GCC's $250 Billion SME Financing Gap Targeted by New Tokenized Private Credit Fund
Zamanat Fund CEIC Limited, a DIFC-domiciled tokenized private credit fund, has been launched by Zamanat with a target size of up to $100 million. This fund aims to address the estimated $250 billion SME financing gap in the GCC region.
The GCC's SMEs play a crucial role in economic growth but are significantly underserved by traditional financing. In the UAE, for example, SMEs generate more than half of GDP and employ the majority of the private-sector workforce, yet receive less than 10 percent of total bank lending.
Zamanat's Founder and CEO, Umair Tariq, explained that strong businesses across the GCC still struggle to access growth capital despite sound fundamentals. The fund will invest in private credit across the region, directing capital towards strong homegrown companies whose financing needs are not fully met through traditional lending channels.
The Fund combines a regional private credit strategy with a DIFC fund structure, institutional administration, and digital issuance on ZIGChain. It provides a first live demonstration of how regional private credit can be brought into a DFSA-regulated tokenized structure for Professional Clients.