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Fintech Galaxy Gains Approval To Pilot Open Banking In Jordan
The Central Bank has given the go-ahead to test fintech services through JoRegBox — Jordan’s regulatory sandbox for fintech innovation.
Fintech Galaxy has secured approval from the Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ) to join JoRegBox, the country’s regulatory sandbox for fintech innovation. The green light allows the company to test and implement Open Banking services within a controlled, real-world setting, and makes Fintech Galaxy the first Open Banking provider to gain regulatory backing in Jordan.
This move aligns with CBJ’s long term vision for financial innovation, introduced in August 2023 as part of the Economic Modernization Vision (2023–2025). The program’s purpose is to establish Jordan as a fintech hub, attracting investment in high-tech financial solutions. JoRegBox provides a supervised testing environment for fintech firms, in a bid to foster widespread financial inclusion and build more consumer-centric financial services.
Riyadh Al Zamil, Chairman of Fintech Galaxy’s Board of Directors, expressed his enthusiasm: “We are proud and honored to receive the Central Bank of Jordan’s approval to test and introduce Open Banking services to the country through the JoRegBox regulatory sandbox. This milestone underscores our commitment to fostering financial inclusion, enabling innovation, and empowering Jordan’s economy through Open Banking”.
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Mirna Sleiman, Founder and CEO of Fintech Galaxy, echoed the sentiment: “The Central Bank of Jordan’s approval is a testament to our shared vision of fostering innovation and inclusivity in the financial sector. By leveraging FINX Connect, we aim to empower financial institutions and third-party providers with data aggregation and payment initiation services, ultimately improving the lives of consumers across Jordan”.
Open Banking services allow banks and payment providers to share customer data securely with third-party providers (with their prior consent). Fintech Galaxy’s FINX Connect platform enables real-time bank account data aggregation and payment initiation, enhancing customer access to personalized financial services and simplifying payment processing.
To support its expansion, Fintech Galaxy has raised $9 million for platform development and market growth. The Jordanian arm, led by Zaid Khatib, will integrate with banks and financial institutions country-wide, focusing on Personal Finance Management (PFM) and Business Finance Management (BFM) applications.
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Lebanon Ministers Meet Visa Over National Digital Payment Platform
Finance and technology ministers say a comparative study and roadmap will follow before any decision on adopting a model.
Lebanon’s finance and technology ministers met representatives from Visa last week to discuss a proposed unified national digital payment platform for government services, according to a readout from the Ministry of Finance.
The meeting brought together Finance Minister Yassin Jaber, Minister of State for Technology and Artificial Intelligence Kamal Shehadeh, a Visa delegation, and experts from both ministries. Discussion focused on whether Lebanon could establish a single platform through which citizens and institutions would pay taxes, fees, fines and other official transactions electronically, using mobile phones and other digital channels.
The Visa delegation presented examples from countries that have adopted unified government payment platforms, including the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Estonia and Jordan. According to the readout, the examples were presented as having increased collection rates and expanded financial inclusion.
Talks covered settlement mechanisms, direct transfer to the treasury account, financial reconciliation, risk management, cybersecurity, fees, and an operational model that would involve the private sector. The parties agreed to continue technical and institutional consultations, prepare a comparative study, and develop an implementation roadmap before any decision on adopting a model for Lebanon.
Jaber said the Ministry of Finance had already enabled citizens to pay using credit cards and e-wallets through transfer companies, but described the proposed platform as a further step. He framed the development of electronic payment and collection systems as a priority within the ministry’s modernization plan.
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Shehadeh outlined the citizen-facing concept as a single mobile application through which users could settle obligations to ministries, government institutions and other bodies.
“The idea, in short, is that any citizen downloads an application on their mobile phone, through which they can pay all service obligations for all ministries, government institutions, or those owned by the Lebanese state, and others as well, as the platform is not limited only to state institutions,” he said.
Shehadeh added that the platform would not displace banks and money transfer companies that currently provide collection services to the state, calling it complementary to their work.
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