Marhaba, fintech friends!

Week by week, MENA’s fintech landscape is being reshaped not just by startups, but by the institutions building around, above and under them. Strategic investors, sovereign funds and incumbent operators are slowly consolidating control over infrastructure, credit and capital allocation. From Network International’s merger with Magnati to IHC’s acquisition of Zelo and Mubadala’s growing footprint in private credit, the last 2 week’s developments fit squarely within that longer-term arc.

In a region where state-aligned capital plays an outsized role, this isn’t unexpected. But the implications are becoming clearer: a more vertically integrated, capital-intensive and policy-synchronized fintech ecosystem is taking root, with different dynamics around access, competition and exit than those typically observed in venture-led markets.

Let's get into it. Two weeks worth of fintech news from MENA starts now.

💸 Fundraises and Exits

🇦🇪 Network International, UAE-based payment processing company, and Magnati, UAE-based payment solution provider, are merging, with the process set to be complete in Q3 this year

🇲🇦 Morocco’s ORA Technologies raises $7.5 million in Series A funding led by Azur Innovation Fund

🇪🇬 PALM, Egypt-based fintech, closes a 7-figure pre-seed round of funding led by 4DX Ventures, at an undisclosed value

🇦🇪 eFunder (now Zelo), a UAE-based private financing platform for SMEs, gets acquired by global investment firm, International Holding Company

🇸🇦 Saudi’s Yasmine receives $2 million in seed funding to scale its embedded insurance platform

🇦🇪 Qlub, UAE-based fintech, raises $30 million in funding, co-led by Shorooq Partners and Cherry Ventures, and joined by e&, Legend Capital and Mubadala Investments.

💰 Funds

Sukna Capital, a VC based in Saudi, receives approval to launch its open-ended, Sharia-compliant direct lending fund: Sukna Fund for Direct Financing

AlKhabeer Capital partners with Fasanara Capital, a $5 billion global asset manager, to unlock alternative private credit opportunities across Saudi

Mubadala Investment acquires a minority stake in London-based private credit lender Hayden Capital Management.

🚀 Partnerships & Product Launches

Pesa launches in the UAE with a dedicated Pesa Dubai (AED) wallet

Network International partners with Wio Bank to offer digital lending solutions for small to medium merchants in the UAE

Botim launches a new user interface and brand identity as part of its transformation into a fintech-first, AI-native ultra app

Bahrain’s EazyPay partners with Saudi’s Tamara to act as its local acquirer

London-HQ Paymentology, a global issuer-processor, sets up shop in Dubai to support growth across MENA

Binance launches Sharia Earn: crypto staking options that are Sharia-compliant

TikTok and Visa come together to support the UAE’s SMEs with digital ad credits

Telr, a Dubai-based payment gateway and financial solutions provider, announces its partnership with fintech Peko to introduce Telr Incepta: an integrated platform to support business set-up and operations across the UAE

Trendyol Group, Baykar, ADQ and Ant International sign an MoU to establish an integrated financial services venture

The Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy and Dubai Finance collaborate to action the Dubai Cashless Strategy.

🏛 Licensing & Regulations

ValU, Egypt BNPL, receives approval from the Jordanian Central Bank to offer its services across Jordan

Egypt’s FRA licenses 5 new companies: Saqr Real Estate Investment Fund, Nawy Shares Real Estate Investment Fund, Saqr for Real Estate IPO Promotion and Fund Management, Nawy Shares for Real Estate IPO Promotion and Fund Management and Qardy for Medium and Small Enterprise Financing

Saudi’s CMA introduces a fresh set of rules to facilitate the process of opening investment accounts

BurjX, UAE-based digital assets trading platform, receives ADGM approval to provider brokerage and custody operations

Kuwait launches the first securities-based crowdfunding platform, Al-Mawazi Capital

The UAE’s Central Bank partners with Presight, an AI and big data analytics company, to develop key financial systems including the Central Bank Digital Currency infrastructure, Instant Payments Platform (Aani), Domestic Card Scheme (Jaywan), National Card Switch, Real Time Gross Settlement system and Open Finance Platform (Nebras).

Thank you for tuning in!

If you have feedback on this edition of This Week in Fintech MENA, please reach out on LinkedIn.

Until next week,

Salam ✌🏼