Qatar-based Fintech firm Cwallet has finalized a $220,000 pre-seed investment round from its founders and MBK Holding, the company’s CEO has confirmed.
Michael Javier, who’s also Co-founder at Cwallet, noted that the Fintech company is now working cooperatively with the Qatar Central Bank (QCB) in order to acquire the appropriate licenses to introduce their payroll and remittance payments options in the foreseeable future.
Launched in 2019, Cwallet was founded by a group of HEC Paris in Qatar graduates in order to assist low-income workers with gaining access to digital financial services. These Fintech solutions may be used without a credit or debit card. They’re aimed at disrupting or significantly improving the existing financial services sector in Qatar, Javier noted.
CWallet was incubated at the Digital Incubation Centre, which is part of Qatar’s Ministry of Transport and Communications. The Fintech firm is a recipient of a development fund from Qatar Science & Technology Park (a QF member).
The blockchain or distributed ledger tech (DLT)-enabled wallet was developed to serve as a one-stop-shop where consumers may get paid, spend, and transfer funds to their home country. They will eventually be able to get their salary and funds to their home country along with being able to use a cross-border bills payment option.
In addition to offering digital wallet services, CWallet allows merchants, including startups and digital commerce platforms, to use it as a built-in wallet for their apps through an API integration, Javier explained.
He added:
“We are looking to make payment gateways affordable in Qatar, paving the way for smaller businesses to process online transactions with ease and affordability. The mission has always been to provide payment solutions for all users without exception. Financial inclusion is at the core of the business and for this reason, Cwallet is looking to empower the unbanked community by granting them access to online payments without the use of credit cards.”
Cwallet has reportedly won the first “Qatar Fintech Hub Hackathon” and it’s now competing as one of the 20 shortlisted firms globally for the “IOE & Seedstars Migration Challenge.”
Javier further noted:
“Aside from funding achievements, Cwallet has also established numerous strategic partnerships with local and global players, including one of the largest money transfer services in the world with a worldwide network of 447,000 locations in 160 countries and over 1bn transfers securely sent. The Fintech sector is one of the fastest growing sectors in the Middle East and is expected to receive a boost as the region slowly shifts towards being a cashless society.”