Arab Financial Services (AFS), the Middle East and Africa region’s leading digital payment solutions provider and fintech enabler, was recognized at last week’s MEA Finance Awards winning “Most Innovative Payments Solutions Provider 2024.” This is the third consecutive year for AFS to be recognized at the MEA Finance Awards, one of the most anticipated and high-profile events aimed at honoring the achievements of the region’s finance and payments sectors.

This year’s award was based on AFS’s rollout of leading payments solutions for banks and businesses of all sizes, with innovations for all sectors and solutions for its diverse and growing markets. These innovations included AFS One a fully featured point-of-sale (POS) software that delivers state of the art restaurant technology to a wide range of food and beverage outlets and AFS Pay which was the first solution in Bahrain to transform Android devices into smart POS terminals that accept all contactless payments. This follows last year’s win of “Best Innovation in Payments Technology 2023” which recognized AFS for its pioneering state-of-the-art Open Finance technology platform. AFS was also named “Best Payments Solutions Provider - Bahrain 2022” for AFS Go! a digital payments solution bundle that supports the growth of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) businesses.

Commenting on the win Samer Soliman, AFS Chief Executive Officer said: “AFS’s consecutive wins underscore the success of our digital payments innovation drive which aims to empower banks, financial institutions, and businesses of all sizes through flexible and innovative digital payments solutions. We have been innovating in the payments space for forty years, and this win is a reflection on our vision and drive to be the leading enabler for digital transaction transformation.”

The MEA Finance Awards recognize regional banking leaders, financial institutions, technology solutions providers and individuals for their exceptional achievement and inspirational leadership over the past year in delivering innovative products and services of the highest value to their customers. Organized by MEA Finance Magazine, these awards are one of the most anticipated and high-profile events aimed at honoring the achievements of the industry, thereby acknowledging business excellence.

Regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain & The Central Bank of Egypt, AFS is majority-owned by Bank ABC and 36 banks and financial institutions. The company serves over 60 clients in more than 20 countries across the Middle East and Africa region and provides numerous ground-breaking end-to-end digital payment products, services and solutions to banks and merchant groups. AFS’s innovative approach to the provision of financial services is evidenced by a series of market-leading payment services that span card processing services, merchant acquiring, fintech solutions and value-added services. Providing the highest quality payments solutions that are trusted by businesses, AFS has offices and data centers in Bahrain, Egypt, Oman, and the UAE.