Most banks partner with fintechs. Mashreq decided to build and invest in them directly — launching its own venture arm to bet on the companies that might one day compete with banks themselves. Joining me is Amith Rajan, Head of Wholesale Digital Banking at Mashreq and CEO of NeoVentures. Amith, welcome to Wall Street to Mena.
Thank you so much.
NeoVentures launched in 2024 as Mashreq's own venture arm. Why does a bank need to build startups instead of just partnering with them?
We do partner with fintechs a lot — we have a history of investing in them. What changed is that over time we looked at markets and products outside and when we did not find a product that worked for us, we decided to build it. That gave us a competitive advantage. And then once we built it, we started looking at how to commercialise it. So now the bank has taken the approach of — we are building all these fantastic products within the bank, how do we take them to market and spin them off as ventures? We encourage these ventures to go out to the market. The whole bank is now looking at a build-to-sell philosophy, which is quite exciting for us.
You have built partnerships with over 35 banks and fintechs. What is the actual pitch that gets a startup to choose a bank CVC over an independent fund?
Corporate venture capital from banks is a relatively new thing in our region. When we come in, we come in with a dual focus — strategic partner as well as financial investor. The strategic partnership gives the startup real wings. We provide regulatory cover. We provide access to patient capital — we are not looking to return money to investors in the next few years. We are never majority investors. And because we are looking at the product ourselves, we ensure product-market fit is built in. The company gets access to our customers, our geographies, our systems, and our regulatory cover.
What do you look for in a founder right now?
It is not an easy time to be a founder with all the uncertainty in markets. First, we look for experience and grit. Second, disruptive technology — we are not interested in business-as-usual technology. Third, ambition — we encourage our startups to think global, not just the UAE or the region. We are blessed to be in a country with very strong regulatory support and lots of access to capital. And fourth, focus. It is very easy in challenging times for startups to start trying to be everything to everybody. That does not work.
Does backing from Mashreq make founders less hungry?
No. I think it actually gives them wings. I run my unit like a fintech, like a startup within the bank. What it allows founders to do is focus on the outcomes. Before we invest in a startup, we do extensive research on the synergies between our business units and the startup. Those synergies are documented and both the bank's departments and the startup are held accountable regularly on delivering those metrics. In no shape or form does an investment become a subsidy. It is support to grow faster.
How does what you learn from startups shape how Mashreq operates internally?
That is one of the big reasons companies open their own CVCs. The way I look at it — I am looking to disrupt the bank before the market disrupts us. I go out, look for innovative startups and technologies, and bring them into the bank. That does two things. It gives me access to those technologies, and it also changes how we build software and look at products. Normally banks have long lead times and long cycles — but it is starting to shrink. There is a lot to learn from startups. We learn from each other.
Why keep NeoVentures deliberately lean instead of scaling up like a traditional VC?
It is more a function of our growth cycle. The venture investments team is lean because we also work with the bank's departments — valuations, legal, finance. But on the venture-building side we are actually growing quite fast. Our technology team, infosec team, and go-to-market teams are all growing quickly. In a couple of years you will start seeing the impact of that.
Thank you so much for being here with us today.
My pleasure. Thank you so much.
