Saudi Fintech company secures $150 million debt facility from Goldman Sachs
Tamara, a Saudi financial technology business, has secured a US $150 million loan facility from Goldman Sachs Group Inc, during times when there has been a marked slowdown globally in raising venture capital. Since its launch, the company has now raised nearly US $400 million in debt and equity. Its investors are known to be “movers and shakers” in the world of financial technology and include a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund and European-based start up, Checkout.com.
Founded less than three years ago, Tamara has risen to become one of the largest “payments” enterprises in the Middle East.
Receivables warehouse facility is the first in the Middle East
Tamara will utilise Goldman’s US $150 million ‘receivables warehouse facility’ to support product development across retail, payments and banking to provide a better service to its growing customer base. The company says that this is the first warehouse facility in the Middle East. Usually ‘warehouse financing’ would give borrowers the opportunity to acquire financing on more favourable terms than unsecured loans and is often less expensive than other types of financing.
We have secured a debt facility of up to US $150 million with Goldman Sachs. This deal is the first of its kind in the region and a testament to the company’s performance and the team’s ability to win the trust of top tier global financial institutions. It takes us a step closer towards achieving our mission of empowering people in their daily lives and revolutionizing how they shop, pay and bank.” Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Founder – Tamara
Tamara’s largest competitor in the region is Dubai-based Tabby which has also attracted huge interest resulting in financial backing of foreign capital from premium investors and top tier investment houses.
Tamara’s current valuation has not been disclosed at this stage but this is a significant deal given the rising interest rates and the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank earlier this year.
Alsukan said that the fintech sector is undergoing a rapid transformation and has received significant global investment in recent years. He added that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), especially Saudi Arabia, continues to exhibit strong growth despite the global macroeconomic slowdown.
Tamara is one of fastest growing companies in Middle East
Leading shopping and payments platform Tamara is headquartered in Riyadh. Launched in September 2020, Tamara is one of the fastest growing companies in the Middle East. The company has revolutionised retail transactions and the way people shop and pay for services and has made a significant positive changes on daily lives. It has also made an impact on the way that people bank.
The company was founded by Saudi entrepreneur Abdulmajeed Alsukhan who partnered with prominent businessmen Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Al Babtain to bring this project to market. Today Tamara has over 350 employees and operates out Riyadh in Saudi Arabia and offices in the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Germany and Vietnam. Tamara has raised nearly US $400 million in equity and debt since its launch. Aside from Goldman Sachs, other investments include Sanabil Investments, a wholly owned company by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Checkout.com, Coatue, Shorooq Partners and Endeavor Catalyst.
Tamara boasts of over six million customers and more than 15,000 affiliate merchants that include leading global and regional brands such as SHEIN, Jarir, Noon, IKEA and H&M. The company is known to champion small and medium businesses that show potential.
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