Paymob Raises $35M for MENA Fintech Expansion

Egyptian fintech powerhouse Paymob has successfully closed a significant $35 million funding round, signaling a robust appetite for digital payment solutions in the Middle East and North Africa. The capital infusion, co-led by prominent sovereign investor Mubadala and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), with crucial participation from British International Investment, Global Ventures, and DPI Ventures, will fuel the company's ambitious growth strategy across the region.

This latest funding brings Paymob's cumulative investment to approximately $125 million, underscoring its strong trajectory since its inception in 2015. The company's strategic focus for this new capital includes bolstering its core payment acceptance infrastructure, developing enhanced products tailored for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and pioneering innovative offerings in agentic commerce – a burgeoning field where software agents facilitate transactions on behalf of users.

Paymob's operational footprint currently spans Egypt, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Oman, supporting an impressive array of over 60 payment methods. Its comprehensive suite of solutions, including gateway services, point-of-sale terminals, SoftPOS technology, and payment links, empowers a vast network of more than 390,000 merchants. The company's co-founders, Alain El Hajj, Islam Shawky, and Mostafa El Menessy, have steered the company through a period of rapid scaling.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region has emerged as a particularly dynamic growth engine for Paymob. The company reports a sevenfold increase in GCC revenue over the past 18 months, now accounting for nearly half of its total earnings. This surge follows the acquisition of a Retail Payment Services License from the UAE central bank in January 2025, which has already contributed to onboarding approximately 20,000 new merchants across its three Gulf markets.

This funding round occurs against a backdrop of evolving investment dynamics in the MENA region. While overall startup funding saw a contraction in the first half of 2026, with a notable decrease in deal volume, the fintech sector continues to attract significant attention. Paymob's success highlights the resilience and potential within this critical industry, particularly in markets like the UAE and Saudi Arabia, which continue to dominate fintech investment.

The strategic involvement of Mubadala and the EBRD, alongside other esteemed investors, validates Paymob's business model and its potential to reshape digital commerce in MENA. The company's expansion into agentic commerce tools also positions it at the forefront of technological advancements in financial services, promising further innovation and market penetration.