UAE fintech startup Sinder has surpassed AED 1 million in cumulative customer deposits just 2.5 months after launch, a milestone the company says matters less than what customers are doing with the money once it lands.
Sinder has recorded around 750 customer sign-ups and issued 500 accounts so far. Of those, roughly 250 customers are actively transacting through the platform, a figure the company points to as the clearer signal of traction.
"Crossing AED 1 million in deposits this early is a meaningful milestone for us, but what is more important is seeing customers actually use Sinder," the company said. "We now have around 250 customers transacting, and that gives us growing confidence that we are solving a real problem for people in the UAE."
What Sinder does today
Sinder launched with a simple pitch: cut the complexity and hidden cost of spending money while abroad. Its core product is a Zero-FX debit card, aimed at UAE residents who travel or spend internationally and want to avoid the usual foreign exchange markups.
The next phase of growth
Having proven the product works and that customers will use it, Sinder is now moving into what it calls its second phase, expanding from an international spending tool into a broader everyday financial platform.
By the end of 2026, the company plans to roll out local payments, along with support for Google Pay, Samsung Pay and Apple Pay. It also intends to add international remittance and peer-to-peer transfers, allowing customers to send money abroad or to each other directly from the app.
"The first phase was about proving that we could launch the product and get customers using it," Sinder said. "Phase 2 is about turning Sinder into a much broader everyday financial platform – allowing customers to spend internationally, make local payments, send money abroad and transfer money to each other from one simple app."
Funding to support expansion
To fund this expansion, Sinder is targeting approximately US$1 million in total pre-seed financing over the coming months. The company said the additional capital will go toward product development, customer growth and expansion.
"We have deliberately stayed lean while getting the fundamentals of the product and infrastructure in place," Sinder said. "With customer activity increasing and the next phase of the platform now underway, the capital we are raising gives us the ability to accelerate from here while remaining disciplined about how we grow."
Why it matters for UAE fintech
For UAE residents who regularly spend, send or receive money internationally, Sinder's growth adds another name to a fintech market that has increasingly leaned into travel- and payments-focused products. Its early numbers, still modest in absolute terms, give an early read on demand for a single app that handles both international spending and, eventually, local and cross-border transfers in one place.
Whether Sinder's pre-seed raise closes at its US$1 million target, and how quickly the promised local payments and transfer features arrive, will shape whether the platform can convert its early sign-ups into the kind of everyday use the company says it is chasing.
