The funding round was co-led by TPG’s Rise Fund, its first investment in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia, and Sanabil Investments, a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF). 

Other participants include QED, Raed Ventures, Impact 46, MEVP, Isometry Capital, Arzan VC, BNVT Capital, Kaltaire Investments, Endeavor Catalyst, Nour Nouf Ventures, Khwarizmi Ventures, and Wamda Capital.

HALA, which provides embedded financial services to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), said the fresh capital will help it strengthen its Saudi market presence, introduce lending products, and expand regionally. 

The company already serves more than 142,000 businesses and processes over $8 billion in transactions annually.

The SME sector represents a key growth area for Saudi Arabia. With as many as 1.8 million SMEs contributing 20–35% of GDP, equivalent to $310–375 billion USD annually, the demand for digital financial solutions is only expected to rise. 

SMEs also employ about 4.7 million people and have grown their GDP contribution by 45% between 2016 and 2021, supported by government initiatives and the wider digital transformation push under Vision 2030.

HALA’s Co-founder and Chairman, Esam Alnahdi, described the investment as a milestone. “This landmark investment is a turning point for HALA, reflecting on our relentless pursuit of innovation and excellence in serving small businesses. 

“We are honored that our new investors recognise the potential of our vision and the impact we aspire to make in the MSME landscape. Our journey is just beginning, and this support fuels our drive to create meaningful change.”

Group CEO and Co-founder, Maher Loubieh, stressed the role of both long-standing and new investors: “We are honored by the continued trust and support of our existing investors – distinguished local and regional business leaders and funds – whose contributions have been instrumental to HALA’s journey so far. At the same time, we are proud to welcome all our new partners, including TPG’s Rise Fund and Sanabil, who, by joining our journey, gave a strong testimonial of the business that the team has built. 

“As we look at the next phase of our growth, we believe that our diverse group of prominent investors bring valuable global expertise and perspective which will elevate our ambitions to execute with even greater scale and impact.”

The Rise Fund said the deal highlights the strength of the market and HALA’s model. Yemi Lalude, partner at TPG and head of Europe, Middle East and Africa for The Rise Funds, commented: “HALA is uniquely positioned to empower micro and small businesses, a key pillar in the region’s economy, by delivering business owners and their customers a broad and growing set of payment solutions. We are excited to support the HALA team in building a clear leader in this underserved segment. 

“Our investment underscores our belief in the growth potential of this market, the rising demand for robust digital banking solutions, and the critical role entrepreneurs play in shaping the next generation economy, not just though innovation but by creating jobs, expanding access, and delivering meaningful social impact.”

Sanabil Investments also underlined its confidence in the company, stating: “We are excited to lead this landmark Series B funding round for HALA. This investment underscores our belief in HALA’s potential to reshape the future of financial services for SMEs and aligns with Sanabil’s mission to support visionary companies with patient capital and strategic guidance. We look forward to partnering with HALA and the other investors in supporting their continued success and expansion.”

With this financing secured, HALA is ready to scale its impact across and beyond the Middle East.

The round was led by Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India & SEA) and 885 Capital, alongside Y Combinator, 468 Capital, Pioneer Fund, and several high-profile angel investors, including Careem founder Mudassir Sheikha, Tabby founder Hosam Arab, and well-known content creator Khalid Al Ameri. It is one of the largest Series A raises for a fintech in the MENA region.

Co-founded by former McKinsey consultants Parthi Duraisamy and Karun Kurien, Alaan was built to address the inefficiencies plaguing finance teams across the region. 

Many companies still rely on outdated tools and fragmented processes, problems that Alaan aims to eliminate with full visibility, real-time control, and automation tailored for MENA markets.

Duraisamy, recalling his earlier frustrations with corporate expenses in the Middle East, explained: “I’d spend my weekends uploading receipts, reconciling every expense manually.” He said the company was designed to replace this “constant pain” with tools that work in the background, saving both time and effort.

Since its launch in 2022, Alaan has processed over 2.5 million transactions for more than 1,500 finance teams, including G42, Lulu Group, Careem, and Tabby. The platform claims to have saved finance teams over 1.5 million hours by automating tasks such as receipt matching, VAT extraction, and expense categorisation.

Early customer adoption has included major enterprises like UAE real estate developer Azizi, which centralised its spend processes across divisions, and GuestReady, which replaced shared corporate cards with Alaan’s virtual cards—allowing faster book closure and tighter spend control.

“Thanks to tools like Alaan الآن, automation and AI are not just buzzwords – they’re our superpower,” said Abhishek Tak, head of Finance at GuestReady.

The company’s AI agents now handle repetitive and error-prone processes, from flagging missing invoices to reviewing expenses against historical data. This focus on behind-the-scenes AI came after an early misstep, its initial customer-facing chatbot failed to gain traction, prompting the shift towards automation embedded in workflows.

Alaan’s profitability has been achieved with notable cost discipline. According to Duraisamy, the fintech spent $5 million to generate $10 million in revenue, a performance that has helped secure investor confidence.

“What really matters for a company at our stage is the fundamentals: how capital-efficient we are, how much revenue we generate, how strong our go-to-market motion is,” he said.

Regulatory approvals have been one of the biggest hurdles for the company, particularly in Saudi Arabia, where it only launched earlier this year after years of navigating licensing requirements. Since entering the market, Alaan says transaction volumes have doubled month-on-month for six consecutive months.

The fresh funding will be channelled into hiring across sales, compliance, and customer success, building AI-driven capabilities, and rolling out new products such as Bill Pay and Rewards Cards. These additions aim to give finance teams more control over spend and faster reconciliation, all within a single platform.

Duraisamy says the mission is focused on becoming the most trusted and widely used fintech in the region. “We’re building the finance infrastructure this region deserves. And as cliché as it sounds, we’re just getting started.”