UAE FinTech Mamo secures DFSA approval to operate from DIFC
Mamo, a UAE-based FinTech and financial services platform for SMEs, has received a license from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) to set up operations within the Dubai International Financial Centre.
The regulatory nod to operate from the emirate’s financial center, one of the best in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region, will allow Mamo to perform regulated money services and further expand its products and services without user restrictions, the company said. Monday.
The approval by the DFSA, the independent regulator of the DIFC, follows their move to allow Mamo to operate under its Innovation Testing License (ITL) program in June 2021, which allowed the company to operate in a controlled regulatory environment to test its business model .
“What makes this announcement important is the tenacious work of Mamo to successfully complete the ITL program and receive Authorized Firm status,” the company said.
Mamo is among companies that have grown rapidly amid the exponential growth of the startup sector in the Mena region in recent years, as entrepreneurs use innovation to meet consumer needs.
Growth in the start-up sector has accelerated in line with the increase in digitization in key sectors such as finance, retail, services, e-commerce and public services.
Venture capital funding for startups in the Mena region rose 20 percent annually to more than $2.3 billion in the first three quarters of 2022, putting it on track to potentially surpass the total investment attracted in 2021, according to a Magnitt -study earlier. this month.
The development of the start-up environment, especially in FinTech, is a top priority for financial centers across the region which have launched a number of programs to accelerate their expansion.
Mamo raised $8 million for expansion in May 2021 in a funding round led by UAE-based venture capital firm Global Ventures. It currently offers Mamo Pay for Business, which targets SMEs, and Mamo Pay, a peer-to-peer wallet for consumers.
“We have built a financial services platform that enables both SMEs and consumers to move money faster, more efficiently and more securely in the UAE,” said Imad Gharazeddine, CEO and co-founder of Mamo.
The DFSA license “marks a crucial milestone for our business and a major turning point in our growth trajectory”, he said.
DIFC is one of the region’s most comprehensive FinTech and venture capital environments which will enable it to further expand its SME-focused services and products for smaller businesses, the company said.
The DIFC has been working closely with the DFSA on the UAE’s “first comprehensive money services regime”, and the financial center will continue to help Mamo and other FinTech companies grow by “taking advantage of the opportunities in the region”, said DIFC Authority CEO Arif Amiri.
Updated: 10 October 2022 at 08.21
