Egyptian fintech and e-commerce ecosystem MNT-Halan has raised up to $400 million in equity and debt financing from local and global investors as it continues to serve underbanked and unbanked customers in the North African country.

The round includes $260 million in equity financing and $140 million through two securitized bond issuances secured within the past year, investments that will now see MNT-Halan command a post-money valuation of about $1 billion.

A large chunk of the equity, about $200 million, was provided by Abu Dhabi–based Chimera Investments. The investment firm invested that amount in exchange for 20% of the Egyptian digital lender and e-commerce platform, which is also in advanced stages of raising $60 million in additional capital in the coming weeks.

Last week, the IFC disclosed that it was investing $40 million in the company, but MNT-Halan declined to comment; it’s expected that the remaining financing will come from existing shareholders.

In a statement, MNT-Halan says the investments “demonstrate continued confidence in its value proposition, management team, and superior technology.” The company also plans to expand internationally after solid growth in Egypt and progress on the swap agreement between super app Halan and Netherlands-based microlending platform MNT Investments.

In 2021, Halan, operating a digital wallet that offered bill payments, e-commerce and ride-hailing as well as micro, nano and consumer loans, entered into a swap agreement with MNT Investments (a microlending platform operating in Egypt with roots dating back to 2010) to provide financing solutions to the underbanked and unbanked. The leveraged buyout deal, which was formed in 2018, saw both companies adopt a new name: MNT-Halan. Headquartered in Egypt, its digital ecosystem connects consumers, merchants and micro-enterprises with business loans, consumer finance, payments, BNPL and e-commerce offerings, all backed by Neuron, its proprietary technology.

Last year, MNT-Halan raised $120 million from private equity firms, including Apis Growth Fund II, Development Partners International (DPI) and Lorax Capital Partners, and venture capitalists such as Middle East Venture Partners, Endeavor Catalyst and DisruptTech. At the time, it had served over 4 million and disbursed more than $1.7 billion worth of loans since inception.

CEO Mounir Nakhla, who founded the company with Ahmed Mohsen, said MNT-Halan continued where it left off and is presently Egypt’s largest lender to the unbanked: Total loans disbursed now exceed $2 billion per the company’s website (MNT-Halan issued loans north of $65 million last month).

On average, businesses access $1,000 worth of loans while paying a 25% annual interest on the platform; Nakhla noted the fintech maintains a healthy nonperforming loan ratio without disclosing its figure.

The two securitizations, totaling $140 million, that MNT-Halan secured last year are behind its impressive lending operations. The fintech’s wholly owned subsidiary, Tasaheel, managed to secure these funds locally via a securitization program with the Commercial International Bank (CIB), Egypt’s largest private sector bank.

It can further securitize up to $250 million, the company said. In addition to CIB, participating regional and local financial institutions include Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait, Al Baraka Bank and National Bank of Egypt.

It’s been demonstrated that lending is MNT-Halan’s primary business and main revenue generator; however, what’s interesting about the company is how it has layered a digital ecosystem of products, including e-commerce, FMCG delivery and mobile POS payments that feed its lending operations.

To paint a picture: Last June, the five-year-old company acquired Talabeyah, a B2B e-commerce platform that offers FMCG supplies directly to small merchants and retailers with next-day delivery. Nakhla tells me that this acquisition has allowed MNT-Halan to provide loans to these merchants or grocers, who then, in an agency banking play, act as mobile agents to individual customers who frequent their shops.

The company also wants to extend grocery shopping — in addition to other e-commerce stores selling electronics and personal items — to individual customers.

“We’re capitalizing on our existing distribution through million-plus customers and adding services within our ecosystem,” said the chief executive. “If you need a loan for your business, we’re going to give you one; you need a loan for consumption, we’re going to give you one; you need to order groceries or buy a mobile phone on our platform, we’ll deliver it to you via our e-commerce stores. Also, we can give them the credit they can use to make all of these purchases within the ecosystem.”

MNT-Halan lends to single small business owners or individuals who need lending to manage their businesses.

According to the Egyptian startup, its digital ecosystem serves more than 5 million customers in Egypt, of which 3.5 million are financial clients and over 2 million are borrowers. The startup plans to launch a debit card for its customers by the end of March.

