Vineeta Tan

After about three years since it formed an alliance with Kuwait’s leading telco provider to establish a digital banking platform, Boubyan Bank has withdrawn itself from the race for an Islamic digital bank license.

InvestSky, a social investing platform which offers Halal solutions, have secured US$3.4 million in pre-seed funding to aid the fintech start-up’s retail expansion in the GCC.

Kazakhstan-based Tayyab has signed an agreement with fintech venture builder Insha Ventures, a subsidiary of participation bank Albaraka Turk, to launch its business in Turkiye this year, IFN Fintech has learned.

Hot on the heels of receiving its license from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), Islamic crowdfunding platform Manafa lands a SAR106 million (US$28.23 million) Series A investment round, which will help the start-up fund product development and its expansion plan in Saudi Arabia.

Mobility fintech start-up Moove has raised US$30 million from its debut Sukuk offering to...

Shariah compliant Ajman Bank is expanding its digital payment services in collaboration with payments-as-a-service (PaaS) platform KMMRCE Pay.

Islamic fintech company Tayyab is looking to launch a Halal automotive financing product in January, bringing the Kazakhstani start-up one step closer to its Islamic digital banking ambition.

The Saudi Capital Market Authority (CMA) has granted Malaa Financial Technology for Securities Business...

Versa, a digital cash management app licensed by the Securities Commission Malaysia, has introduced Versa Gold, its first Shariah compliant fund.

Hijra Bank, a subsidiary of Islamic P2P finance platform ALAMI Group, has obtained the payment service providers category 1 (PJP-1) license from Bank Indonesia, which allows the digital rural bank to provide more payment services to customers, the first for any rural bank in the Republic.

The Malaysian arm of the world’s largest Islamic bank has unveiled its virtual bank, becoming the second Shariah bank in the Southeast Asian nation to tap the market with a fully digital Islamic banking proposition.

FWD Group Holdings is deepening its Islamic fintech commitment with the launch of a RM45 million (US$10.06 million) venture capital (VC) fund in partnership with Malaysian VC firm Artem Ventures to invest in Shariah compliant financial technology and insurtech.

Currently in its final sprint of closing its post-seed round, Uzbekistan-based IMAN confirms that it will be applying for new licenses, including an Islamic banking one, beginning January and is on track to expand into new markets including Pakistan.

Dubai-based fintech company KLAIM is attracting the attention of Islamic investors, with Knuru Capital leading a US$30 million Shariah compliant investment round for the healthcare start-up, and an initial commitment of US$5 million already sealed.

A Saudi fintech company and a Dubai-based regional blockchain paymentcompany have joined hands to deploy a digital wallet, designed specifically for Hajj and Umrah, across over one million point-of-sale (POS) terminals throughout Saudi Arabia.

Islamic digital robo-advisor Wahed has rolled out an exchange-traded product (ETP) underpinned by its first-ever exchange-traded fund (ETF), in a bid to widen the appeal of its fund to a larger demographic.

myIOU, the Malaysian buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) arm of Australia-listed IOUpay, has achieved positive adjusted net operating cashflow for the fourth consecutive quarter in the July—September 2022 period. This is on the back of receiving a Shariah seal of approval and forming new partnerships with Islamic finance-related entities.

Tajik Halal challenger bank Alif Bank has named Gulanor Atobek as CEO as the founding team shifts its focus toward building a crypto proposition for the group.

Yalla recently launched its new app, expanding its remit to facilitate Halal investments, but IFN Fintech learns that the Nigerian Islamic fintech start-up intends to procure another license to allow it to offer its own Shariah compliant investment portfolios.

Shariah compliant agricultural fintech start-up WeGro Technologies has partnered with United Commercial Bank (UCB) to increase Bangladesh-based farmers’ access to financing.

MoneyFellows, an Egyptian fintech company operating a Shariah compliant model, has raised US$31 million in Series B funding to fuel its expansion into Asia and across Africa as well support product expansion across the B2C and B2B segments.

Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) has issued its Open Banking Framework, as part of the government’s national fintech strategy.

Islamic Coin (ISLM Coin) will be launching in the next two months before the end of 2022, following its US$200 million private sale in August.

Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) has opened new applications for Shariah P2P and equity crowdfunding (ECF) market operators with hopes of enhancing the Islamic fintech ecosystem and bolstering MSME funding access.