Money20/20 Middle East opens with a $6.5bn valuation, SAR 500m for SMEs and six new payout markets

Editorial Calendar Money20/20 Middle East opens with a $6.5bn valuation, SAR 500m for SMEs and six new payout markets Money20/20 Middle Eastopened its second edition on Monday, withH.E. Mohammed Al-Jadaan, Minister of Finance and chairman of the Financial Sector Development Program, inaugurating the show at the Riyadh Exhibition and Convention Centre in Malham and touring the floor. Day one delivered on the premise.

A $233m equity round at a $6.5bn valuation, a SAR 500m financing partnership aimed at Saudi SMEs, and a cross-border payout network opening six new Middle East markets all landed inside the first eight hours, and the common thread running through them is licensing. The raise, and the licence stack underneath it Tabbyannounced a $233m equity round at a $6.5bn valuation, led by existing investorBlue Pool Capitalwith participation fromHSG,Wellington ManagementandArbor Ventures.Bloombergreported the valuation puts Tabby ahead ofKlarna. The company says it has been profitable since 2023 and now processes more than $18bn in annualised transaction volume across 25 million registered users and 70,000 business partners.

The round includes a liquidity option for employees, on top of more than $100m in share sales Tabby has facilitated through tenders since 2023. The valuation will get the headlines. The more interesting part of the release is the licence list underneath it.

Over the past year theSaudi Central Bankhas granted Tabby consumer and SME finance licences, which is what allows it to write larger and longer-term consumer financing and working capital for businesses rather than four instalments at a checkout. Tabby has also acquiredTweeq, a SAMA-licensed digital wallet, extending it into accounts, cards and transfers. In the UAE it holds a Stored Value Facilities licence from the central bank, under which it launched Tabby Cash, an alternative to a debit account with no account or card fees, paying cashback on card