Swvl’s co-founder and former CTO Ahmed Sabbah launches Telda, a Venmo-like app for Gen Z in Egypt

Swvl’s co-founder and former CTO Ahmed Sabbah launches Telda, a Venmo-like app for Gen Z in Egypt

Ahmed Sabbah, the co-founder and former Chief Technology Officer who left the Egyptian transportation startup last month is back with his new gig: Telda, a fintech that wants to change how Gen Z in the Middle East spends their money. Launched earlier this week in Egypt, Telda allows users to sign up for a digital account that comes with a free Mastercard-powered card. The card can be used for online payments, in-store purchases, and cash withdrawals.

The startup offers a complete online onboarding experience through its app where users can signup using their phone number and national ID (without any paperwork) to create an account and receive the debit card at their doorstep, “Through Telda, sending money to family and friends is as easy as sending a WhatsApp message. By syncing their contact list, users will be able to send & request money instantly,” said the startup in a statement.

It told MENAbytes that the transfers are only supported between the users on Telda. What this means is the app cannot be used to transfer money to other bank accounts. The users can however receive money from anyone in Egypt (and beyond) using the IBAN they receive as part of getting an