• Egyptian entrepreneur Sameh Saleh founded MNZL in 2022 to allow citizens to use property, vehicles, and land as collateral for easier access to capital.
• MNZL’s model, inspired by the “home equity” concept, lets users secure loans while retaining ownership of their assets.
• Saleh previously founded and sold Hawaya, a Muslim dating app acquired by Match Group.

Serial entrepreneur and investor Sameh Saleh is reshaping how Egyptians leverage their physical assets to access financing. Through his latest venture, MNZL, Saleh aims to unlock new paths for individual funding by transforming owned assets into tools for liquidity.

Founded in 2022, MNZL specializes in asset-backed financing. The Cairo-based startup operates a digital platform that enables property, vehicle, and landowners to convert asset value into financial leverage.

The company’s digital portfolio system allows users to manage collateralized loans via a mobile application available on Android and iOS. Customers can apply for credit, pledge assets, and receive funds through a single, integrated interface.

MNZL’s model draws inspiration from the “home equity” concept, tailored to Egypt’s regulatory environment. The approach enables individuals to secure flexible, lower-interest loans while retaining ownership of their assets.

Before MNZL, Saleh built a successful track record in the tech ecosystem. He founded Tripdizer in 2016, a travel platform that helped Egyptians plan low-budget trips. A year later, he launched Hawaya (formerly Harmonica), a faith-based dating app designed for Muslims seeking culturally respectful relationships.

Saleh led Hawaya until 2022, when it was acquired by Match Group, the U.S. company behind Tinder and Meetic.

Saleh holds a bachelor’s degree in reservoir engineering from Petronas University of Technology (2011) and a master’s in petroleum engineering from Heriot-Watt University (2015), both in Malaysia.

Between 2011 and 2018, he worked as a senior reservoir engineer at Petronas, Malaysia’s national oil and gas company, before transitioning full-time into entrepreneurship.

This article was initially published in French by Melchior Koba

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum