The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) and Ant International, a global digital payments and financial technology provider, plan to introduce cross-border QR code payments in 2026. The system will link Saudi Arabia’s national payment scheme, mada, with Ant International’s global wallet gateway, Alipay+, aiming to support digitalisation and provide local merchants with broader payment access. Douglas Feagin, President of Ant International, said: “We are deeply honoured to support the ambitious goals of Vision 2030 and build on the strong digital infrastructure by SAMA to enhance payment connectivity and boost Saudi Arabia’s status as a global tourism hub. Tourism is a powerful…

Visa has announced that the Visa Acceptance Platform is now hosted on local cloud infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, marking the first implementation of its kind by Visa. The move is in line with the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) mandate. The development means that businesses in Saudi Arabia will be able to accept payments more quickly and securely on CyberSource, a Visa Acceptance Platform service, through a single integration. According to Visa, this will support the Kingdom’s efforts under Vision 2030 to strengthen its digital economy. The platform accommodates a range of transaction types widely used in modern commerce, including authorisation…

Dyna.Ai, a global AI services company, has announced plans to expand its presence in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The announcement follows the opening of its Riyadh office and will see the company strengthen its partnerships with financial institutions in the country to advance the adoption of AI solutions. At Money20/20 Middle East in Riyadh, Dyna.Ai will introduce its Agentic AI Suite and AI Employees, both of which include Arabic-language functionality. The enterprise platform is designed for the financial sector and enables the use of intelligent, collaborative agents to support automation, collaboration and localisation. The AI Employees, described as…

Money20/20 Middle East officially opened today at the Riyadh Exhibition and Convention Centre in Malham, marking a milestone for the financial technology sector in the region. The event brings together more than 450 fintech companies and over 1,050 global investors, making it the largest gathering of its kind held in the Middle East. The conference is hosted under the patronage of H.E. Mohammed Aljadaan, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Finance and Chairman of the Financial Sector Development Programme Committee. Opening the event, H.E. Aljadaan highlighted the Kingdom’s ambition to establish itself as a global fintech hub in line with Vision 2030.…

Google announced the official launch of Google Pay and Google Wallet in Saudi Arabia, providing Android users with a secure and convenient way to make digital payments and store essential digital items. The service, supported by the Kingdom’s national payment system (mada), will be rolled out to all users over the coming weeks. At launch, customers of Al Rajhi Bank and Riyad Bank will be able to use Google Pay, with additional banks to be added gradually. Google Pay enables users to make contactless payments in stores through ‘Tap to Pay’, with support for online and in-app payments expected to…

Tamara, Saudi Arabia’s first homegrown fintech unicorn, has secured an asset-backed facility of up to US$2.4 billion, the largest of its kind in the region, from a group of major financial institutions including Goldman Sachs, Citi, and Apollo funds. The deal fully refinances and expands on a previous US$500 million facility arranged by Goldman Sachs. Announced at the Money 20/20 Middle East conference in Saudi Arabia, the transaction consists of an initial US$1.4 billion, with a further US$1 billion available over a three-year period, subject to approvals. The funding will support Tamara’s expansion into new credit and payment products. “This…

HALA, a Saudi Arabian fintech and provider of embedded financial services for MSMEs, has raised US$157 million in a Series B funding round, one of the largest Series B rounds in the Middle East fintech sector. The round was led by The Rise Fund, TPG’s multi-sector global impact investing strategy, and Sanabil Investments, a wholly owned entity of the Public Investment Fund, with participation from QED, Raed Ventures, Impact 46, Middle East Venture Partners, Isometry Capital, Arzan VC, BNVT Capital, Kaltaire Investments, Endeavor Catalyst, Nour Nouf Ventures, Khwarizmi Ventures, and Wamda Capital. Funds will strengthen HALA’s position in Saudi Arabia,…

Global cross-border payments company Thunes has announced the rollout of real-time cross-border payments into Saudi Arabia, enabling direct transfers to bank accounts and digital wallets in Saudi Riyals (SAR) through its Direct Global Network. The service aims to simplify transactions for both individuals and businesses. The launch comes as Saudi Arabia advances its financial sector under Vision 2030, alongside increasing demand for faster and more transparent cross-border payments. Industry data indicates that the value of funds received into the Kingdom is projected to reach US$232 billion in 2025, reflecting growth in transaction volumes and digital adoption. According to Thunes’ 2025…

The Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of ADGM has released Consultation Paper No. 9 of 2025, setting out a proposed regulatory framework for Regulated Activities involving Fiat Referenced Tokens (FRTs) and inviting public feedback on the proposals. The proposals build on the regulatory framework for the issuance of FRTs introduced by the FSRA in December 2024. They outline the FSRA’s approach to the acceptance of FRTs for use in ADGM, expand the scope of Regulated Activities that may be carried out in relation to FRTs, and set out Rules for Authorised Persons that hold or control FRTs on behalf of…

Property Finder, a Dubai-based property portal, has announced a combined total investment of US$525 million, led by funds advised by Permira, with significant participation from funds managed by Blackstone Growth. The investment represents a meaningful minority stake and underscores Property Finder’s position in MENA’s property classifieds market. As part of the transaction, General Atlantic, a cornerstone shareholder since 2018, has sold part of its stake while retaining a significant minority shareholding. Together, Permira, Blackstone and General Atlantic bring global experience in online classifieds, reflecting confidence in Property Finder’s potential for growth in the UAE and across the MENA region. Property…

