A new ‘buy now, pay later’ platform is launching in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, the Arab world's two biggest economies, with an initial investment of $5m.
Dubai-based start-up Cashew will offer its services through an app and a web-based platform that have been two years in the making, it said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Given the current economic environment, we saw a need for an easy-to-use, flexible and cost-effective solution to support both suppliers and consumers,” Cashew founder Ammar Afif said.
“Merchants and service providers are facing increasing challenges while consumers are demanding more payment flexibility and security in payment options,” Mr Afif, a veteran of the technology industry who has worked on a number of FinTech start-ups, said.
The company will look to expand into other GCC markets next year.
Buy now, pay later platforms allow consumers to make purchases without paying the full amount upfront, avoiding the use of credit cards and hefty interest charges. Merchants are still protected through credit risk checks, late fees and blocks on customers who have defaulted. The service is usually limited to smaller purchases, such as fashion, beauty, furniture, electronics and travel items.
Consumers can choose to split payments into instalments or simply delay them by up to 14 days, without any hidden fees, while merchants are paid in full upfront, Cashew said.
Cashew is looking to form partnerships with retailers, as well as in other sectors including healthcare, education, retail, travel, home improvement and entertainment.
“Our data-centric approach is helping to create a robust ecosystem of banks, financial institutions, government agencies, consumer-facing businesses and customers, which is used to gain deep insights on spending behaviour,” said Mr Afif.
“These data insights are incorporated into our platform to provide consumers with intuitive instant financing options with the lowest rates, all from the comfort of their home,” he added.
The buy now, pay later concept is gaining in popularity in the UAE, especially in the Covid-19 era when personal finances are fragile due to the global economic recession and merchants are looking to capitalise on the surge in online shopping as people avoid going out to reduce the spread of the virus.
Recent FinTech start-ups in the Emirates offering monthly instalment plans or delayed payments for purchases as small as a new pair of shoes include postpay, Tabby and Spotii.
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The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Grand Slam Los Angeles results
Men:
56kg – Jorge Nakamura
62kg – Joao Gabriel de Sousa
69kg – Gianni Grippo
77kg – Caio Soares
85kg – Manuel Ribamar
94kg – Gustavo Batista
110kg – Erberth Santos
Women:
49kg – Mayssa Bastos
55kg – Nathalie Ribeiro
62kg – Gabrielle McComb
70kg – Thamara Silva
90kg – Gabrieli Pessanha
Sustainable Development Goals
1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere
2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects
14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
