Being raised in the Middle East with a lack of savings and investment culture, many young Arabs are turning to online banking services to help track their spending and budget.
When Mayar Akrameh was growing up in Lebanon, financial advice was simple: work long, work hard and aim for a high-paying job.
Now the 29-year-old management consultant is one of a growing number of young Arabs who are turning to financial technology, or “fintech”, to help them save and invest, often a neglected practice in the Middle East.
“We’re taught that if you’re working and making enough money, even if you hate your job, you’re good,” she told AFP. “Or they think we’re good.”
Akrameh moved to the United Arab Emirates in 2019 at the start of Lebanon’s financial crisis, which would later see the local currency plunge to all-time lows, with many people, denied free access to their savings by stringent banking controls.
The region’s economic instability, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, has spurred many to turn to online banking and financial tools.
Akrameh, who did not know how to invest and save money when she started generating income, now uses an app to track her spending.
“It’s not just about retiring; it’s about living better, having dreams, having time to breathe and reflect,” she said.
Akrameh, who did not know how to invest and save money when she started generating income, now uses an app to track her spending.
“It’s not just about retiring; it’s about living better, having dreams, having time to breathe and reflect,” she said.
Making the process easier – or even fun – is key to attracting new investors, as outlined by Lune, a UAE-based finance platform that launched in July.
“It doesn’t matter their age, their income, or their experience,” Alexandre Soued, the app’s co-founder, told AFP.
He added that the platform’s focus is on the initial steps of managing, saving and then investing, and encouraging them to use simple online tools.
Lune allows its nearly 1,000 users to instantly visualize their spending, swipe to optimize savings, and soon, Soued said, they will be able to compare their savings to others their age.
“People are starting to want to be more independent from younger ages,” he told AFP. “And your financial situation is attached to that.”
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Technology Express staff and is published from a syndicated feed)
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