The map·Saudi Arabia·Government programmes

CMA FinTech Lab (ExPermit)

Capital Market Authority FinTech Lab — an experimental environment granting FinTech ExPermits to test capital-market products.

What
Regulatory permission to test products live; no funding provided.
Who
Capital markets, WealthTech and investment platform companies.
Cost
No equity — service or permission
From abroad
Open to companies from abroad — Applicant, including foreign companies, must establish a legal entity in the Kingdom (Saudi Arabia) to commence the FinTech activity All programmes open to founders from abroad →
Status
Active

Checked · September 2026 · cma.gov.sa/en/Market/fintech/Pages/default.aspx · How we check ↗

In detail

CMA FinTech Lab (ExPermit) is a regulatory sandbox in Saudi Arabia. Capital Market Authority FinTech Lab — an experimental environment granting FinTech ExPermits to test capital-market products. Open to local and international firms; applications year-round, processed in review rounds. Hard gate: the product must relate to securities activities regulated by the CMA and be at an advanced development stage.

Amount
Regulatory permission to test
Eligibility
Capital markets, WealthTech, investment platforms
Sectors
WealthTech, Investment Tech, Capital Markets
Status
Active

What the source says

“the applicant - Including foreign companies- must establish the legal entity in the Kingdom to start commencing the FinTech activity.”

Closing soon on the map

Cultural Development Fund (CDF)

Grant · Saudi Arabia
Up to SAR 500,000 non-repayable per project, capped at 20 projects total.
No equity — grant
29 Sep 2026closes

Finspire

Accelerator · Saudi Arabia
SAR 100,000 development funding, earmarked rather than paid as cash.
Equity via SAFE, capped at 5%
4 Oct 2026closes

QSTP Incubation

Accelerator · Qatar
In-kind support: Doha workspace and housing for a four-week Sprint, talent and investor access.
Equity — 1.5% deferred SAFE-style stake
1 Nov 2026closes

All published deadlines →

More government programmes in Saudi Arabia

KAUST University

Government · Saudi Arabia
R&D grants plus equity investment.
Equity or convertible note

MCIT — Ministry of Communications

Government · Saudi Arabia
Access to CODE programmes and national financing.

MISA — Ministry of Investment

Government · Saudi Arabia
Investor registration, RHQ programme access and Startup Saudi services.
No equity — service or permission

Premium Residency — Entrepreneur Track

Government · Saudi Arabia
Residency for founders with a round of SAR 400K+ (20% share) or SAR 15M+ (10% share).
No equity — one-time fee SAR 4,000

All government programmes in Saudi Arabia →  ·  Across the Gulf →

More programmes that take no equity →

Sources

Primary source · cma.gov.sa/en/Market/fintech/Pages/default.aspx · LinkedIn · linkedin.com/company/capital-market-authority · Checked September 2026

Apply