Lendo lands $200M debt deal to fund Saudi small businesses
What's the deal? Lendo, a Saudi platform for Shariah-compliant debt crowdfunding, has secured up to 750,000,000 SAR ($200 million) from Austrian fund Quantic FinancialDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → Solutions. The capital will fund working capital for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across the kingdom.
Why now? The agreement coincided with Lendo's participation in Money20/20 Middle East in Riyadh. It comes as Saudi Arabia expands financing channels for SMEs under Vision 2030 and its Financial Sector Development Program.
What's the endgame? Lendo, which is supervised by the Saudi Central Bank, provides financing through a Shariah-compliant debt crowdfunding model. It plans to direct the new capital to SME working-capital needs while adding financing products to meet rising demand.
Who does what? Vienna-based Quantic, an asset manager, will manage the capital allocated to the program. It also plans to develop Shariah-compliant investment products based on these assets for international investors.
The signal: The deal opens a channel for international institutional capital to reach Saudi SMEs through a regulated local platform. At $200 million, it ranks in the top 10% of debt rounds for Saudi mobile-app companies over the past four years.
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
