US-based satellite start-up Spacecoin has received approval from Kenya’s Communications Authority to offer satellite-powered IoT monitoring services, marking its official entry into the country’s digital market and a push to improve connectivity in poorly served areas.
The clearance gives Spacecoin a foothold in East Africa’s biggest tech economy at a time when satellite broadband growth has cooled after its initial surge. Kenya’s rollout is part of a wider trial programme also running in Nigeria, Indonesia and Cambodia, where the firm is testing a decentralised satellite system that combines blockchain transaction verification with space-based communications.
Despite Starlink’s early arrival, satellite internet still makes up a tiny fraction of Kenya’s connectivity market. With fewer than 20,000 subscribers, Starlink struggled through 2025, its share of the fixed-internet market dropping below one per cent.
Spacecoin founder Tae Oh said the approvals prove the company is no longer just a concept, but a functioning movement aiming to deliver open, permission-free connectivity through open-source satellite technology.
In Nigeria, Spacecoin is operating under a licence from the Nigerian Communications Commission as it targets rural connectivity gaps in Africa’s largest telecoms market. In Indonesia, pilots focus on reaching remote islands, while in Cambodia the company is working with local provider MekongNet to bring internet access to underserved communities.
Unlike Starlink, which has concentrated on consumer broadband, Spacecoin is starting with IoT services and selective connectivity. These pilots will test whether alternative satellite models can scale without running into the technical and cost barriers that have tripped up earlier players, as competition for Africa’s connectivity space heats up.
Founded in 2022 by Tae Oh after spinning out of his fintech firm Gluwa, Spacecoin runs its satellite network on the Creditcoin blockchain. In December 2024, it launched its first test satellite, CTC-0, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9, successfully sending a blockchain transaction in orbit as a proof of concept.
Starlink, owned by Elon Musk, still enjoys a major edge thanks to its massive, vertically integrated satellite fleet, which gives it the ability to provide wide coverage and serve millions of users, something smaller rivals struggle to match.
Also Read: Uganda Votes Under Internet Blackout And Police Crackdown
While Starlink has been picking up licences across Africa, it continues to face regulatory hurdles in South Africa, the continent’s biggest economy. Spacecoin is expected to steer clear of tightly regulated markets where its lack of scale would be a handicap.
Once seen as a niche solution for remote areas, satellite internet has now become part of a geopolitical contest. China and the United States are locked in a space-based broadband race, with China planning nearly 200,000 satellites, far exceeding SpaceX’s planned Starlink network of about 49,000.
Chinese filings with the International Telecommunications Union point to multi-orbit, multi-frequency systems with both commercial and strategic uses. In response, US regulators have fast-tracked approvals for Starlink’s second-generation network, adding 7,500 satellites to a fleet that already exceeds 9,400.
