UK-based banking as a service platform Bankable, along with Visa, announced last week they have formed a strategic collaboration within the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEMEA) region. Through the collaboration, Bankable is opening an office at the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), which will be Bankable’s Middle Eastern hub. Bankable reported:
“Bankable’s presence in Dubai will allow the company to engage with the Dubai International Financial Centre, the leading financial centre of the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, comprised of more than 2.000 active registered firms. Bankable will complement and address the already strong fintech ecosystem in the region. The company will look to foster partnerships that enable faster time-to-market and relevant digital banking initiatives.”
While sharing details about the hubs, Eric Mouilleron, CEO and Founder of Bankable, stated:
“Our decision to invest in Dubai is a natural extension for us. Bankable has served prestigious global clients headquartered in Dubai for the last three years. Following our global partnership in April 2019 with Visa, Bankable is committed to increase its alignment with Visa. Not only is Dubai home to global head offices and Visa’s CEMEA base, but some of our existing clients in Europe and North America are now looking to expand in the region. We will be able to support our clients directly and Visa’s CEMEA financial institutions members as well as provide European and US access to UAE based organisations. Partnering hand in hand with the DIFC, Bankable has the ambition to design, federate and operate a fintech magnet supported by pre-approved regional bank sponsors to facilitate the onboarding of global scaleups and contribute to strengthen the DIFC ecosystem.”
Salmaan Jaffery, Chief Business Development Officer of the DIFC Authority added:
“We are delighted to welcome Bankable to the DIFC. Bringing efficiency to the payments industry is a critical piece of DIFC’s FinTech strategy, which provides firms a critical platform for innovation amid the world’s largest remittance corridors. Investment in FinTech in our region is twice the rate globally so we will continue to support the ‘Banking as a Service’ model pursued by Bankable.”
Founded in 2010, Bankable describes itself as a global architect of innovative payment solutions providing Banking as a Service. The company’s core virtual account management is available in white-label or through APIs enabling anyone to deploy payment solutions, which includes virtual account services, e-ledgers, virtual and plastic card programs, and e-wallet and light banking solutions.
