal information stolen include names, addresses, and in some instances, personal income data. “It is safe to say that the personal data of practically the whole Bulgarian adult population has been compromised,” a cyber-security researcher said. Perpetrators of the hack allegedly sent an email to a media house deriding the level security at the tax agency. A 20-year old man has been arrested and charged with the crime while investigators look out for possible conspirators. The tax agency is now liable for about €20 million in fines.

Google suspends Viagogo from advertising

Google has suspended ticket-booking site Viagogo from advertising on its search engine results pages, it has been reported. This is after claims about the site reselling tickets at inflated prices. In addition, the Competition and Market Authority of the UK is taking Viagogo to court for not changing its business practices. This is a turning point in the conversations surrounding Viagogo’s operations, with the Football Association, UK Music, and a section of MPs all signing petitions to have Google stop the ticketing site from advertising. “When people use our platform for help in purchasing tickets, we want to make sure that they have an experience they can trust. This is why we have strict policies and take necessary action when we find an advertiser in breach,” Google said in a statement.

Asia

South Korea-Japan tension leads to chip price spike

Gloom over South Korea-Japan relationship has led to never before seen spike in chip prices, Reuters has reported. DRAM chip prices rose some 15% despite the sector’s documented weak demand and oversupply over the past year. This came after Japan curbed exports of chip making materials – fluorinated polyimides, photoresists, and hydrogen fluoride – to South Korea which is home to the world’s two largest memory chip makers, Samsung and SK Hynix. “If the ban continues, memory prices will skyrocket like never seen before as 75% of DRAM and 45% of NAND global output is at risk,” Mark Newman of Bernstein said. Seoul sourced majority of its chip-making materials from Japan. Following the curbs, however, it is looking out for alternative sources in Russia and China, it has been claimed.

Japan looking to set up cryptocurrency version of SWIFT

Japan is leading the pack to establish a global network of cryptocurrency payments similar to SWIFT, it has been revealed. This will help governments and corporations issuing crypto to fight money laundering, according to sources close to the discussion. SWIFT is an international payments messaging platform that allows banks to send money across the world. Japan was the first country to regulate crypto exchanges at the national level. This new regulatory system would, however, involve all countries and be overseen by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), it was disclosed.