Stake, the leading digital real estate investment platform in the MENA region, secures a license from the Capital Markets Authority to tap into Saudi Arabia’s thriving investment sector. This move will position Stake to offer both global and domestic investors a share in the Kingdom’s vibrant real estate landscape.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 6 September 2023 – Stake, MENA’s leading digital real estate investment platform, has obtained the approval from the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) in Saudi Arabia to enter its FinTech Lab and plans to launch KSA real estate investment opportunities on its app by the end of the year. The company will soon make it easy and accessible for both Saudi investors and anyone anywhere in the world to participate in real estate investment funds targeting attractive developments and income-generating assets across Saudi Arabia. The move was announced during the Seamless event in Riyadh on Monday 4th September, where Stake also signed a partnership with Arab National Bank.
Co-Founder & Co-CEO, Manar Mahmassani, comments: “We at Stake are passionate about making real estate investing accessible, transparent, borderless and liquid. Our expansion to KSA marks a big step towards making borderless investing a reality. With our 325,000 existing users from 199 different nationalities and 168 different countries, Stake will not only bring its world-class investment platform to investors in Saudi Arabia but also Stake will bring the world to KSA!”
The granting of this license marks a pivotal moment for Stake as it embarks on its first international expansion and aims to contribute to the growth of Saudi Arabia’s thriving investment landscape. Since the inception of Saudi Arabia’s National Transformation Plan in 2016, the nation has witnessed a staggering USD 1.1 trillion in real estate projects, reshaping its urban topography. By 2030, the Kingdom is set to add over 555,000 residential units, 275,000 hotel rooms, and millions of square meters in retail and office spaces, making it an unparalleled global construction hub. The country’s young, dynamic population, with 70% under the age of 40, has fueled the ambitious Vision 2030 of its Leadership and placed KSA on the world map as a global economic powerhouse. In 2022, KSA recorded the fastest GDP growth of all G20 economies.
Currently operating in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), Stake has built the world’s most powerful and comprehensive real estate investment platform, allowing investors to buy fractional shares pre-vetted real estate investment opportunities in the UAE. The company is on a mission to empower everyone to own and build wealth through real estate. In less than 3 years, the company has distributed over 100 rental properties, worth approximately AED 200 million, ranging from short-term holiday homes to long-term rentals, and situated in some of Dubai’s best neighborhoods.
In its initial foray into Saudi Arabia, Stake will introduce real estate investment funds focused on carefully selected assets in Saudi Arabia and managed by CMA-regulated Capital Markets Institutions. The company has assembled an outstanding team of Saudi experts on its Investment Committee, including Turki S Alkemaie (Director of Investment and Business Development at AlUla Development Company) and chaired by Abdullah Alsalloom (Head of Real Estate Investments at Al Rajhi Capital) who will ensure Stake continues to select the most attractive investment opportunities in the market.
The Saudi real estate market had a buoyant year in 2022 with a flurry of exciting developments launched by both public and private developers across the country. Bolstered by the government’s public investment initiatives and pro-business reforms, the nation is experiencing a fascinating economic transformation, fueling a massive construction boom and creating tremendous growth prospects for the coming decade.
With Stake’s expertise in providing investors of all backgrounds access to fractional ownership of rental properties, its newly awarded Saudi license represents a first step for Stake to bring more innovation to Saudi Arabia’s real estate sector. The company’s customer-centric ethos and industry-leading product building approach align with the Saudi market’s evolving needs. As Stake extends its reach to redefine conventional real estate investing in Saudi Arabia, its entry into the Kingdom is set to catalyze a new era in the industry.
About Stake:
Stake is a digital real estate investment platform that allows anyone in the world to invest fractionally in prime rental properties in Dubai and soon many other cities. Launched in December 2020, Stake has amassed an international base of over 320K users on its mission to empower everyone to own and build wealth through real estate by making the asset class freely accessible, transparent, borderless, and liquid.
While property investment typically requires large amounts of upfront capital and comes with a high level of risk in the case of off-plan projects, investors globally can get started on the platform from only SAR 500 (approx. USD 136).
Co-founders Rami Tabbara, a veteran of the real estate industry, Manar Mahmassani, an experienced investment banker, and Ricardo Brizido, a seasoned CTO, combined their 50+ years’ worth of expertise in their respective domains to democratize property investment in the MENA region and empower novice and professional investors alike.
About Capital Markets Authority:
The Capital Market Authority is the Saudi government’s financial regulatory authority responsible for capital markets in Saudi Arabia. CMA reports directly to the President of the Council of Ministers, has a legal personality, and enjoys independent financial and administrative autonomy. It is responsible for supervising, regulating, and developing the capital market as well as issuing regulations, rules, and instructions required to implement the provisions of the Capital Market Law.
Website: getstake.com / stake.sa