Yabi Secures $8 Million in Seed Round, Eyes Regional Expansion

With Al Wafra Al Thanya (Wafra II) joining the prominent list of existing investors, Yabi closes its USD 8 million Seed round.

The round, which is also seeing participation from SHUAA Capital, focuses on product development and pushes growth into regional markets.

Yabi by Souqalmal was launched in Saudi Arabia this November, boasting a localised personal finance wellbeing platform.

Driven by its firm belief in localisation for true value creation when it comes to personal finance, Yabi launched in both English and Arabic in the Kingdom, offering two new courses every month, all delivered by Saudi market experts.

Yabi is now fully live in two markets UAE and KSA.

Yabi's commitment to the KSA market goes beyond the tailored content, as the startup has a presence on the ground, allocating dedicated resources to lead the market penetration.

The objective is to increase financial literacy through B2B relationships by encouraging companies to bring financial literacy as part of their employee well-being program.

“Saudi Vision 2030 is inspiring, and its impact will set an unprecedented growth. Yabi and Saudi Vision 2030 share a common goal: to increase financial literacy and saving levels across the Kingdom. Financial literacy and the involvement of individuals in the economy are top priorities for the public and private sectors. ~30% of Saudis are considered financially literate today (report by SAMA) and the savings ratio was 1.6%1 of annual disposable income (2018). Those are evidence of some of the gaps we want to fill," says Ambareen Musa, Chief Executive Officer of Yabi.

"Additionally," she adds, "the Saudi Vision 2030 has within its targets to reach 70% of household ownership and to increase the national saving levels closer to the global average of 10%. Moreover, the Saudi government is working towards achieving its National Savings and Financial Literacy Strategy, which aims to help individuals make better financial decisions and increase the access and use of personal financial tools. This is a crucial moment for Yabi and the Kingdom to work towards the financial well-being of their citizens and residents.”

“Spreading financial literacy and financial awareness is key to allowing individuals to live their lives happily and to their fullest potential. While technology has improved our lives in many aspects, it also brought a negative impact on financial behaviours. Yabi is at the forefront of using tech to empower individuals by spreading essential financial knowledge. Wafra II believes that any future for fintech must include efforts to spread financial awareness. Therefore, its investment in Yabi to bring its platform to the Saudi market aligns with its core purpose to play a role in raising the level of financial education, build up investments and savings and therefore contribute to Saudi Arabia’s digital GDP,” says Salah Khashoggi, managing director of Al Wafra Al Thanya.

Yabi corporate pipeline is promising and expected to add more names to the already prominent list of adopters, which includes Al-Futtaim, Careem, Chalhoub and Al Ghurair, to name a few.

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