Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Center leads $50m Series B round in Islamic FinTech Wahed

By Edlyn Cardoza

Wahed Inc., a global Islamic FinTech company, recently announced that Wa’ed Ventures, the venture capital arm at Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Center (Wa’ed), is leading their $50 million Series B funding round with HSBC acting as lead financial advisor. Other investors in this round include footballer Paul Pogba, who has also joined Wahed as their latest brand ambassador, and strategic family offices and institutions.

The investment round will support the startup’s current growth phase as it plans to launch an ethical neobank on its platform soon, allowing users to fulfil their banking and investing needs on one super-app without compromising on their values.

Haroon Mokhtarzada, the founder of unicorn FinTech Truebill, William Haney, Chairman of Enhesa and Lori Richards, former Director at the SEC, have also been appointed to Wahed’s Board of Directors to assist with this phase of growth.

William Haney, Chairman of Enhesa, mentioned: “I am thrilled to join Wahed’s mission of bridging the wealth gap through values, finance and technology. Its digital tools have enormous potential to make the world of finance more accessible to those previously excluded. I look forward to contributing to its long-term growth.”

Currently, Wahed offers individuals the chance to invest their money ethically in a quick, easy, and affordable way. Wahed has gained support steadily since its inception in the US, with over 300,000 clients globally across all Wahed entities.

“The rapid popularization of fintech solutions and their influence in advancing financial literacy and inclusion worldwide have created the right urgency for fintech products that are both ethical and easily accessible for individual investors,” said Fahad Alidi, Managing Director at Wa’ed. “Fintech leaders like Wahed acknowledge the role they play within such a globally crucial context, and it is their ambition to realize that vision that makes us proud to partner with the pioneering team as they work to unlock the digital potential of the financial industry.”

Other perennial shareholders of the company include Cue Ball Capital, Dubai Cultiv8 and Rasameel.

Partner at Cue Ball Capital, Ali Rahimtula, commented, “This raise will help support Junaid and his team’s mission to bring financial services to this important yet underserved demographic. We are looking forward to Wahed’s next phase of growth.”