Ottu, a Kuwait-based online payment management system provider, has announced the launch of ECHO, a platform powered by agentic AI that supports autonomous dispute resolution, merchant assistance, and platform configuration. According to the company, ECHO makes Ottu the first fintech in the region to introduce AI-driven applications for merchant support, dispute management, and platform control. The platform is intended to change how merchants handle payments, operations, and customer interactions. Its functions include AI-enabled dispute management to support faster and more accurate resolution of merchant and customer issues, and transaction story tracking, which provides contextual debugging of payment flows so merchants…

BTA Finance Limited, a Dubai-based financial institution, has entered into a partnership with Avaloq to modernise its wealth and investment management systems. The institution will adopt Avaloq’s platform as its core wealth management system, aiming to automate and standardise processes, support operational efficiency, and enable the faster introduction of new products and services. Headquartered in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), BTA Finance Limited provides financial services to high-net-worth individuals, corporates, and institutional clients worldwide. Its services include wealth and asset management, fund management, fixed income execution and brokerage, along with…

Blocks.diy, a Tel Aviv-based AI platform for teams, has secured US$10 million in a seed funding round led by monday.com, with participation from Qumra Capital and Entree Capital. The funding will support the company’s aim of providing a workspace for building intelligent work tools and AI agents, while ensuring professionals maintain full control. The platform enables team members to create custom workflows without relying on pre-made solutions. Founded less than a year ago by two former monday.com employees, Blocks.diy combines an AI app builder with smart agents that can extract, analyse and coordinate data across systems automatically, guided by users.…

Pollen Street Capital has announced a US$100 million senior secured credit facility for CredibleX, a SME lender based in the UAE. CredibleX, founded in 2023, provides SMEs with access to working capital through its digital application platform. The company has developed a network of more than 60 distribution partners and employs over 40 staff in the UAE. It is regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) at ADGM with a lending license, offering solutions including receivables financing, payables financing, and short-term loans. The company was founded by Anand Nagaraj, Ahmad Malik, and Hassan Reda, who have backgrounds in global…

The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), the independent regulator of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), and the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the statutory body responsible for regulating Hong Kong’s securities and futures markets, have signed a MoU to enhance cooperation in the regulatory oversight of collective investment scheme managers in each other’s markets. The agreement aims to ensure compliance, governance, and alignment of cross-border regulatory practices. The MoU was presented during the 10th Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong. The MoU establishes a framework for consultation, cooperation, and information exchange to enhance the supervision of regulated entities…

VentureSouq, a GCC-based venture capital firm, has closed its second Fintech Fund (Fintech Fund II). The fund is supported by a group of limited partners, including Jada Fund of Funds, Saudi Venture Capital Company (SVC), Saudi Awwal Bank (SAB), Mubadala Investment Company, Takamol Holding, Krafton, and the Innovative Startups and SMEs Fund (ISSF) of Jordan. Fintech Fund II will focus on early-stage investments in fintech and adjacent SaaS companies across the MENA region, targeting areas such as payments infrastructure, alternative credit, digital banking, proptech, insurtech, and personal financial management. Suneel Gokhale, General Partner at VentureSouq, said: “Since launching our first…

Botim, Astra Tech’s fintech-first platform in the Middle East and North Africa, has announced a partnership with the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE), to provide remittance services for Ethiopians living in the UAE. This marks Botim’s first direct banking partnership in Ethiopia and a step forward in streamlining cross-border financial transactions. Through the collaboration, Botim users in the UAE will be able to transfer money directly to CBE accounts or other banks in Ethiopia, send funds for cash collection at more than 1,900 CBE branches, credit accounts directly, or top up mobile wallets in Ethiopian birr. The initiative aims to…

Revolut has received in-principle approval for its Stored Value Facilities and Retail Payment Services (Category II) licenses from the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE). The approval marks a step towards Revolut launching its services in the UAE, where it plans to offer a full suite of products to retail customers. The UAE is viewed by Revolut as a key growth market, citing its strong digital adoption, position as an international financial hub, and supportive regulatory environment. By working with the Central Bank of the UAE, the company aims to introduce services tailored to local customer needs. Ambareen Musa, CEO…

StashAway, a digital investment platform, has introduced its Shariah Global Portfolio in the UAE. The portfolios, available across four risk levels, are Shariah-compliant and globally diversified, with historical annual returns of up to 13.7% over the past five years. They are designed to allow investors to grow their wealth in a manner consistent with their values. The launch comes amid a growing interest among affluent individuals in the UAE for digital-first investment solutions that combine returns with ethical considerations. Globally, Islamic finance assets are expected to reach US$7.5 trillion by 2028. In the UAE, this trend is reflected in the…

Qatar’s A-typical Ventures has announced its investment in Metric, an Abu Dhabi-based AI fintech startup that provides SMEs with real-time financial intelligence. The funding round also saw participation from investors including 500 Global, Hub71, i2i Ventures, Plus VC, Epic Angels, Oqal Angels, Accelerate Prosperity, and other regional strategic angel investors. Metric’s main product, Max, described as the world’s first Chief Financial AI, functions as a conversational business assistant, analysing financial data and offering recommendations. Built on US$4.2 billion of proprietary transactional data, Max helps business owners track spending patterns, forecast performance, and identify growth opportunities. Founded in 2022 by Meenah…