• Enablement signifies a critical milestone in Network’s proven execution capabilities for multi-bank payment initiatives
• The launch of Apple tokenisation deploys the highest standards of security and operational resilience in Egypt’s digital transformation rollout

Network International (Network) (www.Network.ae), a leading fintech company across the Middle East and Africa, has announced the successful enablement of Apple Pay acceptance by powering card tokenisation for Apple smartphones for four renowned Egyptian banks, as part of the country’s digital transformation initiatives.

The successful launch comes within the third wave of the Central Bank of Egypt’s granting of tokenisation licenses to select banks and is an important milestone for Egypt’s digital payment ecosystem. The initiative reinforces Network’s scale, innovation leadership and proven execution capabilities in the market.

Supporting all four bank go-lives within the same wave underscores the strength, reliability, and agility of Network’s processing platform, alongside the depth of its local delivery and implementation expertise. The achievement reflects Network’s ability to execute complex, multi-bank digital payment initiatives at pace while maintaining the highest standards of security, operational resilience, and service quality.

Dr. Reda Helal, Group Managing Director – Processing, Africa & Co-Head Group Processing at Network International, said: “We are proud to have supported four renowned banks to successfully transform themselves as Egypt strengthens its digital economy. We have been present in the market for over 20 years and delivering multiple simultaneous implementations demonstrates our local teams’ expertise and the robustness of our processing platform. We are grateful to the Central Bank of Egypt and the participating banks for their trust and partnership as we continue to help accelerate secure and scalable digital payments across Egypt.”

This launch also supports Network’s broader focus on expanding its presence and strengthening its brand across the region, underpinned by its long-standing commitment to Egypt’s payments ecosystem. In 2023, Network International announced the investment valued at EGP 1 billion to expand its operations in Egypt, while serving 160+ banks across Africa and 65+ in the Middle East from its Egypt hub.

Cassava Technologies (www.CassavaTechnologies.com), a global technology leader of African heritage, has announced the launch of Cassava Autonomous Network, an agentic solution designed to significantly improve network performance across Africa. This solution is the first African-ready, autonomous network designed to self-optimise mobile Radio Access Networks (RAN) and built specifically for the unique complexities of Africa’s connectivity landscape.

Powered by NVIDIA AI infrastructure, NVIDIA NIM microservices (https://apo-opa.co/407MEpV), and NVIDIA Network Configuration Blueprint, Cassava Autonomous Network offers policy-driven automation that replaces manual network adjustments with continuous, intelligent optimisations, reducing operational bottlenecks and increasing efficiency by up to 75%. Cassava Autonomous Network runs on CAIMEx, a localised multi-model platform (https://apo-opa.co/4r9c95l) that provides unified access to leading AI models through regional AI factories.

“Cassava Autonomous Network combines NVIDIA’s AI infrastructure with the inclusivity of Africa’s networks’ needs and Cassava’s extensive experience in the telco industry”, said Ahmed El Beheiry, Group COO and Group Chief Technology & AI Officer, Cassava Technologies. “With this solution, we are delivering on a significant step toward intelligent, self-healing, autonomous networks that drive coverage, quality, profitability, and improve customer experience across the continent.”

African telecom operators currently manage increasingly dense and complex networks under tight resource constraints. While 4G remains dominant in Africa (GSMA 2024 report), 5G continues to scale, meaning daily optimisation remains a manual bottleneck. Cassava Autonomous Network eliminates these inefficiencies by automating the process and reducing repair time for minor issues from four days to approximately 35 minutes. The solution is also designed to work across all vendors and network generations (2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G), including legacy, hybrid, and cloud-native deployments.

With the launch of Cassava Autonomous Networks, the company has yet again reiterated its commitment to empowering businesses through digital solutions.“In today’s multi-vendor landscape, flexibility is the ultimate currency. Cassava Autonomous Networks provides a truly open architecture that respects existing RAN investments while introducing advanced agentic AI capabilities. Our solution allows telco operators to supercharge their hardware systems,” concluded El Beheiry.

The patent protects an original method for achieving consensus in Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), such as blockchain networks. Named Proof-of-Use (PoU), this mechanism introduces a paradigm shift in how transactions are validated and secured.

In a blockchain system, the consensus algorithm is a core component—it determines how the network agrees on valid transactions, their order, and the integrity of the shared ledger without a central authority. PoU introduces a reciprocity-based approach: participants validate others’ transactions in exchange for having their own transactions validated, aligning network influence with actual participation rather than computational power or capital.

Unlike traditional consensus models such as Proof-of-Work (PoW) and Proof-of-Stake (PoS), Proof-of-Use is built on the principle of reciprocity. In this system, network members validate other members’ transactions in exchange for having their own transactions validated. This creates an environment where:

• Users and Validators are One: Only active participants who use the network have the right to validate members’ transactions. This stands in contrast to PoW and PoS models, where validators and users are distinct groups with often divergent objectives.
• Environmental Sustainability: By eliminating the competitive “arms race” found in PoW algorithms, PoU removes the feedback loops that drive extensive energy consumption.
• Fairness and Equity: PoU addresses the inherent bias in PoS models, which often favor participants with the largest financial holdings. Through reciprocity, PoU prioritizes utility and participation over wealth concentration.

The reciprocity principle is particularly suitable for development finance because it prevents the network from being captured by outside speculators whose primary objective is not the transactions but instead the reward for validation.

“The Proof-of-Use mechanism is an important component of the Institute’s innovation portfolio,” remarks Dr. Sami Al-Suwailem, Acting Director General of the IsDB Institute. “Our objective is to build a digital ecosystem to support inclusive growth and shared prosperity across Member Countries and communities. We are actively exploring strategic partnerships to capitalize on the innovative ecosystem, in line with the IsDB Group’s 10-Year Strategic Framework, which calls for enhancing Islamic digital financial services to ensure broader access to finance.”