Lean Technologies scales Pay by Bank in the UAE as Open Finance payments go live

Source: Zawya

Lean Technologies, the MENA region’s leading financial infrastructure provider, has announced the expansion of its Pay by Bank capabilities, built on the UAE’s newly operational Open Finance framework.

The expansion signals a structural shift in the UAE’s digital payments landscape. With regulated payment initiation now available to businesses, Lean is elevating its account-to-account (A2A) capabilities into a unified Pay by Bank suite that supports deposits, collections, checkout, and subscription flows. This advancement strengthens an already proven and scalable payment model by aligning it with regulated infrastructure designed for long-term ecosystem growth.

Since 2022, Lean has enabled A2A payments across the UAE and has processed billions in total processed volume (TPV). That scale has laid the foundation for the expansion, demonstrating that A2A payments can operate reliably across leading enterprises including e&, Careem, DAMAC, and OKX. Lean has helped businesses save over $100 million on card fees, reinforcing the tangible economic impact of this shift.

By consolidating deposits, collections, checkout, and subscriptions into a clearly defined Pay by Bank suite, Lean brings greater consistency and visibility to A2A payments across digital commerce. This positions Pay by Bank as a structured, scalable option that operates alongside traditional card networks, expanding payment options for businesses and consumers.

Tewfik Cassis, chief product officer at Lean Technologies said: “By bringing these capabilities together under Pay by Bank, Lean reinforces account-to-account payments as a visible and scalable payment method within digital commerce, expanding payment choice across the UAE market. When we began enabling account-to-account payments in the UAE, our conviction was that they would become a structural component of the country’s digital economy. Over the past 4 years, we have demonstrated that this model works at scale, processing billions in transaction volume across leading enterprises and embedding these payments into everyday digital journeys.

“The operationalization of regulated payment initiation under the UAE’s Open Finance framework represents the next phase of that progression. Pay by Bank extends a proven commercial capability onto nationally standardized infrastructure, reinforcing account-to-account payments as a core option within the payments landscape. This milestone reflects both the maturity of the underlying technology and the speed with which the UAE continues to translate regulatory frameworks into deployable financial infrastructure.”

The UAE’s structured rollout of Open Finance has created a clear pathway from policy to implementation, enabling businesses to adopt regulated A2A payments with confidence. As one of the most digitally connected economies globally, the country is well-positioned to embed Pay by Bank across sectors, including commerce, financial services, and more.

By expanding Pay by Bank on regulated rails, Lean is accelerating this transition, broadening payment options and reducing reliance on legacy card-based models.

Further reading: Tamara partners with Lean Technologies to expand credit access by 32% for the workforce