Arab Financial Services and RestHero Partner to Revolutionise MEA Restaurant Tech

Editorial Team

Last updated 10-12-2025

3 min

Arab Financial Services and RestHero aim to expand restaurant technology across the Middle East and Africa.

The partnership could streamline ordering, loyalty, and social commerce through AFS's payment systems.

This collaboration may help restaurants manage operations smoothly and reduce reliance on third-party apps.

It plans to utilise real-time data for personalised marketing, improving efficiencies for F&B businesses.

Success depends on adoption, but the initiative promises modernised, scalable operations for restaurants.

Arab Financial Services has taken another step toward widening its fintech footprint in the region, signing an MoU with RestHero to explore rolling out the restaurant-tech company’s solutions across the Middle East and Africa. I’ve seen plenty of partnership announcements over the years at Arageek, but this one feels a bit more ambitious than the usual handshake photo-op.

The two sides are looking at ways to bring RestHero’s digital ordering, loyalty tools, and social commerce features together with AFS’s established payment infrastructure. On paper, it gives restaurants a single platform to manage everything from online orders to customer interactions, instead of juggling separate systems — which, let’s be honest, is often a bit of a faff for F&B operators just trying to stay afloat.

AFS CEO Samer Soliman said the potential investment isn’t just a routine partnership but a step toward shaping the future of the regional F&B sector. As he put it, combining RestHero’s digital capabilities with AFS’s secure network could help merchants tap higher-margin sales and reduce operational headaches. I reckon that’s spot on, especially with so many restaurants trying to escape their heavy reliance on third‑party delivery apps.

RestHero’s CEO, Dr. Abdulla Al Shimmari, described the agreement as a strong endorsement of the company’s tech, highlighting how integrating with AFS’s payment rails could allow restaurants to use real-time data for more personalised marketing. And believe it or not, I remember chatting with a small café owner in Muscat last year who said she wished she could do exactly that without paying hefty commissions — so this sort of setup might be right up her alley.

The MoU outlines several areas the two companies will continue exploring, mainly around strengthening restaurant digital capabilities and improving day‑to‑day efficiency. If executed well… I mean, if it all comes together properly, it could give F&B businesses across MEA a clearer path toward modern, scalable operations. On the flip side, the real test will be adoption; restaurant owners are chuffed to bits with new tools only when they actually make life easier. But the direction certainly feels promising, even if the regional market can be a bit unforgiving at times. Overall, it’s a move that could definately shake things up for the sector.

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