Pakistani fintech ABHI expands Saudi footprint with NOX Group wage-access deal

Pakistan-founded fintech ABHI has signed a partnership with Saudi Arabia’s NOX Group to give the latter’s employees access to portions of their earned wages before the regular payday, the company announced on Thursday. The deal expands ABHI’s footprint in the Kingdom as the startup continues to build its earned wage access (EWA), payroll and embedded finance business across the Gulf.

Direct quote

“Financial wellbeing starts with having greater control over the income you have already earned,” ABHI co-founder and CEO Omair Ansari said in a statement. “At ABHI, we believe employees should have the flexibility to access their earned wages when they need them, rather than being restricted by a fixed payday.”

Context and details

Under the agreement, employees of NOX Group will be able to draw on a portion of salary they have already accrued during a pay cycle, rather than taking a conventional advance or consumer loan. Earned wage access services allow workers to manage expenses or short-term cash-flow needs between paydays and are increasingly offered by employers and fintech providers as part of employee benefits programmes.

ABHI was founded in Pakistan in 2021 and has since broadened its operations regionally. The company was selected for Y Combinator in 2021 and raised $17 million in a funding round in 2022 at a valuation of $90 million, according to company figures. It relocated its global headquarters to Abu Dhabi in 2024 with support from the Abu Dhabi Investment Office and entered Saudi Arabia initially through a partnership with Alraedah Digital Solutions.

The NOX Group agreement follows a string of recent Saudi partnerships ABHI has announced as it scales its EWA offering in the Kingdom. Recent commercial arrangements include collaborations with:

• Syarah (online car marketplace)
• Squadio (technology company)
• QBS
• TAM Aerospace & Defense (aviation services provider)

ABHI has also moved to expand regulated financial services in its home market through a joint acquisition, alongside TPL Corp, of FINCA Microfinance Bank, which was subsequently rebranded as ABHI Microfinance Bank. Those moves form part of a broader growth strategy that combines earned-wage tools with payroll and other embedded financial services across markets in South Asia and the Gulf.

Outlook

The NOX deal is likely to deepen ABHI’s commercial presence in Saudi Arabia and increase its visibility among local employers seeking non-lending liquidity solutions for staff. For businesses, EWA can serve as a staff-retention and wellbeing tool by providing predictable access to wages already earned. For ABHI, continued partnerships with regional employers should help scale transaction volumes and support further product integration with payroll systems.

As ABHI extends its partnerships across the Gulf, future milestones to watch include additional corporate integrations in Saudi Arabia, further regulatory alignment for EWA products, and any follow-on capital raises that would support its regional expansion ambitions.