Latest news with #ArabFinancialServices
Zawya
09-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Mawarid Finance and AFS launch Smart POS Terminals to power seamless digital payments in the UAE
Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain: Mawarid Finance has announced today the launch of smart Point-of-Sale (POS) terminals for digital payments, in collaboration with Arab Financial Services (AFS), the leading digital payments solutions provider and fintech enabler in the Middle East and Africa. These cutting-edge POS terminals will now be available across retail outlets, stores, malls, and service providers, enabling merchants to accept seamless digital payments using all major credit and debit cards, as well as various digital wallets—delivering a faster, safer, and more convenient checkout experience for customers. Mr. Rashid AlQubaisi, Chief Executive Officer of Mawarid Finance, stated: 'As the financial landscape continues to evolve, Mawarid Finance remains committed to staying ahead of market trends and customer expectations. Our strategic partnership with AFS reflects this commitment and enables us to introduce exclusive, innovative solutions to the market. The launch of smart POS devices is a key milestone, empowering merchants with smarter sales tools and giving customers a seamless, secure, and flexible payment experience locally.' Mr. Samer Soliman, Chief Executive Officer of AFS, added: 'We're proud to partner with Mawarid Finance to introduce co-branded POS devices to the UAE market—a move that reinforces our shared focus on innovation and merchant and customer-centric solutions. These smart POS terminals are designed to enhance merchant sales while offering a smooth and efficient checkout experience through broad acceptance of digital wallets and credit and debit cards.' This collaboration marks a significant step forward in advancing digital payment innovation in the UAE, reinforcing the shared vision of both AFS and Mawarid to deliver faster, smarter, and more inclusive payment solutions for the market. About AFS: Arab Financial Services (AFS) was formed in 1984 to provide payment products, services and expertise to banks and merchant groups and deliver customized payment solutions in an increasingly divergent, disruptive, and dynamic payment ecosystem. AFS is owned by 37 banks and financial institutions and serves over 60 clients in more than 20 countries across the Middle East and Africa. Today, AFS is the region's leading digital payment solutions provider and fintech enabler. Regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain and the Central Bank of Egypt and licensed by the Central Bank of UAE, its dedication to innovation has made AFS a driving force in the market offering a rich portfolio of payment solutions including Open Banking Hub, popular digital wallets, market-leading merchant acquisition services, digital payroll solutions and more. Providing the highest quality payments solutions that are trusted by businesses, AFS has offices and data centers in the Kingdom of Bahrain, Arab Republic of Egypt, Sultanate of Oman, and the United Arab Emirates. About Mawarid: Mawarid Finance PJSC is an Islamic finance and investments group licensed by the UAE Central Bank. Mawarid Finance was formed in 2006 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, with a paid-up capital of AED 1 billion to launch a new vision in Islamic Finance by adding more value to the industry through developing innovative Shariah compliant products for both individual and corporate customers Mawarid was founded upon and continues to believe in Innovation. We aim to be different, unique and 'special' in everything we do. Mawarid's focus has also been on supporting and developing the national economy through the provision of Islamic financial products and services for small & medium enterprises, enabling them to grow and in turn fostering the growth of the economy. Over the years, Mawarid's strategic approach has been on emerging from an Islamic financial services company to a Conglomerate building synergy through the acquisition of complimentary and supplementary shariah compliant businesses. Today, Mawarid maintains a healthy and well diversified portfolio of investments across a wide spectrum of industry sectors and asset classes across the MENA region Mawarid Finance in its young history has collected several awards, locally and internationally, in business, gained ISO 9001:2008 certification, and is considered as a very successful brand in the UAE.
