Skyro and Fasset Partner to Revolutionise Gulf’s Cross-Border Digital Payments

There was quite a bit of buzz at GITEX 2025 this week when Skyro UAE shook hands with Fasset to back a new push in digital financial services across the Gulf. The two fintechs signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that, in essence, sets them up to co-develop international transfer solutions using stablecoins — a move that could trim costs and speed up how money crosses borders. From what I’ve seen over the years covering startups for Arageek, cross-border payments have long been a bit of a faff for ordinary users, so any serious attempt to smooth that out gets my attention.

Arsen Liametov, Skyro’s Co-Founder and Co-CEO, sat alongside Daniel Ahmed, COO and Co-Founder of Fasset, to ink the deal. Also on hand were Skyro chiefs Roberto Mancone and Stanislav Drozdik — names that keep popping up whenever fintech innovation in the region is mentioned. The pair seem keen not just on making remittances quicker but also working directly with regional regulators to keep everything above board. Sensible, if you ask me; the GCC fintech space is booming, but staying compliant is what keeps these ambitions alive.

Interestingly, the plan doesn’t stop at money transfers. The two companies said they’ll also explore issuing and distributing tokenised assets, pooling Skyro’s lending know-how with Fasset’s blockchain toolkit. If done right, that could create some genuinely useful financial products for ordinary consumers rather than just tech enthusiasts. As Roberto Mancone put it, the collaboration should help “make financial services more accessible to customers globally,” while keeping a firm focus on innovation appropriate for the region’s fast-evolving digital landscape.

It’s worth noting just how large this playground has become. One market forecast values the GCC’s ICT sector — which includes blockchain and payment infrastructure — at over USD 140 billion in 2025, heading towards USD 222 billion by 2030. Smart cities, 5G rollouts, and friendly regulation are all nudging things forward. I’ll admit, I reckon some of the bold projections might be a tad optimistic, but the trajectory’s spot on: the digital backbone of the Gulf is strengthening by the day.

Daniel Ahmed, speaking on behalf of Fasset, said the partnership would help “redefine how value moves across borders,” promising secure and fast transfers with blockchain’s traceability baked in. And honestly, given Fasset’s track record across Asia and Africa, it’s not hard to see why Skyro sees them as a strong ally.

For those unfamiliar, Skyro operates under Bahrain-based Breeze Ventures and already runs financial access platforms in the Philippines, offering lending and saving tools tailored for emerging markets. Fasset, on the other hand, has built a name among those aiming for decentralised finance growth; it even launched its own Ethereum Layer 2 network called Own. The startup’s raised about USD 26.7 million so far and holds regulatory approval in a fair few countries including the UAE, Malaysia and Indonesia.

This kind of regional tie-up feels typical of what we’ve been witnessing throughout the MENA ecosystem recently: partnerships stitched together by ambition and pragmatism, testing what works before scaling it further afield. On the flip side, integrating new digital assets with consumer-facing products isn’t exactly a walk in the park — stablecoins and regulations can be a minefield. Still, the willingness to bridge those gaps shows how far the regional mindset has come.

I remember chatting with a young Bahraini founder earlier this year who called these collaborative ventures “the GCC’s new oil” — not in the literal sense, but in the way they fuel creativity and opportunity. Watching this sector grow has been, well… pretty inspiring, even if the pace is sometimes dizzying. And as Arageek keeps emphasising, empowering startups and fintech innovation here isn’t just about capital, it’s about giving users across our region better, fairer access to modern financial tools.

So yes, Skyro and Fasset’s handshake at GITEX might seem like another line in a busy week of announcements, but it’s a telling one. It illustrates how the next generation of fintech alliances are shaping up — collaborative, region-focused, and decidedly outward-looking. I’m definately curious to see what cross-border product they roll out first.

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