PayTabs Egypt

Established in Saudi Arabia in 2014, PayTabs is an award-winning fintech company with presence in over seven markets. In 2019, EFG Hermes Holding partnered with PayTabs to establish PayTabs Egypt as part of the firm’s growing Non-Bank Financial Institutions (NBFI) vertical. The aim was to work together to build a cutting-edge platform that facilitates financial inclusion and caters to the online and digital payment needs of multiple consumer segments. The company is now Egypt’s most innovative provider of digital payment solutions, offering ecommerce merchants the market’s leading online payment gateway.

Despite the challenges that faced sectors and economies in 2020, 2021 was a year of opportunities for PayTabs Egypt. Propelled by the demand for digital payment solutions, the need to go cashless, and the regulatory support for financial inclusion and digital intermediation channels, PayTabs Egypt was able to expand its product offering, optimize its client mix, and capitalize on the synergies between EFG Hermes’ NBFI subsidiaries to come out a stronger, more streamlined operation. In just under a year and a half of launching, PayTabs Egypt was awarded ‘Best E-payment Solution’ by Entrepreneur Middle East at the ‘Leaders in Fintech Awards 2021’, an event which paid tribute to entrepreneurs and enterprises shaping the future of the fintech industry.

This year saw PayTabs Egypt utilize its resources to leverage on the Central Bank of Egypt’s (CBE) initiatives that were aimed at supporting payment solution companies. One such initiative was the mandate to waive subscription fees, which the company approached by creating a ‘CBE Bundle’ that offered merchants a one-stop shop for all their needs to shift their businesses to the digital sphere. Another game changer for PayTabs Egypt was the flexibility granted by the CBE in terms of the ability to provide services for micro -companies and freelancers with a simplified due diligence. This has unlocked an entirely new base of direct channels for the company, in social commerce and freelancer partnerships, which were previously challenging.

2021 marked a significant shift in PayTabs Egypt’s portfolio, from being mostly based in large corporates to what is now a healthy 70% majority SMEs and social commerce entities. This portfolio optimization strategy similarly fell in line with the company’s objectives to enable financial accessibility for the unbanked by working with smaller merchants who could not previously offer digital payment solutions to their customers. In line with this strategy, the company created PayTabs Marketplace, a unified platform that features solutions using paylinks and QR codes to facilitate online payments via WhatsApp, SMS, Email, and other social platforms. PayTabs Egypt has also effectively streamlined client onboarding, slashing the time to be completed to only 3-5 days, down from 15 days. This development has not only helped in acquiring more merchants but has also significantly increased the accessibility and attractiveness of the service for freelancers and social commerce players, a key pillar in the company’s strategy to drive financial inclusion and bring micro businesses into the economic eco system.

The company also benefited greatly from synergies with other EFG Hermes Holding platforms, kicking off the year with a few strategic partnerships with corporate and enterprise merchants that had not yet expanded their businesses online by creating a tailored solution along with its sister company, the leading BNPL fintech player, valU. In particular, PayTabs Egypt has approached clients with conventional B2B models to transform their service offering into more consumer-centric B2C models. A prime example of this was Universal Group, where the client launched a bespoke e-commerce platform to serve customers directly using PayTabs Egypt to process payments and valU’s convenient payment plans. A partnership with EgyptAir marked another major success for EFG Hermes’ NBFI platforms, with PayTabs Egypt acting as the payment gateway and aggregator for domestic and international flight bookings and allowing customers to utilize valU’s BNPL services to pay for travel. Pioneering a first-of-its-kind solution to maximize convenience within the real estate sector, PayTabs Egypt and valU also partnered with Inertia Real Estate to process scheduled maintenance and unit reservation costs through PayTabs Egypt’s payment gateway.

Another milestone achievement for the company took place at the very end of 2021, which saw PayTabs Egypt launch PayTabs Touch. This breakthrough platform merges POS software with mobile phone compatibility, delivering contactless tap and pay options directly on mobile devices using contactless cards. This enables merchants to accept card payments on smartphones and tablets without the need to obtain a separate card reader, transforming the e-payments sector in Egypt.

In alignment with its commitment to best serve its clients, PayTabs Egypt’s team took steps to ensure that clients are maximizing the benefits of the services offered to them and in turn cascading knowledge of new and upcoming trends in digital payment solutions down the value chain. The company conducts training sessions for teams to instruct them on how to use their dashboards, digital tools, and other features. The company also utilizes its social media accounts to answer FAQs and queries from prospective and existing clients, as well as to offer short tutorial videos to showcase features on the dashboard.

In the coming year, PayTabs Egypt plans to expand its geographical footprint. 2022 will see the company shift its focus from Cairo and Alexandria to new governorates, particularly expanding into markets where payment options are still not prevalent. The company will also continue to find innovative methods to pave the way for e-payments in new industries, with an eye for breaking the Egyptian population’s overreliance on cash payments. PayTabs Egypt is looking forward to optimizing its portfolio to cater to different cycles through more collaborations that will cement its status as the payment solutions provider of choice to local partners.

Another constituent element of the company’s plans is the growth and development of its human capital. The company places high importance on employing new high caliber talents from diverse backgrounds, as well as retaining its current workforce, as it continues to heavily invest in fintech training for its teams. Weekly interactive workshops are also hosted by the region’s most renowned industry experts to inspire knowledge and help the company in its mission to upscale the market.