Omair Ansari, Co-founder & CEO of ABHI, does not believe in doing different things; instead believes in doing things differently. His professional journey across multiple continents revealed a universal challenge: people working hard yet struggling to access funds when life’s unexpected expenses arose. The timing mismatch between when income was earned and when it was received often pushed people into debt traps and financial stress. In 2021, as the pandemic heightened financial pressures on households worldwide, this challenge became a burning question. Omair Ansari and his Co-founder & COO, Ali Ladhubhai, saw this as an opportunity to address the gaps that traditional financial players often overlook. That’s where the idea of ABHI stepped in. Omair Ansari evolved the company as a platform designed to provide employees with instant access to their earned wages, breaking the cycle of financial dependency on loans or informal borrowing.
ABHI’s Flagship Products
ABHI marked its debut in 2021 with its flagship product Earned Wage Access (EWA), a simple idea with a transformative impact, enabling employees to withdraw part of their earned salary anytime, instantly through a seamless, tech-driven process. The aim was to improve financial stability and empower people to manage their cash flow on their terms. Over time, this vision expanded into SME working capital financing. The early adoption validated the model and set the stage for a plethora of offerings. The next milestone was Payroll Financing, designed to support several businesses facing cash flow mismatches in markets where payment cycles are long and unpredictable. This solution empowers employers to meet salary obligations on time without straining their working capital. Building on that, ABHI introduced Invoice Factoring, addressing a similar liquidity challenge for companies awaiting customer payments. By advancing funds against receivables, this ensured that businesses maintain operations and growth momentum. Since its inception, ABHI’s journey has been guided by a sole principle: solving real-world liquidity problems. Each product complements the others, creating an ecosystem that supports both the workforce and the businesses that employ them.
Emerging as MENAP’s Fintech Innovator
Within a mere few years, ABHI has risen to become MENAP’s most vibrant fintech disruptor, earning a reputation for pace, credibility, and life-changing access to finance. Omair Ansari has taken bold steps from leading-edge innovations such as EWA to pioneering new frontiers in Islamic finance and growing aggressively through the GCC. In 2024, ABHI secured $15 million in debt funding led by Shorooq Partners and Amplify Growth Partnership, a milestone that accelerated its growth strategy without equity dilution. The capital drove ABHI into high-demand markets, bolstered its technology infrastructure to manage skyrocketing transaction volumes, and powered 30-second disbursement speed at scale. The capital also supported its UAE growth, the development of an international headquarters in Abu Dhabi, and a strategic alliance with Alraedah in Saudi Arabia, all while growing SME financing products to offer quicker approvals and greater limits.
Last year, ABHI became the first fintech in Pakistan to issue a PKR 2 billion Sukuk bond. This milestone proved the way alternative financing models could unlock Islamic capital markets for fintech companies, while at the same time enhancing the credibility of the company before regulators and investors alike. The identification as a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer further placed ABHI in the limelight on the global map, endorsing its role in changing access to financial services in emerging economies.
Entry into the UAE and Saudi Arabia represented the next giant leap. Abu Dhabi was a natural location, with its fintech-bending ecosystem, forward-thinking regulation, and MENAP connectivity. Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, in tandem, created fertile terrain for digital financial services. Tie-ups with Alraedah provided ABHI with a solid local presence, guaranteeing compliance and cultural fit. Within a few months, the UAE business was processing tens of millions of dollars in EWA transactions, and initial Saudi demand also surpassed expectations.
Building Strategic Partnerships
Collaborations with LuLu Financial Holdings, Unilever Pakistan, Younus Textile, and Martin Dow have embedded ABHI’s solutions into industries ranging from remittances and FMCG to healthcare and textiles. Each partnership accelerated adoption, deepened industry expertise, and extended reach to thousands of employees and businesses. A landmark moment arrived with the joint acquisition of FINCA Microfinance Bank alongside TPL. This integration combines ABHI’s instant disbursement technology with FINCA’s nationwide microfinance infrastructure and TPL’s strategic backing, creating Pakistan’s first digital bank. The move unlocks opportunities to offer digital banking, micro-loans, savings accounts, and gold-backed financing under a regulated framework, reaching underserved urban and rural markets alike.
Forging Ahead
In the future, ABHI will launch AI-based credit scoring, embedded finance platforms, and programmable payroll products compliant with local regulations. Its pipeline also includes gold-backed lending and digital savings products, in addition to enhancing EWA and SME financing in the MENAP region. Foray into Oman, in collaboration with the Daud Group, will further expand its regional reach. ABHI has enabled over 1 million users, onboarded 5,000 businesses, and processed 5 million transactions worth over $500 million worldwide. Its SME solutions have released millions in working capital, enabling companies to flourish without being hindered by slow-paying receivables. Within the next three to five years, ABHI sees itself as a fully integrated financial platform across MENAP, connecting the demands of individuals and SMEs. By infusing trust, velocity, and local context into each solution, the company looks to scale and to redefine what fintech can accomplish in emerging markets.
