Egypt’s fintech sector has a fresh milestone to celebrate. MNT-Halan, the country’s pioneering fintech unicorn, has closed the first tranche of a new equity investment round that values the company at US$1.4 billion, cementing its place as one of the most formidable digital financial services platforms on the African continent and across the broader Middle East region.
The round was led by Al Ahly Capital, the investment arm of the National Bank of Egypt, with a second closing expected as part of the ongoing fundraise. What makes this deal particularly significant is the identity of the lead investor.
While MNT-Halan has worked with over 30 Egyptian banks and financing institutions, this is the first time a commercial bank has become an equity partner, a detail that founder Mounir Nakhla highlighted in an official statement. That distinction signals a new chapter for the company, one where traditional banking institutions are no longer just lenders to MNT-Halan but stakeholders in its growth.
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MNT-Halan was founded in 2018 and became Egypt’s first fintech unicorn in early 2023 after securing a $400 million funding round that pushed its valuation past $1 billion. The latest round lifts that valuation by 40 percent, reflecting the remarkable pace at which the company has scaled. The MNT-Halan digital ecosystem spans small and micro business lending, payments, consumer finance, and e-commerce, and since inception, the company has disbursed over US$15.5 billion in loans and served more than 8 million customers globally.
The company plans to allocate the majority of the proceeds toward expanding its operations in Egypt while supporting its broader regional growth strategy. On the domestic front, MNT-Halan will channel the bulk of the capital into expanding its Egypt business, targeting SMEs and historically underserved populations in remote towns and villages. That focus on financial inclusion remains central to the company’s identity, even as it grows into a regional heavyweight.
Beyond Egypt, MNT-Halan currently operates in Türkiye, owns a specialised bank focused on micro and small enterprises in Pakistan, and has been extending its footprint across Gulf markets. The company’s regional expansion accelerated in 2024 after it acquired Advans Pakistan Microfinance Bank and Turkish commercial finance company Tam Finans. It also launched Halan Advance in the UAE in late 2024 to target the country’s underbanked expatriate community.
The timing of this raise is no coincidence. Consumer finance volumes in Egypt climbed 57 percent year-on-year to 96.3 billion Egyptian pounds by the end of 2025, while financing to micro, small and medium enterprises and microfinance clients rose 24 percent to 106.9 billion Egyptian pounds. MNT-Halan is riding a powerful domestic wave, and this new capital positions the company to capture an even larger share of that expanding market.
The round follows a $157.7 million raise in July 2024 earmarked for international expansion, meaning MNT-Halan has now secured two major capital events in under two years as it pursues a target of growing its financing portfolio to between $4.5 billion and $5 billion by the end of 2026. For a company that started out digitally banking Egypt’s unbanked population, that ambition is as bold as it is believable.
