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Abu Dhabi-based diversified conglomerate International Holdings announced today (October 10) a capital investment of AED 734 million ($200 million) in Lulo Colombia, Colombia’s first regulated digital bank The holding company of Lulo Bank, through an IHC subsidiary.
Lulo Bank is one of the fastest growing banks in the Colombian market and a new player into the neo-banking space, founded by Colombian businessman Jaime Gilinski with over 45 years of banking experience in Latin America, North America and Europe. It now plans to expand into other Latin American markets.
According to IHC, Colombia is the fourth global market that IHC has expanded its investment activity into this year, after the United Kingdom, India and Turkey.
“The fintech ecosystem in Latin America has risen rapidly over the past few years, with continued growth in all sectors and in the number of active fintech companies, especially digital banking, which has the highest average annual growth rate of 57% between 2017 and 2021 60% between years,” its CEO Syed Basar Shueb said in the strategic acquisition.
“In the case of Colombia, it has made significant progress in financial inclusion, with the use of financial products rising to 87 percent,” Sheub noted.
“It is critical for us to align any deal with our growth strategy, whether acquiring new capabilities or integrating, and Lulo Colombia fits perfectly with our expansion plans in Latin America,” he added.
Lulo Bank, Colombia’s first fully digital bank, has registered more than 120,000 active users since its launch in June and will complete more than 200,000 user applications by the end of the year. The bank aims to reach a customer base of 1 million in Colombia within the next three years.
Chairman Benjamin Gilinski said: “Digital banking has come a long way in Colombia. Adopting new behaviours and new technologies will take time, but it has dramatically changed the way consumers interact with financial products in our market.”
“The winning financial firms of the future will be those that understand changing human behavior and continually invest in new technologies. We are delighted that IHC is joining our mission to revolutionize the financial landscape in Latin America,” Gilinski noted.
“Earlier this year, Lulo received the prestigious iF Design Award 2022, a global design award in the category “Digital Media Interfaces”. This is the first time a company in the financial sector has received this recognition in Colombia. In the past, iF Awards go to big brands like Apple and Google,” he added.arab trade news agency
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