BRINGING FINTECH TO KUWAIT

Zane and Seth Sadeq are kickstarting a financial revolution

by Claudia Farkas Al Rashoud

Two Kuwaiti brothers are shaking up the Fintech industry in Kuwait and with the recent launch of their mobile application, they’re already making a huge impact on how money here is made. After an intensive immersion in the Fintech world in the United States, Zane and Seth Sadeq brought their revolutionary skillset back home in order to kick-start a digital transformation. As pioneer entrepreneurs, they encountered huge hurdles but persevered with their mission. An extraordinary mentorship in Fintech by a well-known US financial entrepreneur; studies in financial technology at a top university; and the connections to build a multinational team of seasoned professionals from the Fintech world helped enable them to establish Kem Technologies, the first true Fintech company in the region. Two years after their incredible professional journey began, they have brought the Fintech industry to life in Kuwait.

Zane and Seth met with bazaar to talk about the fascinating world of Fintech and what inspired them to establish a Fintech company in their home country.

For those unfamiliar with the term, Fintech, or financial technology, refers to software and other modern technologies that provide automated and improved financial services such as instant money transfers and credit and lending. Zane and Seth received their introduction to Fintech through the visionary financial wizard Timothy Li at the University of Southern California.

“Li is the founder of several successful Fintech companies. He’s the CEO of a large Fintech company called Alchemy, and the inventor of various financial products and technology that we all use in our daily lives,” says Seth. “The ledger system that ATM machines use all over the world so that they don’t run out of money, for example, is just one of his patents with JP Morgan that’s in use all over the world.”

The holder of several degrees from Harvard Business School and USC, Li brings his experience in top financial institutions such as Intel and JP Morgan to the classroom in an inspiring teaching style. After their studies with Li he became the Kuwaiti brothers’ mentor, providing them with exceptional insight and a keen comprehension of the workings and advantages of Fintech.

“We were so fortunate to be working with a creator of technology, one of the best of the best. It was because of Timothy Li that we were able to grasp the whole history of Fintech and the principles behind it,” says Seth.

‘Timothy Li now serves on the advisory board of our company,” adds Zane.

Becoming ever more deeply engaged in the world of Fintech, Zane and Seth witnessed the digital transformation in financial services occurring at break-neck speed. According to the brothers, Fintech is a new banking infrastructure that’s taking over all aspects of financial services. New features and applications are constantly being created and improved, such as the mobile payments process that has completely changed the way people manage their money in many parts of the world.

The more Zane and Seth learned about Fintech and its practical applications, the more they became aware of the lack of this technology back home.

“We realised there’s a dire need to collaborate with banks to offer new and advanced financial services in Kuwait,” says Seth. “Having access to your finances and being able to manage them should be everybody’s right regardless of income. Our goal is to meet our customers on a platform that they are comfortable with; opening accounts, credit, and other services should be easily available with mobile verification methods so that users don’t have to fish for non- centralised documents.”

It became apparent to the brothers that their solution caters to both the youth and underserved segments of Kuwait. College students are always looking for faster and more familiar solutions like other apps they use. The underserved, on the other hand, are looking for more convenient solutions with easier signup. The improved technology also makes financial services more secure, with far less chance for fraud or money laundering.

Seth explains that his personal turning point came one day while he was attending a business class at USC. “The instructor was asking the students, ‘What’s your passion?’ and I suddenly got up and left the class. I felt like I had a bigger calling; that I had to get back to the country that I love, Kuwait, as soon as possible and make this project a reality!”

Zane joined Seth back in Kuwait and their project developed into Kem, an app that connects banks, businesses, and consumers for instant payments, payment requests, and other services. They explain that it’s similar to Venmo in the US and Revolut in Europe.

“In the Middle East, no such dominant players exist,” says Seth. “The new technology does away with the need for plastic debit or credit cards and uses just one device that practically everyone now owns: the smart phone.”

Payments can be made or requested instantly, without the tedious process of filling in all the information required to send a payment link. All that’s needed is either your QR code, username, phone number, or email. The person paying also doesn’t have to type in lots of information and deal with receiving and entering an OTP number, and unlike conventional payment links, there’s no expiration time.

“We build on existing financial infrastructure, whereby banks share services with us and we build tech on top of it in order to make transactions seamless. This is the norm in the US, Europe and Asia, and we believe Kuwait and the rest of the Middle East with its mature and respected banking sector can reach that benchmark and go beyond that,” says Seth.

Zane remarks that interoperability is central to the development of new financial technologies and was missing in Kuwait. “We’re doing the hard work so the next generation can focus on building new innovative products. Rather than having to deal with all the bureaucracy, they’ll be able to work directly on providing solutions.”

The brothers reflect that establishing a startup company in Kuwait has been challenging and often frustrating due to the lack of streamlined processes for new companies wanting to build services. The process demanded intensive research as well as lots of legwork for Zane and Seth as they met with various banks, businesses, and the Central Bank of Kuwait. Zane pulls thick stacks of documents from out of his bag explaining that these weighty tomes are legislation from the Central Bank.

“Zane has read every single one of these documents and most importantly, he comprehends their content. We’re working very closely with the Central Bank of Kuwait and the retail banks to provide our undivided attention to meet and go above the regulatory and quality standards,” says Seth.

Local businesses have greeted the brothers’ initiative with enthusiasm and support. “Kuwaitrun businesses are excited and have been waiting years for these innovative solutions. They’re ready to thrive and adapt to the digital age,” Zane says.

Zane and Seth point to the fact that there are a number of extremely successful startup companies that have come out of Kuwait such as Talabat and Boutiqaat. “Kuwait is a tough market to penetrate but if you succeed there’s a lot of potential to develop your product. Kuwaitis have the drive to show the world what they are made of, and they have done so many times. When you look at Kuwait’s size and see how much Kuwaiti entrepreneurs have created, it’s astonishing ,” says Seth.

It was a monumental moment when the brothers and their team launched their Fintech company, Kem, on May 15, 2023. In just the first month they gained thousands of users and that number is rapidly growing daily.

Looking back on their journey, Seth and Zane acknowledge they took a calculated risk and encountered many obstacles, but now they’re excited about helping their country benefit from new financial technology. As Seth concludes, “We want to bring financial inclusion and simplified financial services and security to the residents of Kuwait.”

Claudia Farkas Al Rashoud was the first professional female photojournalist in Kuwait and has enjoyed working here since 1979. She’s also active in the field of animal welfare, working with @touch_of_ hope_q8. Follow her on @claudia_alrashoud