Saudi Vrtx Raises $3.6 Million to Develop Its Integrated Financial Technology Infrastructure

• Saudi financial technology company Vrtx has raised approximately $3.6 million in a Pre-Seed round, supported by SC Ventures by Standard Chartered, Sadu Capital, BYLD, Suhail Ventures, F6 Ventures, TAZ Investment, and Palm Ventures.
• The company was founded by Mishal bin Salama and Omar Shaaban in 2025, and it aims to develop an infrastructure that allows businesses to integrate financial services including digital wallets, payments, card issuance, transfers, and transaction processing within their products.
• The company, based in Riyadh, has received preliminary approval from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) to obtain an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license, as part of its preparations to offer its services within the regulatory framework in the Kingdom.
• Vrtx aims to provide the infrastructure and operational capabilities that businesses need to launch integrated financial services without having to build the core financial and operational systems from scratch.

Press Release:

Saudi financial technology company Vrtx has raised $3.6 million in new funding, supported by SC Ventures by Standard Chartered, Sadu Capital, BYLD, Suhail Ventures, F6 Ventures, TAZ Investment, and Palm Ventures.

Vrtx was founded by Mishal bin Salama and Omar Shaaban, and the company aims to enable businesses to integrate digital wallets, payments, and card issuance within their products.

Vrtx has received preliminary approval from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) for a digital wallet license.

Vrtx, an integrated financial technology platform based in Riyadh, announced today its successful closure of a $3.6 million pre-seed investment round.

Vrtx was established by Mishal bin Salama and Omar Shaaban, who have extensive experience in this sector, having previously worked within the team of Tawiq, one of the early digital financial platforms in the Kingdom that was later acquired by Tabby. Through their experience in building financial products, the founders recognized the complexity associated with launching financial services and the simultaneous development required for technology infrastructure, operations, compliance, and cybersecurity.

This led to the idea of Vrtx, aimed at simplifying this process, as it seeks to combine the infrastructure and operational capabilities necessary to integrate financial services, including digital wallets, payments, card issuance, transfers, and transaction processing.

Vrtx has received preliminary approval from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) for a digital wallet license, marking an important step towards enabling these services within the regulatory framework in the Kingdom.

Instead of companies having to spend long periods building financial systems and connecting with payment networks, and managing operations from scratch, Vrtx aims to provide a clearer and easier path that allows companies to develop and launch their financial solutions more quickly and efficiently.

With secure infrastructure, clear workflows, and an operational layer designed for scalability, Vrtx aims to help companies transition from idea to operational readiness in a short time, while maintaining efficient operations and financial rules, and reducing unnecessary technical and operational burdens.

The round included global and local investors, including SC Ventures by Standard Chartered, Sadu Capital, BYLD, Suhail Ventures, F6 Ventures, TAZ Investment, and Palm Ventures.

Commenting on the round, Mishal bin Salama, co-founder and CEO of Vrtx, stated that the company's vision is to build a platform that brings together financial technology capabilities in one place, enabling businesses to select and develop financial services that fit their actual needs.

Mishal bin Salama said, "Building financial technology products today is a complex process; companies with a clear idea and real demand may take years to establish financial infrastructure, operations, and compliance requirements before they can serve their first customer. We aim to make financial technology capabilities a fundamental pillar available to any company, and for Vrtx to be the destination that brings together what they need from these capabilities."

Gabriel Heredia, Director of Standard Chartered Ventures in Saudi Arabia, commented: "This investment reflects our confidence in the growth of the integrated financial technology sector in the Kingdom, and the growing role that financial infrastructure plays in enabling companies across various sectors. Vrtx combines a deep understanding of the market, technology, and the capabilities needed to seize this opportunity. We are pleased to support the team in developing and expanding its platform and contributing to the ongoing evolution of the financial technology ecosystem in the Kingdom."

Youssef Oujidan, co-founder and managing partner at BYLD, added: "Integrated financial technology has the potential to become an important layer of economic infrastructure, enabling the integration of financial services within the businesses that people use daily. However, realizing this potential on a large scale requires innovation and regulation to evolve side by side. What convinced us about Mishal was his awareness of this from the beginning and building Vrtx on the basis of regulatory compliance.",

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