Tarabut, MENA’s leading open banking and embedded finance platform, announced on August 5, 2025, that it has received in-principle approval from the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) under the UAE’s Open Finance regulation. This milestone, following licenses in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, makes Tarabut the first regional fintech to secure Open Finance approvals across all three major Gulf economies, solidifying its role as a critical infrastructure provider for financial services in the Middle East.
Regulatory Milestone: In-principle approval from CBUAE, complementing licenses in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
Technology: Secure API infrastructure for real-time credit decisions, income verification, and personalized offerings.
Use Cases: Credit cards for thin-file customers, SME financing, pre-check tools, and AI-driven insights.
Impact: Supports UAE’s digital economy goals, enhancing financial inclusion and entrepreneurship.
Partnerships: Connects with major banks in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and now UAE, plus fintechs like Vyne and Geidea.
Funding: Raised $32M in Series A (2023) led by Pinnacle Capital.
Tarabut’s platform enables regulated financial institutions, lenders, insurers, and digital platforms to leverage customer-consented financial data, delivering real-time, data-driven products. “This is a pivotal step forward for financial inclusion in the UAE and across the region,” said Abdulla Almoayed, Founder and CEO of Tarabut. “We’re proud to partner with the CBUAE to help realize the national vision for Open Finance.” The platform supports transformative use cases like:
Credit Access: Credit cards for underserved, thin-file customers.
SME Financing: Revenue-based financing to bridge the SAR 300B gap for 1.3M Saudi SMEs.
Cost Reduction: Pre-check tools to lower underwriting costs.
Personalization: AI-driven insights for tailored financial journeys.
These align with national economic goals, such as UAE’s Centennial 2071 and Saudi Vision 2030, fostering entrepreneurship and financial health.
With real-time connectivity to all major banks in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, and now regulatory clearance in the UAE, Tarabut is uniquely positioned to scale embedded finance across MENA. Its acquisition of Vyne in August 2024 enhances account-to-account (A2A) payment capabilities, starting in Bahrain by year-end 2025. The company’s API infrastructure ensures compliance with GDPR, Islamic Finance principles, and regional regulations, prohibiting data scraping and enforcing secure communication standards.
The UAE’s Open Finance Framework, launched in June 2024, mandates banks and insurers to share customer data via a centralized API Hub, with Nebras Open Finance operating the platform. Tarabut’s prior DFSA license (2022) and DIFC Open Finance Lab partnership underscore its regional leadership. With the MENA Open Finance market projected to grow from $1.65B to $11.74B by 2027, Tarabut’s infrastructure is poised to drive innovation and competition.
Tarabut is MENA’s leading Open Banking and Embedded Finance platform, regulated in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Bahrain. The company provides secure, compliant API infrastructure that enables financial institutions and digital platforms to deliver seamless, personalised financial experiences, advancing financial inclusion across the region.
TechIntelPro empowers B2B technology decision-makers with the latest industry trends, deep insights, leadership perspectives and actionable intelligence to drive both organizational and professional milestones—and thrive on the tech pulse.