Zawya
30-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Mawarid Finance and AFS launch UAE Fintech Enablement Hub
Manama, Bahrain – In a pioneering move set to reshape fintech innovation in the UAE, Mawarid Finance and Arab Financial Services (AFS) today signed a strategic agreement to launch an integrated Fintech Enablement Hub, a unified platform designed to empower fintechs with seamless access to regulated infrastructure and next-generation digital capabilities. This collaboration combines global technology leadership, BIN sponsorship, and advanced processing capabilities into one integrated framework. The initiative simplifies how fintechs bring card programs to market by merging scheme connectivity, issuing, processing, and enablement tools onto a single, frictionless platform. The partnership leverages Mastercard Product Express, a platform designed for fintechs, enabling the innovation necessary to meet their customer needs, and helping reduce their time to market by providing them with the tools, resources and partners required to launch and scale. The Product Express platform allows fintechs to easily select the product that best meets their needs, choose plan-certified partners ready to implement, e.g. with live BINs and pre-approved card designs, and the ability to track progress in full transparency across all steps to be completed by all parties. This allows them to drastically reduce the time to market with the platform providing a way for fintechs to launch card programs in as fast as 15 days. Rashid Al Qubaisi, Chief Executive Officer of Mawarid Finance, said, 'This collaboration places Mawarid Finance at the core of a best-in-class fintech enablement model in the UAE. As BIN sponsor, we are proud to provide the regulatory and operational foundation that allows fintechs to move from concept to card issuance with speed, security, and full compliance. This partnership reflects our commitment to supporting national innovation goals by empowering new business models and creating real pathways for growth, scale, and market impact.' Samer Soliman, Chief Executive Officer of AFS, remarked that: ''By leveraging our deep technological expertise, AFS delivers a unified, frictionless platform that dramatically accelerates time-to-market for card programs. This empowers the next wave of digital-first companies to build, launch, and scale their solutions with optimal agility and confidence'. This collaboration marks a major step toward advancing digital enablement in the UAE, offering fintechs a clear, streamlined path to build and scale card products all within a single, unified experience. About AFS: Arab Financial Services (AFS) was formed in 1984 to provide payment products, services and expertise to banks and merchant groups and deliver customized payment solutions in an increasingly divergent, disruptive, and dynamic payment ecosystem. AFS is owned by 37 banks and financial institutions and serves over 60 clients in more than 20 countries across the Middle East and Africa. Today, AFS is the region's leading digital payment solutions provider and fintech enabler. Regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain and the Central Bank of Egypt and licensed by the Central Bank of UAE, its dedication to innovation has made AFS a driving force in the market offering a rich portfolio of payment solutions including Open Banking Hub, popular digital wallets, market-leading merchant acquisition services, digital payroll solutions and more. Providing the highest quality payments solutions that are trusted by businesses, AFS has offices and data centers in the Kingdom of Bahrain, Arab Republic of Egypt, Sultanate of Oman, and the United Arab Emirates. About Mawarid: Mawarid Finance PJSC is an Islamic finance and investments group licensed by the UAE Central Bank. Mawarid Finance was formed in 2006 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, with a paid-up capital of AED 1 billion to launch a new vision in Islamic Finance by adding more value to the industry through developing innovative Shariah compliant products for both individual and corporate customers Mawarid was founded upon and continues to believe in Innovation. We aim to be different, unique and 'special' in everything we do. Mawarid's focus has also been on supporting and developing the national economy through the provision of Islamic financial products and services for small & medium enterprises, enabling them to grow and in turn fostering the growth of the economy. Over the years, Mawarid's strategic approach has been on emerging from an Islamic financial services company to a Conglomerate building synergy through the acquisition of complimentary and supplementary shariah compliant businesses. Today, Mawarid maintains a healthy and well diversified portfolio of investments across a wide spectrum of industry sectors and asset classes across the MENA region Mawarid Finance in its young history has collected several awards, locally and internationally, in business, gained ISO 9001:2008 certification, and is considered as a very successful brand in the UAE.
Zawya
23-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
AFS achieves perfect record in fraud loss prevention for bank clients
Manama, Bahrain: Arab Financial Services (AFS), the leading digital payments solutions provider and fintech enabler in the Middle East and Africa, today announced that its bank clients across the region experienced zero fraud losses over the past 12 months. This significant achievement is attributed to AFS's advanced risk and fraud prevention tools, real-time monitoring systems, and dedicated team. AFS provides its clients with comprehensive fraud protection by leveraging AI-powered analytics, real-time transaction monitoring, on-behalf fraud services, and advanced authentication tools. This robust framework not only safeguards customer data and secures financial transactions but also improves operational efficiency and builds long-term customer trust. 'This is a major achievement—not just for AFS, but for every banking partner we serve,' said Ajmal Basheer, AFS Head of Processing. 'Our fraud management framework has proven its strength, protecting our clients and their customers. We remain committed to staying ahead of fraud through constant innovation, vigilance, and collaboration.' Basheer further emphasized, 'As the volume and complexity of digital transactions continue to grow, AFS is focused on empowering financial institutions to operate with absolute confidence and maximum efficiency, underpinned by our best-in-class fraud prevention capabilities.' Beyond proactive defence, AFS's sophisticated risk and fraud management solution delivers critical insights into emerging risk patterns and evolving fraud trends. This enables banks to make informed, strategic decisions that effectively neutralize future threats. AFS continues to make substantial investments in enhancing its fraud detection capabilities, ensuring they are faster, more accurate, and more intelligent to guarantee seamless and supremely secure digital payments across the entire region. AFS Media Relations Email: pr@ About AFS: Arab Financial Services (AFS) was formed in 1984 to provide payment products, services and expertise to banks and merchant groups and deliver customized payment solutions in an increasingly divergent, disruptive, and dynamic payment ecosystem. AFS is owned by 37 banks and financial institutions and serves over 60 clients in more than 20 countries across the Middle East and Africa. Today, AFS is the region's leading digital payment solutions provider and fintech enabler. Regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain and the Central Bank of Egypt and licensed by the Central Bank of UAE, its dedication to innovation has made AFS a driving force in the market offering a rich portfolio of payment solutions including Open Banking Hub, popular digital wallets, market-leading merchant acquisition services, digital payroll solutions and more. Providing the highest quality payments solutions that are trusted by businesses, AFS has offices and data centers in the Kingdom of Bahrain, Arab Republic of Egypt, Sultanate of Oman, and the United Arab Emirates.
