By Rafiq Vayani
DUBAI: Edenred UAE, part of the global Edenred Group and a long-standing provider of payroll solutions in the UAE, today announced it has received in-principle approval from the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) for its application to operate as a licensed Stored Value Facility (SVF) provider.
Edenred has been part of the UAE’s payroll infrastructure for over 18 years. Over that time, the company has grown to serve over 20,000 businesses and more than 2.5 million employees across the UAE, processing salaries every month for a workforce across construction, retail, hospitality, logistics and beyond, much of it for workers who rely on their salary card as their primary financial account to receive and access their wages. This growth happened quietly: Edenred UAE built its reputation on operational reliability and regulatory discipline, becoming one of the country’s most-used payroll solutions.
In-principle approval is an intermediate step in CBUAE’s licensing process which assesses governance, compliance, cybersecurity, and operational controls. Edenred UAE will now work to complete the remaining requirements set by CBUAE before a full SVF licence is granted.
For the businesses that rely on Edenred to pay their people, and for the employees who receive their wages through it, this milestone is a signal of continuity rather than change: the same service, as Edenred progresses through its journey towards full SVF licensing. It also reflects the broader direction of the UAE’s financial sector: the continued evolution of stored-value and payment products, alongside a strong focus on financial inclusion for a workforce that is largely unbanked or underbanked.
“Our clients trust us with something deeply personal: making sure their people get paid, safely and on time. Receiving in-principle approval from the Central Bank of the UAE is an important step in earning that trust at the highest regulatory level, and we’re honored to have it. We remain committed to finishing the work ahead to reach full licensing, and to pioneering payroll services that drive economic growth and financial inclusion across the region.” – Claudio Di Zanni, Managing Director, Edenred Middle East