Saudi Arabia | Startup & Fintech
Information checked on 30 September 2026.
Tabby funding has reached a new milestone with the announcement of a $233 million equity round at a $6.5 billion valuation. Announced on 14 September 2026, the round is led by Blue Pool Capital, with participation from HSG, Wellington Management and Arbor Ventures.
The transaction remains subject to applicable regulatory approvals, including approval from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA).
For the Riyadh-headquartered company, the announcement follows a series of product launches and regulatory approvals that are changing the scope of its business. Longer payment plans, merchant financing and everyday money services are broadening a relationship that began at the retail checkout.
The strategic question is how successfully Tabby can turn that existing relationship into regular use of a wider financial platform. Its recent announcements provide a clearer picture of the products behind that ambition.
What the Latest Tabby Funding Reveals About Its Scale
Tabby reports 25 million registered users, 70,000 business partners and more than $18 billion in annualised transaction volume. The company also says it has been profitable since 2023.
Those measures describe different parts of the business. Registered users indicate the size of its accumulated customer base; they do not establish how many people use the service each month. Transaction volume measures the value flowing through the platform, rather than the revenue Tabby keeps.
The profitability statement also leaves questions that matter when assessing expansion. The funding announcement does not provide a detailed profit figure or show how individual products contribute to earnings.
As the product range grows, active use, repeat transactions and the economics of each service will offer a more detailed view of performance than registration totals alone.
How Tabby’s Valuation Has Developed
The latest announcement follows two different transactions in 2025.
In February 2025, Tabby announced a $160 million Series E round at a $3.3 billion valuation. Blue Pool Capital and Hassana Investment Company led that financing, with participation from Wellington Management and STV. Tabby identified spending accounts, payments, cards and money management as areas for expansion.
In October 2025, a secondary share sale implied a $4.5 billion valuation. HSG, Boyu Capital and other buyers acquired shares from existing shareholders. Tabby stated that it issued no new shares and received no proceeds from that transaction.
The distinction matters. A primary funding round can bring capital into a company, while a secondary transaction transfers ownership between shareholders. Both can establish a valuation, but they serve different purposes.
Together, these announcements show that the move beyond instalment payments has been developing over several funding and ownership milestones.
Saudi Finance Licences Support Larger Purchases and Business Funding
On 29 June 2026, Tabby announced that it had received consumer finance and small and medium-sized enterprise finance licences from SAMA.
The consumer finance licence supports longer payment plans for larger purchases. Tabby described financing for purchases above SAR 2,000, with limits of up to SAR 50,000 and repayment over as many as 12 monthly payments, subject to eligibility.
The company said these longer plans use a Murabaha structure, with an agreed cost fixed for the duration of the plan, no compounding and no late fees. These terms should be distinguished from its existing four-payment, interest-free offering.
For customers, the practical questions include the total repayment amount, the payment schedule and which purchases qualify. A longer repayment period changes when an expense is paid; the full cost still matters.
The SME finance licence also enables Tabby to provide working capital to retailers on its platform. This extends its potential role from helping merchants accept customer payments to helping them fund their operations.
For example, a retailer may need to buy stock before receiving the revenue from selling it. Financing can address that timing gap, although its usefulness depends on the cost, repayment terms and the retailer’s ability to repay.
Tweeq Added a Foundation for Money Management in Saudi Arabia
Tabby’s broader financial services strategy also includes its acquisition of Tweeq, a Saudi digital wallet licensed by SAMA.
When Tabby announced the acquisition agreement in September 2024, it described opportunities to add spending accounts, cards and money management tools. Tweeq already offered an account through which customers could spend, send and manage money.
Tabby’s April 2026 UAE licensing announcement subsequently referred to Tweeq as an acquired business.
The strategic value of a wallet differs from that of a checkout payment option. An account can give customers a reason to return between purchases, whether to check their balance, make a transfer or manage day-to-day spending.
That creates an opportunity for a more frequent customer relationship. Turning the opportunity into sustained use depends on whether those everyday tasks work reliably and are easy to understand.
Tabby Cash Extends the UAE Business Beyond Credit
In April 2026, Tabby announced a Stored Value Facilities licence from the Central Bank of the UAE. The company said the authorisation allows it to hold customer funds and introduce spending accounts, cards and money management products.
It then announced Tabby Cash in July, describing it as an alternative to a debit account with no account or card fees. The launch included a cashback card and local money transfers.
At the time of that announcement, Tabby said more than 150,000 people were already using Tabby Cash, with a wider UAE rollout planned. That figure is a launch-period measure, rather than a current active-user count. Cashback arrangements included subscription conditions and a temporary launch offer.
This product adds another dimension to the expansion. Instalment payments centre on financing a purchase; a spending account centres on managing money already available to the customer.
For the business, the opportunity is to become useful throughout the month. For customers, the value will depend on clear pricing, dependable transfers, accessible support and an understandable view of their money.
Education Payments Show How the Expansion Reaches New Categories
A partnership with zenda, announced in May 2026, offers a practical example of Tabby moving into a different spending category.
The arrangement allows educational institutions in the UAE to offer Tabby payment plans through their existing payment systems. Tabby said families could spread eligible tuition, transport, extracurricular and other education costs over up to 12 months.
At announcement, the service was live with more than 100 institutions, including schools, universities, nurseries and providers of professional courses.
Education payments illustrate why expanding beyond everyday retail requires more than adding merchants. School fees follow academic calendars, families may have several scheduled expenses, and institutions need predictable collections.
The commercial opportunity is to fit those existing processes. Its success would be better assessed through actual adoption, repayment performance and collection outcomes than through the number of participating institutions alone.
Saudi Arabia’s Digital Payments Growth Provides Market Context
Tabby’s expansion is taking place within a wider shift in how people pay in Saudi Arabia.
According to SAMA, electronic payments accounted for 85% of total retail payments in 2025, up from 79% in 2024. The number of electronic transactions reached 14.6 billion, compared with 12.6 billion a year earlier.
The central bank links this development to national payment infrastructure, broader adoption of digital services and Saudi Vision 2030’s objective of reducing reliance on cash.
These figures describe the national payments market. They do not establish Tabby’s market share or prove demand for any particular credit product.
They do, however, suggest a favourable setting for services built around digital transactions. The next challenge for providers is to earn preference through useful products, transparent costs and reliable service.
What Will Matter in Tabby’s Next Phase
From a business perspective, the expansion creates several tests that future disclosures could help answer:
| Area | What would demonstrate progress |
|---|---|
| Customer adoption | Sustained use of new services beyond initial registration |
| Product economics | Revenue and margins after funding, servicing and credit costs |
| Credit performance | Repayment outcomes as financing amounts and durations increase |
| Merchant value | Evidence that financing supports operations on workable terms |
| Everyday reliability | Successful transfers, clear balances and timely problem resolution |
These are measures for assessing the strategy, rather than results established by the funding announcement.
A customer who likes an instalment service will not automatically choose the same provider for daily money management. Equally, a merchant that accepts Tabby payments may have different requirements when seeking working capital.
The company’s opportunity is to make those additional services useful enough to earn repeat business. Its next stage will be defined by how well customers can move from a familiar payment feature to a broader set of financial tasks—and whether that growth remains commercially sustainable.
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