The deal will help to speed up FTG's open finance and open banking platform's market penetration in Egypt, develop and launch new digital solutions, and push financial inclusion forward. M&A activity across the emerging venture markets has been at an all-time high this year. The MENA region has surpassed the number of exits it recorded over the past year. While economic conditions had a major part to play in inculcating new exit strategies for start-ups, it did result in some very interesting cross-market acquisitions within the MENA region. We have seen KSA's Floward acquire Kuwait's Mubkhar, and earlier this year, KSA's e-commerce start-up Sary acquired Egypt-based B2B platform Mowarrid as part of its plan to expand across MENAP. In terms of fintech-based acquisitions, real estate platform Huspy acquired Finance Lab, a lending advisory firm, and Just Mortgages — an independent financial consultant. Meanwhile, super app Careem also acquired Denarii Cash to connect customers and drivers with remittance services using the platform's money transfer technology. According to the companies, Underlie's customer-centric approach and ambition to understand FIs' needs and pain points to provide them with new proposed revenue streams and tailored products and services complements Fintech Galaxy's vision, existing distribution channels, technology, data practices, and relentless focus on quality. "Underlie's expertise in building open banking APIs and knowledge of the local market will help us speed up our Egypt market penetration, boost the expansion in the region, and release countless opportunities to create new open banking/open finance-enabled use cases," said Riyadh Al-Zamil — Chairperson of Fintech Galaxy's Board of Directors and Investors. Al-Zamil added that all of Underlie's current employees have been retained and warmly welcomed to Fintech Galaxy Egypt's operations Underlie leverages open API technology and machine learning to empower banks and fintech companies to provide their customers with better services and benefits. "This acquisition is a testament to the positive impact Underlie has achieved so far," said Akram Abdou — Founder of Underlie. "We are delighted to join forces with FTG and succeed on the broader regional Open Finance mission." Present in the UAE, KSA, Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, and Moldova, Fintech Galaxy is in pursuit to build the most secure, reliable, and developer-friendly open finance platform across MENA and beyond. Mirna Sleiman — CEO and Founder of Fintech Galaxy — said: "The acquisition of Underlie anchors our open banking/open finance efforts and enables us to succeed in providing enhanced, seamless, and enjoyable financial experiences, expanding, and consolidating our position across MENA. Cross-border collaboration is key to moving the needle on financial inclusion in Egypt and beyond."
