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Pay it Forward
Good Morning, Chop Family!
It’s Monday already… before you get your coffee and get ready for the day, please take a moment to give thanks for what you already have. Count your blessings and pay it forward. What’s the worst that can happen?
📈 AROUND THE GLOBE
Tariff slap. Tariffs are one of Donald Trump’s favourite weapons to force countries to bend to his whims. In his endeavour to take over Greenland, Trump says he will slap 10% tariffs on eight European countries that resist his efforts.
Europe does not seem phased as they stand “united” to stand up to Trump. They even sent military forces to Greenland to show solidarity.
MARKET MOVES
BUSINESS
Lagos is about to get an upgrade to “blue metro” status: the state plans to roll out electric boats on its LAGFERRY routes this year, so fares can actually come down instead of just going up.
With over 4.4 million passengers moved since 2020 and Detty December traffic going crazy, officials say the shift to electric is both an economic hack (lower operating costs, cheaper tickets) and a climate move for a city choking on exhaust fumes.
The move plugs straight into the €410 million Omi Eko project, which is building 15 routes, 25 terminals, 75 electric ferries, and charging stations to carry 25 million people a year across the lagoon and finally treat water transport like real mass transit, not just weekend beach runs.
FINANCE
📉 South Africa’s Interest Rate Game is Shifting
Economists are suddenly pricing in potential interest rate cuts this month after South Africa’s inflation cooled toward the new 3% target, a big deal for borrowing costs, business investment, and consumer sentiment as 2026 gets underway.
Markets had been bracing for a hold, so this move has traders thinking cheaper credit might be on the way.
Daily Chop take: Lower rates are like unlocking oxygen for small business, cheaper credit could kick-start expansion plans that stalled under higher costs.
TECH
🚀 TECH & STARTUPS
Flutterwave Makes Bold Power Play with Mono Acquisition
Africa’s largest fintech Flutterwave acquired Nigerian open banking startup Mono in an all-stock transaction valued between $25 million and $40 million, marking a rare exit in African fintech.
This deal brings together two Y Combinator-backed companies and positions open banking as a core pillar in the evolution of alternative payment methods across Africa.
Mono’s API platform powers over 8 million bank account linkages in Nigeria and has delivered 100 billion financial data points to lending companies.
The strategic move allows Flutterwave to offer identity verification, risk assessment, and account-to-account payments all within a single stack.
Chop’s Take - The African fintech space is promising and also confusing space to be in. There is stiff competition from all angles which can be good for consumers, but sometime too much variety makes customers gun shy.
SMALL CHOP
AFCON RESULTS
Well its official. AFCON tournament has concluded, and here are the results:L
Champions: Senegal- The Lions of Teranga dealt a knockout blow to the host country, Morocco, 1-0. The match ended in ugly fashion as a brawl broke out with fans and teams fighting on the sidelines.
Silver: Morocco - The Atlas Lions fell short.
Bronze: Nigeria - The Super Eagles defeated Egypt in a penalty shootout.
DISH OF THE DAY
Did You Know? The University of al‑Qarawiyyin in Fez, founded in 859 by Fatima al‑Fihri, is widely recognised as the oldest continuously operating university in the world.
Till next time,
Chop Team