Nakhla noted that due to the company’s focus on commerce and lending, it’s had to shut down its ride-hailing operations, one of Halan’s core offerings — before the merger — which mostly lagged international mobility outfits like Uber, Careem and inDriver. Meanwhile, MNT-Halan faces competition from Khazna, Paymob and MaxAB across its other product offerings.

“In some sectors, we do have competition. But in the most important sector, we’re the largest, and no one is as advanced in technology or creates a fully-fledged ecosystem for the underbanked.

I think this is where we differentiate ourselves from any other player in the market,” said the chief executive when asked about competing players in Egypt, while adding that the company is exploring a couple of mergers and acquisitions to consolidate its position in the country’s fintech and e-commerce space.

For MNT-Halan to raise this sum in the current venture capital climate, it had to increase its revenues and open new streams, Nakhla noted in his statement. The fintech claims to have made over $300 million in revenue last year, representing a modest 3.4x multiples on its unicorn valuation which aligns with the present public market calculations as previously reported by TechCrunch.

On a related note, MNT-Halan is Egypt’s only private billion-dollar company; payments giant Fawry achieved that valuation after going public in 2019 (although it’s well off the mark now).

“We are thrilled to be part of Egypt’s greatest fintech success story,” said Seif Fikry, CEO of Chimera Abu Dhabi, in a statement. MNT-Halan’s upward trajectory and momentum reflect the management team’s realization of its extraordinary vision to transform a high-touch business by seamlessly infusing an unparalleled proprietary tech platform while increasing product depth for its target customer segment.”

Source: Techcrunch

LEAP23, the world’s most visionary and valuable technology event, will host two competitions with a prize purse of US$1.54 million, as well as a welcome a raft of global celebrities and tech industry luminaries ranging from music icon will.i.am and FIFA World Cup winner Carles Puyol to Amin H Nassr, CEO of Aramco, and Jae Sook Evans, Chief Information Officer at Oracle.

LEAP23 is set to run from February 6-9 at the Riyadh Front Exhibition and Conference Centre and will be the setting for the inaugural LEAP Rocket Fuel Startup Pitch Challenge, powered by Saudi Arabia’s National Technology Development Programme (NTDP). The initiative is a collaboration between the Kingdom’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), the MiSK Foundation, and NTDP.

Ninety global startups will fight for the chance to be one of the 15 nascent businesses selected to pitch before a judging panel consisting of Shark Tank India’s Ghazal Alagh, Baroness Karren Brady, aide to The Apprentice’s Alan Sugar, Saudi angel investor Tala Al Jabri, and Dragon’s Den stars James Caan and Steven Bartlett.

The judges will present the LEAP Award and its accompanying US$250,000 main prize to the outstanding startup, while US$150,000 will go to the best early stage startup, the most innovative startup pioneered by women, the new business that best embodies the LEAP spirit, the most impressive startup occupying the Metaverse and Web 3.0, and the pitch that represents the most exciting, ground-breaking use of Artificial Intelligence.

On the show’s final day, LEAP23 will also host the winners’ ceremony of the ongoing Alibaba Cloud Saudi Hackathon, which comes with its own prize pool of US$532,000. Organisers said the response to the four-day hackathon, which started on January 29, was huge.

The winning solutions and ideas implementors – those that have made the best use of Alibaba Cloud technology to facilitate deployment, development, scalability, and fast go-to market solutions – will be presented with their awards on February 9.

LEAP23 is set to welcome 920 scheduled investors, including Sequoia Capital, Octopus Ventures, 500 Global and many more. Between them, they control an unprecedented US$1.9 trillion in assets under management. And with more than 5,000 potential meetings bookmarked, the four-day show promises to be the event where decisions are made and deals get done.

As well as pop superstar will.i.am and former Barcelona and Spain legend Puyol – both now entrepreneurs within the Metaverse – the latest batch of tech heavyweights and international celebrities set to speak at LEAP23 include Séan Garnier, CEO of Urbanball and world freestyle football champion, Gary Sorrentino, Global Chief Information Officer at Zoom, Helen K Pan, General Manager at Apollo Autonomous Driving – Baidu, Jim Deluca, CEO of Ceer, Hatem Dowidar, Group CEO at e& Group (formerly Etisalat), and a host of other C-suite thought-leaders from major global technology companies.

