Lendo

Riyadh-based debt crowdfunding marketplace, licensed by the Saudi Central Bank, that connects retail and institutional investors with SMEs seeking invoice, working-capital and term financing. It started operating in December 2019.

Industry: SME debt crowdfunding | Location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Founded: 2019 | Total Funding: USD 725.2M

About Lendo

Lendo is a Riyadh-based fintech that provides Shariah-compliant financing to small and medium-sized enterprises in Saudi Arabia. It operates as a debt crowdfunding marketplace supervised by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), originally licensed through the central bank's regulatory sandbox, and connects retail and institutional investors with SMEs that need short-term working capital, typically financed against outstanding invoices.

The company was founded in 2019 by Osama AlRaee, its chief executive, and Mohamed Jawabri. Its model rests on underwriting and origination capability built for the Saudi SME market, a segment the government's Vision 2030 programme aims to serve far more heavily, targeting a rise in the SME share of lending from 4 per cent in 2018 to 20 per cent by 2030. Lendo has reported more than SAR 2 billion (about USD 600 million) of financing provided to SMEs, and other coverage cites more than SAR 3.5 billion across over 8,000 transactions.

On the equity side, Lendo raised a SAR 27 million (USD 7.2 million) Series A in 2021 led by Derayah Ventures, with Seedra, Shorooq Partners, 500 Startups and Impact46. In December 2023 it raised SAR 105 million (USD 28 million) in a Series B led by Sanabil Investments, the Public Investment Fund's investment arm, with Shorooq Partners and AB Ventures, taking total equity funding to about USD 35.2 million. The company linked that round to plans for an eventual listing.

Most of its lending capital comes through debt facilities. In January 2025 it secured a USD 690 million (SAR 2.6 billion) warehouse facility led by J.P. Morgan, intended to fund SMEs over five years. It also signed a financing agreement with Jadwa Investment announced at Money20/20 Riyadh, reported at about USD 50 million to USD 53 million.

In September 2026, at Money20/20 Middle East in Riyadh, Lendo and Vienna-based asset manager Quantic Financial Solutions launched an SME working-capital programme of up to SAR 750 million (about USD 200 million), as reported by Wamda and Lucidity Insights. Quantic supplies the capital and Lendo originates and services the Shariah-compliant financing through its platform; Quantic also plans to pool the underlying loans into Shariah-compliant vehicles for international investors. Pricing, tenor and priority segments were not disclosed. The programme is a debt arrangement rather than an equity round.

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