Zbooni, a technology start-up in the UAE that enables small and medium-sized enterprises to process payments and grow their online presence, raised $5 million in a Series A funding round to fuel its expansion across the region.
The fundraising, which was led by an undisclosed London-based fund, will help the start-up to expand its team across the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Jordan, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
The latest investment will be channelled to develop better products for its clients using new technology.
“Zbooni is on a mission to help provide access to digital commerce tools, ultimately supporting our merchants to start, run and grow their business,” the company’s chief executive and co-founder Ramy Assaf said.
Founded in 2017, Zbooni started as a chat commerce venture enabling payments through WhatsApp. Currently, it provides services to a variety of businesses, with tools including invoicing technology, payment enablement, digital store creation and customer management support.
It supports thousands of merchants and has allowed them to serve more than 150,000 end-customers thus far. Zbooni did not disclose its total number of its customers but said it witnessed a 600 per cent surge in its client base last year.
“We are just scratching the surface of what we are able to help them (Zbooni’s customers) do … we believe there remain millions of SMEs still left severely underserved across our geographies,” Mr Assaf said.
Zbooni previously raised $1.1m in venture capital in 2019.
The start-up, which was formed at a six-month Facebook-sponsored accelerator programme, is backed by regional and international organisations, including Chalhoub Group, Middle East Venture Partners and B&Y Venture Capital.
It connects merchants with customers by providing an easy way to complete a sale. Businesses just need to download the app, set up an account, list the products they wish to sell, then share the link with customers through messaging platforms such as Whatsapp, Facebook Messenger or Instagram direct messages.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
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January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
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March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
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