Financial technology company Hakbah introduces savings groups platform following regulatory approval, teams up with Visa to issue prepaid cards

In the bustling city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, a new fintech startup named Hakbah has made its debut. Founded by Naif AbuSaida late last year, Hakbah is an innovative alternative savings platform that has recently received approval from the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) to operate.

Hakbah is one of the first startups to receive a permit under Fintech Sandbox from SAMA, enabling the digital storage of jamiyas - a popular savings practice in Saudi Arabia. The platform aims to digitize this practice, similar to MoneyFellows in Egypt, making savings more accessible and efficient for its users.

The Hakbah app allows users to start their savings groups, invite friends and family to join, or join existing groups when invited. Once available, users will be able to transfer the money earned from these savings groups to their Visa prepaid cards. The partnership between Hakbah and Visa will take some time to make the prepaid cards available for users, but the convenience of online transactions and ATM withdrawals is a promising feature.

For the next few months, Hakbah won't charge users any transaction fees, making it an attractive option for those looking to save. The startup estimates the savings market in Saudi to be $6 billion annual with at least 2 million active users, indicating a significant potential for growth.

Currently, Hakbah has close to 5,000 registered users. The first product of Hakbah is a savings groups mobile app that allows people to initiate, manage, join, and pay for savings groups. Users can pay their installments using their Mada debit card on the app and withdraw the money to their bank account when it's their turn to receive the pool.

The limits set by SAMA on the number of savings groups and the size of these groups will apply to Hakbah for a certain period of time. However, as the platform gains traction and compliance, these limits may be expanded.

The article is written by Zubair Naeem Paracha, Founder at our x, and was published in Saudi Arabia, marking an exciting step forward for the Saudi fintech industry. With Hakbah's innovative approach to savings, it seems that the future of financial management in Saudi Arabia is looking bright.

Financial technology company Hakbah introduces savings groups platform following regulatory approval, teams up with Visa to issue prepaid cards