Salam, fintech friends!
An eventful 2 weeks in this part of the world, both on and off the pitch.
For the first time in history, 8 Arab nations qualified for the FIFA World Cup, and 3 of them, Morocco, Egypt and Algeria, have already made it through to the Round of 32. Morocco knocked out the Netherlands on penalties. Egypt reached the knockouts for the first time ever. We’re all very excited.
Off the pitch, tabby received both a Consumer Finance License and an SME Financing License from the Saudi Central Bank this week, adding to the SVF license it secured in the UAE last month. This opens up a whole new category beyond BNPL toward longer-term installment plans and working capital financing for merchants.
Meanwhile, PayPal Ventures officially wound down. A decade-old corporate VC arm that had pledged $100 million to MEA, backing regional names like tabby, Paymob, and Stitch is now pulling back as new CEO Enrique Lores restructures the business around its core. It is unclear what this means for its $100 million commitment to the region.
Beyond that, a busy week across fundraises, partnerships, and licensing.
Here's the full roundup.
💸 Fundraises and Exits
Beehive, UAE-based SME financing platform, acquires a majority stake in Saudi debt crowdfunding platform, Themar
Tern, a UAE-based rental rewards platform, receives an undisclosed amount of funding from Dubizzle Group Ventures
Rentify raises $2 million in seed funding from a syndicate of real estate and fintech investors to launch Earn AI
AXON, a UAE-based cross-border payment infrastructure platform, raises $1 million from Maarej Real Estate.
💰 Funds
SME Bank, Aramco Taleed and Manafa launch new financing solutions for SMEs in manufacturing, projects and services industries within Aramco’s ecosystem
Kuwait’s stock exchange, Boursa Kuwait, launches the Equity Capital Market, designed to help SMEs access public equity financing
PayPal Ventures winds down, raising questions about its $100 million commitment in MEA.
🚀 Partnerships & Product Launches
SAB invest introduces a securities lending service, with JPMorganChase appointed as its agent for the domestic equity business
COINMENA partners with Standard Chartered on customer money account services and fiat payment infrastructure
The Dubai Multi-Commodities Centre partners with Tether to develop blockchain infrastructure and tokenized finance in Dubai
NymCard introduces nCore FullStack: a single payments infrastructure platform allowing banks to manage issuing, lending, money movement, settlement, financial crime and reconciliation all in one
Lean Technologies launches 4 Pay-By-Bank products in the UAE, including Deposits, Collections, Checkout and Payment Links
Changer.ae signs an MoU with DeScript Labs to combine its regulated custody capabilities with DeScript’s merchant infrastructure
HSBC introduces a Tokenized Deposit Service in the UAE
Mashreq Bank partners with Visa and RezolveAI to launch an Everyday Cashback program
Wio Bank and the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange launch Loan Against Investments, a digital share-backed financing product
HSBC and Mastercard launch a virtual mobile card solution for corporate clients in the UAE
Fuze partners with cybersecurity firm Halborn to help financial institutions with compliance in digital asset services
INFINIOS signs an agreement with Circle to integrate stablecoin infrastructure into its payment and treasury products
Botim Money introduces virtual IBAN-enabled wallets
🏛 Licensing & Regulations
The Saudi Data and AI Authority approves a Data Monetization policy
The Saudi Council of Ministers approves the Executive Regulation of the Law of Real Estate Ownership by Non-Saudis
The UAE Central Bank grants Adyen a Retail Payment Services Category II license
tabby receives a Consumer Finance License and a SME Financing License from the Saudi Central Bank
Adyen receives a Category II Retail Payment Services license from the UAE Central Bank
Fawry secures a Third Party Administrator license through a new subsidiary, Treemed TPA, to launch Fawry Healthcare
🗂️ Everything else
Startup Genome publishes its annual Global Startup Ecosystem Report, ranking Dubai 12th (up from 19th in 2025) on the Top 100 Emerging Ecosystem Rankings
The National Bank of Oman graduates its second cohort of Omani fintechs, including Rushd Capital, Payce, CardO, Cxingularity, Bayzati and Aman
Arab Bank Switzerland launches a regulated wealth management entity in the DIFC
US-based travel and spend management platform, Perk, opens its doors in Abu Dhabi.
Thank you for tuning in!
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Until next week,
Salam ✌🏼