LEAP23’s newly released roster of tech talent also highlights the Saudi convention’s ability to connect East and West, with Selina Zhang, President of Alibaba Cloud, and Wu Eddie Yongming, Co-founder of Alibaba Group confirmed alongside Sheikh Talal Said Marhoon Al Mamari, CEO at Omantel, Saleem AlBlooshi, CTO at Du, Sheikh Bader bin Rashid Al Khalifa, Chief Communications and Sustainability Officer at Batelco, and Charles Li, ex-CEO of Hong Kong Exchange and Chairman of Micro Connect.

In connecting the most influential players from the East and West, LEAP23 will be the stage for announcing strategic alignments and large-scale business deals that will impact the tech community globally.

Last year, more than US$6 billion worth of investments were announced and organisers are confident this year, with an increase in investors, exhibitors, and attendees from around the world, will surpass that figure.

With more than 900 exhibitors confirmed for this year’s second iteration, LEAP23 will host more than 700 speakers, including billionaire investors, astronauts, and athletes-turned-tech investors across its 15 conferences. A host of Saudi Arabian heavyweights such as STC and NEOM will be accompanied by an international cadre of the biggest names in tech, such as Snapchat, Google Cloud, Amazon Web Services, Visa, Alibaba Cloud, Ericsson, Huawei, and Nokia.

Taking place alongside LEAP23 is the inaugural DeepFest, which will explore the global AI eco-system and showcase life-changing, multi-sector initiatives and innovations related to clean tech, the Metaverse, and women in technology. LEAP23 has garnered support from numerous leading government and private sector organisations.

Strategic partners and sponsors include NEOM, STC, Saudi Aramco, Mobily, IBM, Microsoft, Ericsson, Huawei, and Najm Insurance. The 2023 edition will also host country pavilions from the United Kingdom, Finland, Japan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Oman, and India.

The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) is powering LEAP in conjunction with Tahaluf – a strategic joint venture co-owned by Informa PLC and the SAFCSP.   

Source: African Business

UAE-based fintech Tabby, has raised $58 million in a Series C round from Sequoia Capital India, STV and PayPal Ventures, Mubadala Investment Capital, Arbor Ventures and Endeavor Catalyst, valuing the company at $660 million. The round also marks PayPal’s Ventures first investment in a GCC startup.

Founded in 2019 by Hosam Arab, Tabby is a fintech startup that offers users a buy now pay later (BNPL) facility for shopping online and offline.

The fintech works with over 10,000 brands including 9 out of the 10 largest retail groups in Mena. Last year, Tabby crossed three million active shoppers, expanded its operations to Egypt and grew 5x in revenue over the previous year.

The company has issued over 150,000 Tabby Cards, allowing users to purchase goods in-store and paying for them in instalments. In-store sales now make up over 10 per cent of the Tabby’s volumes.

Tabby will use the new funding to expand its product line into next-generation consumer financial services and support the company’s growing operations. This latest round takes the company’s total funding to date to $333 million.

Tabby, MENA’s leading shopping and financial services app, has raised $58 million from Sequoia Capital India, STV and PayPal Ventures, Mubadala Investment Capital, Arbor Ventures and Endeavor Catalyst in a Series C round which values the company at $660 million. The fundraise will be used to expand Tabby’s product line into next-gen consumer financial services and support the company’s growing operations. This round makes Tabby one of the most valuable startups in Mena and the first in the GCC to receive funding from PayPal Ventures.

Hosam Arab, CEO and co-founder of Tabby, said: "With rising interest rates and growing inflation, it has never been more important for people to have access to payment flexibility to stay in control of their finances. Despite downward pressure on fintech valuations, our business continues to sustainably scale as we lead the generational shift towards fair and transparent financial products in Mena.”

He added: “We’re excited to grow with an incredible set of investors who believe in the opportunity to create a healthier relationship with money for consumers in a region that’s ripe for change.”

The company works with over 10,000 brands including 9 out of the 10 largest retail groups in Mena, and more recently launched with noon, the region’s largest e-commerce marketplace. Last year, Tabby crossed three million active shoppers, expanded its operations to Egypt and grew 5x in revenue over the previous year.

