INVESTING AT YOUR FINGERTIPS

Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr, Cofounders of Egypt-based digital investment platform Thndr, are facing competition from brokerages and investment banks to democratize investing. Having seen exponential growth in four years, they’re now looking at expanding to the U.A.E. and Saudi Arabia.

- NERMEEN ABBAS

While online trading has been around for decades, mobile equities trading platforms found themselves gaining popularity during the global pandemic in the early 2020s, with apps like the U.S. Robinhood attracting millennials and Gen Z to invest in stocks like never before. However, the market in MENA has proven different, with traditional firms maintaining their advantage.

Recognizing the global leap, two Egyptian entrepreneurs and former Uber executives, Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr, were keeping an eye on the trend, having spotted an opportunity in the underserved market. “I had the idea in 2016 while working at the investment bank CI Capital”, remembers Hammouda. “From one side, financial services have always been a money-making industry, and from another side, it goes back to equality in general, as everyone should have access to the different types of financial services and use them in a manner that would elevate and improve their living conditions.”

Driven by a vision to democratize investing in MENA, Hammouda partnered with his friend and fellow investment professional Amr, and in late 2020, the duo secured the first brokerage license in Egypt since 2008 and launched Thndr. Fast forward two years to February 2022, and the company had secured $20 million in a series A funding round, co-led by Tiger Global, BECO Capital, and Prosus Ventures, in addition to participation from Base Capital, firstminute, and existing investors Endure Capital, 4DX Ventures, The Raba Partnership, and JIMCO.