Saudi Unicorn Looks Beyond Kingdom After Western Union Deal - Bloomberg
Saudi Arabian digital payments firm stc pay, which was valued at $1.3 billion in a funding agreement with Western Union this month, is set to become profitable “very soon” and is in talks with regulators to expand into neighboring countries.
The company, launched by the kingdom’s biggest mobile operator Saudi Telecom Co. in late 2018, wants to offer digital payments across the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, Chief Executive Officer Ahmed Alenazi said in an interview.
Digital payments in the Middle East have grown rapidly as the pandemic forced more consumers to shop online. Moving Saudi Arabia toward non-cash transactions is also part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s plan to diversify the kingdom’s economy away from oil.
Stc pay has already processed 24 billion riyals ($6.4 billion) of remittances since launch and attracted 4.5 million customers, Alenazi said.
The company is also in talks for a digital banking license in Saudi Arabia that will enable it to offer more financial services beyond payments and remittances.
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