GV Ravishankar, MD, Sequoia India, said: "We are excited to see Tabby grow into a leading consumer focused fintech company for the region. Over the next few years, it has the opportunity to offer several innovative products to its consumers to improve access while creating more affordability. The team has done this with continued focus on good credit quality and strong economics.”

Ihsan Jawad, Partner at STV said: “We are pleased to be doubling-down on our partnership with Hosam, Daniil and the team on their growth journey across the region.”

Among its other milestones, the fintech company has issued over 150,000 Tabby Cards only six months after launching its cards programme with in-store sales now making up over 10 per cent of the company’s volumes.

source Wamda

Egypt-based esports platform GBarena has acquired Tunisia’s Galactech for $15 million, in the form of a share swap.

This acquisition supports GBArena’s plans to expand into the GCC, including Saudi Arabia, with further expansion plans in the Middle Eastern esports industry. GBarena will leverage the on-ground presence and capabilities that Galactech has in Riyadh, Dubai, and Tunisia.

Founded in 2016 by Mustafa Zaza and Bishoy Mesdary, GBarena aims to create an online gaming community connecting gamers with tournament organisers and providing them with a platform where they can manage their tournaments through fully automated processes, while Galactech was founded in 2019 by Houcem Maiza and Houssem Zouaghi and now has over 200,000 active users.

Maiza, Galactech’s CEO, will be joining GBArena as co-CEO.

In October 2021, GBarena raised a six-figure pre-Series A funding round, to fuel its expansion plans.

Press release:

GBarena, the leading Middle East esports platform, today announced an agreement to acquire Tunisia-based Galactech, the gaming leader in North Africa alongside a significant presence in the GCC. The transaction expands GBArena’s footprint into the burgeoning North African market and signals their intentions to expand further including throughout the GCC.

Valued at around $15 million, in the form of a share swap, it marks the second Tunisian acquisition this month following Instadeep's whopping ₤562 million transactions by BioNTech.

This marks a milestone transaction for GBarena in anticipation of closing its Series A later this year, with participation from investors in the US, Singapore and the Mena region.

This acquisition comes in alignment with GBArena’s planned expansion into GCC, including Saudi Arabia. With the entry into North Africa executed via this transaction, the focus will continue on further expansion in the Middle Eastern esports industry. GBArena will leverage the on-ground presence and capabilities that Galactech has in Riyadh, Dubai and Tunis.

Galactech, founded in 2019, has been making waves in the North African gaming scene since its launch in 2019. With over 200,000 active users, they have become one of the most popular gaming platforms in North Africa and beyond in the region.

GBarena CEO Samer Wagdy expressed his enthusiasm for this new venture: “Our goal has always been to provide our users with an unparalleled esports experience, no matter where they're located in the world. With our acquisition of Galactech, we can now ensure that our users from North Africa will have access to identical features and content they have come to expect from us while providing them with extensive opportunities for growth and development within the esports community." Wagdy also emphasised that this acquisition is one step forward towards achieving the company’s vision, which is to be the leading aggregator in MENA, serving all stakeholders in the industry.

“We’re very happy to be taking a step forward to fulfil the vision we started embarking on the journey with. Under GBArena’s ownership, Galactech will be able to tap into both GBArena’s established user base and resources to strengthen its presence in the region,” mentioned Houcem Maiza, Galactech’s CEO, who’ll be joining GBArena as Co-CEO.

With today’s GenZ driving the region’s $3.56 billion industry, GBA’s youth-driven leadership is set in stone to build the engagement needed to foster communities across the Middle East and North Africa. Viewing today’s growth opportunity in markets like KSA and UAE, with injections of over $40 billion on infrastructural developments, a lot is expected to shape up in Mena’s gaming ecosystem in 2023. Upgrades to web3 & cloud gaming will be revolutionising the local experience very soon, reaching an expected 85.76 million gamers by 2025.

“We are thrilled to announce that with this transaction GBarena is joining forces with Galactech, creating a regional powerhouse in the thriving gaming industry," said GBarena’s chairman, Ahmed Abou Doma.

