Foodics Capital, a micro lending platform from Foodics, a F&B and retail tech startup based in Saudi Arabia, has raised  $100 million (SAR 375 million) to further support Saudi F&B merchants post COVID-19 through Shariah-compliant micro loans.

The tech startup offers an all-in-one management platform that helps restaurant owners run their businesses.

Ahmad Al-Zaini, Co-Founder and CEO of Foodics, said: “With cash flow being a critical pain point for small business owners right now, we wanted to be able to offer them a one stop shop that also covers their finance needs and enables them to accelerate their growth rate.”

“Our application process is indeed straight forward, as all is completed online on our platform, with the initial approval to be granted within as little as 24 hours and final approval in 7 days. Foodics Capital is able to extend loans from $5,000 (SAR 18,750), up to $133,000 (SAR 500,000) as and when needed by small businesses,” said, Abdullah Tahboub, CFO of Foodics.

In order to launch the fund, Foodics Capital partnered with the KSA-based Maalem Finance, a leading provider in Shariah-compliant consumer and SME financing. The product, which has secured an approval from SAMA (Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority), will initially focus on FOODICS customers who are pre-qualified and then will be rolled out more widely in KSA before year end.

Foodics has so far serviced more than five thousand customers and processed over a billion orders through the platform, totaling about $200 million (SAR750m) monthly in GMV transactions in 2020 and catering to over 10,000 F&B outlets. Foodics entered Egypt last month and is also in the process of closing its series B funding round, the company said in a statement.

(Writing by Seban Scaria; editing by Daniel Luiz)

(seban.scaria@refinitiv.com)

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. The content does not provide tax, legal or investment advice or opinion regarding the suitability, value or profitability of any particular security, portfolio or investment strategy. Read our full disclaimer policy here.

© ZAWYA 2020