FinTech company PayBy has been acquired by UAE-born technology development and investment group Astra Tech and follows the company’s recent acquisition of Rizek, a platform for on-demand personal and home services. Currently raising $500 million in investment, the PayBy acquisition signals a major strategic move for Astra towards its ambition of creating an ‘ultra platform’ – an interconnected digital ecosystem that aims to address the growing problem of super app fatigue.

Spearheaded by Astra Founder and CEO, serial entrepreneur Abdallah Abu Sheikh, PayBy’s acquisition brings proprietary payment technologies and financial services to Astra’s ultra platform to enable a seamless and cashless payment solution for consumers, merchants, and businesses. PayBy has grown considerably in the last two years, with more than two million users and thousands of active merchants. As of May 2022, over AED600 million worth of transactions were carried out.

Abu Sheikh said in a statement, “PayBy has been instrumental in pioneering financial inclusion in the UAE and is considered a key player in the cashless ecosystem. As we integrate PayBy’s technologies, solutions, and teams into Astra's ultra platform, our speed and ability to supercharge our services with industry-leading payments and money transfer solutions have accelerated immensely.”

Astra plans to acquire, repurpose, and bring together already established platforms to create an 'ultra platform' to help people save significant time when completing essential everyday tasks, including payments, transfers, and transactions. Additionally, Astra’s platform aims to deliver better value to the suppliers and partners of personal and home services by removing the burden of unfavorable commission structures.

Abu Sheikh added, “With this acquisition, we’re getting closer than ever to realizing our vision and are excited to have the PayBy team join us. The integration of PayBy’s products with Astra’s ultra platform will allow us to synthesize and grow the ecosystem at a breakneck speed. It will also help in delivering a compelling user experience and a sustainable commission structure for our merchants and businesses, something that a lot of super apps of today struggle with.”