Female-founded Islamic fintech start-up Forus Capital has closed a Series A funding round, co-led by a Riyad Bank-backed fintech venture.
The undisclosed amount of investment was co-led by Yazeed Alrajhi and Brothers Holdings, and Riyad Bank’s Riyad Fintech Fund. This is another milestone by Forus Capital, which received its Shariah compliance stamp of approval last month.
As one of the earliest fintech start-ups to receive a Saudi Central Bank experimental fintech permit in 2019, Forus — under the leadership of Nosibah Alrajhi — have originated over SAR60 million (US$15.98 million) in deployed financing to at least 57 SMEs. The peer-to-peer (P2P) SME financing platform will use the recent funding to develop its technology and expand its offerings. It is understood that Forus has plans to expand its geographical footprint in the MENA region.
“The debt market is witnessing an accelerated level of disruptions and Forus is keen to play a major role in that. This investment by such a sophisticated cohort of institutional investors serves as a testament of Forus’s trajectory as a major player in the Saudi P2P lending market and represents yet another vote of confidence in the evolving Saudi fintech scene,” said Nosibah.