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RIYADH: Lean Technologies is gearing up to seize new opportunities as ����ֱ�� and the UAE roll out major regulatory reforms poised to transform the region’s financial services landscape.


With the introduction of payment initiation services and open finance frameworks expected over the next 18 months, the company is entering a pivotal stage in its efforts to build the digital infrastructure underpinning financial innovation across the Gulf.

“We’re heads down right now focused on the rollout of the two regulatory updates,” said Hisham Al-Falih, CEO of Lean Technologies, in an interview with Arab News. 

“These are both massive opportunities we’ve been waiting for since the beginning,” he said, referring to the upcoming rollout of open finance in the UAE and payment initiation services in ����ֱ��.

Founded in 2019, Lean Technologies set out to bridge critical infrastructure gaps that had long stifled fintech innovation across the region.

Al-Falih, who returned to ����ֱ�� after several years in Silicon Valley, was struck by the lack of digital financial services in a market marked by high mobile penetration, a youthful population, and a growing venture capital ecosystem.

“There was a big gap in the market when it came to accessing consumer data and accessing cutting-edge payment capabilities,” he said. 

Lean’s core offering enables businesses to access consumer-authorized bank data and real-time payment services within a fully regulated framework.

The company collaborates closely with regulators and financial institutions to provide secure, compliant connectivity that supports a variety of applications — from onboarding and credit scoring to payment processing and account verification.

Since its inception, Lean has partnered with over 300 enterprise clients and financial institutions across the UAE and ����ֱ��.

It currently handles more than $2 billion in transaction volume and projects reaching $2 billion in annualized volume in the UAE alone by the end of the year.

Lean’s momentum was further strengthened by a high-profile funding round in 2023, bringing its total capital raised to over $100 million since inception. The latest round included a $67.5 million investment led by global investors such as Sequoia Capital, General Catalyst, and Bain Capital Ventures.

Although Al-Falih did not disclose Lean’s valuation or confirm unicorn status, he emphasized that the company is “very well funded for the foreseeable future” and remains focused on execution rather than fundraising.

Future plans include deeper regulatory engagement, product innovation, and long-term preparation for a potential IPO. 

“We want to do what’s right for our stakeholders,” Al-Falih said. 

One of Lean’s immediate priorities is guiding clients through upcoming regulatory changes in ����ֱ�� and the UAE.

These regulatory shifts extend regulated access beyond traditional bank accounts to encompass a wider range of financial data, including loans, insurance, and investments.

Al-Falih explained that while open banking provides third parties with secure, user-consented access to bank account data, open finance broadens this access to include additional financial products such as investments, loans, savings, and insurance.

He described this as a natural progression from open banking, which has already enabled consumers to safely share banking data with third-party providers.

The advantages of this expanded data access are already evident. Lean’s platform supports clients across diverse sectors including lending, e-commerce, trading, and insurance.

For instance, buy now, pay later provider Tabby integrated Lean’s platform to reduce customer application times from days to minutes, enhancing credit decisions through real-time bank data access.

Talabat utilized Lean to automate vendor payouts and customer refunds, boosting operational efficiency.

Capital.com employed Lean’s account verification tools to cut onboarding drop-off rates by 30 percent and reduce transaction costs by 20 percent.

“These are companies that are benefiting from our underwriting capabilities, our onboarding flows, and our payment capabilities,” Al-Falih said. 

Lean also serves an advisory role within the regulatory ecosystem, actively collaborating with financial authorities across the Gulf to offer technical insights and ensure alignment with evolving compliance frameworks.

“We’ve been working closely with central banks and associated parties in the ecosystem to provide our feedback,” he said. 

The company holds a license from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority at Abu Dhabi Global Market and is preparing for direct oversight by the Central Bank of the UAE.

Lean is also System and Organization Controls 2 compliant and has made significant investments in cybersecurity infrastructure to safeguard its platform.

