CASHU is a
digital wallet
A digital wallet, also known as an e-wallet, is an electronic device, online service, or software program that allows one party to make electronic transactions with another party bartering digital currency units for goods and services. This can ...
that allows consumers to pay and
transfer
Transfer may refer to:
Arts and media
* ''Transfer'' (2010 film), a German science-fiction movie directed by Damir Lukacevic and starring Zana Marjanović
* ''Transfer'' (1966 film), a short film
* ''Transfer'' (journal), in management studies
...
money
Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are as ...
online, and issue
prepaid virtual and plastic
Mastercard. The company was established by
Maktoob
Maktoob ( ar, مكتوب) was an online services company founded in Amman (Jordan). Maktoob.com was known for being the first Arabic/English email service provider. In 2009, Yahoo! acquired Maktoob.com, thus turning Maktoob into Yahoo!'s officia ...
(currently “Jabbar Internet Group”) in July 2002, and it is
headquartered
Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top ...
in the
British Virgin Islands (BVI).
In addition to the Company's headquarters in the
British Virgin Islands
)
, anthem = "God Save the King"
, song_type = Territorial song
, song = "Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands"
, image_map = File:British Virgin Islands on the globe (Americas centered).svg
, map_caption =
, mapsize = 290px
, image_map2 = Brit ...
; the Company has an office in
Amman
Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite language, Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 a ...
,
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
, and an office in
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
, through which all CASHU operations are managed.
History
Early History
In 2002 CASHU was launched as an alternative
online payment
An e-commerce payment system (or an electronic payment system) facilitates the acceptance of electronic payment for offline transfer, also known as a subcomponent of electronic data interchange (EDI), e-commerce payment systems have become incre ...
method for the use of
credit card
A credit card is a payment card issued to users (cardholders) to enable the cardholder to pay a merchant for goods and services based on the cardholder's accrued debt (i.e., promise to the card issuer to pay them for the amounts plus the o ...
s
online
In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" or ...
,.
On August 25, 2009,
Yahoo!
Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds managed by Apollo Global Man ...
acquired
Maktoob
Maktoob ( ar, مكتوب) was an online services company founded in Amman (Jordan). Maktoob.com was known for being the first Arabic/English email service provider. In 2009, Yahoo! acquired Maktoob.com, thus turning Maktoob into Yahoo!'s officia ...
in a deal that exceeded $85 million. According to the agreement between the two companies, the deal did not include the rest of Maktoob’s
product
Product may refer to:
Business
* Product (business), an item that serves as a solution to a specific consumer problem.
* Product (project management), a deliverable or set of deliverables that contribute to a business solution
Mathematics
* Produ ...
s, including CASHU,
Souq.com
Souq.com was the largest e-commerce platform in the Arab world. The company launched in 2005 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. On March 28, 2017, Amazon.com Inc. acquired Souq.com for $580 million as a subsidiary. On May 1, 2019, Souq.com UAE becam ...
, Araby and Tahadi
MMO game
A massively multiplayer online game (MMOG or more commonly MMO) is an online video game with a large number of players, often hundreds or thousands, on the same server. MMOs usually feature a huge, persistent open world, although there are ...
s, which became part of Jabbar Internet Group headed by
Maktoob
Maktoob ( ar, مكتوب) was an online services company founded in Amman (Jordan). Maktoob.com was known for being the first Arabic/English email service provider. In 2009, Yahoo! acquired Maktoob.com, thus turning Maktoob into Yahoo!'s officia ...
founder, and
Tiger Global
Tiger Global Management, LLC (often referred to as Tiger Global and formerly known as Tiger Technology) is an American investment firm. It mainly focuses on Internet, software, consumer, and financial technology industries.
Background and histo ...
as the major shareholder.
Souq Group Subsidiary (2012-2015)
In 2012, Naspers Limited took a stake alongside Jabbar Internet Group and
Tiger Global
Tiger Global Management, LLC (often referred to as Tiger Global and formerly known as Tiger Technology) is an American investment firm. It mainly focuses on Internet, software, consumer, and financial technology industries.
Background and histo ...
in CASHU and
Souq.com
Souq.com was the largest e-commerce platform in the Arab world. The company launched in 2005 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. On March 28, 2017, Amazon.com Inc. acquired Souq.com for $580 million as a subsidiary. On May 1, 2019, Souq.com UAE becam ...
