• Zelo secures USD 715M from IHC to scale its supply chain financing and boost SME liquidity across the Middle East.
• The platform targets USD 1B in gross financing volume for 2026, a fivefold increase over its current financing levels.
• By offering invoice financing, bank guarantees, and embedded finance, Zelo helps SMEs unlock working capital and fund growth initiatives.

Zelo

Abu Dhabi-based Zelo, private-credit platform and a subsidiary of IHC, secured USD 715 million in capital allocation from IHC. With this capital allocation, it aims to scale its supply chain financing capabilities across the Middle East region.

“This investment enables Zelo to scale its platform and contribute to a more resilient, diversified financial ecosystem in the region,” said Syed Basar Shueb, CEO of IHC.

Looking forward, with the capital allocation it aims to expand liquidity access for SMEs operating across core sectors of the economy. It also seeks to accelerate its deployment strategy targeting USD 1 billion in gross financing volume for 2026. This represents a fivefold increase over current financing volume levels.

“With this milestone allocation, Zelo will continue expanding across the GCC and building a scalable private credit infrastructure platform rooted in predictable, real-economy assets.”

Dhanush Arjun, CEO of Zelo

SME Financing 

Founded in 2020, Zelo is a private credit platform with a focus on financing real-economy receivables across the Middle East. The platform is a subsidiary of IHC which is a global investment company.

It is a digital-first financing platform helping SMEs access fast, flexible working capital. It operates across high-impact sectors such as oil and gas, construction, infrastructure, healthcare, retail, FMCG, industrial services and marine.

Zelo offers invoice financing, bank-guarantee solutions, and embedded finance products. These tools provide instant liquidity to SMEs, contractors, and suppliers across government and blue-chip buyer ecosystems. 

It builds its portfolio by working with institutions including Emirates Development Bank, Trojan Construction Group, and National Marine Dredging Company. With these partnerships, it aims to strengthen its origination channels and enhance credit quality. 

The platform aims to tackle the Middle East’s structural USD 250 billion SME credit gap, which is driven by extended payment cycles and limited access to working capital. It seeks to tackle this gap by providing near-instant liquidity through invoice financing. This enables suppliers to redeploy trapped working capital into growth initiatives. Thus, this expands output, taking on larger contracts, and investing in hiring and capacity building.