He added that "After careful analysis, we both realised it is a perfect complementary strategic fit for both companies. It will allow us to combine our strengths and resources maximising value creation and providing our gamers, fans and partners and all stakeholders with an unparalleled experience. We look forward to taking esports in the region to the next level and cementing our position as the regional leader in the industry.”

Shehata & Partners is acting as the legal advisor and Youssef Salem is acting as the financial advisor on the transaction.

source: Wamda

The two sides signed a good will declaration document citing the enhancement of cooperation in a number of areas related to the financial sector, including banking services, financial technology, sustainable finance and insurance

The finance ministers of Saudi Arabia and Switzerland held a meeting – part of the annual Saudi-Swiss Financial Dialogue in Riyadh on Sunday to review bilateral cooperation and explore new initiatives to boost economic activities between the two countries.

The two ministers also signed a goodwill declaration document citing the enhancement of cooperation in a number of areas related to the financial sector, including banking services, financial technology, sustainable finance and insurance.

The two also emphasized the need for enhancing the role of Switzerland in its capacity as a strategic partner of the kingdom in its drive to achieve its Vision 2030.

Saudi minister of finance Mohamed bin Abdullah Al-Jadaan, while inaugurating the bilateral dialogue, drew attention to the challenges facing the global economy.

He also highlighted the importance of providing appropriate green finance, citing the role the Swiss Federation can play in its capacity as host of leading world finance institutions. For his part, the Swiss minister of finance lauded the strong Saudi economy.

Source: Arabian Business

Bahrain-based foodtech Calo, has raised a $13 million pre-Series A round led by Nuwa Capital and STV. Other investors participating in the round include Khwarizmi Ventures, Al Faisaliah Group and AlRajhi Family Office. This brings Calo's total investment to date to $26.5 million after raising its Seed round last year.

Founded in 2019 by Ahmed AlRawi and Moayed Almoayed, Calo serves personalised meal subscriptions.

The new funds will be used to double down on the GCC market where it currently operates in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE, and Kuwait. It will also look to serve new categories, and explore opportunities for regional and international expansion.

Press release:

Calo, a direct-to-consumer foodtech company offering personalised meal subscriptions, recently raised a $13 million pre-Series A round led by two of the region’s largest investors, Nuwa Capital and STV. This round brings the total investment in Calo to $26.5 million after raising its Seed round just last year.

Calo serves personalised meal subscriptions to busy people, catered towards fitness or lifestyle goals. Customers receive their meals daily and get to choose from a rotating menu with over 500 options. The service is loved by tens of thousands of customers that have enjoyed millions of Calo meals. The company prides itself on being customer-centric, and its Customer Experience team goes above and beyond in delivering happiness. Calo reports that most of its customers come through word of mouth.

The new funds will be used to double down on the GCC market, serve new categories, and explore opportunities for regional and international expansion. This comes after the company has expanded to 2 additional countries and 6 new cities this year including Dammam and Jeddah in Saudi, as well as the UAE and Kuwait. Calo’s most recent funding round also included the participation of Khwarizmi Ventures, Al Faisaliah Group, AlRajhi Family Office, and other investors.

Ahmed Alrawi, CEO at Calo, highlights, “We’re delivering millions of meals per year and have consistently been quadrupling in growth year over year. We foresee that this trend continues over the next few years as the wellness wave continues to grow.”

Nitin Reen, a partner at Nuwa Capital, said, “The team at Calo has mastered the ability to hone the fundamentals while continuing to innovate within the realm of foodtech. However, what truly makes Calo special is that they maintain an unrelenting focus on their customers in their journey to a healthy lifestyle. We have a strong belief in the founders and their traction and ability to recruit a very special team, in such a short time, which is a testament to their capabilities and vision. We are very excited to partner with Calo in their next chapter of growth and have every confidence that the team will continue to succeed.”

Mazin Alzaidi, a general partner at STV, agreed, “Calo is truly making healthy easy for thousands of customers across the region. The continuous growth and positive reviews are a sentiment to the teams' obsession with the customer and focus on operational excellence. Calo is solving a real problem, and we are excited to double down on our partnership with the team and company as they solve it for thousands more.”

Calo’s vertically integrated model allows the company to serve its customers a high-quality personalised experience while maintaining healthy margins, making the company’s business units very profitable.