SOC 2 is a compliance standard developed by the American Institute of CPAs that focuses on the security of a service organization’s systems and controls related to handling customer data.

“We have invested literally millions of dollars in our cybersecurity posture and maturity,” Al-Falih noted. “This is a responsibility that end users are endowing on us, and we don’t take that lightly.” 

Despite strong uptake among enterprise clients, Al-Falih acknowledged that open banking remains relatively unfamiliar to the general public. “Sometimes we mistake terminology with adoption,” he said. 

The CEO noted that open banking is often embedded in everyday digital experiences — such as bank transfers, wallet top-ups, and online onboarding— even if consumers are unaware of the infrastructure behind it.
Trust, he added, remains crucial to user adoption. 

Lean has observed that consumers are more likely to opt in to open banking services when these are offered through well-known, established brands.

“The highest conversion comes from merchants that are already a trusted brand,” he said. 

While user interface design and clear communication play a role in driving adoption, Al-Falih emphasized that technical performance and strong security credentials are ultimately the most critical factors.

Looking ahead, Lean is exploring the convergence of artificial intelligence and digital assets as a new frontier for innovation.
The company sees promising use cases for generative AI in helping consumers better manage their finances, as well as for stablecoin technologies that could lower transaction costs and improve the speed of digital payments.

Al-Falih pointed to the rise of agentic AI — autonomous systems capable of making decisions on behalf of users — as a potential game-changer in personal finance. Such tools, he said, could one day optimize account activity in real time based on an individual’s risk profile and financial goals.

While Lean has not yet announced specific products in this space, Al-Falih confirmed that the company is actively exploring how to integrate these technologies into its platform to deliver greater long-term value to users.

Despite the company’s progress, Al-Falih emphasized that Lean’s mission is far from complete. 

“We don’t feel anywhere near like the mission is complete,” he said. “There’s still a very long way ahead of us.”
 

RIYADH: A surge in emotionally driven micro-purchases is reshaping retail trends in ����ֱ��, with collectibles like Pop Mart’s Labubu dolls emerging as cultural icons and commercial successes amid the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 transformation.

The global phenomenon of Labubu — a mischievous character created by artist Kasing Lung and popularized by Hong Kong-listed Pop Mart — has taken hold in the Kingdom and across the Middle East. 

These SR300 ($80) to SR400 dolls, distributed through “Blind Box” formats that conceal which design a buyer will get, feed on psychological urgency and scarcity — elements that have translated into real profits and fast-rising cultural capital.

Once niche, these figures are now clipped to luxury handbags and styled as part of fashion-forward outfits, becoming status accessories across demographics. 

Driven by social media trends and psychological triggers like fear of missing out, demand for Labubu dolls and other limited-edition collectibles is reshaping how young, tech-savvy consumers engage with retail.

Business Boom

In 2024, Pop Mart reported revenue of 13.03 billion Chinese yuan ($1.81 billion), a 106.9 percent jump from the previous year, propelled largely by Labubu sales.

In the company’s latest financial report, Pop Mart Chairman and CEO Wang Ning said: “The global phenomenon of Labubu last year propelled the revenue of The Monsters beyond 3 billion yuan, while SKULLPANDA’s ‘Temperature’ series emerged as the most successful designer toy collection in history.”

This explosive growth wasn’t by chance. Pop Mart’s global expansion strategy, coupled with its direct-to-consumer model and experiential retail approach, played a crucial role. “The year 2024 has also been dubbed the ‘Plush Year,’” Ning said.

He added: “For the first time, we have categorized our retail business into four major segments: figure toys, plush, MEGA, and other IP-related products. Among them, revenue from plush increased by 1,289 percent year-on-year, accounting for 21.7 percent of our total revenue and delivering the breakout hit — and biggest surprise — of the year.”

Today, Pop Mart boasts more than 13 IP brands generating over 100 million yuan each annually, with flagship stores in cultural hubs such as London and Paris.

