This week’s edition of Finovate Global takes a look at recent developments in the fintech industry of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Thndr, a digital investment platform based in Egypt, announced an expansion to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this week. The expansion comes after the company secured a Category 3A license with retail endorsement from the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). Thndr will initially offer investors in the UAE direct access to U.S.-listed securities, such as stocks, including fractional shares, as well as exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

“We at Thndr are thrilled to announce our official entry into the UAE market,” Thndr UAE General Manager Salah Kaddoura said. “We’d like to express our sincere gratitude to the FSRA for their openness and for welcoming Thndr to the UAE’s dynamic financial landscape.”

Founded in 2020 and a graduate of the Y Combinator accelerator, Thndr got its start as a commission-free, mobile trading platform for stocks, bonds, and funds. That year, Thndr became the first firm to earn a brokerage license in Egypt since 2008. The company went on to launch a new solution to enable trading in mutual funds and, in 2022, raised $20 million to fuel regional expansion.

With more than three million downloads and 500,000 active monthly users, Thndr notes that Egyptians traded $1.8 billion on its platform in 2023. As of this April, Thndr accounted for 8.5% of all retail transactions in the market. The company also reported that 87% of its users are first-time investors. “I take pride in seeing how our commitment to these principles has democratized investing to all Egyptians,” Kaddoura said, “and can’t wait for what we have in store for the UAE.”

du Pay, the digital payments division of UAE-based telecommunications company du, has formalized a partnership with digital payments giant Visa. The partnership will enable du Pay to issue Visa cards, grow its suite of financial solutions, and bring greater versatility to the du Pay platform.

“We are committed to making payment processes faster, simpler, and more secure while simultaneously enhancing financial inclusion,” du Pay CEO Nicholas Levi said. “The strategic collaboration is poised to accelerate digital empowerment with a focus on inclusivity and serve the needs of those without traditional banking services, ensuring simplified access to products.” For its part, Visa highlighted the impact of the partnership – and du Pay’s new prepaid Visa card – on the growth of digital commerce in the region.

du launched its du Pay solution earlier this year. The technology, available in six languages, offers international money transfers, P2P transfers, billpay, and a unique IBAN for each customer. The company plans to add a card feature “soon.”

Clarity on the role of Open Finance in the fintech and financial services industry of the UAE has arrived in the form of a new, comprehensive framework issued by the country’s Central Bank (CBUAE). The framework provides guidance on how to regulate licensing, supervision, and operation of Open Finance and has already received positive reviews from industry participants.

The CBUAE earned especially high marks for its emphasis on security and customer consent. One observer, Women in Crypto Arabia founder Zina Ashour said the framework “puts power back in the hands of the consumer.” Others, such as Tarabut Gateway CEO Abdulla Almoayed, were grateful for the regulatory clarity and certainty, adding that the “reduction in ambiguity” will enable his firm “to invest in the UAE with supreme confidence.”

Still further plaudits came for the comprehensive nature of the CBUAE’s decision. The UAE’s Open Finance Regulation includes, for example, both Open Banking and Open Insurance, as Global Ventures partner Said Murad observed. Murad also appreciated the fact that the regulation requires all entities licensed by the CBUAE to comply with its requirements for data sharing and service initiation.

Here is our look at fintech innovation around the world.

Middle East and Northern Africa

• Brokerage-as-a-Service innovator DriveWealth forged new partnership with Turkish fintech Papara.
• Egyptian digital investment platform Thndr announced its expansion to UAE.
• ICYMI: Check out our interview with Michal Berdugo with Israel-based technology company Citrusx.

Central and Southern Asia

• India’s Axis Bank launched its NFC Soundbox solution in partnership with Mastercard.
• Pakistan’s SadaPay agreed to be acquired by Turkey’s Papara.
• India-based PhonePe announced the availability of secured lending products on its platform.

Latin America and the Caribbean

• Uruguayan cross-border payment platform dLocal partners with cross-border money transfer firm Ria Money Transfer.
• European paytech payabl. expanded its coverage by adding four major local payment methods in Latin America.
• Brazilian fintech EBANX teamed up with South African instant EFT payments provider Ozow.

Asia-Pacifc

• DBS Taiwan partnered with Thales to bring bio-source payment cards to Asia.
• The Business Times profiled Vietnamese unicorn VNLife, parent company of payment solutions company VNPay.
• Malaysia-based digital challenger bank Boost Bank launched its digital banking app.

Sub-Saharan Africa

• U.S.-based fintech Elevate secured $5 million in pre-Series A funding to support its expansion into South Africa.
• Stanbic Bank Kenya, a member of South Africa’s Standard Bank Group, announced an upgrade of its Temenos core.
• VGS forged a strategic partnership with Onafriq, the largest payments network in Africa.

Central and Eastern Europe

• Card issuing platform Marqeta announced its expansion into Poland.
• Deutsche Bank forged a partnership with Bitpanda to help facilitate cash payments for German crypto traders.
• Boku teamed up with Poland’s instant payment system BLIK to offer it as a payment method at the Google Play store.

Photo by Nextvoyage