Kashat partners with Mastercard on prepaid cards: Our friends at Kashat, the region’s first nano-financial services provider, have signed a five-year partnership agreement with Mastercard to help issue prepaid cards that can be used to withdraw money and repay loans, the company said in a press release (pdf).

What does the pact cover? The pact will see “digitize the onboarding, disbursement, and collection processes” for Kashat, which provides “everyday Egyptians” with easy access to the formal financial system using nothing more than their smartphone. ​​Kashat will be able to issue prepaid cards to its users, giving them “safe and convenient ways to withdraw money and repay their loans using Mastercard’s technology and payment rails.” Both companies positioned the agreement as part of Egypt’s drive to improve access to the financial system for all Egyptians.

Kashat provides nano financial services including instant, small, short-term productive loans to the unbanked and under banked. The company doubled its addressable market to 67 mn citizens in December after expanding to cover 14 governorates. Founded in 2020, the company has raised more than USD 4.5 mn to date, including a USD 1.75 mn bridge funding round last September. High-profile US exec Marija Zivanovic-Smith joined Kashat as a non-executive board member in November of last year.