Egypt’s largest BNPL platform, valU to sell minority stake to Alhokair family

Egypt’s largest buy-now, pay-later (BNPL) platform has announced that the Saudi Arabia-based Alhokair family (namely Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair, Salman Abdulaziz Alhokair and Abdul Majeed Abdulaziz Alhokair) has entered into an agreement to acquire a 4.99 per cent stake in valU through a capital injection of $12.4m, signifying a valuation of $247.4m for the company.

Currently subject to relevant regulatory approvals and satisfaction of certain conditions precedent, the transaction marks the Alhokair family’s first investment in a BNPL platform in Egypt.

The transaction follows valU’s recent entry into the Saudi market through FAS Finance, a joint venture with FAS Labs in which FAS Labs owns 65 per cent while valU owns 35 per cent.

Karim Awad, Group CEO of EFG Hermes Holding, said: “We are thrilled to be further growing our partnership with the Alhokair Family. The transaction puts valU, the largest BNPL provider in Egypt, at a $247.4m valuation, and is a testament to valU’s visible success story, business model, and potential for growth in Egypt and on a regional level.

“We are proud to have grown a strong brand like valU that, since late 2017, has not only established itself as the leading BNPL platform but has also attracted the interest of the world’s largest retailer, Amazon, one of the most important brands globally, and now one of the region’s most prominent retail players, Alhokair.”

Read: Amazon invests $10m in EFG Hermes, may convert to 4.255% stake in subsidiary valU

With its entry into the Saudi market, valU will be present across Alhokair’s expansive retail network of more than 1,000 stores as well as online on the VogaCloset and monobrand websites, including 14 in Saudi Arabia. It will also extend to other vendors, retail networks, and merchants to include and cover the entire Saudi market.

The family’s agreement to acquire a stake in valU signals investors’ interest in the ‘non-banking financial institution’ space in Egypt and puts it on the map as a leading exporter of financial inclusion solutions, at a time when inflationary pressures are on the rise in the country and the rest of the region.

“We are extremely proud of the fact that Alhokair Family is now a shareholder in valU. Preceded by the announcement of valU’s entry into Saudi Arabia last week—our first new-market entry since we began operations out of Cairo five years ago —the acquisition agreement cements our solid partnership with Alhokair, a retail powerhouse and a perfect partner on our journey to expand across the region,” said Walid Hassouna, CEO of valU.

“valU has definitely filled a financing gap in the Egyptian market and supported financial inclusion. The business model that we created strives to have a positive daily impact on hundreds of thousands of consumers, retailers, and service providers across the country,” concluded Hassouna.