Tabby, a Buy Now, Pay Later platform based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, has secured $200 million in Series D funding. The round was led by Wellington Management. The investment gives the company a valuation of $1.5 billion, making Tabby MENA’s latest fintech unicorn. With participation from Bluepool Capital and existing investors STV, Mubadala Investment Capital, Arbor Ventures, and PayPal Ventures, the investment comes ahead of Tabby’s planned IPO in Saudi Arabia.
“Tabby set out with a purpose to reshape financial services – one that’s fair and responsible – and with this investment we can advance our mission across Saudi Arabia and the UAE,” Tabby CEO and co-founder Hosam Arab said. “We’re very happy to have Wellington Management lead this round given their deep expertise in financial services.”
Buy Now, Pay Later services are an interesting development especially in markets where access to credit and financing products is limited. Tabby reports 10 million users and more than 30,000 brands on its platform. These brands include to of the largest retail groups in the MENA region. Managing more than $6 billion in annualized transaction volume, Tabby notes growth in its presence in physical stores, now representing more than 20% of the company’s total volume.
Meanwhile, some 600 kilometers to the east, Qatar-based CQUR Bank has forged a partnership with digital banking solutions provider Finastra. CQUR Bank will implement a pair of Finastra’s solutions – Trade Innovation and Corporate Channels – to power its new online banking portal.
Trade Innovation is an end-to-end solution for frictionless trade and supply chain financing. Corporate Channels is a digital banking platform that gives CQUR Bank a single portal to unify a variety of services for corporate clients. These services include trade, cash, supply chain finance, lending, and treasury operations.
“Corporate customers are increasingly demanding faster, digital, and connected services from their bank that truly elevate how they manage their finances and pursue new avenues for growth,” Finastra Managing Director, MENAT Lending, Kamal El Khoury explained. “By delivering new services and improving the end-to-end customer experience, the bank can future-proof its business while continuing to enhance economic growth through trade and sustainable development.”
Formed out of a merger between Misys and D+H in 2017, Finastra is headquartered in the U.K. The company has more than 8,000 financial institutions, including 45 of the world’s top 50 banks, using its software solutions and services. Simon Paris is CEO.
This week, Kuwait Finance House (KFH) launched the first shari’a-compliant digital bank in the country. Named Tam Digital Bank, the new institution was hailed as a major milestone in KFY’s digital banking transformation efforts.
“With its modern, youthful design, user-friendly and efficient usage, along with innovative banking services backed with advanced technology, we are confident that Tam will fulfull customers’ desires and exceed their expectations,” KFH Acting Group CEO Abdulwahab lesa Al Rushood said. “At KFH, we take account of factors such as convenience, speed, quality, safety, and innovation in line with our motto ‘Easy Banking Experience’.”
In order to open a Tam account, customers must be at least 15 years old. They must also have a civil ID, and a smartphone to download the Tam app. There are no documents to present and no bank branch to visit in order to get started.
KFH Kuwait CEO Khaled Yousef AlShamlan underscored the importance of appealing to younger customers. “Through Tam, youth will receive many benefits, including opening an account, transferring student allowance(s), tracking expenses, transferring funds, in addition to rewards program, points, offers, and exceptional discounts that meet all their needs, as well as 24/7 customer service,” AlShamlan said.
A pioneer in Islamic Finance and Shari’a Compliant Banking, Kuwait Finance House was founded in 1977 as the country’s first Islamic bank. KFH sits at the center of the KFH Group banking network. This network includes 430 branches, more than 790 ATMs, and 8,600 employees. KFH’s Shari’a compliant products and services cover real estate, trade finance, and investments, as well as commercial, retail, and corporate banking. In addition to Kuwait, KFH operates in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Turkey, Malaysia, and Australia.
Here is our look at fintech innovation around the world.
Middle East and Northern Africa
- UAE-based Ajman Bank turned to Codebase Technologies to power its new super-app.
- Israel-based digital bank One Zero is looking to raise $100 million in new funding.
- First Abu Dhabi Bank launched its SlicePay BNPL card powered by Mastercard.
Central and Southern Asia
- India-based Federal Bank forged a co-lending partnership with digital financial inclusion platform Avanti Finance.
- Fintech services provider Optasia teamed up with Pakistan’s JS Bank to support the FI’s micro lending solution.
- A collaboration between Indian fintech BANKIT and Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and SBI General Insurance will bring insurance services to rural Indians.
Latin America and the Caribbean
- Brazilian fintech QI Tech secured $200 million in Series B funding in a round led by General Atlantic.
- Caribbean-based financial services provider Proven Group standardized its operations on ERI’s Olympic core banking system.
- Mexican fintech Finerio Connect locked in $6.5 million to develop its open finance platform.
Asia-Pacific
- Thailand gained its first fintech unicorn earlier this month when Ascend Money secured $150 million in funding.
- Vietnamese fintech Momo partnered with Grab Vietnam to integrate its payment solution into its app.
- Japan’s JCB announced an expansion of its partnership with Stripe.
Sub-Saharan Africa
- South African paytech Stanchion Payments introduced new CPO Pierre Aurel.
- Blockchain remittance app Minit Money opened its first Southern African remittance corridor this week.
- Nigerian fintech Vella Finance has stopped offering crypto related services as of October 30.
Central and Eastern Europe
- Deutsche Bank announced the closure of multiple Postbank branches to focus efforts on improvements to digital services.
- Turkey disclosed plans to finalize its cryptocurrency regulations in 2024.
- The National Bank of Georgia partnered with Ripple for its CBDC pilot project.