News
Instagram Has Started Rolling Out Comments For Stories
Mutuals will soon be able to publicly engage with Stories.
Instagram has begun rolling out comments for Stories, which until now, could only be replied to using direct messages. The upgrade offers a more visible method for users to interact with posts, with a representative from Meta adding that “comments live only on your Story”.
It will be possible to turn off Story comments for individual posts. However, when enabled, they will be seen by anyone following the account, but only mutuals have the ability to leave comments. As with the Story post format, comments will also disappear after 24 hours. Small profile pictures of commenters will appear at the bottom of a Story icon, so you’ll know if comments have been added before tapping to view a post.
Users can still opt to respond to a Story via DM if the account posting them has been set up to accept those messages. There will also be an option to send a DM in response to a Story comment, which can be found by swiping left on the text and tapping the DM icon.
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Instagram has also been adding more ways for users to jazz up their Stories, including customizable templates, AI-generated backgrounds and interactive stickers.
News
Paymob Extends Series B Funding To $72M Amid Continued Growth
The financial services provider has secured an extra $22 million after strong performance in its core market of Egypt.
Leading financial services provider Paymob has secured an additional $22 million in a funding extension, bringing its Series B total to $72 million.
The funding was spearheaded by EBRD Venture Capital, with support from Endeavor Catalyst. Existing backers such as PayPal Ventures, BII, FMO, A15, Nclude, and Helios Digital Ventures also participated, reaffirming their confidence in Paymob’s business model and potential in the regional fintech industry.
This extension comes on the back of Paymob’s strong performance in its core market of Egypt, where it has experienced 6x revenue growth since the initial Series B in Q2 2022. With the Series B extension and continued profitability in Egypt, Paymob is well-positioned to further its expansion strategy across the MENA region.
Islam Shawky, Co-founder and CEO of Paymob, commented: “We are very excited by our strong prospects in Egypt – where we hold a market-leading position – and the significant traction experienced in the UAE since launching operations there. This funding will help Paymob fully capitalize on the momentum in our established markets, as we accelerate our GCC roll-out. We remain committed to creating cutting-edge infrastructure enabling SMEs across the region to thrive in the digital economy and are proud of our continued impact”.
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The expansion into GCC markets has been driven by Paymob’s initial Series B funding of $50 million, raised in 2022 and led by Kora Capital, PayPal Ventures, and Clay Point. The investment fueled Paymob’s growth, allowing it to launch its mobile app in 2023 and grow its merchant base by 3.5 times, now serving nearly 350,000 merchants across MENA.
Paymob has also expanded its payment acceptance suite to offer 50 payment methods through its gateway, POS terminals, and the Paymob app, providing the region’s most comprehensive fintech solution. The company recently introduced embedded checkout services for Shopify and WooCommerce, further demonstrating its commitment to empowering small and medium businesses across the region.