Nayla Secures $18 Million to Expand Digital Financing for Saudi Micro-Businesses
Saudi Arabia-based fintech Nayla has secured US$18 million in a pre-Series A funding round, combining equity and debt financing to develop its lending products and expand access to financing for micro-businesses across the Kingdom.
The equity portion was led by Riyadh-headquartered early-growth venture capital firm Idrisi Ventures, with participation from Saudi VC firm Suhail Ventures and other strategic investors. Meanwhile, Saudi asset manager BLOMINVEST led the debt facility.
Founded in 2024 by Shaqran Alyahya and Khalid Naili, Nayla began operations in 2025 after securing its micro-finance license from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA). The company provides a fully digital, Sharia-compliant financing experience supported by technology, alternative data, and its own credit intelligence.
“Our mission is to make access to funding faster, fairer, and more relevant for micro businesses and entrepreneurs across Saudi Arabia,” Alyahya, co-founder and CEO of Nayla, told Inc. Arabia. “We provide a fully digital, Sharia-compliant financing experience, supported by technology, alternative data, and our own credit intelligence. Ultimately, we want strong thin-file businesses to be assessed on the reality of their cash flows and potential, not excluded because they do not fit traditional lending models.”
Built in partnership with Sanabil Studio, the venture studio established by Saudi Arabia’s Sanabil Investments, Nayla has become the first studio-launched venture to close an institutional funding round.
Alyahya said that securing the new capital amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainty in the region was not straightforward, noting that investors placed greater focus on credit quality, unit economics, governance, regulation, and sustainable growth, particularly in lending. He added that Nayla’s execution, including securing its SAMA license, building its product, financing real customers, generating repeat demand, and demonstrating market need, helped build investor confidence.
The company is targeting what Alyahya described as a structural financing gap among Saudi Arabia’s micro-businesses, which may require relatively small amounts of working capital quickly but often lack audited financial statements, long credit histories, or the collateral traditionally required by lenders.
He highlighted opportunities in embedded finance, platform partnerships, and tailored products for merchants, freelancers, and other underserved entrepreneurs, while emphasizing that the opportunity extends beyond digitizing lending to redesigning underwriting and financing around the realities of smaller businesses.
Alyahya also shared advice for entrepreneurs entering Saudi Arabia’s fintech sector, emphasizing the importance of starting with a real customer problem, treating regulation, risk, and customer trust as integral to the product, understanding unit economics before scaling, maintaining strong data discipline, and focusing on execution, governance, and cash management rather than fundraising itself.
