DIFC grants Ebury financial services licence in fintech first

Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) has announced that Ebury, a fintech company backed by Santander and offering cross-border financial services and risk management, has been granted a Financial Services licence to carry out the regulated activity of providing Money Services from the Centre.

Ebury, which has 22 people based out of the UAE already, has become the first company to be granted such a licence to engage in money services under the Dubai Financial Services Authority's (DFSA) comprehensive Money Services Regime.

The licence will allow Ebury to enhance the services it offers SMEs in the region, and to do it in or from the DIFC. It will allow Ebury to provide money services and arrange credit enabling activities such as booking transactions, giving advice and onboarding clients from its DIFC office.

The announcement demonstrates Ebury's firm commitment to Dubai and reflects the deepening strategic partnership between Ebury and DIFC, the leading and comprehensive financial ecosystem in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region.

In the 2019/20 Financial Year, Ebury processed £18.7bn of payments for over 49,000 companies, a 34% increase from the previous year. In April 2020, Banco Santander completed its £350m investment in Ebury giving it the capability to accelerate the expansion of the business internationally and enter new markets.

Arif Amiri, CEO of the DIFC Authority, said: "The DIFC Money Services Regime is the most comprehensive in the region and represents Dubai and the DIFC's commitment to further developing the financial ecosystem and driving the future of finance. Congratulations to Ebury for becoming the first company in our ecosystem to be granted a licence to provide Money Services.  We look forward to transforming the money services landscape together across the region."

Juan Lobato, CEO at Ebury, commented: "Ebury continues to go from strength to strength. We are market-leading in our ability to service the international payment needs of SMEs and being the first company to obtain a licence to provide Money Services in or from the DIFC is further validation of our investment in local operations across the world."

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