What Mena Fintech Association does

Mena Fintech Association (MFTA) is a Dubai-based, UAE-headquartered non-profit industry association founded in 2018 that serves as the coordinating body for the fintech ecosystem across the Middle East and North Africa. It connects more than 22,000 members spanning fintech companies, financial institutions, payment infrastructure providers, digital identity firms, and blockchain/Web3 organizations through regional chapters (including a newly launched Iraq chapter), working groups (notably the Open Finance Working Group co-chaired by Ozone API), and structured member tiers. The association is governed by Chairman and founding Board Member Nameer Khan alongside Eric Fulwiler (Chair of the Marketing Working Group) and Iraq Country Chair Bahaa Abdul Hadi.

The association does not develop proprietary technology products; rather, it functions as an ecosystem enabler that convenes stakeholders, advances cross-border regulatory frameworks, and runs thought leadership programming. Its go-to-market is community-led, with growth driven through regional chapter expansion, working group participation, and strategic alliances such as the June 2026 MoU with the Swiss Fintech Association and a global media alliance with FINTECH.TV. Recent enterprise-grade member additions include BCB Group (institutional payments and digital assets), Facephi (digital identity and AI-driven fraud prevention), Paymentology (issuer-processor with a Dubai office), and ADI Foundation (blockchain and Web3, affiliated with IHC's $240B+ holding).

MFTA monetizes through recurring corporate and scaleup membership fees. Named members include BCB Group, Facephi, Paymentology, ADI Foundation, and Ozone API; member benefits include participation in ecosystem initiatives around payments, digital assets, digital identity, open finance standards, and regulatory dialogue. Pricing tiers and total revenue are not publicly disclosed, and the organization shows no funding rounds, M&A activity, or parent company structure in the source data.

Name

Mena Fintech Association

Website

https://mena-fintech.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mena Fintech Association is a Dubai-based non-profit industry association founded in 2018 that convenes 22,000+ fintech, payments, digital identity, and Web3 members across MENA through regional chapters, working groups, and cross-border partnerships with regulators and financial institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fintech Industry Association

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Fintech & Payments Partner / ISO Referral Networks (FSAEAMAK)

Keywords

• Fintech industry association
• Ecosystem collaboration
• Open finance standards
• Digital payments policy
• Regulatory dialogue

Headquarters

HQ city

Dubai

HQ country

United Arab Emirates

HQ region

Middle East

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: The association generates revenue through corporate and scaleup membership fees from fintech companies, digital asset providers, payment infrastructure companies, and technology firms that join the ecosystem. Members include BCB Group (corporate member), Facephi (scaleup member), Paymentology, and ADI Foundation, each contributing to ecosystem initiatives focused on payments, digital assets, digital identity, and regulatory alignment.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

MENA Fintech Association is a non-profit regional industry association that provides membership-based ecosystem services for fintech companies, financial institutions, payment providers, digital identity firms, and blockchain/Web3 organizations across the Middle East and North Africa. Its core offerings include corporate and scaleup membership tiers, regional chapter coordination (e.g., Iraq chapter), working groups such as the Open Finance Working Group, and cross-border collaboration programs with international fintech associations.

Product overview

The MENA Fintech Association (MFTA) is a regional industry association serving as a collaborative ecosystem for fintech companies across the Middle East and North Africa. Rather than offering a unified product platform, the association functions through member engagement, working groups (such as the Open Finance Working Group), and chapter development across MENA countries. The association connects over 22,000 members including fintech companies, financial institutions, payment providers, digital identity firms, and blockchain/Web3 organizations to facilitate knowledge exchange, regulatory dialogue, and cross-border innovation partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Corporate Membership Program
• Scaleup Membership Program
• Open Finance Working Group

