Tunisian fintech-insurtech newcomer PAYDAY has closed its first pre-seed funding round, achieving a valuation of US$3 million.
The financing was led by UGFS North Africa (the North Africa arm of United Gulf Financial Services), with participation from TALYS Group and BioProtection SA.
Founded in 2024 by Mohamed Anouar Gadhoum and Shaher Abbas, PAYDAY operates at the intersection of salary-linked lending and micro-insurtech (in particular micro-Takaful) for low- to middle-income employees.
PAYDAY enables employers, insurers and banks to work together on salary-advance loans and group insurance schemes. According to the company, more than 10,000 transactions have already been processed, with a total transaction volume exceeding 8.2 million Tunisian dinars in its early phase of deployment.
The platform seeks to increase access to financial services for workers often underserved by traditional credit and insurance products. Its micro-Takaful insurance offering is built on the principle of cooperative risk sharing and avoids interest-based structures, making it Sharia-compliant.
With the new capital, PAYDAY plans to scale its technology stack, deepen its partnerships with banks, micro-finance institutions and insurers, and expand geographically across North Africa.
Co-founder Gadhoum commented: “This new round of funding brings together a venture capital specialist, a technology group and a strong industrial player. This alliance strengthens PAYDAY’s ability to develop its services and ensure the scalability of this innovative solution, serving businesses and their employees.”
With its pre-seed round secured and early traction validated, PAYDAY is positioned to become a regional reference point for salary-linked finance and micro-insurance in North Africa. If it executes well, it could also attract larger seed or Series A investment in the coming 12-18 months as it moves from proof of concept to scale.
Read more on Tech Gist Africa:
Tunisian legal-tech startup Juridoc has secured an undisclosed amount of funding
Dabchy, a Tunisian e-commerce startup has secured a seven-figure pre-Series A funding round
EasyBank, a Tunisian fintech startup, has raised $370,000 in a funding round
