Fuse
“Can a BVNK founder replicate Europe's virtual IBAN infrastructure in MENA to become the go-to cross-border payments layer for global companies entering the region?”
Founded2023
HQDubai, UAE
FoundersGeorge Davis (CEO, ex-co-founder of BVNK), James Smith (CTO)
Total raised$6.6M
Latest roundSeed, April 2025
IndustryFintech / Cross-border payments
The story
Founded in 2023 by the co-founder of BVNK, Fuse targets the MENA region's fragmented cross-border payments infrastructure. The company's core insight is that virtual IBANs — commoditized in Europe — are nearly absent across the Middle East, creating a greenfield opportunity for API-first infrastructure. Unlike BVNK's crypto-native approach, Fuse focuses on fiat cross-border rails (USD virtual accounts + dirham IBANs) for global businesses expanding into MENA.
Product timeline
2023
Founded in Dubai by George Davis (ex-BVNK co-founder) and James Smith to build infrastructure-grade cross-border payments for the MENA region.· pivot
2025
Launched virtual IBANs for UAE and USD virtual accounts for cross-border money movement, positioning as the first provider of virtual IBANs in the Middle East.· banking
2025
Raised $6.6M seed round to scale cross-border payments API across MENA.· pivot
The stack
Lending
Accounting gap: none