Stockbrokers
Once again the Kenya Association of Stockbrokers and Investment Banks (KASIB) has released a statement requesting for another in-depth audit of the Safaricom IPO, blaming its shady handling by Citi Bank NA for the liquidity constraints that have befallen them. A previous audit report by the Controller and Auditor General on the IPO had also faulted the manner in which the bank handled the issue. The report questioned incidental costs paid to the receiving back as well as payments to an advertising firm. It also seems stockbrokers were duped into signing reconciliation certificates attesting to the completeness of the reconciliation process between themselves and Citi.
Safaricom IPO may have been a black hole for stockbrokers, but that doesn’t explain the numerous cases of abuse of customer accounts, market manipulation antics and poor accounting standards witnessed in their published financial statements last year.
.ke Developers
Local developers are another group that have made it fashionable to bash Safaricom in every IT conference this year (and there seem to be many of them this time round). I’m just saying, not that I know anything about development of applications. But, it’s a bit redundant to blame Safaricom (who BTW are also in the same business) for idea-jacking, implementing and commercializing. Wake up techies, that’s what happens when you are in business with a much bigger and stronger competitor. Microsoft or Google doesn't makes its huge profits playing nanny to clueless developers? At least now, for local techies, there's iHub :
Once again the Kenya Association of Stockbrokers and Investment Banks (KASIB) has released a statement requesting for another in-depth audit of the Safaricom IPO, blaming its shady handling by Citi Bank NA for the liquidity constraints that have befallen them. A previous audit report by the Controller and Auditor General on the IPO had also faulted the manner in which the bank handled the issue. The report questioned incidental costs paid to the receiving back as well as payments to an advertising firm. It also seems stockbrokers were duped into signing reconciliation certificates attesting to the completeness of the reconciliation process between themselves and Citi.
Safaricom IPO may have been a black hole for stockbrokers, but that doesn’t explain the numerous cases of abuse of customer accounts, market manipulation antics and poor accounting standards witnessed in their published financial statements last year.
.ke Developers
Local developers are another group that have made it fashionable to bash Safaricom in every IT conference this year (and there seem to be many of them this time round). I’m just saying, not that I know anything about development of applications. But, it’s a bit redundant to blame Safaricom (who BTW are also in the same business) for idea-jacking, implementing and commercializing. Wake up techies, that’s what happens when you are in business with a much bigger and stronger competitor. Microsoft or Google doesn't makes its huge profits playing nanny to clueless developers? At least now, for local techies, there's iHub :
An open space for the technologists, investors, tech companies and hackers in Nairobi…. a tech community facility with a focus on young entrepreneurs, web and mobile phone programmers and designers. It is part open community workspace (co-working), part vector for investors and VCs and part incubator.
