Riyadh-based fintech Stitch has raised USD 25 million in a Series A round led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), marking the Silicon Valley firm’s first investment in the GCC. The round also saw participation from Arbor Ventures, COTU Ventures, Raed Ventures, and SVC. The latest raise brings Stitch’s total funding to USD 35 million.

Why You Should Care

Financial institutions globally continue to spend heavily on digital transformation, yet many still rely on fragmented legacy infrastructure that slows product launches and limits the adoption of newer technologies such as AI. Stitch is positioning itself as the infrastructure layer that helps banks and financial institutions modernize those systems gradually without fully replacing existing operations.

The investment also signals continued international investor interest in MENA fintech infrastructure companies, particularly those building enterprise-grade systems with regional and global expansion ambitions.

Saudi-based Stitch raised USD 25 million in Series A funding led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). The investment marks a16z’s first in the GCC and brings Stitch’s total funding to USD 35 million. The round also saw participation from Arbor Ventures, COTU Ventures, Raed Ventures, and SVC.

Founded in 2022 by Mohamed Oueida, Stitch is a fintech startup. It delivers an operating system built for modern financial institutions. It’s a mission to simplify how the world builds and operates financial products.

It aims to create infrastructure that allows financial institutions to replace fragmented systems module by module while creating a centralized system of record designed to support future AI adoption.

“Financial institutions globally run on fragmented, legacy infrastructure that should have been left behind 20 years ago. Now every institution wants to adopt AI, but AI on top of broken infrastructure is a dead end,” said Mohamed Oueida, founder and CEO of Stitch

The company currently operates across the GCC, Africa, including Egypt and Kenya, and Southeast Asia. Its customer base includes Raya Financing, LuLu Exchange, Noqodi, and Foodics.

The Ripple

The round reflects a broader shift in regional fintech from consumer-facing apps toward infrastructure-focused platforms serving banks, lenders, and enterprise financial institutions.

As regulators and financial institutions across the GCC accelerate digital transformation agendas, infrastructure providers that can unify payments, lending, and ledger systems may play a larger role in enabling cross-border financial products and faster deployment cycles.

The deal also adds to a growing pipeline of global venture firms, increasing exposure to MENA’s fintech ecosystem, particularly in Saudi Arabia.

What to Watch

Stitch plans to use the fresh capital to accelerate product development and deepen Stitch’s presence across the GCC and broader MENA region. It also aims to expand its global go-to-market operations.

Its next phase of growth will likely center on how quickly financial institutions adopt modular infrastructure platforms as they modernize operations and prepare for wider AI integration across financial services.