According to The Information (via newsletter), there were 14 tech IPOs above $1 billion based on data compiled by Thomson Reuters. The list did not include Spotify which was excluded because of its use of direct listing and technically did not raise any new capital. Also, big entities like Dropbox which did not make the $1 billion mark were also excluded.

In 2017, only five tech IPOs raised more than $1 billion. During the dot-com boom in 1999, seven did.

The number swelled because there are more mature tech companies with actual businesses than ever before. Yet you may have missed the group raising more than a billion because the vast majority involved companies that aren’t based in the U.S. Seven— including Xiaomi and Meituan Dianping—were based in Asia Pacific. Another handful were European—luxury e-commerce company FarFetch and payment company Adyen, among them. Latin America had PagSeguro and StoneCo, both payment companies. Only one U.S. company—fintech company GreenSky—made the group.

Here’s the full list, including where they were listed. (As for listings, the U.S. was the clear winner as the U.S. equity markets continue to outperform, relatively speaking.)  (source: The Information newsletter)

Good People, please do not bother reminding me why the Green Africa Airways – Boeing deal will not work. Your comment is not overly appreciated even though I respect your right to write it. For me to post that, I did many things including reading the press release on Boeing website. And Reuters reported same. This is not fake news – if you have any problem, write Boeing and Reuters, not me. I know you would not bother to ask Green Africa!

Boeing Co and Nigeria’s Green Africa Airways have committed for up to 100 737 MAX 8 aircraft, in a deal that carries a list price of $11.7 billion, Reuters reports. Boeing has it on its website

Also, I am not sure if this news was reported for a foreigner, not a fellow Nigerian, that most would have reacted so dismissively. People, we need to grow up. Why are we pessimistic in this nation? We roll red carpets for foreigners but when it is our own, we write them off?

Sure Green Africa Airways can fail but we NEED to give the guys the chance to try. Get this from me – it takes more than PowerPoint to get Boeing to post that on its website. The team had at least done something and they deserve support.

For those asking why they did not bring the aircraft assembly in Nigeria, why not you do it yourself? Green Africa has chosen what it wants to do; you can do what it left out. It is free enterprise – everyone is invited.

Green Africa fly >> we need more. We need more because I hate flying into Europe before I can move from one African capital to another. If Green Africa wants to fix that, I am in. Fixing Africa’s paralysis on intra-trade is an important element if we hope to grow our economies. Aviation is a key component of that redesign.

Facebook truly likes financial services. It entered Nigerian financial sector when some banks launched Facebook Messenger banking with MasterCard.  Now, it is taking it to the next level: stablecoin on WhatsApp for remittance services.

Facebook Inc. is working on making a cryptocurrency that will let users transfer money on its WhatsApp messaging app, focusing first on the remittances market in India, according to people familiar with the matter.

The company is developing a stablecoin — a type of digital currency pegged to the U.S. dollar — to minimize volatility, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing internal plans. Facebook is far from releasing the coin, because it’s still working on the strategy, including a plan for custody assets, or regular currencies that would be held to protect the value of the stablecoin, the people said.

It is possible very soon we will see a crypto linked to the Nigerian Naira for Facebook users in Nigeria. How? It is simple: if Facebook can make one linked to US dollars, it can easily translate that to the Naira. Possibly, Facebook would emerge as the operating system for consumer blockchain ecosystem for the next Internet. Facebook has the scale to make any coin an immediate winner in the world.

If the U.S. giant does carry out the plan that Bloomberg is reporting it would (easily) be the largest company to embrace consumer blockchain service. That’s both in terms of the size of the business — a $376 billion market cap and annual revenue of more than $40 billion — and the user base it touches. Facebook reaches more than 2.2 billion people for its core social network, 1.5 billion for WhatsApp, 1.3 billion for Messenger and a further one billion via Instagram.

It is looking increasingly clear that one of the ICT utilities would build the unified African currency which can work in any African economy with capabilities to remove the limitations of distance and geography.

Reinvention of Money

Facebook is going to change money for its continent with at least 2 billion citizens: it is hiring blockchain experts and M&A professionals who can do deals in that space. Yes, Facebook may simply have to buy some companies to move this redesign faster.

