Author: Chris Anu

Nedbank CIO Ray Naicker Nedbank Group has announced the resignation of its group chief information officer, Ray Naicker, with effect from Friday. Naicker, who is also a member of Nedbank’s group executive committee, has held a number of senior roles at the bank over the past two decades, including group chief digital officer, group programme director for the target operating model, and managing executive for digital. During his tenure, he played a key role in shaping Nedbank’s technology strategy and driving digital innovation across the organisation. Nedbank said his contribution had a “significant impact” on the group’s growth. Meet the…

Canal+ completed its acquisition of the MultiChoice Group in 2025. (Picture source: Canal+) French media giant Canal+ is looking to make cost savings following its acquisition of MultiChoice Group (MCG).The global media and entertainment company issued a statement announcing the expected “cost synergies” resulting from the acquisition of MCG.Canal+ completed its acquisition of MCG in 2025 following a period of strategic expansion into high-growth African markets.Maxime Saada, CEO of Canal+, says: “With the acquisition of MultiChoice, Canal+ has created a unique global entertainment platform anchored in Europe and Africa. Our increased scale will enable us to generate substantial synergies, particularly…

Patrick Pleul/Reuters Tesla plans to more than double capital spending to a record high of more than US$20-billion this year — but little of it will go to its traditional business of selling electric vehicles to human drivers. The company, which last year lost its global EV sales crown to China’s BYD, is instead shifting investment to yet-unproven business lines such as fully autonomous vehicles and humanoid robots, based on executive comments on Wednesday’s earnings call. Highlighting the change, CEO Elon Musk said Tesla would end production of its Model X SUV and Model S sedans and instead use the…

Some governments may in future enforce restrictions, tax implications, or bans on Bitcoin usage, warn experts. As global economic pressures persist and digital innovation reshapes financial infrastructure, Bitcoin has emerged in South Africa not only as an investment asset but increasingly as a practical financial tool.From individual savers hedging against currency uncertainty, to merchants processing every day payments and businesses experimenting with digital value rails, the landscape of Bitcoin adoption across the country is evolving rapidly.This is according to a report by the Free Market Foundation (FMF), titled: “State-proof money: The case for Bitcoin adoption in South Africa”. The policy-oriented…

Naamsa CEO Mikel Mabasa As Chinese car manufacturers rapidly expand their presence in South Africa, scrutiny is growing over the nature of their investments – and whether they are delivering meaningful gains in jobs, skills development and local value-chain participation. There is a distinct shift in the country’s automotive investment landscape – from established Western and Japanese manufacturers anchored in high-volume, export-orientated production to fast-growing Chinese brands, which prioritise market penetration and price competitiveness, with a gradual move towards local assembly and electric vehicles. Government is concerned about the impact of low-cost Chinese and Indian vehicle imports, as well as…

Hydrostor, a leading global long duration energy storage (LDES) developer and operator, and Baker Hughes, an energy technology company, announced Wednesday a strategic technology solutions and equity agreement. Baker Hughes will deepen its relationship with Hydrostor, integrating Baker Hughes’ technology capabilities as part of Hydrostor’s core design offering for its advanced compressed air energy storage (A-CAES) solution. This includes up to 1.4 GW of Baker Hughes equipment orders for Hydrostor’s flagship projects. The announcement was made at the 2026 Baker Hughes Annual Meeting in Florence. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260128652898/en/ “Increasing pressure on electric…

The Information Regulator’s Mukelani Dimba Wednesday, 28 January marks World Data Privacy Day. With South Africa’s Information Regulator celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2026, TechCentral spoke to Mukelani Dimba, acting executive for education and communication at the regulator, about the state of information rights in the country. In this interview, Dimba reflects on the effectiveness of South Africa’s two core information rights laws – the Protection of Personal Information Act (Popia) and the Promotion of Access to Information Act (Paia) – and discusses challenges around enforcement, capacity, cybersecurity and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence. TechCentral: Looking back at the…

The Department of Home Affairs is being sued over increased ID verification costs. The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) says it welcomes a legal challenge to its decision to hike identity verification fees by 6 500%, arguing the court case will “expose” how private companies profiteered under the previous fee structure at taxpayers’ expense.This is in response to the Association of Communications and Technology (ACT) – representing Vodacom, Cell C, MTN and Telkom – going to the High Court to challenge home affairs minister Dr Leon Schreiber’s 2025 decision to increase the cost of a biometric check against the National…

NetApp® (NASDAQ: NTAP), the Intelligent Data Infrastructure company, today announced that it is powering data operations for Super Bowl LX. As the Official Intelligent Data Infrastructure Partner of the San Francisco 49ers and the National Football League (NFL), NetApp provides the enterprise-grade data platform that powers the digital and physical experiences for football fans, whether watching the game from Levi’s® Stadium or from their couch on the other side of the world. “The world runs on data, even in an industry as physical as sports,” said Gabie Boko, Chief Marketing Officer at NetApp. “Optimizing data for innovation isn’t just about…

DStv has lowered the upfront cost of its decoders, added channels to its entry-level package and introduced a new payment-splitting feature as it looks to retain price-sensitive customers in a fiercely competitive market. The changes, announced on Tuesday, come as temporary package upgrades offered over November and December wind down. MultiChoice, now owned by France’s Canal+, said the focus is now shifting to permanent product changes rather than short-term promotions. At the entry level, DStv has added three channels – Trace Ngoma, Trace Gospel and WWE – to its Access package at no additional cost. The move bolsters the content…