Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – Open Banking platform Lean Technologies has onboarded personal finance management platform Wally as its first live client in the Kingdom after both received permits from Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) to carry out their services.

Open Banking company Lean Technologies and personal finance management platform Wally have both launched in the Kingdom after receiving their Letters of Approval (LoA) from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) to carry out their services within the Central Bank’s regulatory sandbox. After Lean became the first Technical Service Provider to receive a LoA from SAMA, its UAE client, Wally, tested with Lean to receive regulatory approval to officially launch in the Kingdom.

“As we lay down the infrastructure to enable financial innovation in the Kingdom with support from the Saudi Central Bank, we are thrilled to have Wally as one of our first key clients. After Lean’s success in the UAE, we will be working with numerous innovative businesses, like Wally, that share our commitment to deliver financial freedom in Saudi Arabia and the broader MENAP region,” said Lean’s CEO and Co-Founder, Hisham Al-Falih.

Wally, a personal finance management app with 700,000 users on iPhone in 70 countries, integrated with Lean to provide its Saudi users with accurate transaction categorization features for tailored financial insights. Lean enables companies building the next generation of financial products to deliver more innovative and personalized customer experiences utilizing open banking APIs.

With a population of over 35 million with fifty percent between 25-50 years old, both companies see the Saudi market as an extraordinary opportunity to strengthen their footing in the Middle East. Furthermore, the Saudi Vision 2030 goal is to increase the savings of Saudis from 1.8% to 10%, which means there will be opportunities for the government, banks, businesses, schools, and universities to work together to reach that goal.

“Wally has been excited to expand into Saudi to be part of Vision 2030 since early 2021. Having launched in the UAE with Lean in the summer of 2021, we knew first-hand the quality of their bank connections, transaction categorization, and more. This partnership allows Wally to focus on its award-winning user experiences while leaving the heavy lifting of managing bank connections and transaction categorization to Lean,” said Wally’s founder and CEO, Saeid Hejazi.