A Memorandum of Understanding has been inked between Wio Bank and Flat6Labs, a seed-stage programme and early-stage venture capital business, to improve banking services for entrepreneurs in Abu Dhabi. Wio Business, the bank’s digital banking application designed to satisfy the unique needs of startups and SMEs, will be beneficial to start-ups from Flat6Labs Ignite, a specialised seed programme operated by Flat6Labs in collaboration with DisruptAD.
“There is potentially no other factor that more heavily decides the fate of a startup than its ability to effectively manage its finances. These organisations need banking partners that have a start-up ethos — centred around agility, flexibility, and innovation,” said Ryaan Sharif, the GM at Flat6Labs UAE.
“Our long-standing expertise in empowering start-ups to establish themselves in the UAE and raise the funding they need to fuel their ambitions aligns perfectly with Wio Bank’s vision of not only providing world-class banking services, but serving as a holistic banking management platform for the modern SME,” he added.
By 2024, Abu Dhabi will support up to 60 start-ups, with 27 disruptive companies having been invested successfully in the three cycles that have already ended. Through their partnership with Wio Bank, Flat6Labs has made sure that the companies chosen for this programme will take advantage of Wio Business’ accelerated processing of account opening applications and 24/7 access to specialised support services.
This is especially advantageous for the start-ups drawn from abroad because it allows them to establish their headquarters in Abu Dhabi without causing any disturbance to their financial activities, according to Sharif. Additionally, Wio Bank will offer mentors and subject-matter experts to ignite programme businesses.
Prateek Vahie, chief commercial officer of Wio Bank said, “Being a disruptor in the financial sector, we believe we have a critical role to play in supporting the start-up ecosystem and fostering entrepreneurship in the UAE. We are committed to ensuring that our SME customers find the most viable options for the support they need, be it through funding via traditional credits or loans, peer to peer lending, angel investments, or incubators. As we develop our offerings tailored to the SME sector, we will benefit from the insights and expertise of other major players in the ecosystem, such as Flat6Labs.”
In order to provide small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Abu Dhabi with access to essential financial services, Wio Bank, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), and RAKBANK teamed up with Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) in November 2022.
Moreover, the FABePay portal and the Wio Business app have been integrated to allow users to initiate cash or check deposits easily and conveniently within the app. Each deposit transaction will now have its own unique reference number. The code can then be used to finish the transaction at any FAB cash deposit machine (CDM) by using the “Wio deposit” service. A secure transaction is guaranteed by an automated match between the reference number’s generating data and the deposit.
FAB believes in the revolutionary power of technology to create a simpler, more practical, and more intelligent experience for consumers while also serving specialised banking demands, according to Sanjay Sethi, head of Global Transaction Banking at FAB.
“We’re thrilled to work with Wio Bank to provide a practical and easy option for cash and check deposits. We are eager to collaborate with Wio Bank to support its expansion because it has introduced a fresh and cutting-edge approach to banking. This is a landmark partnership in our quest to strengthen our product and service suite under the Wio Business umbrella”, said Jamal Al Awadhi, chief operating and experience officer at Wio Bank.
“As one of the key shareholders of Wio, FAB helps provide Wio customers the benefit of utilitising their wide scale of reach and operations in the UAE. We are very grateful to be partnering with FAB to enhance our service offering and deliver on our promise to bring easy and simplified banking solutions to our customers,” he added.
Embedded finance, digital banking apps, and banking-as-a-service solutions were the three main features that Wio Bank offered when it first went live in September. SMEs, freelancers, and start-ups can easily access financial services through Wio Business, Wio Bank’s first digital banking application, while also having the option to advance with cutting-edge beyond-banking services.
Some of the most prestigious start-up initiatives in the MENA region are presently being managed by Flat6Labs. Every year, Flat6Labs invests in more than 100 cutting-edge, technologically advanced start-ups, enabling thousands of determined businesspeople to realise their audacious goals and ultimately become their institutional co-founders. With an AUM above $85M, Flat6Labs oversees a variety of seed funds. The Flat6Labs managed fund is supported by more than 25 prestigious institutions. Along with investments, Flat6Labs’ start-up programmes, designed specifically to meet the needs of innovative entrepreneurs, aid in accelerating their growth by giving them access to a wide range of support services and connecting them to opportunities through an extensive network made up of hundreds of business mentors, investors, and corporates. Flat6Labs was established in Cairo in 2011 and has offices all throughout the region.
Twenty-seven organisations made successful investments in the three most recent cycles. According to the announcement, Flat6Labs has partnered with Wio Bank to guarantee that entrepreneurs chosen for the programme receive Wio Business’ prioritised processing of account opening applications as well as access to specialised support services. Start-ups will be able to easily establish headquarters in Abu Dhabi as a result, attracting attention from global markets without interfering with their financial operations.
The technology specialists from Wio Bank will be available to the entrepreneurs as subject-matter experts and mentors. According to the statement, the Wio Business app aims to offer startups, independent contractors, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) easy access to banking services, streamline business banking services, and integrate payment information and services, allowing businesses to manage everything in one location.
