UAE-based buy now pay later (BNPL) company tabby has secured US$50 million in its latest round of funding, according to a statement by the company today.

The Series B round was led by Global Founders Capital and STV. Delivery Hero, CCVA and other existing backers of tabby participated in the round, the statement said. Existing investors include Arbor Ventures, Mubadala Investment, Raed Ventures, Global Ventures, MSA Capital, VentureSouq, Outliers VC, JIMCO, and HOF.

Funding will be funnelled towards growing the company’s product suite, and expanding into new GCC-based markets, the company said. The company is also looking to address growing demand for its BNPL products in Saudi Arabia, the company’s largest market.

The investment is food company Delivery Hero’s maiden fintech investment in the MENA region. Delivery Hero’s sub-brands include Talabat, InstaShop and Hunger Station.

Raised just a month after tabby’s US$50 million debt financing round, the equity round values the company at US$300 million. With the fundraise, tabby’s total capital haul has crossed the US$130 million mark in less than two years.

“With global players consolidating the MENA BNPL space, we at tabby are proud to continue building a local business and work with investors who understand its value. This investment will enable us to deliver the most rewarding and relevant shopping experience for regional consumers and retailers,”

Hosam Arab, CEO and Co-founder of tabby, said.

tabby’s BNPL model focuses on interest-free instalments for purchases at online and physical retail stores. The company has recorded over 40,000 active shoppers, with 3,000 daily downloads, the statement said.

It also recently launched a cash back loyalty program that users can either use to pay any outstanding instalments, or deposit into their personal bank accounts.

With a presence in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, tabby’s B2B partners include Adidas, IKEA, SHEIN, Chalhoub Group, Al Futtaim Group, and Landmark Group.

Fast-tracking growth for BNPL players

With BNPL companies looking to disrupt the traditional credit industry, this space has seen escalating growth in the recent short term. For instance, Afterpay, one of Australia’s biggest BNPL players, was acquired by Jack Dorsey’s Square in a US$29 billion dollar deal, indicative of the sheer opportunity presented by this market.

Closer to home, Saudi BNPL company Tamara also amassed a record US$110 million in a funding round in April this year. The round was the biggest of its kind for a Saudi fintech. The next month, Zip, another big name in Australia’s BNPL sector, bought out the remaining shares that it didn’t own in Dubai BNPL company Spotii, for US$16.25 million.

“As the global BNPL market is expected to grow at ~30% CAGR over the next five years, we estimate that MENA will grow at least twice as fast, further accelerated by a rapid switch to contactless payments, e-commerce growth, and access to credit,”

Ahmad Alshammari, Partner at STV, said about the BNPL market in the region.