, and so it was listed under the umbrella of
Souq Group, which included
Souq.com
Souq.com was the largest e-commerce platform in the Arab world. The company launched in 2005 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. On March 28, 2017, Amazon.com Inc. acquired Souq.com for $580 million as a subsidiary. On May 1, 2019, Souq.com UAE becam ...
, Sukar.com and Qexpress (a
logistics
Logistics is generally the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics manages the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requirements of ...
and
shipping company
A shipping line or shipping company is a company whose line of business is ownership and operation of ships.
Shipping companies provide a method of distinguishing ships by different kinds of cargo:
# Bulk cargo is a type of special cargo that is ...
), as well as CASHU.
While
Souq Group continued to focus on the
e-commerce
E-commerce (electronic commerce) is the activity of electronically buying or selling of products on online services or over the Internet. E-commerce draws on technologies such as mobile commerce, electronic funds transfer, supply chain manageme ...
field, CASHU has grown towards
cashless societies and
Financial Inclusion
Financial inclusion is defined as the availability and equality of opportunities to access financial services. It refers to a process by which individuals and businesses can access appropriate, affordable, and timely financial products and service ...
and started to move away from the vision of
Souq, especially that the regulations and compliance conditions for
electronic payments in general and
e-wallets
A digital wallet, also known as an e-wallet, is an electronic device, online service, or software program that allows one party to make electronic transactions with another party bartering digital currency units for goods and services. This can ...
in particular are still in the development stage in the region, so CASHUtleft
Souq Group.
Later in 2013, CASHU launched a new
online payment gateway, PAYFORT.
The Management Buyout (2015 – present)
In December 2015, CASHU Management purchased CASHU in the first
Management Buyout deal in the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
,.
Regulation
After the
management buyout was completed, CASHU in 2016 migrated its business to
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
and got approved to operate as a
Stored Value Facility by the
Monetary Authority of Singapore
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is the central bank and financial regulatory authority of Singapore. It administers the various statutes pertaining to money, banking, insurance, securities and the financial sector in general, as well ...
. All CASHU's merchants, vendors, and consumers were then required to maintain a full
KYC (Know Your Customer) record that complies with
MAS’ rules and regulations, which was a major step towards regulating the core business of CASHU.
This has caused an immediate loss of business and irritation to the authorities of
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
, who didn’t feel comfortable sharing its citizen ID’s with a non-regulated entity. Accordingly, the
Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency
The Saudi Central Bank ( ar, البنك المركزي السعودي), previously known as the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA; ar, link=no, مؤسسة النقد العربي السعودي), established in 1952, is the central bank of ...
blocked CASHU
website
A website (also written as a web site) is a collection of web pages and related content that is identified by a common domain name and published on at least one web server. Examples of notable websites are Google Search, Google, Facebook, Amaz ...
in
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
on January 28, 2016.
On October 1, 2016, CASHU partnered with
Mastercard and
Noor Bank
Noor Bank (formerly Noor Islamic Bank) was established in January 2008, in Dubai - United Arab Emirates.
In 2018, the bank was ranked the 11th largest bank in the UAE in terms of asset size.
Noor Bank is a full-service Shari’a-compliant bank, ...
in the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
to launch the first
prepaid virtual card in the region, which is approved by the
Central Bank of the UAE. This product gave CASHU legal approval to operate in the
UAE
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
as a
FinTech
Fintech, a portmanteau of "financial technology", refers to firms using new technology to compete with traditional financial methods in the delivery of financial services. Artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, and big data are r ...
Company in cooperation with
Noor Bank
Noor Bank (formerly Noor Islamic Bank) was established in January 2008, in Dubai - United Arab Emirates.
In 2018, the bank was ranked the 11th largest bank in the UAE in terms of asset size.
Noor Bank is a full-service Shari’a-compliant bank, ...
.
Later on,
Bank Albilad in
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
announced on October 10, 2016, that it has entered into a strategic partnership with CASHU to develop innovative payment products and services in
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
. The partnership with
Bank Albilad allowed CASHU to recommence its operations in
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
before the end of 2016 since it had met the requirements of the
Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority
The Saudi Central Bank ( ar, البنك المركزي السعودي), previously known as the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA; ar, link=no, مؤسسة النقد العربي السعودي), established in 1952, is the central bank of ...
.
In October 2017, CASHU and
Bank Albilad completed the compliance requirements of
SAMA and received its approval to operate in
KSA
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
.
Bank Albilad issued a letter to CASHU allowing it to operate in
KSA
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
accordingly.
References
{{reflist
External links
Official WebsiteCASHU's Management Buyout
Payment service providers
Maktoob