Zamanat’s tokenized fund aims to widen access to GCC private credit — the lending risks stay familiar

Putting private credit on the blockchain changes how investors access it — it doesn’t change whether a borrower can repay. That distinction sits at the heart of Zamanat’s bid to channel capital into underserved GCC businesses through a tokenized fund targeting up to USD 100 mn. “The loan does not become safer by being represented digitally,” CEO Umair Tariq tells EnterpriseAM UAE. The underwriting, security analysis, and risk management still have to stand up as they would in a conventional fund.

The DIFC-based company is building infrastructure to connect investors with assets through tokenization, starting with regional private credit. In our recent My Morning Routine interview, Tariq highlighted the window: smaller businesses struggle to secure financing, while wealthy individuals and private family offices have limited access to the regional asset class. The fund is intended to connect those two sides: combining regional lending with digital access for qualifying private investors.

The proposition is still at the fundraising stage. At the time of our interview, the fund had not begun deploying capital, Tariq said. It launched on 10 September with an anchor commitment from Disrupt Group and was evaluating a USD 40-50 mn prospective agreement pipeline. Those are prospects under assessment rather than completed loans — the USD 100 mn is the fundraising target.

Zamanat brings together two trends already taking shape in the UAE: Dubai-based Amwal Capital Partners launched a USD 150 mn private credit fund in May 2025, targeting transactions primarily in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. More recently, Mubadala Capital partnered with Kaio to tokenize a private-markets fund in July.

What the token changes

The immediate benefit is largely on the investor side: Tariq puts the entry ticket at USD 250k, opening a route into regional private credit for qualifying professional investors who may not write the large checks associated with institutional allocations. Investors receive fund shares represented by ZM1 tokens on ZIGChain. Dubai-based Truleum Venture Partners manages the fund, while Apex Group provides administration, as we reported when it was announced.

The digital infrastructure is also meant to reduce administrative work. Eligibility rules and transfer restrictions are built into the token contracts from the outset, Tariq says, while investors can check their holdings on-chain and reconcile them against Apex’s register. Receiving a token does not remove those eligibility requirements or transfer controls. The aim, he explains, is to reduce the operational work around issuing and administering fund holdings.

For the borrower, “the token is invisible.” It does not change the loan agreement or the security supporting the borrowing, Tariq says. The intended benefit is access to a wider pool of capital that might otherwise never reach the business. While tokenization provides the infrastructure around the investment, the underlying transaction remains a loan that needs to be assessed and repaid.

Who gets the financing?

Zamanat is looking for established businesses with revenue and a credible growth plan. The target borrowers are profitable trading or services companies with an operating track record, contracted revenue, and the ability to sustain repayments, Tariq says. For companies seeking USD 2-5 mn, he argues, bank credit can be off the table, leaving them to delay expansion, turn down profitable contracts, raise equity, or use expensive short-term facilities.

One prospective borrower illustrates the gap: a property management company with long-term rental contracts, strong operating inflows, and no debt, yet in need of growth capital to take on new mandates. Tariq describes it as “too small for a bank, but too large for a fintech lender.” The company was under consideration at the time of the interview rather than an investment already made.

The price of filling the gap

Private credit comes at a premium to bank financing — something Tariq readily acknowledges. His argument is that the relevant comparison is the funding a business can actually obtain, weighed against the prospect it would otherwise miss. Financing a profitable contract or an expansion can make sense if the return supports the borrowing cost. “If the economics do not support it, the transaction should not happen,” he says. He did not specify lending rates in our conversation, leaving the size of that premium unquantified.

The underwriting issue

The underwriting starts with how the business will repay. That means examining revenue quality, customer concentration, margins, existing obligations, management, and whether the financing will fund productive growth. Collateral remains part of the assessment, but Tariq says it should reinforce the credit case rather than replace it.

That focus on underwriting comes amid wider scrutiny of the asset class: The Financial Stability Board warned in May that opacity, data gaps, and interconnected exposures could obscure risks and amplify losses in private credit during market stress.

The planned safeguards extend beyond individual borrower selection. The fund intends to take senior secured positions in most instances and also invest through lending platforms with established SME portfolios, Tariq says. A single borrower or platform should not exceed 25% of the fund’s net asset value. It is also exploring co-investments, particularly in Saudi Arabia, with partners familiar with local enforcement requirements.

If a borrower runs into trouble, the first question is whether the problem is temporary or fundamental. Tariq says the agreed process involves assessing whether a disruption can be remedied, whether restructuring is viable, or whether the loan is in default. These are planned procedures rather than a recovery track record: the fund had not yet deployed capital when we spoke.

For Tariq, a successful first year means more than hitting the fundraising target. He points to deployment into quality businesses, diversification within the fund’s concentration limits, and investor onboarding and reporting that work as intended. There is also interest in receivable-backed and asset-backed financing for future products. But the first fund’s central test will be whether the capital it brings together can finance viable growth and be repaid. “Scale will of course not necessarily make a credit portfolio better,” he says. “It still needs to have the right process and diligence throughout.”