“Today, there’s no global leader in the personalised nutrition space. We believe we can be that company. The biggest food companies in the world serve food that’s good for your tastebuds, but terrible for your body. We’re on a mission to change that,” said Alrawi.

Founded in 2019 in Bahrain, the company has quickly grown to nearly 700 employees located around the world. Calo currently operates in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE, and Kuwait, with plans to expand to other markets in the future.

source: Wamda

Saudi Arabia-based Revival Lab will establish “Fin-tactics Ventures", a venture builder specialised in fintech, insuretech and regtech, supported by a $40 million venture capital fund managed by Arbah Capital to invest in startups based in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East and the rest of the world.

Fintactics Ventures has come together through several partnerships including Aion Digital, which specialises in providing technical solutions to the financial sector in the region, Bitfy Holdings to provide blockchain services and Holol, a services platform to facilitate and enhance housing finance options in Saudi Arabia.

Press release:

Revival Lab announces the venture builder, "Fin-tactics Ventures", at the World Fintech Show conference as the first venture builder specialised in fintech, insurance and regulatory technologies in the region, and supported by 150 million riyals venture capital, approved by the Capital Market Authority (CMA) and managed by Arbah Capital to invest in promising opportunities in the sector in the Kingdom, the Middle East and the rest of the world.

The announcement included the signing of a partnership agreement between Fin-tactics Ventures and Aion Digital, represented by its Chairman, Mr Abdullatif Al-Rajhi, a company that specialised in providing technical solutions to the financial sector in the region. In light of this partnership, the joint venture (Lizam) was announced to create an integrated digital experience that is compatible with customer requirements and achieve the necessary flexibility by providing the service (RegTech-as-a-Service) with all the capabilities required for digital onboarding, eKYC, and compliance. In addition to verification by regulators to combat risk and fraud. This partnership aims to shape the financial landscape of the future and to develop and promote the expansion of well-built digital products.

The event also included other important partnerships, including signing with Bitfy Holdings to provide blockchain services and accelerate the adoption of its specialised technologies in the financial and non-financial sectors in the Kingdom. It is worth noting that " Fin-tactics Ventures has been a shareholder in Bitfy Holdings, fintech experts through direct investment within the latest investment round. Fin-tactics has also signed with one of the major banks in Brazil, Banco de Brazil, to provide fintech solutions to provide blockchain technology as well.

During the conference, another agreement was also signed to launch Holol, a services platform to facilitate and enhance housing finance options in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Mahmoud Al-Kohji, CEO of Arbah Capital, mentioned: “We are now witnessing a notable flow of opportunities with unique quality, and through this cooperation, we are committed to creating a suitable business environment to enhance excellence and growth in the financial sector.”

According to Mohammed Al-Maghlouth, CEO of Revival Lab: “We have worked to provide innovative initiatives for the financial sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and we aim to enable the fund to support other regions globally.”

Haitham Al-Sahafi, CEO of Fintactics Ventures, said: “As a venture builder specialised in fintech, we seek to make Fintactics Ventures the initiator and supporter of rapid growth in the sector on solid foundations creating an attractive environment for competition and entrepreneurship by providing resources and capabilities through cooperation to accelerate the development process in startups, and be among the recent organisations to strengthen the national ecosystem in the field.”

source: Wamda

Algeria-based super app Yassir, has raised $150 million in Series B funding, led by BOND, with participation from DN Capital, Dorsal Capital, Quiet Capital, Stanford Alumni Ventures (aka Spike Ventures) and Y Combinator, among other investors.

Founded in 2017 by Noureddine Tayebi and El Mahdi Yettou, Yassir is a super app that provides its users with a suite of services, including rideshare, food and grocery delivery and financial services. It now operates in six countries and 45 cities throughout the world.

With this latest round of funding, Yassir plans to expand its reach into the region.

Press release:

Yassir, a multi-sided marketplace offering on-demand services such as ride-hailing, food and grocery delivery, banking and more, announced today that it has raised $150 million in Series B funding from prominent global investors. The investment was led by BOND, with participation from DN Capital, Dorsal Capital, Quiet Capital, Stanford Alumni Ventures (aka Spike Ventures) and Y Combinator, among other strategic investors.

