Small and medium-sized businesses in the Middle East and North Africa often wait up to 90 days to get paid. A new $65m funding round for UAE fintech Comfi is focused on solving that cash flow delay for SMEs. Comfi, a UAE-based B2B embedded finance platform, has raised $65m in a Pre-Series A round to help SMEs manage late payments across the MENA region.
The round includes both equity and debt. Iliad Partners led the equity part. Yango Ventures and Raw Ventures invested in the region for the first time. On the debt side, funding came from Partners for Growth through a credit facility, and a mezzanine facility arranged by Shorooq with support from a family office.
The company, launched in 2023, focuses on a simple problem. Large buyers often take 60 to 90 days to pay invoices, while smaller suppliers need cash much sooner. Comfi uses AI-based checks to approve credit and lets suppliers get paid within 24 hours. It then collects payment later from buyers. The aim is to reduce pressure on SMEs and keep their cash flow moving.
SMEs make up about 94% of businesses in the UAE, but they receive less than 10% of bank lending. The financing gap in the wider region is estimated at $160bn. Traditional banks often require collateral and heavy paperwork. Comfi says it relies on data and four documents to assess credit more quickly.
The business is also part of a growing B2B “buy now, pay later” market. In the UAE, this segment is expected to reach $1.97bn by 2026, with growth of more than 23% a year through 2030. Competition is increasing as consumer BNPL firms expand into business lending.
Funding in the wider MENA tech sector has slowed. Total investment fell to $941m in the first quarter of 2026. Even so, global investors are still backing fintech infrastructure in the Gulf region.
Comfi says it has processed more than 15,000 invoices and now works with around 1,000 active clients. The new funding will be used to improve its credit systems and expand into new markets in the region.
“Every investor in this round saw a different opportunity,” said Sanjar Samiev, co-founder and chief executive of Comfi. “We are building toward a significantly larger round from a position of strength, not necessity.”
The company is betting that faster access to cash, not traditional bank loans, will become a core part of SME financing in the region.
