The How-To: Building A Really Successful Fintech Solution MENA's fintech landscape is crowded. The differentiator won't be technology - it will be credibility.

Fintech founders in MENA obsess over product, funding, and regulation. But most overlook the one thing that determines whether they scale or stall: trust. Without it, even the best fintech solutions struggle to gain traction. The problem? Trust isn't automatic yet too many startups assume it is.

The Trust Deficit in Fintech
Fintech adoption in MENA is growing, but many SMEs and consumers remain cautious. They aren't resisting innovation - they're assessing risk. In finance, confidence is everything. A Mastercard study on digital trust in the Middle East and Africa highlights a disconnect: 60% of consumers would lose trust in a financial provider after a security or reliability issue. While 70% of businesses recognize reliability as critical, only 42% prioritize transparency in security and data privacy.

This gap reveals a core challenge: fintechs assume trust comes from technology and regulatory approval, but consumers judge it by how seamless, secure, and transparent their experience is. No matter how advanced the product, fintechs that fail to meet and communicate these expectations risk losing credibility.

Legacy Banks Have Built-In Credibility - Fintechs Don't
Traditional banks don't need to introduce themselves. Decades of handling salaries, home loans, and corporate financing have cemented their credibility. Regulation, physical branches, and longevity reinforce their stability. Even their digital products carry institutional trust.

Fintech startups, however, start from zero. They exist to solve problems that banks can't - or won't - address, offering agility and innovation where legacy institutions fall short. But success isn't just about launching a better product; it's about continually solving the problem. The fintechs that scale are the ones that evolve without losing sight of their core value proposition. No matter how advanced their technology or seamless their experience, customers still ask: Will this company still be here in five years? Can I trust them with my money and data? If something goes wrong, who do I call?

These are the trust barriers fintech founders must address head-on.

Regulation Doesn't Equal Trust
Many fintechs assume a regulatory license or bank partnership validates their brand. It doesn't.
Regulatory approval signals legitimacy to investors and industry players, but for consumers and small businesses, it's largely invisible. Most don't follow licensing updates or understand compliance structures. They trust what they can see, feel, and experience.

This is where many fintechs fall short. They focus on compliance checkboxes but neglect sustained perception-building. Being legally authorized to operate doesn't automatically earn customer confidence. Trust is built through communication, consistency, and credibility..

Many startups fail, not because their tech is weak, but because their trust strategy is nonexistent.

How Fintechs Can Build Brand Trust
Startups that work to establish credibility from day one grow sustainably, while those that treat it as an afterthought face slow adoption and regulatory friction. But where should founders start? The first step is identifying the biggest trust barrier in their market - whether it's consumer skepticism, lack of awareness, or regulatory uncertainty - and addressing it head-on. The fintechs that get this right focus on four key areas:

1. Clarity Over Complexity
Too many fintechs hide behind jargon, assuming technical superiority speaks for itself. It doesn't. Trust starts with understanding. If customers can't quickly grasp what you do and why it matters, hesitation sets in. The best fintech brands simplify their messaging, making it clear and compelling enough to fit in a tagline, not buried in a whitepaper.

2. Owning the Education Gap
Financial literacy in MENA is still evolving. Businesses and consumers need more than access to fintech - they need guidance on how to use it effectively. The most trusted brands bridge this gap by educating the market.

For B2B fintechs, this means providing clear, actionable insights on how embedded finance strengthens cash flow, digital payments improve efficiency, and BNPL benefits both businesses and consumers. On the B2C side, trust is built by demystifying financial products, making them accessible, and reinforcing transparency at every touchpoint. Fintechs that lead in education - drive adoption, establish authority, and build long-term credibility.

3. Borrowing Trust to Build Trust
Startup founders often say, "We're doing great things, but no one knows." The real challenge isn't innovation - it's visibility. Trust doesn't have to be built from scratch; it can be accelerated through association. Strategic partnerships with banks, regulators, and established brands act as implicit endorsements, helping fintechs build credibility faster. But partnerships only work if they're visible.

A fintech backed by a Tier 1 bank should showcase that credibility in onboarding flows, customer messaging, and PR efforts. Too many startups treat these milestones as checkboxes, announcing them in a press release and moving on - when they should be reinforcing them and their value at every touchpoint.

4. Controlling the Narrative
Trust isn't built through one-off press releases - it's built through consistent communication, strategic relationships, and ongoing engagement. The fintech brands that endure don't wait for a funding round to gain visibility; they cultivate credibility daily.

Managing perception isn't a one-time effort. The most successful fintechs anticipate concerns, shape conversations, and reinforce reliability at every opportunity. Yet many founders treat PR as a transactional exercise, failing to recognize that reputation is an asset that compounds over time. The fintechs that succeed invest in relationships, communicate with intention, and take control of their narrative before others define it for them.

Who's Getting It Right?
Tabby is a case study in how to build trust in fintech. When they launched in 2019, BNPL was still a novel concept in MENA. As a first mover, they had the advantage of shaping consumer perception - but early adoption alone wasn't enough. Tabby turned BNPL into a mainstream habit by making credibility the foundation of their growth strategy.

Rather than relying solely on their first-mover status, they aligned early with top-tier retailers and banks, embedding themselves within trusted ecosystems. Their messaging is refreshingly simple: Shop now, pay later, no hidden fees. Transparency is key - consumers know exactly what they're getting, with no fine print to undermine confidence.

More importantly, Tabby didn't just introduce a service; they reshaped consumer behavior. By partnering with household names, they made BNPL a trusted part of everyday shopping. Today, Tabby serves 12 million users and 40,000 brands. But beyond accessibility, they invested in financial literacy campaigns to educate consumers on responsible borrowing, credit health, and the advantages of BNPL as a smart financial tool rather than a debt-incurring trap. Additionally, they built a brand that is unapologetically aligned with the values of the consumers and market they serve.

The Real Competitive Edge in Fintech

MENA's fintech landscape is crowded. The differentiator won't be technology - it will be credibility. A great product isn't enough. A regulatory license isn't enough. The fintechs that scale will be the ones that build trust as intentionally as they build their tech.

Fintech founders need to ask themselves: Are we still solving the problem we set out to fix? Are we building trust and earning the confidence of our customers? They need to identify the biggest credibility gap and actively work to close it. Whether through education, visibility, or partnerships, fintechs that focus on trust from day one will define the future of financial services in MENA