Nigeria Launches Sweeping Probe into Tech Giants Meta, X, and AI Firms

Across Africa, significant developments are reshaping the continent's digital and economic landscapes, from regulatory crackdowns on global tech giants to major public listings and evolving legal frameworks for fintech and logistics. These changes reflect a growing assertiveness by African nations in governing their digital economies and diversifying their traditional markets.

In Nigeria, the Federal Government has initiated a comprehensive probe into some of the world's leading technology companies, including X, Meta, Alphabet, and several generative AI firms. The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has been directed to investigate allegations that these companies' business practices are negatively impacting Nigeria’s burgeoning media industry. This investigation stems from a joint petition by the Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO), representing a wide array of local news organizations and content creators. Central to the allegations are claims that global tech platforms scrape copyrighted news content to train AI models without proper permission or compensation, dominate digital advertising markets, and fail to establish equitable commercial agreements with Nigerian publishers. The FCCPC is also examining potential abuses of market position in violation of Nigeria's competition laws. This move aligns with a broader global debate where publishers in regions like Australia, Canada, and the European Union have successfully pushed platforms to pay for news content, especially as generative AI intensifies concerns over the use of copyrighted material for model training. Nigeria's regulatory stance builds on previous actions, such as the $220 million administrative penalty imposed on Meta in July 2024 for consumer protection and data privacy breaches, a decision currently under appeal. This new probe significantly widens the regulatory scope to encompass competition, copyright, and the fundamental commercial relationship between technology platforms and the nation's media ecosystem. The outcome could profoundly influence how digital platforms negotiate with local media and how AI companies source training data within Africa’s largest media market, positioning Nigeria as a key player in redefining the balance between innovation, competition, and fair compensation in the digital era.

Meanwhile, in Ghana, the prominent fintech company Zeepay is actively challenging recent media reports regarding an ongoing legal dispute. The cross-border payments firm released a public statement asserting that the case, which involves allegations of an $11.6 million refund, is still before the Court of Appeal, indicating that no final decision has been reached. Zeepay urged the public, customers, and partners to disregard unverified reports, stressing that the matter remains sub judice and should be left for judicial determination. This clarification is critical for Zeepay, one of Africa's leading fintech players in cross-border remittances and mobile money, operating across more than 20 African markets. Any perceived uncertainty about its legal standing could impact customer confidence, investor sentiment, and relationships with financial institutions. The company clarified that reports presenting a High Court decision as the final outcome inaccurately reflect the current legal position, and it intends to address such inaccuracies through appropriate legal channels. This legal battle coincides with a period of heightened regulatory scrutiny for Zeepay, as the Bank of Ghana recently fined the company and temporarily suspended parts of its foreign exchange licence due to breaches of inward remittance guidelines. While separate from the court case, this regulatory action has placed Zeepay under increased public attention amidst tighter oversight within Ghana’s fintech sector. Zeepay maintains that its day-to-day operations remain unaffected and reaffirms its commitment to respecting the judicial process, making this a pivotal case to watch for its potential financial implications and its influence on how legal disputes involving fast-growing African fintechs are perceived during pending appeals.

Kenya is also undergoing a significant regulatory transformation within its fast-growing logistics industry, with the introduction of new licences specifically for app-based delivery platforms. The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) announced this new framework, requiring companies such as Uber, Bolt, Glovo, and Little to obtain a dedicated "courier hailing service provider licence," distinguishing them from traditional courier firms. Effective July 29, 2026, these new rules also come with increased licensing fees. This move marks a crucial shift, as Kenya officially recognizes app-based delivery services as a distinct and essential component of its courier industry, moving beyond merely treating them as conventional parcel companies. These platforms have evolved to deliver a wide range of goods, including groceries, medicines, and retail purchases, connecting customers, merchants, and independent riders through sophisticated digital marketplaces, thereby becoming integral to Kenya's digital economy. The regulatory change is a culmination of years of expansion by these platforms, with companies like Glovo broadening supermarket and restaurant partnerships, Bolt expanding its delivery business, and Uber actively seeking courier operator licences. The new licence applies to all platforms that use apps to coordinate deliveries, regardless of whether they operate their own fleets or collaborate with independent contractors. Fees include a KSh 5,000 application fee, a KSh 100,000 initial licence fee, an annual operating fee of KSh 100,000 or 0.4% of annual gross turnover (whichever is higher), and a 0.5% Universal Service Levy based on annual turnover. Existing National Courier Operators will automatically transition to this new category. While consumers will experience minimal immediate changes, the implications for the industry are substantial. By establishing a dedicated regulatory framework, Kenya is laying the groundwork for future policies concerning platform accountability, consumer protection, data reporting, and service standards. This pioneering approach could serve as a model for other African countries grappling with the intersection of technology, logistics, and last-mile delivery amidst the rapid expansion of eCommerce across the continent.

Finally, Angola is embarking on a significant economic reform by launching the initial public offering (IPO) of Unitel, the nation's largest telecom operator. This marks a major milestone in Angola's ambitious privatisation programme. The government is offering a 15% stake in Unitel through the Bolsa de Dívida e Valores de Angola (BODIVA), with the share sale scheduled from July 6 to July 24, and trading expected to commence around July 29. The IPO includes 7.5 million ordinary shares, with one million specifically reserved for Unitel employees. This listing extends beyond mere fundraising; Unitel is a dominant force in Angola's telecom market, serving over 21 million subscribers, and also holds a majority stake in Banco de Fomento Angola (BFA), one of the country's largest banks. A successful IPO has the potential to deepen Angola’s capital markets, attract both local and foreign investors, and inspire other state-owned enterprises to pursue similar paths, reinforcing Angola’s broader objective to reduce state ownership through its ProPriv privatisation programme. Unitel's path to this IPO has been complex; once a key asset in Isabel dos Santos's business empire, her 25% stake was seized by the government in 2022 as part of President João Lourenço’s anti-corruption drive, making Unitel fully state-owned. Dos Santos has consistently denied any wrongdoing, claiming political motivation behind the legal actions. The IPO also underscores Angola’s wider strategy to diversify its economy, which has historically been heavily reliant on oil revenues. Since BODIVA hosted its first IPO in 2022, the government has been focused on building a robust domestic capital market to provide businesses with alternative funding sources. Although initially delayed until 2026, Unitel’s flotation is now one of the most significant achievements of the country’s privatisation programme to date. This Unitel IPO is a critical event for Africa’s telecom sector, demonstrating how governments are increasingly leveraging capital markets to reform strategic industries and attract fresh investment. Its success could bolster confidence in Angola’s reform agenda and potentially encourage other African nations to consider similar privatisations in key sectors such as telecommunications, banking, and energy.