Abdullah Al-Othman & Geidea: FinTech Supports SMEs and Saudi Vision 2030

Abdullah Al-Othman is the founder and chairman of Geidea, a leading fully licensed provider of digital payment solutions. He is committed to Geidea’s vision of delivering accessible, affordable and customer-centric payment solutions for everyone.

One of Saudi Arabia’s prominent and most promising young business leaders, Al-Othman’s career started out in real estate in 2008. His initial success in this sector, and a passion for all things digital, encouraged him to invest in a fintech venture, and eidea was born in 2011. Initially launched to improve the efficiency and availability of digital payment channels in the Saudi market, Geidea began by providing software, payment terminals and ATMs to banks. It went on to receive various government licenses and approvals in 2013, thus facilitating rapid expansion.

By 2016, his company cemented its position as one of the largest service suppliers in Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East – capturing more than 75 percent market share in the sector, by delivering 400,000 terminals and serving over 80,000 clients.

Since then, the company has focused on offering small merchants a complete suite of payment, ecommerce and business management tools to help them grow and scale. Geidea remains committed to Saudi Arabia’s vital and expanding SME sector – as well as helping the country reach the targets set out in the Saudi Vision 2030 plan.

Al-Othman is also founder of AO Holdings, a family investment house founded in 2019, and co-founder of Lemar United Real Estate, an international development company focused on the commercial sector. Lemar has executed high-profile real estate projects across Riyadh, including the Arcade Centre on King Fahad Road, and the three million square-metre Malga neighborhood.

In addition to his business ventures, Al-Othman is a member of the Business Entrepreneurs in the Chamber of Commerce, an institution that encourages commercial solidarity among businesses and protects their interests. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Information Technology from King Saud University and an MBA from Al Faisal University.