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FENIX Launches FENIX Pay

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FENIX has launched FENIX Pay, its inclusive payments service for the region. With FENIX Pay, users will have the convenience and flexibility to choose among multiple payment methods to access FENIX’s affordable and convenient services across five countries in the region.

“Although the Greater Middle East boasts a young and digitally savvy population—with smartphone penetration reaching 80 to 90 percent in leading markets—the region has remained heavily dependent on cash. Only about a third of retail transactions are conducted electronically, due to factors such as underdeveloped digital-payments infrastructure and services, underbanked consumer and merchant segments, and a cultural bias toward cash,” the company said.

Increasing payment options, therefore, is a necessity to allow more people to participate in the benefits of affordable electric mobility, and unleash urban potential via financial inclusion. FENIX Pay provides users with a range of options to pay for FENIX services including via credit cards, debit cards, mobile/telco credit, Apple Pay, and local digital wallets.

Commenting on the impact of FENIX Pay, Jaideep Dhanoa, Co-Founder and CEO of FENIX, said, “Mobility is a means-to-an-end and an enabler or limiter to get where you need to be, to do what you’re meant to do, to reach your potential. When we started FENIX we focused on mobility as the first domain where we can make a difference. It has quickly become apparent that financial inclusion is another major limiter in today’s economy. The Middle East is a diverse region with large income distributions. There are many people who could benefit from and want to use our e-mobility and delivery services but haven’t been able to only because they don’t have a credit card. Mobile payments in the region are failing these segments. So we have started building our own payments platform called FENIX Pay so we can remove this limiter and provide financial freedom for anyone to pay how they like.”

To serve underbanked customers, the company focused on where such consumers already have a stored value balance and identified direct carrier billing with telecom operators as an ideal channel. In the UAE and in Turkey anyone with a smartphone will be able to pay for FENIX services via live integrations with the two leading UAE national telecom providers – Etisalat and Du – and three leading Turkey telecom providers – Turkcell, Vodafone and Türk Telekom.

Later this quarter, FENIX Pay will also be integrated with leading telecom operators Mobily in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and with Batelco in Bahrain. The payments platform also includes seamless payments with Apple Pay across the region.

In addition, consumers are able to top up their FENIX Pay balance through cash-based vouchers in all operating markets including UAE, KSA, Bahrain, Qatar and Turkey. Users can simply approach a FENIX Associate in an operating area or when receiving a delivery and purchase a voucher using cash, card on delivery with Nomod, or local digital wallet transfers including STC Pay in Saudi Arabia and Benefit Pay in Bahrain.

IQ Sayed, Co-Founder and CTO of FENIX, said, “Innovation to create impact is in our DNA. We realized that in order to achieve our mission, we needed to address the payments barrier in our region. As the only vertically integrated electric mobility and deliveries platform focused on the Middle East, we feel an obligation to invest in local payments so all our consumers can participate in the benefits of affordable and convenient mobility. We have some of the most compelling use-cases for inclusive multi-channel payments. There is a lot that still needs to be done but we are very excited to be leading this effort in our region and exploring how we can bring more financial inclusion with FENIX Pay.”

FENIX Pay is launching immediately in all 5 countries where FENIX currently operates. The service has been developed in an exclusive partnership with Apaya, a modular, scalable platform enabling merchants to add a secure payments layer to their tech. In line with its mission, FENIX will continue to integrate additional alternative payment channels with local providers to unleash urban potential via financial inclusion in the Greater Middle East.

“We’re excited to partner with Jaideep, IQ and FENIX team, as the company continues to evolve its platform and offer urban residents an innovative mobility proposition,’” said Michael Tomlins, Co-Founder, and CEO of Apaya. “At Apaya we understand how traditional, international payment schemes are inaccessible to many and localised for a few. Local payments are an important component in the customer experience and in driving global commerce. By 2025, local payment methods will process 66% of e-commerce transactions as they are more accessible, flexible, and secure. We look forward to enabling more local payment methods and increasing financial inclusion in the Middle East for FENIX and its customers.”

FENIX operates the largest electric vehicle fleet in the Middle East, North Africa, and Turkey (MENAT) with over 10,000 vehicles. The company is driving innovations for the Middle East market, including the region’s first private e-scooter subscription service, MyFENIX; the world’s first integrated hand sanitization pack with its scooters, and Middle East’s first 10-minute convenience delivery service, F10.

FENIX e-bikes and e-scooters cost AED 1 / QAR 1 / SAR 1 / BHD 0.1 / TRY 1.5 per minute to ride and are the first in the region with No Unlock Fee. Residents and visitors can enjoy their first ride free for up to a few minutes using a new user promo code, while repeat commuters can receive benefits from the “Rise with FENIX” rewards program, offering free credits and discounts on a monthly basis, where the more you ride the more you save.

Riders can easily locate FENIX e-bikes and e-scooters by downloading the FENIX mobile application from iOS and Google Play stores and making use of the electric vehicles 24 hours a day.

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Apps

Leap Launches Fintech App in the UAE

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A new fintech startup, Leap, has launched in the UAE to teach kids and teens how to make better money choices. The Dubai-based startup is on a mission to boost youth financial literacy and money management skills, targeting the unbanked population of under-18s. The app is currently available for kids between the ages of 6 and 18 years old in the UAE, with plans to expand into Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

The Leap app is built from the ground up for parents and kids and is designed to encourage a transparent, fun, and engaging education in money management. The app shines a light on the importance of youth financial literacy by incentivizing responsible spending and saving habits – nurturing the next generation’s ability to be financially responsible and contribute meaningfully to the economy.

Ziad Toqan, CEO and Co-founder of Leap said, “Financial literacy is a core life skill and surprisingly is something that’s not readily taught while growing up. Most kids get their first taste of financial responsibility when they go off to college without the oversight and knowledge on how to manage their money. But this doesn’t have to be the case. At Leap, we’re committed to changing this reality and empowering kids as young as 6 years old to understand, value, and manage their money. We’re incredibly excited to launch our app and provide a platform for kids to really learn how to earn, save and spend money responsibly, all while setting themselves up for a successful future.”

The Leap app is now available on the Apple and Android app stores, with a 90-day trial period. Alain Meier, former CEO of Cognito (now part of Plaid) said, “There’s a huge opportunity in the Middle East for accessible financial literacy tools that teach kids how to earn, save and spend their money. Leap’s mission to solve this problem has the potential to better equip the next generation and help them achieve better financial outcomes. I’m excited to be investing in Leap. Ziad and Jamil have a strong vision on how to tackle this very real problem across the region.”

After signing up, parents and kids can both log into the app for two separate experiences. Parents can instantly transfer pocket money to their kids, track their kid’s spending habits, and set tasks for them to complete. Separately, kids will get a Visa prepaid card that is linked to their Leap account. On the app, kids can set savings goals, analyze their spending habits, and earn rewards for completing their weekly tasks set by parents.

The app also features a ‘Savings on Autopilot’ function, which automatically rolls over any unspent money at the end of the week – placing it directly into the kids’ savings account. This feature will motivate kids to spend less during the week and hit their savings goals faster.

Jamil Khammu, COO and Co-founder of Leap said, “In today’s world, it’s tough to keep kids engaged. That’s why while building Leap, it was important for us to make the experience both educational and fun. We’ve made it super easy for kids to learn by doing with the parental oversight needed to help guide them along the way.” The startup also has plans to gradually introduce new features that will further enhance kids’ financial management skills including more unique ways to encourage savings. The app aim’s to cover all aspects of money management to truly teach kids how to make their money grow.

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