Hakbah, a Saudi fintech savings platform, has raised $2 million in pre-Series A funding led by Global Ventures, Mena's leading venture capital firm, and DIFC-based Aditum Investment Management, providing the company with its first institutional capital.
The funding, which was approved by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), will be used to expand Hakbah's presence in Saudi Arabia, improve the user journey, and improve its savings engine algorithm - in order to best serve customers seeking to save in an innovative, accessible, and socially responsible manner.
The founder of Hakbah, Naif AbuSaida said the company is proud to have two strong financial institutions, Global Ventures, and Aditum, as primary investors as they share the same values, vision, and ambition to elevate the savings industry to the next level in Saudi. “Hakbah will play a key role in supporting this goal by widening its savings offering and partnerships for employees, gig-workers, students, housewives, and many others.”
Hakbah is one of the region's fastest-growing businesses, with organic growth in 2022 of more than 20x, as it assisted 18,000 customers in saving more than $35 million. Hakbah promotes financial inclusion through social savings and a strong value proposition, which has resulted in unprecedented demand from its platform's 120,000 active, verified, and ready-to-serve customers.
Noor Sweid, Managing Partner of Global Ventures, commented saying that while savings groups are the most popular form of alternative borrowing for unbanked groups in emerging economies, various pain points still define the user experience inefficiencies in identifying and managing savings groups, to lack of transparency, flexibility, and consistency in payments. He said they are thrilled to partner with Habkah on their mission to modernize financial savings and boost financial inclusion.
The Head of Venture Capital at Aditum Investment Management, Lachlan Hughes said, “We are thrilled with the partnership with Hakbah in their mission to drive financial inclusion. The powerful combination of Hakbah’s exceptional user experience, sophisticated back-end technology, and partnerships with leading regional brands will empower millions of users to meet their savings goals. We are impressed with Naif’s vision and leadership and look forward to supporting Hakbah as they continue to scale and make a meaningful impact in the region.”
Hakbah's platform provides legal and digital access to finance through savings, elevating traditional savings behavior, enabling users to save for a purpose, and increasing financial inclusion and literacy.
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