Facebook’s small blockchain group has ambitious plans to potentially disrupt the entire payments industry, but the company is also running into recruiting challenges amid its many public scandals.

In recent months, the world’s largest social network has been quietly trying to recruit product managers, engineers, academics, and legal experts with experience in cryptocurrencies and payments, according to people familiar with the effort. Nearly 40 employees — including several former PayPal execs — work in Facebook’s ($FB) secretive blockchain group, and the company recently appointed a head of business development to oversee acquisitions and deals in the space.

Since officially forming its blockchain group just eight months ago, Facebook has sent staffers to crypto conferences around the world to recruit researchers, cryptographers, and top academics in the field. At a private dinner Facebook hosted during a recent crypto conference, one attendee told Cheddar that Facebook employees pitched the idea of creating a decentralized digital currency for the social network’s 2 billion users.

Write Nigeria off at your peril – that nation will create a high concentration of new class of business shakers in coming decade. The problems are huge, so are the opportunities. Fix them and experience your moments. This is our time.

Boeing Co and Nigeria’s Green Africa Airways have committed for up to 100 737 MAX 8 aircraft, in a deal that carries a list price of $11.7 billion, Reuters reports. Boeing has it on its website (see below).

The deal is the largest aircraft agreement from Africa, and will be reflected on Boeing’s Orders and Deliveries website once finalized, Boeing said. bit.ly/2Bxa38z

The commitment is evenly split into 50 firm aircraft and 50 options, it added.

Full Press on Boeing Website

SEATTLE, Dec. 21, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Boeing [NYSE:BA] and Lagos-based Green Africa Airways today announced a commitment for up to 100 737 MAX 8 aircraft, evenly split into 50 firm aircraft and 50 options, as the airline gears up to begin commercial operations. The total deal carries a list-price of $11.7 billion, the largest aircraft agreement from Africa, and will be reflected on Boeing’s Orders and Deliveries website once finalized.

“Today is a historic day for the Nigerian and African aviation industry,” said Babawande Afolabi, Founder & CEO, Green Africa Airways. “This landmark deal takes us much closer to our long-held dream of building a world-class airline that will unlock a new realm of positive possibilities for millions of customers. Broadly speaking, this deal is a bold symbol of the dynamism, resilience and soaring entrepreneurial drive of the next generation of Nigerians and Africans.”

Green Africa Airways, a value airline based in Lagos, Nigeria aims to offer safe, quality and affordable air travel and be a significant contributor to the economic development of Nigeria and the African continent. The new airline has received its Air Transport License from the Nigerian government and is anchored by a group of senior industry leaders led by Tom Horton, former Chairman and CEO of American Airlines, William Shaw, Founder and former CEO of VivaColombia and Virasb Vahidi, former CCO of American Airlines.

“Nigeria is uniquely positioned to be the home of the next major value airline. The strategic partnership with Boeing positions Green Africa Airways to expand and improve air travel for customers in Nigeria, and further strengthens the relationship between the United States, Nigeria and Africa,” Vahidi said.

The airline initially plans to develop the Nigerian market and then build a strong Pan African network. According to Boeing’s 20-year Commercial Market Outlook, airlines in Africa will require 1,190 new airplanes as the continent boosts both intra-continental and intercontinental connectivity over the next couple of decades.

“The growth potential for air travel across Nigeria and Africa is extraordinary with the airplane fleet expected to more than double over the next 20 years. We are delighted that Green Africa Airways has selected the 737 MAX to serve this expanding market,” said Ihssane Mounir, Senior Vice President of Commercial Sales & Marketing, The Boeing Company. “We look forward to Green Africa Airways building their fleet with the MAX and taking advantage of the jet’s efficiency and dependability to open new options across Nigeria and the African continent. Boeing will be a trusted partner to Green Africa Airways as the MAX is introduced into their operations and through their long-term success.”

The 737 MAX is the fastest-selling airplane in Boeing history, accumulating more than 4,800 orders from over 100 customers worldwide. The airplane’s superior performance is enabled by the latest technology in the single-aisle market, including advanced CFM International LEAP-1B engines, Advanced Technology winglets, and other airframe enhancements.