Having raised $193.25 million in the five years since the company’s launch, it is now the most valuable startup in North Africa, and one of the highest-valued companies in Africa and the Middle East. With this latest round of funding, Yassir plans to expand its reach into the region.

“Yassir means ‘easy’ in Arabic, and our mission as a company is to make people’s lives easy,” says Noureddine Tayebi, Founder and CEO of Yassir. “In the markets where we operate, we are already having a considerable impact on how people manage their day-to-day lives. We look forward to expanding our presence into other geographies to become the first super app to achieve mass adoption.”

Founded in 2017, today, the company operates in six countries and 45 cities, where it is used by more than 8 million users. Popular in the Maghreb region (Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia) and parts of French-speaking Africa, the super app provides three core services – ride-hailing, food and grocery delivery, and financial services. An all-in-one ecosystem, the app provides its customers with a single-point solution for managing all of their day-to-day activities, from travelling to work to ordering groceries and meals. These services generate revenues for more than 100,000 partners, which include drivers, couriers, merchants, and wholesalers, among other gig workers and vendors.

Beyond providing a core suite of services, Yassir offers financial services aimed at serving the full ecosystem, touching every component of the multi-sided marketplace. A 2018 report by McKinsey & Company on growth and innovation in African retail banking, found that more than half (57%) of Africa’s population lack any form of a bank account. Among African banking customers, 40% prefer digital channels for transactions. By providing consumers in Africa with a mobile banking solution, as part of a more comprehensive suite of services, Yassir is meeting an important need in the market, one where 50% of the population already have mobile internet access.

“We believe technology will foundationally rearchitect consumers’ relationship with daily needs – transportation, food, financial services – not just in developed countries, but in every corner of the world,” says Daegwon Chae, general partner at BOND. “This investment is an extension of that belief in an underserved but dynamic, rapidly growing region. Emerging out of North Africa, the app has already become indispensable to users for critical aspects of their lives.”

Noureddine, a Stanford PhD and a native of Algeria spent more than 15 years in Silicon Valley before returning to his homeland to build Yassir. He adds, “Yassir was founded with a threefold mission. First,

we want to create a local tech startup success model which will be emulated by others and more so Yassir team members. Second, we want to empower the local talent and more importantly the technical talent which often leaves the region, mainly to Europe, to pursue further studies or find jobs. We, in fact, hire engineering talent in each country we operate in to expand that mission. And finally, we want to make the lives of our people easy while infusing social values via our products such as trust and mutual help.”

Source: Wamda

UAE-based fintech Pyypl, has raised a $20 million Series B round from a group of international investors and ten of its existing investors.

Founded in 2017 by Antti Arponen, Pyypl is a payment technology company and financial services provider using blockchain in its core systems.

The latest round will enable the company to further expand its reach across the Middle East and Africa, as well as invest in product development.

This latest round brings Pyypl’s total investment raised to $40 million.

Press release:

Pyypl – pronounced “People” – the Middle East and Africa (MEA) focused financial services platform and Hub71 company has closed its target Series B raise of $20 million from a diverse group of international investors and ten existing investors. Pyypl is considering opening a second tranche for further investment due to interest from investors.

Since its inception in 2017, Pyypl has raised almost $40 million and the Series B raise will enable the Company to further expand its reach across the MEA region. Product development will also be a key focus, with Pyypl 2.0 building out new features of the company’s proprietary technology platform to enhance user experience and facilitate scaling in current and new markets.

Led by an experienced management team with a proven track record in the region, Pyypl is one of the fastest-growing fintech in MEA. It has already seen great traction since its Series A just a year ago, growing over four times in terms of user numbers, transaction volumes and revenues. Pyypl operates at a healthy gross margin showing that fintech can grow sustainably.

Pyypl has established key partnerships that have taken years to develop in order to be part of a financial ecosystem required to meet demand across. These include Visa, a number of payment gateway partners, Ripple and Binance to name a few. Based in Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem, Pyypl is gaining access to its network of partners, and benefiting from its business-friendly environment and strong talent base.

With its proprietary technology, experienced management team and unique multi-product, pan-regional approach Pyypl is in the right sector, in the right geography at the right time.

