UAE-based digital banking startup, YAP has reportedly raised a Series A funding round of USD 41 million to expand its business in Saudi Arabia.
The startup intends to raise a further USD 20 million to fund its expansion plans. So far, the investors include Abu Dawood Group, Aljazira Capital, Audacia Capital, and Astra Group. YAP asserts to complete the funding round by the end of this year.
Apart from Saudi Arabia, YAP will use the proceeds to expand its business in Pakistan, Egypt, and Ghana, according to Co-Founder and Chief Executive Marwan Hachem.
Hachem pointed out that the company received its electronic money institutions (EMI) license in Pakistan and payment service provider (PSP) in Ghana.
For the uninitiated, YAP, which was launched a year ago, collaborated with a public joint-stock company, RAK Bank to become the first stand-alone digital banking platform in UAE.
As per YAP’s Co-Founder and Managing Director, Anas Zaidan, the startup has allied with Bank AlJazira in Saudi Arabia where it would soft launch in October before a full-fledged one in Q1 next year.
Sources also added that YAP intends to launch in Ghana and Pakistan by the end of this year. The startup is currently providing services on a trial basis in the region. On the other hand, the company plans to launch its services in Egypt, the most populous Arab nation, by next year.
YAP would primarily target the substantial remittance segment of Pakistanis working in the Gulf who transfer billions of dollars to their homes each year. So far, more than 130,000 users have registered to the digital bank’s app.
Previously, in September 2021, YAP unveiled the first virtual card to enable users to securely shop online. This launch was part of a series of new rollouts planned by the startup, each of which is developed to facilitate an easy digital banking experience.
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