THE SAUDI ARABIAN PRINCESS KHADHER AND BLOCKCHAIN GURU MIKO MATSUMURA JOINS MENAPAY INTERNAL WORKSHOP TO DISCUSS ISLAMIC FINANCE COMPLIANT BLOCKCHAIN BASED PAYMENT GATEWAY

MenaPay, the first blockchain based payment gateway of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), aims to serve 84% unbanked population of MENA (440 million) and organizes a workshop with Princess of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia H. H. Hanadi Ahmad Khadher and Miko Matsumura, one of the top blockchain gurus, to combine blockchain know-how of Matsumura with 2030 vision of Saudi Arabia on October 2, 2018 in İstanbul.

The first fully Islamic Finance compliant payment gateway in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), MenaPay targets to serve the 84% unbanked population of the Middle East and North Africa and creates a stable cryptocurrency to integrate this unbanked people to the digital transformation process of finance in the region. Built with blockchain technology and founded in February 2018, MenaPay aims to serve more than 440 million people in the region by providing a fully Islamic Finance compliant and convenient payment solution for people and companies in MENA region and targets to reach 10 million users in 2019. In order to achieve those goals, recently MenaPay added an important name to its board members, Princess of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, H. H. Hanadi Ahmad Khadher. Moreover, MenaPay partners with and receive advice from valuable names of blockchain world. To build a bridge between the Middle East and North Africa and the wider blockchain ecosystem, MenaPay held a productive workshop and brought Miko Matsumura, one of the top blockchain gurus and cofounder of Evercoin and Saudi Princess H. H. Hanadi Ahmad Khadher together.

Known by his investments in different blockchain technologies and advisory on selected cryptocurrencies, Miko Matsumura attended the workshop where board members and team members of MenaPay discussed the developments in blockchain technology and future of possible partnerships in the Middle East and North Africa. After the workshop held in MenaPay İstanbul office and exchange of opinions, MenaPay hosted a VIP meeting with more than 40 people including investors, advisors, entrepreneurs, key opinion leaders of Middle East and its exclusive guests Miko Matsumura and H. H. Hanadi Ahmad Khadher.

During this VIP meeting; Miko Matsumura, Princess H. H. Hanadi and investors talked about the usage of blockchain payment system and how it will change daily life and financial system in MENA region and how MenaPay will comply with the local regulations and Islamic Finance. After discussing the structure of MenaPay with key opinion leaders of the Middle East, Miko Matsumura stated that MenaPay is a quite promising business in terms of the blockchain technology it provides and the region it focuses and said: “MENA is an important gateway to a much larger footprint. As MenaPay expand and the vision it access is probably one of the largest population on the planet. I think it is a very meaningful entry point.”

The main problem MenaPay focusing to solve in the region is that more than 80% of the people in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region is unbanked since the traditional banking system does not correspond all necessities of Islamic Finance. Princess of KSA, H. H. Hanadi also underlined the potential of MenaPay and how it fits the Saudi Vision 2030 program; a long-term development program that seeks to diversify the economy and promote the integral development of the nation. Princess Hanadi said: “The vision of 2030 of Saudi Arabia, aims for the best in all fields, His Highness Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman tries to provide the best opportunities for Saudi Arabia to be on the top of leading nations, this is why I expect MenaPay to achieve a huge success, as it goes along with Islamic religion instructions, and as long as its value backed-up by the US Dollar.”

MenaPay is the Islamic finance compliant payment solution for MENA

Executive Board Member of MenaPay, Burak Balık said: “Non-bank mobile payment solutions such as AliPay dominate China. We’re developing a better solution on blockchain with an Islamic Finance compliant approach. We have a laser focused team experienced on blockchain technology, fintech industry and Middle East and North Africa region. We’re really happy to have a fruitful workshop together with the valuable people such as Miko Matsumura and Princess Hanadi.”

Miko Matsumura and Princess H.H. Hanadi exchanged opinions regarding the blockchain technology and how it fits the Islamic Finance compliant payment need of unbanked population in the region and shared information regarding their know-how and cultural diversity to take MenaPay a step further to reach 10 million users.

MenaPay is accelerating the digital transformation of MENA region with the single currency it creates and contributes the region with the technology it builds and advices it gets from the key opinion leaders. Therefore a follow-up session with more questions for the blockchain guru Miko Matsumura will be held on October 8th at MenaPay İstanbul office again.