Paymob, a leading fintech company from Egypt, has closed a $22 million extension to its Series B round, bringing the total raised in this round to $72 million. This new extension was led by EBRD Venture Capital, alongside PayPal Ventures, which had previously co-led the initial $50 million investment. Other investors participating in this round include Endeavor Catalyst, British International Investment (BII), FMO, A15, Nclude, and Helios Digital Ventures (HDV).
The primary intent of this investment is to fuel Paymob’s regional expansion and product diversification. The company aims to deepen its presence across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with particular focus on countries like Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. The raised funds will also be used to enhance Paymob’s product offerings, which include omnichannel payment solutions such as wallets, cards, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL), and QR payments. Paymob also plans to improve services for small and medium businesses (SMBs) by introducing features like lending, advanced settlements, and embedded checkout experiences.
Paymob’s growth trajectory has been impressive, with the company now supporting over 350,000 merchants, a dramatic increase from just over 100,000 in 2022. This expanded merchant base spans across Egypt, Pakistan, and the Gulf region, where digital payment adoption is on the rise.
Why The Investors Invested
Several compelling factors drove the investors’ decision to pour substantial capital into Paymob. One key reason is the rapid growth in digital payment adoption across the MENA region, especially in Egypt and the Gulf states. In Egypt, 88% of consumers have used at least one emerging payment method in the past year, while 85% of SMEs consider accepting omnichannel digital payments critical for growth. In the UAE, digital payment adoption stands at 77%, highlighting an even stronger market potential.
Another factor is Paymob’s strategic positioning. As a first-mover in Egypt’s fintech ecosystem, Paymob has established itself as a market leader by providing an end-to-end payment infrastructure that bridges the gap between traditional banks and the financial needs of modern businesses. This positioning enables Paymob to capture a growing market share as businesses increasingly shift to digital payments.
Investors also recognize Paymob’s profitability in its home market, Egypt, where revenues have grown sixfold since mid-2022. This growth is driven by the company’s ability to cross-sell services to existing merchants, thereby increasing the average revenue per customer. For example, if a merchant initially only uses Paymob’s POS terminal, they can later adopt additional services such as digital wallets or BNPL solutions, creating a more integrated and profitable ecosystem.
Paymob’s partnership model, which includes collaborations with Shopify and Tabby, also strengthens its value proposition by providing merchants with a comprehensive suite of tools that streamline payments and improve operational efficiency. This ecosystem approach has made Paymob an attractive investment opportunity in a region that remains underserved by fintech solutions.
A Look At Paymob
Founded in 2015 by Islam Shawky, Alain El Hajj, and Mostafa Menessy, Paymob started as a payment infrastructure company during the founders’ time at the American University in Cairo. Initially focused on addressing the lack of digital payment methods in Egypt, Paymob has since evolved into a comprehensive financial services enabler that supports both online and offline transactions.
Paymob’s core markets include Egypt, Pakistan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. While Egypt remains the company’s largest market, rapid growth in the UAE demonstrates the scalability of its business model. In just 14 months of operation in the UAE, Paymob’s transaction volume has matched what it took five years to achieve in Egypt.
The company’s offerings include an omnichannel payment gateway that enables merchants to accept payments through more than 50 methods. These include cards, digital wallets, BNPL, and QR payments. Additionally, Paymob provides value-added services such as working capital loans and tools to help businesses manage finances more effectively.
In terms of its broader mission, Paymob is committed to advancing financial inclusion in the MENA region by providing the necessary infrastructure to enable a cashless economy. The fintech’s impact is already evident in Egypt, where the central bank has invested heavily in digital infrastructure, resulting in rapid growth in digital payment volumes.
With a total payment volume of $5 billion in 2020 and over 120 million transactions facilitated that year, Paymob has positioned itself as a key player in the region’s fintech landscape. Though exact current figures remain undisclosed, its consistent growth and profitability in core markets indicate continued success as it scales across the region.