Emotional spending

Behind the numbers lies a powerful behavioral-finance story. Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial, says Pop Mart’s success reflects the rise of emotional spending in an era of uncertainty.

“Spending on rare collectibles is propelled by a combination of emotional spending, fear of missing out, societal influences, and various cognitive biases rooted in the principles of behavioral finance,” Valecha told Arab News.

He noted that the timing couldn’t be more favorable. “These small, impulsive purchases are fueled by feelings of FOMO, exclusivity, and the thrill of surprise,” he added, explaining why even modest toys can command premium prices.

Echoing this sentiment, Pop Mart’s use of the Blind Box format — where buyers don’t know which design they’ll receive — adds a layer of gamification, increasing emotional engagement.

“Saudi and Gulf consumers are also following the emotional micro-spending trends seen in Asia. This can be evidenced by the rapid adoption of the viral Labubu collectible doll in the region,” Valecha said.

Local retail shift

This wave of consumer psychology has gained serious traction across the Gulf. In ����ֱ��, Labubu dolls are sold on platforms such as Noon.com and Amazon.sa, priced between SR99 and SR399.

Offline, events such as Riyadh Season have featured Labubu-themed installations, elevating the character to a pop-cultural symbol.

Valecha linked this demand directly to broader national trends. “This evolving trend is entirely consistent with ����ֱ��’s Vision 2030, which seeks to strengthen both its cultural and entertainment industries while advancing digital innovation,” he said.

“With a growing population of tech-savvy youth and one of the highest smartphone penetration rates globally, the Kingdom provides fertile ground for trends like viral collectibles to flourish and evolve into full-scale economic drivers.”

A similar narrative is playing out in the UAE, where platforms like Careem deliver Labubu dolls in under 20 minutes for 305 dirhams ($83).

“In the UAE, too, Labubu dolls have taken the country by storm, with their rising demand making them more challenging to find in stores. The dolls are available in physical stores located in Bluewaters, Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates, and Madkicks,” Valecha added, emphasizing the region’s appetite for rapid, experience-based consumption.

According to Pop Mart’s report, the company established Pop Mart Middle East Trading L.L.C. in the UAE in August 2024, with a registered capital of 2.5 million dirhams.

Fad or future?

Still, questions linger about the sustainability of such emotionally charged trends.

“The popularity of Labubu dolls is primarily driven by social media hype from major influencers and psychological behaviors like herd mentality, FOMO, and instant gratification, which outweigh broader economic factors,” Valecha said.

And while the model has so far defied economic slowdowns, he cautioned against over-optimism. “The viral collectible boom has been building momentum long before these headwinds materialized. While economic caution may affect some buyers, popularity can be linked to cultural and emotional drivers rather than a defensive budget strategy.”

Retailers in the Kingdom are responding rapidly. Riyadh’s Center Mall has hosted Labubu-themed pop-ups, while SGFR Riyadh regularly restocks new collections.

Platforms like Desertcart and other e-commerce players are helping local consumers access global Labubu releases with ease.

More importantly, local brands are beginning to mirror Pop Mart’s playbook — timed drops, influencer-driven buzz, and exclusivity — all aimed at converting one-time buyers into loyal fans. The convergence of commerce, culture, and emotion is redefining how value is created in modern retail.

Beyond the collectible

The Labubu effect ultimately demonstrates how intangible triggers — nostalgia, community, and emotional gratification — can drive tangible economic results. Pop Mart’s multi-pronged strategy of IP storytelling, retail innovation, and psychological engagement positions it as a textbook case of emotional commerce.

“We firmly believe in IP’s transcendent power to overcome linguistic barriers and transcend temporal cycles,” Wang said. “These efforts have rapidly enhanced the global recognition of the Pop Mart brand and our IPs.”

Whether its business model can withstand broader economic pressures remains to be seen. But in a region where culture is becoming commerce, the Labubu phenomenon proves that even the smallest products can yield the biggest stories.