Tabby, the leading Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) platform in MENA, has raised a $200m Series D round, making it a unicorn, crossing a milestone ahead of its planned IPO on the Saudi Stock Exchange.
A few weeks after its announcement to relocate its headquarters to Riyadh, Tabby successfully closed a $200 million Series D led by Wellington Management, with the participation of STV, Mubadala, Arbor, PayPal, and Bluepool, making the company MENA’s first fintech unicorn, and STV’s third unicorn. Achieving unicorn status is not only a validation of Tabby’s robust business model but a recognition of its substantial impact in reshaping the payment landscape in the MENA region.
Since its Series C round last year, Tabby has shown spectacular momentum, consolidating its market leader status in the Middle East. Today, the company enables over 10 million users mainly in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the GCC to pay in installments from over 30,000 merchants including global and regional brands such as Amazon, Namshi, SHEIN, H&M, Adidas, IKEA, Samsung, Noon, VogaCloset, and Flynas. The company generates 80% of its volume from the Saudi market. Launched in 2020, it joined the SAMA Sandbox as one of the first BNPL providers the same year, and obtained the full license a few months ago.
This round marks a significant milestone ahead of Tabby’s anticipated IPO on Tadawul: Wellington Management has a track-record investing in the global BNPL space, having notably backed Affirm in the USA (publicly listed) and Klarna in Europe. Today, they are supporting the creation of a new FinTech champion in the region, which aligns with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 to become the financial hub of the region while attracting FDI.
At STV, our initial thesis still plays out: MENA remains one of the fastest-growing markets for BNPL services, on the back of rapid contactless payments’ adoption, e-commerce growth and lack of access to credit, representing a $95bn opportunity that still remains underpenetrated. We have had conviction in Tabby’s potential and ability to drive adoption of flexible payments for consumers across MENA since day one, having backed the company in its Series A, Series B, and Series C, having become its largest shareholder, and having worked alongside them in unlocking key partnerships in Saudi Arabia. Hosam and the Tabby team went above and beyond, successively rolling out an array of products including split-in-4, the merchant directory, a cashback offering, and more recently the Tabby card.
As we reflect on Tabby’s remarkable trajectory, we recognize the company's ability to seize new opportunities going forward by utilizing its large scale and superior market insights. Congrats Hosam and team!