Celebrating Our Milestone: A Look Back at PayTabs’ Journey

As we approach our tenth anniversary this March, we realize it has been an incredible journey marked by milestones. We have overcome hurdles and have become a name to reckon with among Payment Gateways Providers. As we cherish our journey, we look back upon all that we have achieved over the last decade.

What began as a vision of our founder, Abdulaziz Al Jouf, to power every transaction in the region has now transformed into a global enterprise. Today, we not only serve scores of merchants spread across diverse industries but have also emerged as a trusted partner for organizations all over the world. Whether you are a large organization or a start-up making its presence felt in the digital landscape, PayTabs’ customized suite of payment processing solutions will help you expand your base.

PayTabs’ journey began with a 6-member team. Today, our workforce is spread across Saudi Arabia and the GCC region, Jordan, Palestine, Egypt, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and India. As a team, we have crossed hurdles and embraced opportunities to make PayTabs a name synonymous with being a trustworthy partner in the growth of our clients.

PayTabs’ journey is marked with milestones that help us look back at the years gone by with joy.

Some prominent Milestones achieved by PayTabs at a glance:

2014: The story starts in January 2014 when PayTabs was established with a 6-member team, with the founder’s seed investment of 2 million US dollars. Subsequently in March of 2014, PayTabs opened an office and commenced payment processing. In June, the company celebrated the successful processing of its’ first live SME merchant payment transaction of USD25.

2015: By May of 2015, PayTabs had successfully expanded into most GCC markets by signing agreements with national payment service methods of the region. This move solidified PayTabs positioning as a GCC startup.

PayTabs then integrated with Sadad offering it as a payment method to ecommerce merchants in the Saudi kingdom. In June, at the Saudi Arabian Enterprise Agility Awards held with the support of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, PayTabs founder Abdulaziz Al Jouf was awarded the Payment Solutions Innovation award for PayTabs significant contribution to the Saudi ecommerce industry. In November, PayTabs obtained Payment Card Industry (PCI) Standards Certification, giving more confidence to its merchant base to accept payment transactions seamlessly and securely.

2016: The year started off with the thrilling news that PayTabs had been awarded the accolade of most promising Saudi startup by Forbes Middle East. This was huge recognition for a Saudi startup.

2017: Another multi award-winning year for PayTabs. First news that the payment processing company was listed fourth on the top one hundred startups in the Arab World, by Forbes Middle East and in December, Asian Banker awarded PayTabs CEO and founder an Innovation Leadership Award for his visionary approach to payments. In the same month, the team launched a mobile version of the PayTabs payment gateway platform – a mobile app to power the growth of mobile commerce in the region, giving merchants access to monitor their payment transactions on the go.

2018: Next came a host of recognition awards – Best Global Online Payments Solution by the World Payments Congress, Top 20 Fintech Startups in the Middle East as accorded by Forbes Middle East and the CEO was once again recognized as being a top fintech influencer in the region, by Forbes Middle East. Arabian Business gave the company the honour of being the Fintech Company of the year.

2019: Fast forward to 2019 and PayTabs was once again bestowed with multiple awards including one from Finext – Top Company in Payments. In July, PayTabs signed an agreement to enable customers in Saudi Arabia to pay online using STC Pay wallets. In Q3, PayTabs once again made it to the spotlight being recognized as number 1 on the top 20 Fintech Startups in 2019 by Forbes Middle East. But the icing on the cake was in 2019 when the company officially commenced operations by setting up offices in Egypt via a joint venture with EFG Hermes.

2020: When the pandemic hit in early 2020, PayTabs forged an alliance with Zbooni to empower micro business owners to sell from home as the entire world was confined to their homes. In March 2020, PayTabs signed an agreement with a subsidiary of Alinma Bank in KSA to grow our market reach in the Kingdom. Via this association, PayTabs also offered a white-labelled solution of its’ dashboard for the Bank’s Click Pay payment portal and website.

In July, as the pandemic raged, PayTabs revamped their website, making it easier for ecommerce merchants to sign up on the payment platform. The platform itself was enhanced to provide merchants with a better user experience. In early Q4, PayTabs integrated with Valu in Egypt to enable ecommerce merchants to accept payments in installments, in the republic.

2021:  In January PayTabs announced that it had tied up with Union Pay International so that ecommerce businesses in the UAE would now have access to the largest card base in the world. In April, the company announced the launch of its tap to pay soft POS solution to enable merchants to accept contactless payments via their Android smartphone devices. In June, PayTabs commenced operations in Iraq – it was the first international payment service provider to enter the Iraqi market. In August, the PayTabs app was given the honor of being one of the top fintech apps in the Middle East by Forbes Middle East.

Onwards and upwards in the MENA region, in November the Soft POS solution was launched in Jordan, in collaboration with Middle East Payment Services (MEPS). PayTabs also enhanced their payment security by announcing the platform was EMV 3D Secure 2.0 ready. The year ended on a high note with PayTabs being awarded as the most innovative payment solutions provider in KSA. In December, the company announced that it had acquired a 100% stake in Paymes – Turkey’s largest social commerce platform to develop social commerce in the GCC region.

2022:  In early 2022, PayTabs completed their acquisition and integration with India’s OGS PayLab. PayTabs entire business vision has acquired a new dimension by acquiring OGS SwitchOn capabilities. This elevates our payment processing capabilities and positioning in the market. As a Fintech enabler for the region, PayTabs vision is to power every digital transaction across the MENA region.

In May, PayTabs launched social commerce payment solutions for micro merchants and freelancers in Egypt. This quickly followed with PayTabs opening its suite of SaaS solutions to serve the MENA market. In June, PayTabs was awarded Best Fintech Company in Saudi Arabia and two other awards quickly followed in August – Best in Class Payment Orchestration awarded by International Business Magazine and top 25 Fintech companies in 2022 – Forbes Middle East. In September social commerce was launched across GCC markets UAE and KSA.

2023: In March 2023, PayTabs attained mada Payment Gateway Certification from Saudi Payments. The company also received the Business Excellence Award from Westford Awards showcasing its commitment to excellence. April 2023 marked a strategic move as PayTabs acquired OGS PayLab, Chennai, expanding its orchestration capabilities. Forbes Middle East recognized PayTabs as one of the Top Fintech Companies of 2023. The momentum continued in June 2023 when PayTabs became the first to deploy 3D secure payment solutions in KSA, demonstrating its commitment to cutting-edge technology. August 2023 saw PayTabs entering the Palestine market, furthering its footprint in the Levant region. November saw PayTabs being honored as the Best Merchant Solution in the MENA region as the company continued to unveil Card Issuance Solutions and formed a strategic partnership with Tabby, solidifying its innovative approach and collaborative initiatives in the fintech landscape. The year culminated with success as PayTabs was honored as MENA’s Fintech Co of the Year by Entrepreneur Middle East

Whether you have been with us right from the beginning or just started your journey with PayTabs, we look forward to being a part of your continued growth and success.

On our 10th PayTabs Anniversary, we look to the future and the opportunities ahead with renewed excitement. PayTabs’ journey is not just a celebration of our achievements but a story where every client, partner, and each and every team member made significant contributions.

Thank you for being an integral part of our incredible story.