Antti Arponen, co-founder and CEO of Pyypl, commented: “We welcome our new investors and appreciate the further investment from our existing shareholders in support of our financial inclusion journey. We have grown significantly since our Series A round and are excited to enter the next phase of growth and capability. This is just the beginning.”

Pyypl’s purpose-driven approach offers key financial services in one app for the 800 million financially underserved smartphone users across Africa and the Middle East, via internationally accepted virtual and physical prepaid cards, instant domestic and international user-to-user transfers as well as remittances to 38 currency destinations. Pyypl has a strong pipeline of additional products.

Source: Wamda

Egypt-based fintech Blnk, has raised $23.7 million in equity and debt funding, and $8.3 million in securitised bond issuance.

The pre-Seed and Seed funding rounds were led by Abu Dhabi’s Emirates International Investment Company (EIIC) and Egypt-based VC firm Sawari Ventures, with participation from several local and international angel investors. The $11.2 million debt funding was secured from a number of local banks. The $8.3 million securitised bond issuance was underwritten by the National Bank of Egypt and Banque du Caire.

Founded in 2021 by Amr Sultan and Tarek Elsheikh, Blnk has developed a digital lending platform that allows merchants of all sizes to instantly underwrite and finance their customers' purchases at the point of sale, paying over instalments ranging from six to 36 months.

The funds will support Blnk’s development of AI-powered lending infrastructure and the financing of the company’s portfolio of customers.

Press release:

Blnk, a fintech startup that enables instant consumer credit in Egypt, has raised $23.7 million in equity and debt funding, and $8.3 million in securitized bond issuance to accelerate financial inclusion within underserved communities across the country. The funds will support the further development of Blnk’s Artificial Intelligence-powered lending infrastructure and the financing of the company’s fast-growing portfolio of customers.

The combined pre-seed and seed funding rounds of $12.5 million were led by Abu Dhabi’s Emirates International Investment Company (EIIC) and Egypt-based, leading venture capital firm Sawari Ventures, with participation from several prominent local and international angel investors. The $11.2 million debt funding was secured from a number of leading local banks. The $8.3 million securitised bond issuance was underwritten by the National Bank of Egypt and Banque du Caire, making Blnk the youngest Egyptian startup to securitize its loan book.

Launched in October 2021, Blnk has developed a digital lending platform that empowers merchants of all sizes to instantly underwrite and finance their customers' purchases at the point of sale. With only a National ID and in as little as 3 minutes, consumers can access financing to purchase a wide range of products or services, including electronics, furniture and automotive services, paying over instalments ranging from 6 to 36 months. Leveraging its vast base of merchant branches across Egypt, Blnk has disbursed more than $20 million in loans to date. Merchants are also boosting their profitability via the transaction commission that Blnk provides.

According to the International Monetary Fund, Egypt is expected to become the second-largest Arab and African economy by the end of 2022. However, limited consumer credit penetration - only 4 per cent of Egyptians have credit cards - means consumers and businesses across the country are unable to take full advantage of opportunities to trade and maximise the country’s full economic potential. By providing inclusive access to financing for consumers across the country, Blnk is supporting further growth and development in the Egyptian economy.

Speaking about the new funding, Amr Sultan, Co-founder and CEO of Blnk said, “Our mission is to make it easier for more Egyptians to purchase the products and services they desire by offering inclusive and convenient consumer credit at the point of sale. We are delighted to have the backing of a great cohort of investors at an early stage in our journey. With their support, we believe we can drive financial inclusion in Egypt, as well as the wider Middle East and North Africa region”.

Joseph Iskander, Head of Investment at EIIC, said “we are convinced that the Egyptian market and its startup ecosystem present a compelling opportunity for regional and international investors and we are committed to identifying and investing in value accretive businesses. We are pleased to partner with Blnk to drive financial inclusion and economic development in Egypt and we look forward to working with the team to achieve their goals''.

Hany Al Sonbaty, the Managing Partner at Sawari Ventures, stated: “we are thrilled to have Blnk in our portfolio and backing them to deliver innovative solutions to tackle the urgent challenge of financial inclusion in Egypt. The company has the right combination of a seasoned team and a scalable business model, with a clear path to profitability”

Source: Wamda