An emergency cash funding platform has been launched by two Dubai-based finance entrepreneurs aimed at helping UAE consumers to avoid entering a debilitating debt spiral by facilitating access to short term cash.
BuyBackBazaar enables access to instant cash to customers who sell their possessions such as a phone or laptop and then have the option to buy it back at a later date.
The company is operating from Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Centre in Silicon Oasis, a statement said.
It added that under the system member shops provide their best price to buy specific gadgets for cash immediately and quote their lowest service charge for selling the same gadget back to the customer at a future date.
All member shops on the exchange can see the market prices prevailing at the time across all items and can raise their bids or lower their service charges to ‘win’ the next customer deal. As a result, the customer is guaranteed the most competitive price available.
Cash can be available within a few minutes of a customer doing a deal on the online platform and visiting the nearest shop with their asset.
Member shops are currently located across various areas of Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi and the network will be covering the whole of UAE before the end of the year, the statement said.
The BuyBack Bazaar platform was developed after extensive surveys spanning nearly 1,000 respondents which highlighted a significant demand for emergency funds at least twice a year from nearly 75 percent percent of those UAE residents who earn below AED6,000 per month.
Co-founders, Pishu Ganglani and Ricky Husaini, have been residents of the UAE for over 20 years and have held senior management positions in banking, consultancy and financial services at large regional and multinational organizations.
Ganglani said: “There is a dire and global need for more efficient and transparent lending platforms to disrupt illegal and predatory loan sharks operating in many countries. These operators impose exorbitant compounding rates of interest that lead people into an increasing debt spiral; especially the financially vulnerable who have little or no alternatives.
“We recognised this need and set about addressing it with BuyBack Bazaar which exists to solve problems of emergency funding in a quick, transparent manner while respecting an individual’s dignity. The service is fast, easy and safe for the customer and doesn’t generate additional stress from bounced cheques, penal interest charges or pressure from others to pay back.”
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