Fintech Friday: Souqalmal

Ambareen Musa, founder and CEO of Souqalmal.com, told Efma's Boris Plantier how she created a go-to source for online insurance.

A move to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) prompted Ambareen Musa to create Souqalmal.

“After moving to the UAE, I realized there was no platform available where I could compare my personal finance options,” says Musa. “It was evident that there was a gap in the market. There was clearly a need to introduce a conveniently accessible and unbiased platform where users could do their research related to banking products all in one place, without having to get in touch with individual banks. The concept was to create a platform which not only allows an increased level of transparency to the banking industry in UAE, but also promotes a level of financial literacy never seen before.”

In May 2012, Souqalmal.com became a reality.

“Souqalmal.com is the most trusted banking and insurance comparison platform in the country, offering the widest selection of coverage to UAE residents,” says Musa. “With its instant quotes, the platform provides unprecedented levels of ease and convenience for time-crunched residents who want to buy the best Insurance products that suit their requirements.”

Musa says that financial education has always been at the core of the company’s growth strategy.

“We also pride ourselves on running one of the most popular financial awareness blogs in the country,” she says. “Not only is our blog, ‘The Money Doctor’, immensely popular among our users, it gets us more than half of our total traffic. Designed as a go-to for all things personal finance, the blog has helped make Souqalmal.com a household name and a trusted brand.”

Looking ahead, Musa says the Souqalmal team has a lot of exciting things in store for the future.

“After having closed our Series B round of investment and pulling in US$ 10 million in funding just over a year back, our team has been busy launching new business lines and expanding our scope of business,” she says. “We've successfully launched three new insurance verticals over the last one year – travel, yacht and bike insurance. We’re planning to add more insurance comparison and purchase services to this growing list and cement our position as the go-to source for anyone looking to buy insurance online in the UAE.

“We’re also planning to ramp up investment in technology and marketing, and build on our synergies with our strategic investment partners. Tapping into the tech knowhow brought in by our international strategic partner GoCompare, we’re hoping to further enhance our user experience. We also want to build a regional presence and expand to newer geographies in the near future. With our ongoing collaboration with the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority to further its financial awareness goals and with Riyad TAQNIA Fund being one of our lead investors, we aim to expand our online presence in Saudi Arabia.”

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