Regional news
- The Arab Parliament has called for localizing AI technology in Arab countries, emphasizing the need for partnerships between governments, academia and the private sector. This initiative aims to align AI development with ethical and cultural values in the region. »»»
- The Fintech Frontiers in Saudi Arabia report explores how fintech is driving financial inclusion and economic growth under Saudi Vision 2030. The sector is seen as a transformative force in diversifying the kingdom’s economy and reducing oil dependency. »»»
The United Arab Emirates
- Checkout.com has partnered with Visa to introduce the Visa Direct push-to-card solution in the UAE, enabling near-instant payments for domestic and cross-border transactions. This makes Checkout.com the first UAE acquirer to offer this service, connecting over 190 markets and 8.5 billion endpoints globally. »»»
- Paymentology and UAE-based Mamo have partnered to enhance SME banking services, introducing credit cards, multi-currency functionality and cashback benefits. The collaboration aims to address Middle Eastern SMEs’ banking challenges by offering consolidated payment and expense management solutions. »»»
- Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) is the first Islamic bank globally to adopt a cloud-native architecture using Swift’s Alliance Cloud platform. This move enhances security, efficiency and scalability for its retail and corporate clients. »»»
Saudi Arabia
- The Saudi Central Bank has approved 4 fintech startups – SpireTech, The Lending Hub, Soar and Ldun – to join its regulatory sandbox. These startups are focused on open banking, P2P lending and factoring services for MSMEs. »»»
- Tabby has raised USD 160 million in Series E funding, achieving a USD 3.3 billion valuation. The funding, led by Blue Pool Capital and Hassana Investment Company, supports its expansion into digital banking following its acquisition of Tweeq. »»»
- Ant International has opened its first Middle Eastern office in Riyadh after receiving approval from the Saudi CENTRAL Bank. This move further strengthens economic ties between China and the Middle East, following other Chinese companies like Cotti Coffee and Meituan entering the region. »»»
- Lendo has secured a USD 690 million warehouse facility from JP Morgan to support its Shari’ah-compliant P2P lending platform for SMEs. Since 2019, Lendo has facilitated over USD 667 million in financing across 5,000 transactions. »»»
Qatar
- Qatar’s AlRayan Bank is upgrading its core banking system to Finastra Essence, a solution tailored for Islamic finance. The upgrade aims to streamline operations, reduce costs and enhance functionality for its customers. »»»
Egypt
- Bank NXT has partnered with Red Hat to modernize its digital banking services, reducing deployment times by 40%. The upgrade supports its retail and corporate banking operations, including SME services and investment solutions. »»»
- Khazna has raised USD 16 million in a pre-Series B round to expand into Saudi Arabia and apply for a digital banking license in Egypt. The funding will support its growth and strategic partnerships in the region. »»»
Tunisia
- EasyBank has raised USD 370,000 to expand its digital banking platform globally, focusing on the MENA region and France. The platform uses AI to offer personalized financial services and streamline access to loans and banking products. »»»
