Mal, founded in Abu Dhabi by Abdallah Abu-Sheikh, has raised a $230 million Seed round, marking the largest seed-stage financing recorded in MENA.
The UAE-based fintech is building an AI-powered Islamic financial platform aimed at serving Muslim and underbanked communities globally. The round was led by BlueFive Capital, founded in 2023 by former Investcorp executive Hazem Ben-Gacem, which manages more than $4 billion in assets across offices in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, London, and Beijing, with participation from strategic investors and family offices.
Abu Sheikh is best known in the region as the former co-founder and CEO of Astra Tech. In November 2024, he exited the company, selling his stake to existing shareholder G42. Founded in 2022, Astra Tech grew rapidly into a super app through acquisitions including PayBy, Rizek, and Botim, reaching more than 150 million users across 155 countries. G42 had led Astra Tech’s $500 million funding round in December 2022. Following Abu Al-Sheikh’s departure, CTO and co-founder Long Ruan stepped in as interim CEO.
The Mal platform is scheduled to launch in 2026. The new funding will be used to accelerate product development, secure regulatory licences, and support market entry across multiple jurisdictions. The company is currently in a pre-launch phase and does not yet hold a banking or financial services licence.
Islamic finance is estimated to be worth more than $7 trillion globally but remains highly fragmented and dominated by traditional financial institutions. Mal is positioning itself as a global digital platform for the sector, combining Sharia-compliant financial products with AI-driven infrastructure.
The company’s leadership team includes executives with experience from international digital finance platforms such as Revolut and Nubank, as it looks to build a consumer-facing fintech with global reach.
Mal is headquartered in Abu Dhabi and plans to roll out the platform in phases, starting in the Middle East before expanding into Asian markets where demand for values-aligned digital financial services is increasing.