Zawya
02-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
AFS and Mawarid Finance spearhead digital transformation in credit card services
Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain: In a significant leap forward for digital finance, Mawarid Finance, in strategic collaboration with Arab Financial Services (AFS), the leading digital payments solutions provider and fintech enabler across the Middle East and Africa, has officially launched a comprehensive digital application poised to redefine credit card issuance and management. This pioneering initiative underscores a shared commitment to accelerating digital transformation and elevating the customer experience within the financial services landscape. The newly introduced application represents a robust smart solution, offering a fully digitized journey from initial application submission and approval to card issuance and direct, real-time management via a smartphone. This seamless process effectively eliminates the conventional necessity for branch visits or physical signatures, translating directly into considerable time savings and enhanced convenience for customers. This pivotal launch is the direct outcome of a strategic agreement between Mawarid Finance and AFS, meticulously crafted to deliver advanced digital financial solutions. These solutions not only cater to the evolving needs of the local market but also align with prevailing global trends in financial technology. The application empowers users to instantly and securely issue credit cards, seamlessly track transactions, and manage their accounts in real-time, all fortified by state-of-the-art data protection and privacy technologies. The official signing ceremony, marking this collaborative milestone, was attended by key leadership, including Mr. Samer Soliman, CEO of AFS, and Mr. Rashid Al Qubaisi, CEO of Mawarid Finance. Both executives emphasized the profound significance of this partnership in stimulating innovation and expanding the breadth of digital services accessible within the vibrant UAE financial market. Commenting on this transformative development, Mr. Rashid Al Qubaisi stated: "At Mawarid Finance, our core commitment revolves around delivering digital solutions that not only meet but exceed our customers' expectations. This innovative platform is a testament to our relentless pursuit of empowering customers with secure, efficient, and exceptionally easy access to our comprehensive suite of products." Echoing this sentiment, Mr. Samer Soliman added: "This collaboration exemplifies a highly successful model of integration between established financial institutions and agile fintech companies. Together, we are meticulously crafting and delivering innovative digital experiences that not only adhere to rigorous global standards but also provide users with an intuitively seamless and highly secure financial journey." This strategic launch is an integral component of Mawarid Finance's broader vision to expand its customer base and introduce agile, digital-first products designed to support the diverse needs of both individual consumers and corporate entities, thereby significantly accelerating access to modern, secure, and user-centric financial services across the region. AFS Media Relations Email: pr@ About AFS: Arab Financial Services (AFS) was formed in 1984 to provide payment products, services and expertise to banks and merchant groups and deliver customized payment solutions in an increasingly divergent, disruptive, and dynamic payment ecosystem. AFS is owned by 37 banks and financial institutions and serves over 60 clients in more than 20 countries across the Middle East and Africa. Today, AFS is the region's leading digital payment solutions provider and fintech enabler. Regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain and the Central Bank of Egypt and licensed by the Central Bank of UAE, its dedication to innovation has made AFS a driving force in the market offering a rich portfolio of payment solutions including Open Banking Hub, popular digital wallets, market-leading merchant acquisition services, digital payroll solutions and more. Providing the highest quality payments solutions that are trusted by businesses, AFS has offices and data centers in the Kingdom of Bahrain, Arab Republic of Egypt, Sultanate of Oman, and the United Arab Emirates. About Mawarid: Mawarid Finance PJSC is an Islamic finance and investments group licensed by the UAE Central Bank. Mawarid Finance was formed in 2006 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, with a paid-up capital of AED 1 billion to launch a new vision in Islamic Finance by adding more value to the industry through developing innovative Shariah compliant products for both individual and corporate customers Mawarid was founded upon and continues to believe in Innovation. We aim to be different, unique and 'special' in everything we do. Mawarid's focus has also been on supporting and developing the national economy through the provision of Islamic financial products and services for small & medium enterprises, enabling them to grow and in turn fostering the growth of the economy. Over the years, Mawarid's strategic approach has been on emerging from an Islamic financial services company to a Conglomerate building synergy through the acquisition of complimentary and supplementary shariah compliant businesses. Today, Mawarid maintains a healthy and well diversified portfolio of investments across a wide spectrum of industry sectors and asset classes across the MENA region Mawarid Finance in its young history has collected several awards, locally and internationally, in business, gained ISO 9001:2008 certification, and is considered as a very successful brand in the UAE.
