EMEA Daily: Fraugster, Worldline Deliver Chargeback Protection; UAE-Based FI Mashreq Launches Non-Banking Services Platform

In today’s top news from Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), South African retailer Massmart struggles to stay afloat, and financial institution Mashreq unveils a business service platform for small- to medium-sized businesses.

Walmart-Owned Massmart Can’t Overcome Pandemic, Inflation, Other Hurdles

With Walmart set to announce its first half results later this month, the South African retailer Massmart, which is owned by Walmart, is struggling to overcome ongoing restrictions and lockdowns related to the continuing spread of COVID-19 across the region, the company announced in a press release.

In the statement, Massmart said it was still feeling the impact of last year’s civil unrest in the country, which led to the closure of 43 stores and resulted in lost sales.

UAE-Based FI Mashreq Launches Non-Banking Services Platform for Small Businesses

Mashreq, a financial institution based in the United Arab Emirates, has debuted a non-banking business services platform, Mashreq Business Banking Value Added Services, for small businesses, according to a Monday (Aug. 1) press release.

The platform will give businesses access to a number of services including human resources, office space and cloud storage provided by third parties.

Mashreq’s platform debuted with 10 companies so far, but the company said in the release that another 10 are expected to be added in the next few weeks. Mashreq’s concept is to build a one-click platform within Business Banking, which will integrate service providers and transactions.

UK’s JD Sports Names New CEO Amid Eventful Week

Retailer JD Sports has named its first permanent CEO since 2014, hiring Régis Schultz as the new company leader, effective next month.

Schultz’s selection came after what the sports retailer described as “an extensive executive global search process.”

Schultz has experience at a U.K.-listed retail business and has worked in retail categories including home, fashion, electrical, sporting goods and food.

Fraugster and Worldline Deliver Chargeback Protection for Travel Merchants

The German payment intelligence company Fraugster has teamed with French PayTech Worldline to deliver a chargeback protection solution for travel merchants.

The solution eliminates chargeback losses for merchants by taking full liability for fraudulent transactions. It also utilizes artificial intelligence trained on global payment data to make more accurate decisions and boost approval rates.

As Fraugster said in a statement, COVID-19 drove a change in fraud patterns and consumer payment behavior that adversely affected the travel sector.

Egyptian eCommerce Platform Homzmart Raises $23M

Egypt-based eCommerce platform Homzmart has closed a Pre-Series B round of $23 million.

The startup will use the new funding to expand its services, increase its logistics capabilities, and fill existing gaps in supply chains. Homzmart has not yet achieved profitability, but the CEO said it is still focused on expansion and building market share “through laser-focused profitability milestones.”

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