Riyadh – Mubasher: Saudi payments company Tamara secured funding worth SAR 412 million ($110 million) in a round led by Checkout.com, as a first step towards the startup’s future, the company tweeted on Thursday.

The funding round is considered one of the Middle East’s largest-ever startup investments. The proceeds of the Series A capital raise will be used to bankroll the firm’s expansion across the GCC by the end of 2021, Bloomberg reported.

Riyadh-based Tamara has raised $6 million in seed funding earlier this year.

“Due to the pandemic, online retail and digital payments have reached mainstream consumers,” Tamara’s Co-Founder and CEO Abdulmajeed Alsukhan was quoted as saying.

Customers of the startup are offered the chance to pay for their online purchases after 30 days or in instalments, under a model dubbed “buy now, pay later”.

“Our investment in Tamara will help the team realize their vision and expand rapidly, driving greater conversions for retailers and offer more flexibility for consumers,” said Sebastian Reis, Executive Vice President at Checkout.com.