Welcome to this week’s weekly news roundup, where we bring you a quick overview of the latest developments in finance, payments, retail, e-commerce and more across the Middle East and Europe regions.
In the Middle East…
- The Central Bank of The UAE (CBUAE) is rolling out its new domestic card system called Jaywan via its subsidiary, Al Etihad Payments. This launch is a result of Al Etihad Payments collaborating with India’s NPCI International to develop the Jaywan card system, a domestic card scheme built specifically for the UAE. Jaywan is one of the nine Financial Infrastructure Transformation (FIT) initiatives, designed to improve payment solutions with an emphasis on ecommerce, digital transactions, and financial inclusion. Certain issuers will unveil the first Jaywan cards by the end of June with many more to be added over the coming months.
- Among other notable launches, Deliveroo launched a new online shopping offering in Kuwait, this week, as it looks to meet a surge in demand for non-food items on the platform. Globally, beauty and personal care products, for instance, have seen 320,000 monthly searches, while searches for consumer electronics have increased by 59% year-over-year. The company is also rolling out a new gifting functionality in the app wherein consumers can send receivers a trackable link to their order with an animated greeting card.
- The The London Institute of Banking & Finance MENA (LIBF) has published its new whitepaper titled “Sustainability reporting for banks: the climb starts here,” authored by two of its esteemed faculty members, Emmanuel Rondeau and Rutang Thannawalla. At a crucial time for sustainability, the report is aiming to help financial institutions navigate the landscape of ESG reporting in the region. Interestingly, it also examines the evolution of ESG regulation in Europe and how this has set a benchmark for global practices.
- In partnerships, Emirates NBD has become the the first bank to use Citi ‘s 24/7 USD clearing service to make cross-border USD payments available to their corporate and retail clients around the clock. The service has been made available initially in the UAE and Saudi Arabia and will help to remove barriers to the payment flow process in the region such as early afternoon cut-off times.
- First Abu Dhabi Bank Misr (FABMISR) has teamed up with Cayesh, a specialist in supply chain finance to introduce new lending initiatives for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Egypt. A key foucs for the partnership, backed by the Central Bank of Egypt, will be reducing the working capital deficit. This is seen as a critical challenge for MSMEs under the current economic climate and crucial to advancing Egypt’s fintech finance sector.
- UAE-based retail company Majid Al Futtaim has partnered with Checkout.com to offer e-commerce customers secure one-click checkout experiences. The collaboration will provide Majid Al Futtaim’s customers with a unified payment platform for accessing fashion, home, retail, beauty brands, entertainment, and Carrefour grocery stores across 20 digital platforms in the GCC and 14 markets.
- Finally, on the investment front, Cairo-based startup, Sahl, raised $6 million in Series A and seed funding, this week, accelerating its development as a one-stop shop for household bills in collaboration with government entities. It comes on the back of a regional launch in the UAE with plans to use the funds to drive expansion into Saudi Arabia and further strengthen its position in Egypt.
- Additionally, Dubai-based NOW Money has also announced the raise of USD 4 million in a new funding round, which will enable the company to expand its digital banking services in the GCC.
In Europe…
- SHEIN has reportedly said its resale platform, where customers can buy and sell previously pre-owned products from the fast fashion retailer online, will be made available in Europe and the UK. According to a Reuters report, the platform, which was launched in the U.S. about two years ago, will now be accessible in France, followed by the UK and Germany in subsequent phases. The latest launch of the Shein Exchange platform reportedly comes after studies revealed that 50% of respondents from the UK, France, Germany, and Brazil are driven by sustainability to buy second-hand clothes online.
- US-based cryptocurrency payment company MoonPay has broadened its partnership with PayPal to cover 24 EU member states and the UK, enabling users to purchase cryptocurrencies through PayPal.
- Nexi Group, a European payment technology firm, has revealed an extension of its collaboration with Compass to now incorporate ecommerce into the Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) segment.
- Open Banking payments provider Trustly has launched an AI-powered recurring payment solution, a service that aims to streamline subscription payments, reduce complexity, and minimize fraud and payment failures. As a result merchants can expect an improved method for handling recurring transactions through a single integration.
- Elsewhere, the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) has granted approval to Crypto.com as a virtual asset service provider (VASP). This approval allows Crypto.com, a prominent cryptocurrency trading platform, to offer services in Ireland, including crypto-to-fiat exchanges and fiat wallets.
- Finally, Hawk, a firm that specialises in AI-powered fraud prevention and anti-money laundering technology is expanding its Series B funding round to help it further scale and meet a rising demand for AI-driven anti-financial crime solutions. The Germany-based company focuses on helping financial institutions to detect and prevent financial crimes while ensuring compliance with AML/CFT regulations.
There you have it! It’s been another eventful seven days of new launches, partnerships and innovations in the world of Seamless Xtra
Till next week!
