Al Fardan Exchange has introduced a new Salary Advance service for workers in the UAE under the Wages Protection System (WPS). The service is being rolled out in partnership with Abhi Middle East Limited, a fintech company backed by Hub71, the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), and Commercial Bank International (CBI).
The new feature allows eligible customers to access up to 50% of their earned wages before payday, helping them cover essential needs such as remittances or household expenses. This is especially useful for workers who may not have access to traditional banking services. The Salary Advance is available through Al Fardan’s AlfaPay app and at over 90 Al Fardan branches across the UAE. It is currently available only to WPS customers who use Al Fardan Exchange for sending money.
The initiative is designed to improve financial inclusion, particularly for underbanked or unbanked workers, by offering them more flexible control over their income. The partnership leverages Al Fardan Exchange’s strong presence in the remittance market and ABHI’s earned wage access technology, which enables users to withdraw part of their already earned salary in real time.
“Salary Advance is a milestone in our mission to champion financial inclusion,” said Hasan Fardan Al Fardan, CEO of Al Fardan Exchange. “By giving customers early access to their wages, we’re offering financial flexibility and support for their families when it matters most.”
Omar Ansari, Co-Founder and CEO of Abhi Middle East Limited, called the launch “a transformation in how workers experience financial autonomy,” and added, “this marks the first time a UAE exchange house has deployed ABHI’s earned wage access system.”
Founded in 2021, ABHI operates across the GCC and MENAP regions and currently serves over one million users. The company has onboarded 5,000 businesses and has processed more than five million transactions, totaling over $500 million since its launch, reported KT.
