Uber and Microsoft Provide $3 million in seed funding to Minify, a fintech startup founded by an Egyptian expat

When Khaled Ashmawy was a graduate student in Stuttgart, Germany, he vividly remembers the frustration of sending money home to Cairo. After receiving his monthly stipend, he wanted to transfer part of it to his family. What should have been simple often turned into a slow, expensive ordeal—sending $400 could cost $40 in fees and take three business days to clear.

Even after establishing his own firm and working at Microsoft and Uber in the US, Ashmawy found that this traumatic event had not changed over the years.   That personal frustration eventually inspired him to launch Minify, a cross-border neobank designed to give Egyptians abroad a faster, cheaper way to remit money while also opening access to U.S. banking services for residents back home.

Earlier this year, Minify became part of Y Combinator’s Summer 2025 batch, among the few foreign businesses accepted into a cohort that was predominately made up of generative AI firms. The fintech raised $3 million in seed funding from YC and regional investors including BYLD and DCG.

Ashmawy explained the motivation behind the company:

“Banking was never built for people like me. It’s too expensive, too slow, and too fragmented. I lived through that pain, and it resonates with millions who just want to send money home quickly and affordably.”

Ashmawy’s journey

Born and raised in Egypt, Ashmawy studied computer science before earning two master’s degrees in Germany and Switzerland. He then spent seven years at Microsoft and Uber as an engineer and team lead, where he gained exposure to disruptive technologies and the startup ecosystem.

In 2019, he co-founded Huspy, a Middle East–based proptech platform backed by Founders Fund, and served as CTO until 2022. Leaving Huspy gave him time to reflect on his own migrant journey, bringing remittances back into sharp focus. By then, platforms like LemFi in Nigeria and Spora in India were already providing solutions for migrants in other regions.

Egypt was overlooked even though it was one of the world's largest remittance markets, bringing in about $30 billion annually.

What Minify offers

Traditional options—bank wires, Western Union, and MoneyGram—still dominate Egypt’s remittance space. But Minify is positioning itself as part of a new wave of digital banks promising cheaper, faster transfers.

The platform currently serves Egyptians living in the U.S., U.K., Europe, and the Gulf, helping them send money instantly and at better rates. Additionally, it gives Middle Eastern citizens access to American bank accounts and credit cards, requiring only a local ID for verification. This protects users from currency volatility while making it easier for freelancers and remote workers to receive and spend money.

Ashmawy noted Minify’s unique model:

“Our key differentiator is that we’re building our own rails and directly linking into banking systems across countries.”

Launched just two weeks ago, Minify has already drawn thousands of signups, driven largely by word of mouth. The startup has also signed agreements with mid-sized enterprises handling more than $50 million in monthly cross-border volume.

Operating on a dual model, Minify provides remittances and banking services to individuals, while offering APIs for businesses to process international payments. Its revenue streams include FX spreads, interchange, and payment flows.

Why Y Combinator backed it

In recent years, Y Combinator batches have heavily favored AI and developer tools, raising the question: why admit an Egyptian fintech?

Ashmawy believes it comes down to addressing an urgent, universal problem:

“If you’re solving something big and immediate, it matters—whether the trend is AI or anything else.”

From Stripe to Coinbase, YC has a track record of helping businesses who are facing difficulties with their finance infrastructure. Remittances remain one of the hardest problems in global finance, particularly in emerging markets—a sector where YC has consistently backed founders.

For YC, Minify represented a strong fit: a founder with U.S. tech expertise, a track record of establishing one of the Middle East’s leading proptech businesses, and a profoundly emotional commitment to the problem.