Dubai Founders HQ has teamed up with Mastercard, with support from Pemo, to introduce an innovative financial solution aimed at aiding startups and small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This initiative is structured to enhance financial management, streamline cash flow, and deliver significant cost savings.

Comprehensive Financial Support for Startups

Eligible businesses can leverage benefits worth over AED 10,000 in the first year. This includes up to 2% cashback on qualifying foreign exchange transactions and advertising expenses, free access to Pemo’s expense management platform, Mastercard corporate cards, and special business offers. Such features enable participating businesses to recover between AED 500 and AED 1,200 monthly in previously overlooked expenses while significantly cutting down on administrative tasks. The integration of automated expense management can reduce the time spent on back-office operations by over 60 hours a month and speed up financial closing processes from nine days to just three days.

Managing business expenses can be a daunting and inefficient task for startups and SMEs. Often, founders depend on personal bank cards, struggling with manual receipt collection and multiple systems to track expenditures. This can lead to increased operational costs, diminished visibility on spending, and ultimately a diversion of focus from customer engagement and business growth. The newly launched solution addresses these friction points through a unified platform that combines corporate cards, automated expense tracking, and integration with popular accounting software like QuickBooks and Xero.

Empowering Founders with Smart Tools

The initiative aims to bolster financial discipline and preserve more capital, allowing founders to prioritize growth. In addition to cash back on business expenditures, there are exclusive partner incentives and travel perks, all designed to bring immediate, quantifiable benefits from the start. This package is aligned with the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33) and underscores the collaboration between the Dubai government and Mastercard, reinforcing the financial ecosystem available to emerging businesses.

His Excellency Hadi Badri, CEO of the Dubai Economic Development Corporation (DEDC), emphasizes the importance of efficient cash management and financial discipline for startups in a rapidly evolving business environment. Through Dubai Founders HQ, the objective is to equip founders with practical solutions that address genuine business challenges. Cost savings, enhanced financial controls, and improved spending oversight will allow entrepreneurs to concentrate on what matters most—building and expanding their businesses.

Strengthening Dubai as a Global Business Hub

Saeed Al Gergawi, Vice President of the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, remarked that Dubai Founders HQ was developed to simplify access to crucial resources and tools for founders. This partnership with Mastercard and Pemo is a testament to their commitment to providing impactful solutions that meet the real operational needs of startups. By focusing on efficient cost management and financial visibility, the initiative fosters sustainable growth for businesses in Dubai.

Mark Elliott, Division President of East Arabia at Mastercard, also highlighted the mission to ensure that no business, regardless of size, is left behind. Collaborating with the Dubai government and various stakeholders over the past four decades, Mastercard has played a significant role in cultivating a resilient commerce ecosystem. This latest partnership aims to keep SMEs on track while unlocking long-term growth opportunities.

Ayham Gorani, Co-Founder and CEO of Pemo, stated that their collaboration with Dubai Founders HQ and the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism fosters a community-driven approach. This initiative offers startups and SMEs advanced financial tools to help them make astute financial decisions and navigate growth with confidence.

The partnership between Dubai Founders HQ, Mastercard, and Pemo sets a solid foundation for a collaborative ecosystem aimed at addressing the real needs of entrepreneurs. By providing integrated financial solutions, this initiative aims to enable startups and SMEs to thrive globally from Dubai.