Gulf News
25-04-2025
- Business
- Gulf News
Bahrain's Arab Financial Services wants to put its stamp on UAE's payments processing market
Dubai: UAE consumers and businesses have any number of ways to make their payments – digital wallets, credit/debit/pre-paid cards, and, when needed, some cash too. But these days, it's not just the sheer number of payments options that are available, the choices even extends to payment processing platforms too. The UAE has Magnati and Network International alongside the global names Visa and Mastercard. There are others too – and it is into this fray that Bahrain's Arab Financial Services logged in earlier this year. It followed the granting of a 'retail Payment Services License – Category 2 from the UAE Central Bank. And which meant AFS could provide its set of payment solutions. But in an already crowded UAE payments marketplace, how can AFS build up a spot? That's exactly what Samer Soliman, CEO of Arab Financial Services, is intent on doing. Within the UAE's payments processing space, is there any sub-category AFS will focus on? We were founded in Bahrain 40 years ago as a traveler's cheques business, then we pivoted into processing. Recently, we got into (merchant) acquiring business, and once we did that, we decided that we needed to be in four key markets across Middle East - Bahrain. Oman, Egypt and UAE. There is a fifth market, but I don't want to get into those details… But why get into the acquiring space? Was it about higher margins? We were looking at expanding on the value chain a little bit more. Yes, we realize the penetration in the UAE market is quite high – but we wanted to get into a market with a value proposition for merchants. Even one that's already highly penetrated. Then you look at the merchants: what do they really need? He needs to get his money settled fast and as AFS, we need to have a ready solution for that. The merchant needs to have a bridge for his funds. We have partnered with a financial institution to do that for SMEs. Additionally, he wants to manage all his outlets at his fingertips. Today, someone using a smartphone can access his various bank accounts and transactions at the same time. Why can't the same ease be provided for the acquiring space. When we came in, it was the plan to disrupt the current value system. Arab Financial Services (AFS) was formed in 1984 to provide payment products, services and expertise to banks and merchant groups and deliver customized payment solutions in an increasingly divergent, disruptive, and dynamic payment eco-system. A key to the growing and continued success of the company was an executive team determined to invest in the most up-to-date, cutting edge technologies. AFS is owned by a total of 37 banks and financial institutions and serves over 60 clients in more than 20 countries across MEA. Today, AFS is the region's leading digital payment solutions provider and Fintech enabler, regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain. AFS's innovative approach to the provision of financial services is evidenced by a series of pioneering payment services that covers card processing services, merchant acquiring, fintech solutions and an impressive array of value-added services. The emphasis that AFS places on innovation has positioned the company as a driving market force, delivering a rich portfolio of payment solutions including digital mobile wallets, customer orientated Merchant Acquiring services; Bahrain's leading digital payroll solution Al Rateb, global Contact Centers and much more. But your focus being merchants in the SME space? One of the benefits – as I said earlier – was to enable merchants to manage all his financials while at the shop. He doesn't need to go to the bank, nor does he have to call in. He can get his things done at his fingertips. The second would be how to give SMEs a service similar to what's given to large-scale merchants. I've been in the payments business for 30 years – what we going to do is help build the second-generation of payments in the UAE. And you settle funds to merchants earlier than the market average? The market is running on what we call 'Transaction plus 1', and we are running the same. But which hour of the 'Plus 1' is what makes us different. There is always room for players who brings in additional benefits. We already have more than 200 customers on-boarded from incumbents in the market.
