Stc Pay raises $200 million from Western Union at a valuation of $1.3 billion

Stc Pay raises $200 million from Western Union at a valuation of $1.3 billion

Saudi mobile wallet Stc Pay which is a subsidiary of Suadi Telecom (Stc) has raised $200 million from Western Union at a valuation of $1.33 billion (SAR 5 billion), it announced in a statement today. The international money transfer giant has acquired a 15 percent stake in Stc Pay as a result of the deal. The valuation, Stc, said makes Stc Pay the first Saudi unicorn.

Stc Pay does not exactly qualify as a startup as it had started with $26 million (SAR 100 million) of investment from Stc in 2017 and had received another $80 million in 2019 but technically speaking, the investment of Western Union at the valuation of $1.33 does make it a unicorn with two entities on its cap table. Previously, it was Stc alone as it was a wholly owned subsidary of the company.

And if we're going to call it a unicorn, it is the third unicorn of the region after Careem (which has already been acquired by Uber), and Dubai-based Emerging Market Property Group.

Launched in late 2018, Stc Pay's mobile wallet offers different digital financial services to consumers including peer-to-peer money transfer service (between its users), transfers to bank accounts, payments at partner stores with