MANAMA, BAHRAIN — Bahrain-headquartered digital-first consumer finance platform Skyro has announced plans to expand into Saudi Arabia and appointed former Mastercard executive Maria Medvedeva as Managing Director for the Middle East.
Medvedeva will lead Skyro’s expansion across Middle Eastern markets, overseeing market-entry strategies, regulatory engagement, local team development, partnerships with financial institutions, and the company’s product and go-to-market strategy.
The company said its Middle East expansion will initially focus on Saudi Arabia, where Skyro has already established an office in Riyadh and begun hiring, including developers, ahead of securing the required regulatory licence.
“Since launching in South-East Asia in 2022, Skyro has built a credit portfolio of more than $200 million, while the app has surpassed 7 million users,” said Arsen Liametov, Co-Founder and CEO of Skyro.
Liametov added that the company has begun establishing operations in Saudi Arabia and intends to offer consumer financing and services for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) once the necessary regulatory approvals are secured.
As part of its Saudi expansion, Skyro plans to develop a broader digital financial services ecosystem serving both consumers and businesses. The company said it aims to complement the Kingdom’s existing financial institutions by expanding access to finance and supporting the development of local fintech innovation.
Medvedeva brings more than seven years of experience at Mastercard, where she served as a vice president across the MENA region, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. She was also the first woman to hold a senior country leadership role at Mastercard in Saudi Arabia and contributed to the development of payment technologies supporting consumers and merchants in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 agenda.
“I am delighted to lead Skyro’s expansion across the Middle East,” Medvedeva said. “The most enduring businesses are built in a place, not simply imported into it.”
Skyro said it is investing in its Saudi operations while leveraging its consumer-financing experience in South-East Asia to develop products tailored to the Kingdom’s market.
Beyond Saudi Arabia, the company is also evaluating additional expansion opportunities across the wider Middle East as it seeks to build a long-term presence in the region’s growing digital finance ecosystem.
