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Abu Dhabi-headquartered startup Mal has secured $230 million in what is cited as the largest seed funding round in the Middle East and Africa.
The digital banking platform founded by Middle East businessman Abdallah Abu-Sheikh secured the funding from global investment firm BlueFive Capital, who led the round, and other strategic investors and family offices.
The platform will operate as a mobile-first digital bank and tap into the $7 trillion Islamic finance space. It is still under development and set to launch this year.
It will use AI-native infrastructure and target the global Muslim population and underbanked communities.
The fresh capital will go to product development and licensing. The digital bank plans to launch in phases, expanding into key markets across the Middle East and Asia.
(Writing by Cleofe Maceda; editing by Seban Scaria)
