Tagged: middle east

March 24, 2021 @ 11:20 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Dr. Saeeda Jaffar, Board Member, Managing Director and Head of Middle East at Alvarez & Marsal, notes that research performed by Checkout.com at the end of last year suggested that digital commerce and the digital payment sectors in the Middle East region were “set for… Read More

March 23, 2021 @ 12:27 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Islamic or Sharia-compliant Fintech services are being increasingly adopted in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and internationally as well, according to a report from Arabian Business. As reported by the news outlet, the largest transaction volumes have come from Saudi Arabia, the UAE,… Read More

March 20, 2021 @ 7:03 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Qatar Development Bank (QDB) and M7, a creative start-up hub that’s operated under Qatar Museums, are introducing Scale7, which is a business incubator for MENA region entrepreneurs. Scale 7 aims to support a creative and artistic ecosystem. The initiative will help Qatari entrepreneurs, local… Read More

March 14, 2021 @ 2:10 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The third edition of Startupbootcamp Fintech Dubai’s accelerator program has now concluded. During the Demo Day, there were 11 startups that pitched their ideas to potential investors, corporate partners, industry experts, mentors, and the general public. Startupbootcamp Fintech Dubai was introduced in 2018 through a… Read More

March 11, 2021 @ 10:22 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

South Africa based Fintech group Adumo has secured R225 million (appr. $14.9 million) in capital from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which is a member of the World Bank Group. The IFC Financial Institutions Growth Fund also contributed investments in order to expand access to… Read More

March 11, 2021 @ 8:18 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

  UK banking group Standard Chartered Bank announced on Thursday it has teamed up with BlackRock’s Aladdin platform to offer integrated end-to-end office investment management solutions to mutual clients across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. According to BlackRock, Aladdin technology combines risk analytics and… Read More

March 8, 2021 @ 11:58 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

United Arab Emirates’ first “independent” virtual banking platform has just launched with more than 25,000 applicants that had pre-registered during the past few months in order to use the bank’s Fintech app. UAE-headquartered digital bank YAP will be allowing locals to open a bank account… Read More

March 8, 2021 @ 10:59 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Fintech industry experts from Qatar and Bangladesh recently talked about potential opportunities in the financial services sector during a webinar.  Bangladesh Forum Qatar (BFQ) had organized the webinar on “An Exploration of the Qatar – Bangladesh Startup and Fintech Opportunities” along with assistance from the… Read More

March 4, 2021 @ 7:55 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The United Kingdom might reportedly consider making several key changes to London’s current listing rules post-Brexit. The country aims to remove a barrier that has prevented special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) from choosing the European nation. The updates are meant to attract technology-focused public offerings…. Read More

February 22, 2021 @ 9:57 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The reserve bank in Saudi Arabia has introduced an instant payments solution, called the “Sarie” system, in order to carry out low-value transactions within the country. The Saudi reserve bank (SAMA) noted that the new initiative will allow banking customers in the Kingdom to accept… Read More

February 7, 2021 @ 7:36 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Saudi Arabia’s venture capital funds are increasingly looking to tap into Fintech, digital commerce, and healthcare segments this year. VC activity has increased considerably in the MENA region including Saudi Arabia during the past few years, with local startups recording a 55% year-over-year growth in… Read More

February 3, 2021 @ 11:49 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Abu Dhabi based NymCard, a card issuing and processing platform, has secured $7.6 million in  capital through a Series A funding round. The banking-as-a-service (BaaS) provider confirmed that the investment round was led by Shorooq Partners along with the contributions from OTF Jasoor Ventures and… Read More

January 27, 2021 @ 6:51 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The LuLu Exchange in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has confirmed that they’re teaming up with American Fintech Ripple (which is the subject of a major enforcement action from the US SEC) and Federal Bank in order to enhance real-time payments capabilities from the UAE… Read More

January 24, 2021 @ 10:28 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Mastercard has partnered with UAE-headquartered PSP Network International in order to introduce a digital platform with the goal of promoting the adoption of virtual payments across the MENA region. With this new digital platform going live this month, Network International plans to help its customers… Read More

January 17, 2021 @ 10:07 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

SNGLR Holding AG has confirmed the official launch of its business operations and is now fully operational with its headquarters based in Zug, Switzerland. SNGLR Holding also maintains  business offices in Boston (USA), Berlin, (Germany), Rome (Italy), and Dubai (UAE). The SNGLR Holding team includes… Read More

January 11, 2021 @ 9:27 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Dubai-headquartered investment advisory firm Sarwa is reportedly expanding its business operations to Saudi Arabia after acquiring a temporary or experimental Fintech license from Saudi’s Capital Markets Authority (CMA). This development has come about a year after Sarwa secured $8.4 million in capital, which was one… Read More

January 10, 2021 @ 5:11 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

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… Read More

January 9, 2021 @ 5:41 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Digital payments in Saudi Arabia surged by 75% last year, as consumers increasingly began shopping online following the COVID-19 outbreak. Meanwhile, cash withdrawals from ATMs and other payment points declined 30% during the same time period. Point of sale (PoS) refers to a location where… Read More

January 4, 2021 @ 10:37 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Dubai‘s economy is projected to grow by 4% this year, driven by the government’s (fairly) effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Dubai government has taken several measures to extend support to local businesses and individuals. It also launched four stimulus packages valued at 6.8… Read More

January 2, 2021 @ 3:14 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Covid-19 pandemic has been a major global disruptor as it has fundamentally changed how people conduct their daily lives. In 2020, we saw many more consumers using online platforms while cash usage dropped considerably in some parts of the world. In developed countries like… Read More