Valu Profit Up 43% to $9.7M in First Half as Egyptian Fintech Expands
Egyptian fintech Valu posted a 43% rise in first-half net income to $9.7 million on stronger lending, cards and auto finance.
Egypt-based fintech Valu reported net income of $9.7 million (EGP 486 million) for the first half of 2026, a 43% increase on the same period last year. Gross revenues rose 29% to $66 million (EGP 3.2 billion). Gross merchandise value expanded 38% to $301 million (EGP 14.6 billion), while transaction volumes grew 45% to 5.2 million.
Valu had 955,000 active customers in the half, and each one transacted an average of 12.4 times, up from 9.8 a year earlier. Its market share reached 21% as of May 2026. The company's non-performing loan ratio stood at 1.2%.
The core 'U' product generated $161.2 million (EGP 7.8 billion) in GMV, up 22%. Prepaid card spend jumped 64% to $68 million (EGP 3.3 billion), and 300,000 cards were activated. Shift, Valu's auto financing arm, saw GMV surge 98% to $59.2 million (EGP 2.87 billion). Ulter & Loans, the premium financing business, added $15.3 million (EGP 740 million) in GMV, up 26%.
Daily volumes also picked up. Average daily GMV reached $1.67 million (EGP 81.1 million), and daily transactions averaged 29,000. Valu counted over 9,800 active merchant partners.
The company's unbanked base grew 41% year on year to 390,000 active customers. They generated $43.5 million (EGP 2.1 billion) in GMV and 872,000 transactions during the half.
In Q2 2026, Valu closed its 22nd securitization issuance of $18.2 million (EGP 881 million), pushing cumulative securitized volume to $437.1 million (EGP 21.2 billion). The company said it has authorized credit facilities from 28 financial institutions totaling $496.5 million (EGP 24.08 billion).
Valu expanded beyond Egypt in May, launching services in Jordan under a specialized finance license. The Central Bank of Jordan had approved the license in January. Also in May, Egypt's Financial Regulatory Authority approved Valu's plan to establish an SME financing business.
Chief executive Walid Hassouna attributed the results to the company's strategy of building a fully integrated financial lifestyle ecosystem. He also cited investment in proprietary technology infrastructure, including a new data center, as a way to strengthen scalability and customer experience. Valu ranked 35th on Forbes Middle East's 2026 list of Egypt's 50 most valuable companies.
The new SME lending unit and the Jordan entry will test Valu's technology and its funding model. Valu is financing the push with securitization and bank lines rather than fresh equity, which keeps the 43% profit growth from being diluted. Maintaining the 1.2% non-performing loan ratio across these riskier segments will be a gating factor for how far the expansion can go.