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• FINTECH.TVcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 18 June 2026Strategic global media alliance to create a platform featuring on-air discussions, executive interviews, and thought leadership programs covering fintech topics including payments, digital banking, AI, and digital assets. The collaboration aims to position the UAE and broader MENA region as a leading international hub for financial innovation while facilitating dialogue between policymakers, regulators, financial institutions, and fintech founders. The initiative seeks to connect regional innovators with international audiences and support ecosystem development through knowledge exchange and cross-border partnerships.
• Swiss Fintech Association (SFTA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 June 2026The MENA Fintech Association and Swiss Fintech Association signed a Memorandum of Understanding on June 15th, 2026, in Abu Dhabi establishing a strategic partnership to advance cross-border fintech collaboration and ecosystem integration. The alliance aims to eliminate innovation silos, develop cross-border frameworks, nurture fintech talent, and enable startups to access new markets through joint programs and investor connectivity. Both organizations position this as a foundational step toward shaping an interconnected global financial landscape, bridging two major fintech hubs in Dubai and Zurich.
• BCB GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBCB Group, a regulated provider of payment and trading infrastructure for the digital asset economy, joined as a corporate member. The membership aims to strengthen institutional payment infrastructure and digital asset innovation across the MENA region. BCB Group contributes expertise to the Association's ecosystem initiatives focused on payments, digital assets, and regulatory alignment, reflecting the growing institutionalization of digital assets and demand for compliant, real-time financial infrastructure bridging traditional banking with blockchain ecosystems.
• FacephicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFacephi, a global technology company specializing in digital identity verification and AI-driven fraud prevention, joined as a scaleup member. Facephi's advanced end-to-end solutions enable financial institutions to securely verify users, prevent fraud, and streamline digital onboarding processes. As part of its engagement, Facephi contributes expertise to MFTA's ecosystem initiatives focused on digital identity, cybersecurity, fraud prevention, and secure financial infrastructure across the MENA region.
• PaymentologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPaymentology, a global issuer-processor operating in over 60 countries with an expanded Dubai office, joined as a member to support digital payments and fintech innovation across the Middle East and Africa region. The collaboration aims to advance thought leadership, regulatory dialogue, and practical initiatives around digital payments, blockchain, and Web3 technologies within the MENA fintech ecosystem.
• ADI FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Abu Dhabi-based ADI Foundation (founded by Sirius International Holding, technology arm of IHC, a $240B+ holding company) joined as a member to strengthen collaboration on blockchain infrastructure, digital assets, and Web3 innovation. The foundation brings strategic partnerships spanning 20+ countries and 50+ institutions to the association's ecosystem, supporting policy-aligned innovation, institutional adoption, and practical collaboration to position the MENA region as a global hub for fintech and digital financial infrastructure.
• Ozone APIcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOzone API serves as co-chair of the Open Finance Working Group at the MENA Fintech Association. Nihal Abughattas, General Manager for Middle East and Africa at Ozone API, represents the company in driving open finance standards adoption across the Middle East. The collaboration focuses on enabling the region to leapfrog European and UK open banking models by adopting comprehensive open finance standards prioritizing financial inclusion, with practical applications like modernizing rent payments through account-to-account payments and variable recurring payment APIs.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Swiss Fintech Association: The Swiss national fintech industry association based in Zurich. MFTA signed a strategic MoU with SFTA in June 2026 to bridge Dubai and Zurich fintech hubs, making it the most directly comparable peer in mission, structure, and cross-border ambitions.
• Singapore FinTech Association: A national industry association representing Singapore's fintech ecosystem with a similar membership-driven model. It serves as a comparable peer because both organizations function as convening bodies linking fintech firms, regulators, and financial institutions in their respective regional hubs.
• UK Fintech: The UK fintech industry body (formerly Innovate Finance) representing the British fintech sector. It is a direct peer given its analogous role advocating for fintech policy, convening ecosystem stakeholders, and supporting cross-border market access.
• FinTech Australia: Australia's peak fintech industry body connecting startups, banks, investors, and regulators. It is comparable to MFTA in its membership-based model, advocacy function, and focus on ecosystem development for a defined geographic market.
• Fintech Association of Japan: Japan's national fintech industry association promoting dialogue between fintech companies, financial institutions, and regulators. Comparable to MFTA as a member-funded organization driving ecosystem collaboration and regulatory engagement in Asia-Pacific.

Regional players

• Africa Fintech Network: A pan-African fintech industry alliance. Comparable to MFTA as a regional industry network, though it focuses on African markets rather than competing directly in MENA; together they represent adjacent emerging-market fintech hubs.

Emerging players

• Bahrain Fintech Bay: A Bahrain-based fintech ecosystem builder and accelerator. Comparable to MFTA because both serve as MENA fintech convening and acceleration hubs, though Bahrain Fintech Bay is more accelerator-focused while MFTA emphasizes policy and standards work.

Broad incumbents

• Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC): A major Dubai-based financial center and free zone that runs the Dubai Fintech Summit and broader innovation programs. It overlaps with MFTA in convening the Dubai fintech ecosystem and engaging regulators, but operates as a government-linked free zone authority with broader mandates.
• Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM): Abu Dhabi's international financial center with active fintech and digital asset initiatives. Comparable as a regional convening authority; the ADI Foundation (an ADGM-adjacent member of MFTA) sits at the intersection of the two organizations.

Others

• Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) Fintech Initiatives: The Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority, which operates fintech sandboxes, licensing frameworks, and ecosystem programs for the Kingdom. It is thematically adjacent rather than directly competitive, shaping the regional regulatory environment in which MFTA members operate.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/themenafintech
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mena-fintech-association

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mena Fintech Association