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Forbes Middle East released its annual Fintech 50 list for 2026 on October 8, positioning the United Arab Emirates as the country with the strongest representation through 15 included companies. Saudi Arabia followed with 13 firms on the ranking while Egypt accounted for 10, with the full selection spanning 10 countries in the Middle East and North Africa region. The 50 companies together handled transaction volumes exceeding 260 billion dollars in 2025, according to the publication. This performance reflects the scale that leading regional fintech players have achieved.
Tabby of Saudi Arabia maintained its position at the top of the list for a second straight year on the back of more than 18 billion dollars in yearly transaction volume. Fawry from Egypt ranked second with 55.4 million monthly users recorded as of June 2026. MNT-Halan, also Egyptian, took third place following an investment that valued the firm at 1.4 billion dollars in June of this year. The company is additionally preparing to divest a 20 percent stake via an initial public offering.
Network International earned the fourth spot overall and the highest among UAE companies in the Forbes Middle East evaluation. The publication added 18 new names to this year’s list, four of which operate from the UAE including Astra Tech, PRYPCO and Digit9. Further Emirati participants encompass Sarwa in automated investing, Tarabut in open banking and others specializing in areas such as digital lending and payments infrastructure.
Forbes Middle East applied multiple criteria when compiling the Fintech 50, among them levels of external investment attracted, transaction volumes generated, active user numbers, consumer reach achieved and geographic footprint established. The assessment process ruled out any fintech operations tied to exchange houses, telecom providers, traditional banks or government bodies. Payments stood out as the most prominent business segment represented on the ranking.
Wamda data indicated that fintech attracted 708 million dollars in investment across 51 funding rounds in the first half of 2026, outpacing all other sectors in the region. The capital flows arrived even as geopolitical unrest continued to affect parts of the Middle East and North Africa. Such figures demonstrate the sector’s enduring capacity to draw investor interest amid broader economic conditions.
The UAE companies on the list provide services including wealth management through Sarwa, cross-border payments via Digit9 and corporate expense management with Alaan. Beehive offers digital lending while Ziina focuses on peer-to-peer transfers and NymCard specializes in card issuance technology. These diverse capabilities contributed to the strong showing by Emirati firms in the Forbes Middle East compilation.
