Dubai startups offered more than Dh10,000 in first-year savings
Dubai startups and small businesses can now access a new financial solution offering more than Dh10,000 in first-year benefits, following a partnership between Dubai Founders HQ, Mastercard and Pemo.
The initiative is designed to help startups and SMEs reduce operating costs, improve cash-flow management and gain greater control over company spending. Eligible businesses can receive up to 2% cashback on selected foreign exchange and advertising expenses, complimentary access to Pemo’s spend-management platform, Mastercard-powered corporate cards and exclusive business offers.
One platform for business expenses
Many early-stage companies still manage expenses through personal bank cards, manually collected receipts and several disconnected systems. This can make it difficult for founders to understand where company money is going and can take valuable time away from growth, customers and product development.
The new solution brings corporate cards, automated expense management and real-time spending data together in one platform. Businesses can issue cards to employees, introduce individual spending limits, set approval rules and automate receipt collection.
The system also integrates with accounting platforms including QuickBooks, Xero and Zoho, allowing finance teams to manage spending and financial records more efficiently.
Businesses could recover up to Dh1,200 monthly
Participating companies could recover between Dh500 and Dh1,200 per month in previously untracked spending.
Automating expense management could also reduce administrative work by more than 60 hours each month. In some cases, businesses may be able to shorten their month-end financial closing process from nine days to three.
These savings could be especially valuable for young companies, where small operational inefficiencies can quickly affect available capital and long-term growth.
Supporting Dubai’s startup ecosystem
Dubai Founders HQ is an initiative of the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism and the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy. It was created to connect entrepreneurs with the partners, tools and support needed to establish and grow their businesses in the emirate.
The latest partnership forms part of Mastercard’s regional Built Small. Moving Strong programme and supports the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33. It also falls under the Strategic Digital City Partnership between Mastercard and the Dubai Government.
The initiative reflects Dubai’s wider effort to provide startups with practical support beyond traditional funding. By improving financial visibility and reducing administrative pressure, the programme aims to help founders preserve capital and focus more closely on building sustainable businesses.
For Dubai’s entrepreneurial community, the new solution offers more than discounts and cashback. It provides growing companies with access to financial tools typically associated with larger organisations, helping them operate more efficiently and scale from Dubai with greater confidence.
