Edfundo, the transformative smart money management app for kids and teens living in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has appointed industry specialists to its advisory board.
Joining the board are Saudi-headquartered Fintech & Business Development specialist Saleh AlHammad, UK‘s Finance & Emerging Payments professional David Parker and UAE‘s Brand & Communications professional Susan Furness.
Simon Wing, Edfundo co-founder and CEO, stated:
“These are important additions to the Edfundo team as we near the launch of the world’s first smart money management app for kids and teens built by teachers. Saleh, David and Susan have extensive experience across their relative fields spanning the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as well as the greater region and international markets which we can leverage to ensure a successful launch and development of the Edfundo offering.”
Saudi national Saleh AlHammad, the Country Director of Open Bank Exchange which assists communities with identifying viable solutions for Open Banking and Open Finance, has considerable Fintech, IT, and broader service industry experience.
His business development expertise covers business planning, international business, new market entry and scale-up, venture capital and startups.
Saleh mainly specializes in open and neo-banking, API, payment, Wealthtech, and AI in finance. Saleh has assisted different firms with validating their business models, go-to-market strategies as well as acquiring and maintaining appropriate regulatory permits. He currently serves on the boards of corporate, government committees, business councils, and NGOs.
Saleh remarked:
“Edfundo stands out because it is designed by teachers who understand how kids learn best. The co-founders both have an in-depth realisation of the financial literacy gap and have a determination to address it.”
He added:
“Financial education for youngsters is surely one of the most underrated areas of education which should concern most parents. There is a lack of understanding of the basic principles of personal finance which if tackled can literally change the future prospects of many of today’s digitally native kids.”
David Parker, the founder and CEO of Polymath Consulting who was previously based in the Middle East for several years, has considerable experience with payments having worked with clients like GoHenry, Monese, Monzo Bank, Mastercard, Visa, American Express and FIS.
David, a Fintech investor, is also an advisor to Abu Dhabi’s Nymcard. He also sits on a number of boards and advises Fintech firms like 3SMoney and Cinnte and co-founded Konsentus.
David noted:
“Edfundo will address a pressing societal issue in the lack of financial literacy among our youth and as such is a very worthwhile brand with which to be associated. Having worked with GoHenry in the UK and USA and having seen first-hand with my own child how effective a money management app can be in educating children, I am sure that parents like me will be quick to adopt the solution for their children.”
Susan Furness has more than 35 years of industry experience in the Gulf markets as a high-impact strategic and trusted advisor to various startups, established corporate entities and businesses ready to scale up through strategic market entries, product launches and IPO preparedness.
She added:
“Edfundo has a great story to tell, and its narrative will constantly evolve in line with its offering. It is an exciting brand for exciting times and one which has strong educational and societal impact potential which has drawn me to it, and which will equally appeal to its many prospective parents.”
Edfundo – which claims to be one of the first smart money management apps and associated pre-paid debit card built by teachers for use by kids – should allow parents to control their kids’ spending habits and enhance their money management abilities.
It has been developed by Simon and Andrew Toward, who are former teachers at Dubai’s Rashid School for Boys. They have more than 15 years of UAE experience, having used their education experience of over 2 decades to address a requirement for financial literacy.