Tamara secures $250m debt financing to expand consumer-friendly payment options

🤳 Here’s Tamara! The Saudi fintech start-up specialises in Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services, enabling consumers to purchase products and pay in up to 4 interest-free instalments.

And, they just secured an additional $250 million in debt financing, raising its total warehouse facility to $400 million.

• Co-founded in 2020, by Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain, the company now has more than 9 million users.

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💰 Investor low-down: The facility includes up to $200 million in senior debt from Goldman Sachs and a $50 million mezzanine tranche* led by Shorooq Partners.

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• Tamara previously secured $100 million in a Series B round in August 2022.

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🛍️ What’s the deal with BNPL?

Amid industry challenges, the BNPL sector is expanding from e-commerce to brick-and-mortar sales for sustainable growth.

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With around 90% of MENA's retail occurring offline, there’s significant market potential.

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⚙️ Break it down: 

Whether online or in-store, Tamara’s got the answer:

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🛒 Select it at the cashier, or choose from over 26,000 online partner brands

📱 Give your phone number

💳 Pay through a link sent by SMS

📲 Manage your payment plan in the app

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How does Tamara turn a profit? They charge retailers, not shoppers.

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📈 What’s in it for the retailer? 

Tamara acts as a marketing and discovery channel for partners to drive new customers and incremental sales online and in-store.

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The result? Retailers partnering with Tamara have reported a 40% increase in average order value (AOV), 20% reduction in cash on delivery, 15% increase in conversion rates, and a significant decrease in order return rates.

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Whatsmore, the service simplifies transaction management, reduces fraud risk, and ensures businesses receive full payment upfront while customers enjoy extended payment terms.

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⚖️ Talk to me about regulation

The BNPL sector in MENA is mostly unregulated. 

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But things are changing for the better.

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Saudi Arabia's Central Bank (SAMA) recently began issuing BNPL permits to no-fee, no-interest providers, and this summer, Tamara became one of only four Saudi companies to receive this authorisation.

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🔮 Flashforward

The recent funding will boost the company's development of their flagship BNPL product and enable investment in developing new, innovative products and services.