News
Basatne Debuts ORBT Platform For Digital Refunds In UAE
The new payout system routes refunds and incentives into gift cards and wallets as Gulf brands push to keep spending inside their own ecosystems.
Basatne has rolled out ORBT, a payouts platform that turns refunds, trade-ins and incentives into instant digital credits instead of cash, aiming to keep money circulating inside brand networks rather than disappearing through bank transfers.
The product went live this week from Dubai, where retailers and marketplaces are moving quickly toward mobile wallets and app-based rewards. Cash refunds, Basatne argues, cut the loop: once funds hit a bank account, the brand loses the customer.
ORBT keeps that value contained. Merchants can issue credits, gift cards or wallet balances the moment a return or claim is approved. Those balances are redeemable across a network of more than 4,000 regional and global partners, giving consumers choice while businesses retain control over where spending lands.
The pitch leans on behavior already visible in the market. Basatne’s data shows three-quarters of millennials prefer digital gift cards and 77% want rewards delivered instantly. Two-thirds of digital cards are used by buyers themselves, not given away. Nearly half of the users of brand-agnostic (open loop) gift cards buy them monthly or more. For employers, they have become a routine perk, with 52% of businesses using gift cards in benefit programs.
“In circular economies, value should not exit the system as cash,” said Ammar Aboulnasr, CEO of Basatne. “ORBT embeds fintech directly into circular workflows — transforming refund and trade-ins into digital value that is instant, traceable, and redeemable across partner networks”.
Mohammad Sleiman, CEO of Basatne MENA, added: “Cash refunds are increasingly misaligned with how consumers want to receive value”.
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The launch lands as recommerce and buyback volumes swell across United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Basatne estimates that market will top $30 billion, creating a steady stream of payouts that could be digitized and retained inside structured ecosystems. The company plans to start capturing that flow through ORBT by 2026.
The platform is designed to plug into e-commerce, telecoms, logistics, hospitality and HR systems. Roadmap items include Buy Now, Pay Later integrations, eSIM-linked loyalty and crypto-based payouts, including stablecoins.
For Basatne, it’s less about perks and more about plumbing. Refunds become another payments rail, and another lever for retention.
News
Syria Just Got Its First Super App Featuring Built-In Digital Payments
Built by UAE-based Syrian founders with the Ministry of Tourism’s backing, My Syria lands as visitor numbers more than double.
For most of the past decade, paying for anything in Syria with an international card was effectively impossible. Sanctions, a collapsed banking sector, and years of isolation left the country running on cash. That is what makes the launch of My Syria — the country’s first super app — more than a routine product announcement.
Developed by 121 Living, a company founded by four UAE-based Syrian entrepreneurs — Rami Kaiem, Feras Kaiem, Waseem Qudmani, and Kinan Madi — the app launched in Damascus on July 30 under the patronage of Minister of Tourism Mazen Al-Salhani. It bundles hotels, restaurants, transport, attractions, food delivery, and other lifestyle services into a single platform, currently offering eight services with plans to expand to more than 40 verified tourism and hospitality providers across the country.
Although the app already sounds enticing, the headline feature is its built-in payments. My Syria is the first platform in Syria to support cross-border digital payments through Apple Pay, Google Pay, Visa, Mastercard, and American Express — familiar tools for international visitors, and a route into the digital economy for local businesses that have long operated outside it.

The launch rides on a sharp rebound for the troubled country. Syria’s tourism sector recorded 3.52 million visitor arrivals in the first half of 2026, a 111 percent increase over the 1.67 million during the same period in 2025 — a mix of returning expatriates, regional visitors, and international tourists.
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The Ministry of Tourism, which supported and supervised the app’s development, frames the launch as proof of concept for a wider strategy. “Digital transformation is one of the Ministry’s strategic priorities because it enables us to build a more competitive, connected and investment-ready tourism sector,” Al-Salhani said, inviting technology companies “globally, regionally and locally” to explore opportunities across the wider economy.
For 121 Living, this is phase one, with additional services and expanded geographic coverage planned. Whether a super app can flourish in a market still rebuilding its infrastructure is an open question, but for the first time in years, a visitor to Damascus can pay for dinner with their phone.
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