Fintech start-up Stripe enters the Middle East with UAE launch
- Date: 06-Apr-2021
- Source: CNBC
- Sector:Financial Services
- Country:Middle East
Fintech start-up Stripe enters the Middle East with UAE launch
One of Silicon Valley's most valuable private fintech companies has chosen Dubai for its first expansion into the Middle East and North Africa.Online payments company Stripe is expanding into the Middle East, just weeks after its latest funding round, which pushed the company's value to $95 billion, making it one of the most valuable private fintech firms in the world."The opportunity for start-ups in the UAE is enormous," Matt Henderson, Stripe's business lead for Europe, Middle East, Africa told CNBC's Hadley Gamble on Monday in an exclusive interview. "The opportunity for Stripe is very large as well."Stripe, started in 2010 by two brothers from Ireland, competes directly with PayPal, Adyen and Square. Its software platform allows businesses to accept online payments.Co-founders Patrick and John Collison, who are 32 and 30 respectively, are each worth over $11 billion.
Why Dubai?
"The UAE has clearly got a booming digital economy," Henderson told CNBC. Businesses operating online in the UAE can now use Stripe to accept online payments.Gym management software Glofox, already a global user of Stripe, said in a statement that Stripe's launch in the UAE "can be a catalyst for global brands like ours to expand the products and services we're able to
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