By raising $340 million in a Series C equity funding round, Tamara, the top fintech platform for banking, shopping, and payments in Saudi Arabia and the larger GCC, has become the first domestic fintech unicorn in the Kingdom, marking a significant milestone.
Leading regional financial institution SNB Capital and Public Investment Fund (PIF) subsidiary Sanabil Investments co-led this round, which also included participation from Pinnacle Capital, Impulse, Shorooq Partners, and other new investors in addition to Coatue, Endeavor Catalyst, and Checkout.com. In addition, it is one of the biggest investments made in a fintech company in the area. This comes after the company, led by Goldman Sachs and Shorooq Partners, last month secured additional debt financing to expand its warehouse facility to a maximum capacity of $400 million. Since its founding in late 2020, Tamara has raised well over $400 million in debt financing in addition to $500 million in equity funding through this transaction.
With over 10 million users, over 30,000 partner merchants, and six times annual run rate revenue growth in less than two years, Tamara operates in Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Its headquarters are in Saudi Arabia. Three Saudi co-founders, Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah, and Abdulmohsen Al Babtain, founded the company in late 2020. It was also among the first businesses to receive permission from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) to offer BNPL services.
Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Co-founder, and CEO of Tamara said: “Saudi Arabia deserves its place on the world stage for financial technology. Just as Tamara was created by local entrepreneurs, nurtured by a supportive local ecosystem and market regulators, we stand here today, humbled and hungry, ready for our own leapfrog moment. This achievement is a testament to the ecosystem, to our incredible team, investors, and the collaborative spirit that makes this region a great place for talent to flourish. As we set our sights on becoming the next big giant in shopping, payments and banking we remain ever grateful for the significant opportunity in this underpenetrated and underserved banking and financial services landscape. Furthermore, The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) has been instrumental in creating an enabling environment for Saudi companies like Tamara to grow and innovate in the Saudi fintech sector.”
A spokesperson from SNB Capital stated, “Leading on the Series C raise for Tamara through SNB Capital’s Close-Ended Fintech Fund aligns with one of our objectives to invest in single target companies achieving long-term capital appreciation. Fintech is one of the core investment sectors in SNB Capital’s strategic portfolio and is aligned with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 objective of supporting fintech entrepreneurs at every stage of their development. As a Saudi unicorn Tamara requires significant funding options which SNB Capital is ideally positioned to deliver, and backing the development of the fintech infrastructure which will support further growth.”
A spokesperson from Sanabil Investments added, “Our continued backing and investment in Tamara underscores our unwavering confidence in Tamara’s remarkable growth trajectory. At Sanabil, one of our missions is to empower visionary ideas, turning them into impactful realities. We constantly seek innovations that address pressing market demands while ensuring scalability and sustainability. In Tamara, we have discovered a team with the potential to revolutionize financial services, not only within Saudi Arabia but on a regional scale.”
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