Hala
Riyadh-based fintech, regulated by SAMA as an electronic money institution, that offers SMEs and freelancers business accounts, cards, point-of-sale payments, payroll and financing. It raised a $157 million Series B in 2025.
Industry: SME payments, accounts and lending | Location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Founded: 2018 | Total Funding: USD 163.5M
About Hala
Hala is a Saudi financial technology company based in Riyadh that serves small and medium-sized businesses and freelancers. Its products include business accounts with IBANs, Visa and Mada cards, transfers, point-of-sale terminals, online payments, Sadad bill payments, expense management, payroll and point-of-sale financing. It trades as Hala Payments Company and says it is regulated by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) as an electronic money institution.
Wamda reports that Esam Alnahdi and Maher Loubieh founded the company in 2018; Forbes Middle East gives 2017. It started as Halalah, a consumer mobile wallet for peer-to-peer and QR-code payments, and in 2020 shifted to serving small businesses with a package of a point-of-sale device, bank account and card. Alnahdi is co-founder and chairman, and Loubieh is co-founder and group chief executive. Hala's website says it has more than 650 employees.
Hala acquired FRESH, which provides cashier, inventory and accounting tools for merchants, in 2020, and later bought Paymennt.com, an online payment gateway in the UAE; dates and terms of the second deal were not published. SAMA approved Hala to offer debt-based crowdfunding in May 2024, making it the eleventh company licensed for the activity, according to Arab News. The company also says it has been admitted to SAMA's buy-now-pay-later sandbox. It joined the Saudi Unicorns Programme in October 2024.
Hala raised a $6.5 million Series A in March 2021, led by Impact46 with Wamda Capital taking part. On 15 September 2025 it announced a $157 million Series B co-led by The Rise Fund, TPG's impact investing strategy, and Sanabil Investments, with QED, Raed Ventures and others participating. Hala said the money would fund lending products for small businesses and freelancers and regional expansion.
At the time of the Series B, TPG said Hala served more than 140,000 businesses and processed more than $8 billion in annual transactions. Forbes Middle East reported more than 140,000 active businesses as of December 2025 and $6.6 billion processed during 2025 and ranked Hala 16th in its 2026 Fintech 50 list.
Leadership
- Esam Alnahdi, Co-founder and Chairman
- Maher Loubieh, Co-founder and Group Chief Executive Officer
- Riyad Abou Jaoudeh, Chief Customer Development Officer and Board Member
- Abdulaziz AlOmran, Board Member
- Yemi Lalude, Board Member
- Ahmad Alshammari, Board Member
- Mazen Aljubeir, Independent Board Member