Funding Souq
“Can a Shariah-compliant debt crowdfunding platform become the default SME private credit rail across the GCC?”
Founded2020
HQFintech Hive, DIFC, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
FoundersMartin Jaouni
IndustryFintech / Lending
The story
Funding Souq is a DIFC-licensed, Shariah-compliant SME debt crowdfunding platform that connects established SMEs in the UAE and Saudi Arabia with retail and institutional investors. It launched in late 2020 in Dubai under DFSA license F005822 with an Islamic Window endorsement, then expanded to Saudi Arabia in 2021 under a separate entity regulated by the Saudi Central Bank. Its evolution has focused on widening distribution — notably the 2024 Qoyod accounting partnership to embed SME financing into accounting software — rather than building a banking or card stack.
Product timeline
2020
Funding Souq founded in DIFC, Dubai as a Shariah-compliant SME debt crowdfunding platform· pivot
2021
Expanded to Saudi Arabia under separate CR and Saudi Central Bank oversight· banking
2024
Partnered with Qoyod (Saudi accounting software) to embed SME financing into the Qoyod platform· lending
Regulated entities
Crowdfunding / Islamic Financial Services (Islamic Window)
UAE (DIFC / DFSA)
Funding Souq Limited
Debt Crowdfunding
Saudi Arabia (SAMA / Saudi Central Bank) · 2021
Funding Souq for Debt Crowdfunding (CR 1010644393)
The stack
Banking / BaaS
Lending
Funding Souq (in-house) — debt crowdfunding platformShariah-compliant SME business financing (AED 50K–500K, 3 months–2 years, UAE)Shariah-compliant SME debt crowdfunding (KSA)Embedded SME financing via Qoyod accounting platform (KSA)
Sponsor bank
Accounting
Accounting gap: minor