Abhi, a Pakistan-based fintech, is poised to begin operating in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) next month, enabling hundreds of workers to be paid before the next payroll, marking the first step in the company’s expansion to the Middle East and beyond.
Abhi is the first financial wellness platform in Pakistan that enables paid workers to take out some of their accrued money via a mobile app or SMS before the next payday. It was also the first Pakistani fintech among the 16 companies selected by the Abu Dhabi-based business incubator Hub71 for its Incentive Program in August of this year.
After earning over $19 million in less than two years from investors in the United States and the United Arab Emirates, Abhi is extending its reach to the Middle East starting next month. In July of last year, it made its debut in Pakistan.
The company then plans to expand its operations to other countries like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Saudi Arabia.
Co-founder and CEO of Abhi Omair Ansari announced that the company would begin operations in the United Arab Emirates in November 2022 and employ around 100,000 people.
Ansari stated on Thursday that as of right now, UAE workers would have daily access to their wages and won’t need to wait until the end of the month to withdraw their paychecks. The ability for employees to withdraw their compensation would depend on the number of earned working minutes, which would be calculated each minute.
The Pakistani finance business will be the first to offer these services in the UAE. Currently, it has more than 100,000 active users from more than 300 companies.
The CEO of Abhi also mentioned his intention to make it easier for Pakistani workers in the UAE to send money back home in real-time by facilitating cross-border transactions.
In addition, Ansari stated, “we are working to make it possible for Pakistani workers in the UAE to send money in real-time to their family members back home rather than having to wait until the end of the month.”
Image Credit: Abhi
