One of Silicon Valley’s private fintech technology companies has chosen Dubai for its first expansion into the Middle East and North Africa.
Online payment company Stripe is expanding into the Middle East, just weeks after its latest round of financing, which boosted the company’s value to $ 95 billion, making it one of the private companies. of the World’s Most Valuable Fintech Technology
“The opportunity for emerging businesses in the UAE is huge,” Matt Henderson, Stripe’s business leader in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, told CNBC’s Hadley Gamble on Monday in an exclusive interview. “Stripe’s opportunity is also very big.”
Stripe, started in 2010 by two Irish brothers, competes directly with PayPal, Adyen and Square. Its software platform allows companies to accept online payments.
Co-founders Patrick and John Collison, aged 32 and 30 respectively, are worth more than $ 11 billion.
Why Dubai?
“The UAE clearly has a booming digital economy,” Henderson told CNBC. Companies operating online in the UAE can now use Stripe to accept online payments.
Glofox gym management software, which is already a global user of Stripe, said in a statement that the launch of Stripe in the UAE “may be a catalyst for global brands like ours to expand the products and services that we can offer to fitness companies in the region. “
Henderson adds that the advantage of bringing Stripe technology to Dubai is that “there are many large local companies that have not yet globalized. One of the ways that will help them grow and therefore help them to to resonate with investors is to open up these new markets. “
Travelers travel to Sheikh Zayed Road through commercial and residential properties in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Christopher Pike | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Blockade measures around the world helped speed up e-commerce and the UAE is no exception. According to the International Trade Administration, the UAE e-commerce market is expected to be valued at $ 27.1 billion in 2022.
“We’ve already seen more than $ 600 million in investment in emerging companies in the UAE last year,” Henderson told CNBC. “The ingredients are there for a much bigger trajectory.”
“You also have that combination of talent, investment and entrepreneurship,” he added. “So we see that there will be a lot of emerging tech businesses emerging in the UAE.”
The Careem ride-hailing app is displayed on an iPhone in a Dubai mall.
Christopher Pike | Bloomberg | Getty Images
There are several regional success stories in the UAE.
The Dubai-based Careem app was bought by Uber for $ 3.1 billion in 2019. And Anghami, the first legal music streaming platform in the Middle East and North Africa, announced the month past that they would be the first Arab technology company to be listed on the Nasdaq in New York.
Road to the stock market?
Stripe is reportedly the most valuable private company to leave Silicon Valley after its valuation nearly tripled in less than a year. It’s worth more than both Uber and Facebook had before it went public.
Former Bank of England Governor Mark Carney is a board member of Stripe, along with Christa Davies, chief financial officer of insurance company Aon.
Tesla founder Elon Musk and billionaire investor Peter Thiel were Stripe’s first investors.
Despite rumors that Stripe is poised for a public listing, Henderson told CNBC, “In fact, we’re really focused on growth mode, investment mode, and really serving our users.”
Henderson said the company aims to maintain “a culture of frugality, and we try to conserve our own resources and do things in the most automated way possible.”
While it is not yet known how much Stripe staff will add to the UAE, it plans to follow its efficient capital model, said Henderson, who added: “I think this has served us well.”