Markaaz CEO Hany Fam on the 'Data Gap' for Small Businesses with Two-Sided Platform

At Markaaz, we know that small businesses face a serious challenge when it comes to securing the financial support they need. For many small companies, the issue isn’t just a lack of credit but the lack of complete and trustworthy information about them — the “data gap.” This gap often keeps banks from extending credit or makes FinTechs hesitant to keep small businesses on their platforms.

Imagine a business owner looking to expand into a new region, ready to fuel growth but needing a line of credit to make it happen. All too often, these businesses are met with requests for personal guarantees that can impact their credit scores or, worse, an outright denial. Much of this boils down to incomplete or fragmented data: the information needed to verify these companies isn’t easily accessible or comprehensive enough, especially in the eyes of financial institutions.

At Markaaz, we’re focused on solving this challenge. Our platform is designed to bridge the data gap by building the most accurate, all-encompassing view of small businesses worldwide. With over 65,000 data sources, we gather, de-duplicate, and clean massive amounts of data, creating a reliable profile of each business. This information isn’t just for show — it’s available to the banks, FinTechs, and other financial service providers that make critical decisions about working with small companies.

Our CEO Hany Fam has experienced these challenges firsthand. Even with strong financials, Markaaz once faced requests for collateral simply because financial partners didn’t have the data they needed to assess us accurately. This experience underscores our mission: to make sure that no small business has to go through the same obstacles.

Markaaz’s platform is built as a two-sided tool that works for both businesses and financial institutions. On one side, businesses can access accurate data about themselves, while on the other, financial institutions can see a clear, standardized view of these companies. And if there are errors or missing information, both parties can contribute to filling in the gaps, creating a more complete and reliable record.

By addressing the data gap, we’re not only helping businesses become more visible but also making them more “bankable.” This transparency benefits financial institutions too, improving their ability to identify potential customers and capture new opportunities. We’re proud that our platform has been able to achieve 30-50% more verifications than other providers because of our rigorous data management practices.

At Markaaz, we’re creating a future where small businesses are finally on equal footing, armed with the data they need to access resources, grow, and thrive.

Talk to our team