In June SAMA announced that it 14 new startups will be added to work in the Sandbox regulatory environment for the innovative financial products in KSA. These would join the 7 previously approved companies, making the total 21.
According to Fintech news the 18 companies unveiled by Abdulelah Alsayegh, a fintech entrepreneur in the Middle East involved in companies that include UniGulf, an investment, management and technology company, and Tahseel, a digital wallet are as ffollows Geidea Solutions, a digital payment company from Saudi Arabia, Saudi Post, Saudi Arabia’s postal services provider, Saudi Fintech Company (Alinma Pay by Saudi Arabia’s Alinma Bank), Sulfah, a lending startup, Maalem Financing Company, a Saudi Arabian company operating in consumer and small and medium-sized enterprise (SMEs) financing, among other areas, Digital Colors Co. by Foodics, a company from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that provides a restaurant management system BrightWare, a IT solutions and services, provider from Saudi Arabia, Tap Payments, a payment startup from Kuwait, Rasanah Finance Technology by Creditly, a fintech startup; Sure International Technology, an IT company from Saudi Arabia, Forus, a peer-to-peer lending platform from Saudi Arabia, CodeLab, a provider of management solutions for governments and enterprises from Saudi Arabia, Zain KSA, a mobile telecommunications company from Saudi Arabia, Alhamrani Universal Company, an electronic banking solutions provider from Saudi Arabia, Network International, a payment products and services provider from the UAE, SKYBAND, a telecommunication and GSM provider in Saudi Arabia, LendoApp, a startup providing digital lending, and Raqamyah Platform, a peer-to-peer lending platform from Saudi Arabia.
Raqamyah website discusses Fintech innovations, cryptocurrencies, Blockchain, and peer to peer lending. Its founder and CEO Ammar Bakheet has extensive experience in financial industry.
SAMA designed a sandbox regulatory environment with the assistance of Deloitte to understand and assess the impact of new technologies in the financial services and products market in the Kingdom, and to help transform it into an intelligent financial center, allowing local and international companies wishing to test new digital solutions to enter the environment to be launched in the Kingdom soon.
This step aims at achieving a number of strategic objectives of linking the sandbox environment with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, which aims at promoting economic growth and boosting investment activities by moving into a cashless society and by promoting the principal of financial inclusion.
The sandbox aims to attract financial institutions and local and international financial technology companies specialized in financial technology, which are looking to utilize existing and new technologies to provide innovative financial services to Saudi markets including local and international start-ups, financial technology companies, financial services companies and professional services companies that collaborate with these companies.
This initiative is expected to enhance the principal of innovation in financial services and digital payments services, it will help financial institution, and financial technology companies test their products with relaxed controls, which will have a positive impact on the financial sector and facilitates financial transactions and reduces costs.
Services and products that are being tested currently includes E-wallet services, P2P transfers, purchases through QR Codes, direct international transfers through financial technology companies, point of sale (POS) devices, SADAD bills, SADAD account, and mada for online purchases, in addition to financing services, crowdfunding platforms, e-payment services, payment services for schools and exchange services. For more information please visit the link:
