valU, MENA’s Buy-Now, Pay-Later (BNPL) lifestyle-enabling fintech platform, announced that it “acquired 100% of Paynas, a full-fledged employee management and benefits company that provides financial services to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME) in a signing ceremony attended by Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation.”
The acquisition “builds on valU’s mission to offer the wider society access to seamless financial solutions that facilitate their day-to-day activities and enhance their lifestyle; and reinforces Paynas’s mission to be MENA’s leading financial wellness and benefits platform, through offering access and convenience beyond employment.”
Joining forces with Paynas will act “as a gateway for valU to reach micro, small and medium businesses who are considered to be the backbone of the economy, with the goal to unlock various opportunities to both employers and employees.”
Paynas offers “a multitude of employee management and payment services to MSMEs, including a cloud-based platform to manage time & attendance and payroll, financial products such as payroll cards and affordable health insurance, and financial wellness products such as earned wage pay-outs and salary advances.”
By combining Paynas’s service offering with valU’s BNPL plans covering healthcare, education, home appliances, furniture, and travel, among others, valU is “delivering on its vision of becoming a holistic financing powerhouse catering with progressive and convenient solutions to every aspect of people’s daily lives.”
valU will now “harness a powerful ecosystem that constitutes compelling B2B partnerships, multiple acquisition channels, and a multi-product platform that will maximize returns through cross-selling synergies and low customer acquisition costs for both players.”
The partnership “opens wide doors for valU’s BNPL solutions by tapping into Paynas’s roster of MSME clients and employees, integrating them into valU’s client base, while augmenting Paynas’s offering with a comprehensive range of financing products.”
Moreover, digitizing the datasets of Paynas’s users “will better position valU to offer them more cost-effective BNPL products by improving its loan disbursement cycles and credit scoring systems.”
Rania A. Al-Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation said:
“This pivotal transaction reflects the compelling investment opportunities and growth prospects presented by the start-up and fintech sectors in Egypt. It underscores the country’s efforts in becoming a leading entrepreneurial hub in the region given a set of unique advantages such as talented youth, significant economic opportunities, and the continued efforts undertaken by the public and private sectors to create a conducive business environment for start-ups that fosters the participation of the private sector in the country’s advancement.”
Rania added:
“The transaction also showcases the success of Egypt Ventures, the first government-backed venture capital vehicle established in 2017, and its accelerator program EFG-EV Fintech that is jointly-owned with EFG Hermes Holding, in supporting start-ups on their journey for growth and expansion, in line with Egypt’s digital transformation and financial inclusion agenda, and their achievements in opening doors for entrepreneurs so they can deliver their role in supporting the growth of the Egyptian market.”
Walid Hassouna, CEO of valU said:
“Paynas is a strategic fit for us, and the combination of our two companies will drive significant value for our shareholders and customers by delivering a 360° financial and lifestyle enabling solution, with the objective of addressing every aspect of people’s life and the goal of improving their overall quality of living. That, and the addition of exceptional talent to our team, firmly positions us as a leading fintech platform in the region. Since inception, our most important asset has been our people, and we targeted a company that puts people at the heart of everything they do.”
Walid added:
We are very excited and look forward to seeing new, big ideas come to life under the valU brand that can drive tech products and bring new conveniences to our customers while efficiently rolling out cross border initiatives in the region.”
For more details on this update, check here.