The South African Competition Tribunal has blocked attempts by Vodacom to acquire a significant stake in Maziv, a subsidiary of Community Investment Ventures Holdings (CIVH).

If the proposed deal had sailed through, Vodacom would have held a 30% to 40% share in Maziv, combining its assets with those of Dark Fibre Africa (DFA) and Vumatel, two of the country’s largest fibre network operators owned by CIVH.

Media reports reveal that the deal was rejected after nearly two years of regulatory review, with the decision culminating in an extensive 26-day hearing that concluded in September 2024.

A statement by Vodacom which describes the decision as deeply surprising and a disappointment, said both the telecom company and Maziv are awaiting the Tribunal’s detailed rationale for the ruling and may consider an appeal through the Competition Appeal Court to explore other potential options for moving forward.

The Tribunal’s ruling came after the Competition Commission recommended the deal be prohibited due to potential risks to competition in the telecom sector and, consequently referred the matter to the Competition Tribunal.

This was after the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) approved the merger in November 2022, with Vodacom arguing that the merger would help bridge South Africa’s digital divide by expanding fibre connectivity in underserved communities.

As part of the deal, Vodacom would have committed to investing over R10 billion ($565.5 million) in fibre infrastructure, primarily in low-income areas, over five years.

“This investment aimed to pass over one million new homes with fibre connections, especially in under-resourced areas. The telecom giant planned to create up to 10,000 jobs, allocate R300 million ($17 million) to small business development, and extend free high-speed internet access to over 600 nearby schools and police stations,” the company had said in an earlier statement.

However, the Tribunal said 6vthe transaction would consolidate Vodacom’s standing as South Africa’s largest mobile operator with a dominant position in the fibre infrastructure market, potentially harming competition.

The ruling followed detailed testimony from several competitors, including MTN, Telkom, and Rain, as well as the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) with competitors expressing concerns that the merger would disadvantage smaller internet service providers, making it harder for them to compete fairly in the market.

Nigerian fintech, Moniepoint, has achieved a “Unicorn” status after securing $110m in funding from investors, including Google and London-based private equity firm, Development Partners International.

The term ‘unicorn’ refers to a privately held startup company with a value of over $1 billion.

The startup achieved the feat after raising the funds in a Series C equity funding to accelerate its growth across Africa.

The $110 million Series C investment was led by Development Partners International’s African Development Partners (ADP) III fund – a premier fund focused on Africa.

Other new investors include Google’s Africa Investment Fund and Verod Capital – a leading African private equity firm. Global impact firm, Lightrock, an existing investor, also participated.

Co-founder and CEO of Moniepoint, Tosin Eniolorunda, who made the announcement on Tuesday, said the new capital follows a successful period for the fintech which is building on its profitable business model with major operational and financial milestones, and will be used to accelerate its growth across Africa, building an all-in-one, seamlessly integrated platform for African businesses of all sizes.

“Our mission is to help our customers solve their challenges by making our platform more innovative, transparent, and secure,” he said.

“The proceeds from this raise will speed up our efforts to drive financial inclusion and support Africa’s entrepreneurial potential. I want to sincerely thank the entire Moniepoint team for making this achievement possible.

“We’ve been encouraged by the diversity and huge swathe of those who have found value in our platform and the services we provide in helping to create financial happiness. But, we’re just getting started, as it is just day one from here,” the CEO stated in a statement.

Founded as TeamApt in 2015 by Eniolorunda and Felix Ike, Moniepoint is an all-in-one financial ecosystem, helping over 10 million businesses in Nigeria and individuals access seamless payments, banking, credit, and business management tools.

As Nigeria’s largest merchant acquirer, it powers most of the country’s point of sale (POS) transactions and through its subsidiaries, processes $17 billion monthly for its customers while operating profitably.