London-based Ayan Capital, an Islamic car finance platform for private hire vehicle (PHV) drivers is looking to raise up to £25 million in Series A debt and equity funding.
Ayan Capital, an Islamic car finance platform for private hire vehicle (PHV) drivers says it’s looking to raise up to £25 million in Series A debt and equity funding. The Series A round follows the recently closed £2.3 million (c. USD 2.9 million) debt and equity seed round.
Ayan Capital claims to give UK drivers access to professional and business car financing of up to £50,000 that is fully compliant with Islamic finance principles, capturing the demand for such products among PHV drivers, the majority of whom are Muslim.
In the long term, Ayan Capital CEO Abdullo Kurbanov says that the fintech startup aims to build a neobank focused on serving the Islamic population in the UK with wider expansion plans for Europe.
According to Kurbanov, Ayan Capital was founded by the same team responsible for the success of Alif Bank, a prominent name in Islamic fintech.
Before establishing Ayan, Kurbanov says that the founding team spent over a decade building Alif Bank into a leading Islamic fintech enterprise in Central Asia, now operating in four countries and serving more than two million clients, with a current run-rate revenue of USD 78 million.
“Since Ayan Capital’s launch, the market response in the UK has been overwhelmingly positive. Our mission is to address the growing demand for private hire vehicle lending in the UK, based on the principles of Islamic finance. We find ourselves at an exciting intersection. The UK car finance market is growing, and there is a clear demographic of drivers from Muslim backgrounds who are in need of Sharia-compliant financial products,” says Kurbanov.
According to Kurbanov, Private EV and hybrid car loans are popular for those who drive for companies like Uber, Bolt, Blacklane, Wheely, etc. and he says that further demand is likely to increase.
“The product is open to everyone, and approximately 10% of our current customers are from non-Muslim backgrounds. The seed funding that we’ve recently closed is a testament to the current services and future potential of Ayan Capital in transforming Islamic finance in the UK. We are proud to have a committed group of investors with a wealth of experience becoming part of our story, and look forward to welcoming many more,” says Kurbanov.
