Fuse raises $6.6M to bring virtual IBANs to MENA, simplifying cross-border payments for global businesses

💰 Dubai-based Fuse has raised $6.6 million in seed funding to simplify cross-border payments in MENA with its virtual IBAN infrastructure.

The round was led by Northzone (Klarna, Spotify), with participation from Flourish Ventures, Alter Global, and notable angels including Flutterwave CEO Olugbenga “GB” Agboola and former Morgan Stanley MENA president George Makhoul.

⏪ Background

Founded in 2023 by George Davis (ex-BVNK, TrueLayer) and James Smith, Fuse claims to be the first infrastructure-grade payments platform offering virtual International Bank Account Numbers (IBANs) in the Middle East.

While common in Europe, Davis saw firsthand how difficult it was to expand into MENA due to licensing complexity, fragmented regulations, and limited banking access.

❌ The size of the problem

For global companies looking to expand into MENA, the payment infrastructure has historically been a mess. Businesses either rely on local payment firms with no scale, or larger global players like Thunes that lack local licenses and rely on fragmented partners.

Setting up a local bank account is notoriously difficult without a local entity or license, and the FX corridors – especially between India, China, and the Gulf – are often opaque or restricted.

Despite these hurdles, demand is skyrocketing. MENA’s digital payments and e-commerce boom is putting pressure on financial infrastructure to catch up, particularly for businesses needing first-mile collections and last-mile payouts.

📖 What does the company do?

Fuse’s platform issues USD-denominated virtual accounts and dirham IBANs, letting global businesses collect and disburse payments without needing a physical presence or license in the UAE.

Clients can create unlimited IBANs in their end-customers’ names and use them for local payments. A key use case is EORs (employers of record) that need to pay salaries in dirhams without holding a UAE bank account.

Fuse has already signed over 20 clients, including RemotePass, dLocal, and platforms like Airbnb, Etsy, and Deel, as they expand into MENA.

The startup is also enabling direct payouts in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan, while supporting FX and repatriation for high-volume corridors from India and China.

🔮 Outlook

Fuse is already processing hundreds of millions of dollars per quarter and reports over 50% MoM revenue growth. Davis claims the company made more this past quarter than in all of last year.

Its closest comparable is Currencycloud, but while that company is global, Fuse is laser-focused on the Middle East – and it's arriving at just the right time.

With new funding, Fuse will grow its 12-person team, secure more licenses across the region, and expand its product suite beyond the UAE.