Ziina

Ziina

Native name	زينة
Company type	Private
Industry	Financial services
Founded	January 2020;5 years ago (2020-01)
Founders	Faisal Toukan, Sarah Toukan, Andrew Gold
Headquarters	Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Services	Digital payments, peer-to-peer transfers, payment links, QR code payments, Tap to Pay
Website	www.ziina.com

Ziina is a private fintech company based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, founded in 2020. It offers digital payments services for consumers and businesses, including peer-to-peer transfers, payment links, QR and NFC (Tap to Pay) acceptance, and a payment gateway for SMEs. The company holds a Stored Value Facility (SVF) license issued by the Central Bank of the UAE.

History

• January 2020: Founded by Faisal Toukan, Sarah Toukan, and Andrew Gold ^{[1] [2]}
• May 2020: App launched, secured $850K pre-seed round led by Class 5 Global ^[3]
• June 2021: Raised $7.5M seed round led by Avenir Growth Capital ^[4]
• March 2022: App Receives Red Dot Design Award, staying true to Ziina's Arabic name, which translates to "a thing of beauty" ^[5]
• August 2022: Introduces "ZiiBoard", a keyboard for generating payment links on social media. ^[6]
• December 2022: Appointed official payment partner for ComicCon Middle East. ^[7]
• May 2023: Introduced its payment gateway, enabling SMEs to accept online card payments via website integrations. ^[8]
• October 2023: Gateway capability expanded to accept up to 10 different currencies and Arabic version of the app added. ^[9]
• August 2024: First venture-backed company in the UAE to become licensed by The Central Bank of the UAE ^{[10] [11]}
• September 2024: Raised US $22 million in Series A funding led by Altos Ventures. ^[12]
• April 2025: Launched Tap to Pay feature for iPhone and Android, allowing merchants to accept contactless payments via smartphone. ^[13]
• July 2025: Entered partnership with Dubai CommerCity free zone to offer SMEs services such as instant transfers, payment links, NFC Tap to Pay, multi-currency virtual IBANs, and a co‑branded bank card. ^[14]
• October 2025: Partnered with Dubai's Meydan Freezone to become the payment provider of choice for member businesses. ^[15]

Products

Ziina is known for the following products and services available to businesses and consumers in the UAE:

• Peer‑to‑peer wallet: Enables instant money transfers using mobile numbers, with no IBAN or SWIFT code necessary. ^[16]
• Payment links: Shareable links for use on social media and messaging platforms. ^[17]
• Payment gateway: Integrated checkout solutions for SMEs accepting cards online, supporting multiple currencies. ^[17]
• In‑person acceptance: QR code and Tap to Pay support via mobile devices. ^[18]
• Multi‑currency settlement: Up to ten currencies supported on gateway transactions. ^[19]
• Ziina Card (upcoming): A payment card integrated with the wallet for expense tracking & supplier payouts.. Launch pending. ^[20]
• Other products include Invoicing features, multi-user access, custom API integrations, oath sign-in, and embedded checkout

References

1. Sharma, Alkesh (October 17, 2022). "Generation start-up: how UAE's Ziina is working to boost financial literacy in Middle East". The National. Retrieved 2025-10-22.
2. Fernandez, Keith J (2021-07-04). "UAE gets a peer-to-peer payments app that lets you split bills with friends". The National. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
3. Paracha, Zubair Naeem (2020-05-19). "Dubai fintech Ziina raises $850,000 pre-seed, launches a social P2P payment app". MENAbytes. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
4. East, Forbes Middle (2021-06-08). "UAE-Based Fintech Startup Ziina Raises $7.5M In Seed Round—Here's Where It Plans To Use The Funds". Forbes ME. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
5. Release, Press. "Home-grown app Ziina recognised by international Red Dot Design Award, ushering in new era of design excellence in technology". www.zawya.com. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
6. Report, Gulf News (2022-08-10). "Dubai fintech Ziina tests 'payments keyboard' for businesses to get paid over messaging apps". Gulf News: Latest UAE news, Dubai news, Business, travel news, Dubai Gold rate, prayer time, cinema. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
7. "Middle East Film & Comic Con Official Facebook Page". December 13, 2022.
8. "Ziina Payment Gateway announcement". Ziina Official LinkedIn Page. May 2023.
9. ""Ziina in Arabic" announcement". Ziina Official Instagram Page. Oct 26, 2023.
10. Release, Press. "Ziina becomes first venture-backed start-up to secure UAE Central Bank SVF license". www.zawya.com. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
11. Times, The Fintech (2024-08-09). "Ziina Secures Stored Value Facility Licence From UAE Central Bank and Expands Range of Services". The Fintech Times. Retrieved 2025-07-10.
12. East, Forbes Middle. "UAE's Ziina Secures $22M In Funding To Shift From Payments To Full Financial Services". Forbes ME. Retrieved 2025-07-17.
13. Staff, M. B. (2025-04-29). "Ziina launches Tap to Pay in UAE, letting businesses accept in-person payments on iPhone". MENAbytes. Retrieved 2025-07-10.
14. Digital, Traffic. "Dubai CommerCity Partners with Ziina to Provide innovative financial solutions". Government of Dubai Media Office. Retrieved 2025-07-17.
15. "Meydan Free Zone x Ziina: Seamless Business Payments in Dubai". www.meydanfz.ae. Retrieved 2025-10-22.
16. Gibbon, Gavin (2020-05-19). "Payment by text: UAE fintech app Ziina simplifies money transfers". Arabian Business. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
17. Kene-Okafor, Tage (2024-09-03). "Ziina banks $22M as growth explodes for the UAE-based fintech for small businesses". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
18. Digital, Traffic. "Dubai CommerCity Partners with Ziina to Provide innovative financial solutions". Government of Dubai Media Office. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
19. Onyeagoro, Joyce (2025-07-03). "Dubai CommerCity Partners with Ziina to Simplify Digital Payments for SMEs". TechAfrica News. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
20. "Dubai-based paytech Ziina raises $22m Series A ahead of ZiiCard launch". FinTech Futures. Retrieved 2025-10-23.

External links

• Official website