Tamara Becomes Saudi Arabia’s First Fintech Startup to Earn Central Bank Finance License

Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 3 March 2025 – Tamara, the leading fintech platform in Saudi Arabia and the GCC region, has received a consumer finance license from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) that includes both consumer finance and Buy Now Pay Later activities. This significant milestone underscores Tamara's commitment to advancing the fintech sector and enhancing financial services in the region, making it the first financial technology startup to acquire a fully fledged consumer finance license.

This marks a pivotal step in reinforcing Saudi Arabia's position as a regional hub for financial technology. It highlights Tamara's dedication to maintaining the highest standards of compliance, transparency, and integrity while providing secure and reliable financial solutions to its customers. This also reflects the trust that SAMA has in Tamara's innovative business model.

The Saudi Central Bank continues to support the financing and fintech sectors by enhancing the effectiveness and flexibility of financial transactions and fostering innovation in financial services. This initiative aims to promote financial inclusion and ensure that financial services are accessible to all segments of society.

This license marks a significant step forward for Tamara in expanding its offerings to include a range of financing products. This progression aligns with Tamara’s strategy to enhance its service offerings and solidify its presence in the Saudi and GCC markets, addressing the evolving needs of its customers.

Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Co-Founder of Tamara commented, “We are honored to receive the consumer finance license from the Saudi Central Bank, which represents the culmination of our ongoing efforts to deliver innovative financial solutions that meet our customers’ needs. ”

Tamara has recently formed a new Board of Directors and appointed specialized committees, including a Sharia Committee. This move reinforces the company’s commitment to the highest standards of governance and transparency, ensuring compliance with Islamic Sharia principles in all its operations.

The Sharia Committee at Tamara is an independent body comprising highly knowledgeable Islamic scholars specializing in financial transactions. The committee is chaired by Dr. Yousef Bin Abdullah Al Shubaily, and includes Dr. Saad bin Turki Al-Khathlan, and Dr. Khalid bin Mohammed Alsayari as members.

About Tamara

Tamara is the leading fintech platform in Saudi Arabia and the wider GCC region with a mission to help people make their dreams come true by building the most customer-centric financial super-app on earth. The company serves millions of users in the region and partners with leading global and regional brands such as SHEIN, Jarir, noon, IKEA and Amazon, as well as small and medium businesses.

Tamara is Saudi Arabia’s first fintech unicorn and is backed by Sanabil Investments, a wholly owned company by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), SNB Capital, Checkout.com, amongst others. The company operates from its headquarters in Riyadh, with additional regional and global support offices.

For contact:

pr@tamara.com