Corporate spend management has become intensely competitive in the UAE. Two platforms generating real buzz among Dubai's SME community are Mamo and Pemo, both targeting founder-led and growing businesses, but solving meaningfully different problems.
This guide puts them side by side across every dimension that matters: pricing, cashback, card features, integrations, regulatory standing, and, crucially, whether either platform can help you collect money from your customers, not just control how your team spends it.
Pemo is a Dubai-based corporate card and expense management platform founded in 2022. Backed by approximately $19 million in funding from Cherry Ventures, Shorooq Partners, and Augmentum Fintech, it serves over 6,000 businesses with an annualised transaction volume of AED 1.4 billion as of mid-2026.
The platform issues unlimited Mastercard corporate cards (physical and virtual), enforces per-card spend limits and merchant category restrictions, captures receipts via AI, and integrates with QuickBooks, Xero, Zoho Books, Tally, and Wafeq. It also supports approval workflows via push notification and Face ID, sub wallets (Premium and Enterprise tiers), and a Corporate Liability Waiver of USD 25,000 per card per occurrence.
In July 2026, Pemo announced it had received in-principle approval from the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) for a Stored Value Facility (SVF) licence, a milestone it describes as the first for a UAE spend management platform. The full licence is still pending as of October 2026. Until the final licence is granted, customer funds are safeguarded via licensed banking partners.
Mamo is a DIFC-based fintech regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA). Originally focused on payment acceptance, Mamo has expanded into corporate cards and expense management, making it the only platform in the UAE regulated to offer both capabilities under a single product umbrella.
For accepting customer payments, Mamo supports Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Jaywan (UAE local), Tabby (BNPL), mada, Apple Pay, and Google Pay, across a gateway, payment links, and QR codes. Its corporate Visa Mamo Cards earn up to 0.5% unlimited cashback on AED spend and up to 2% on non-AED (unlimited) spend, with promotional rates up to 8% available for limited periods.
| Plan | Monthly Fee | Sub Wallets | API Access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | AED 0 | None | Paid add-on |
| Premium | AED 399 / company | 3 | Paid add-on |
| Enterprise | From AED 1,500 / company | Unlimited | Included |
All plans include unlimited Mastercard physical and virtual cards and unlimited cardholders. A 3.68% FX fee (VAT inclusive) applies to foreign currency transactions. Physical cards arrive within 72 hours; virtual cards are instant.
Mamo's Growth plan carries no monthly fee; its Premium plan costs AED 99/month:
| Plan | Transaction Rate | Same-Day Settlement |
|---|---|---|
| Premium | 2.7% + AED 0.80 / transaction | +0.5% additional fee |
| Growth | 2.9% + AED 1.00 / transaction | +0.75% additional fee |
Standard settlement takes 2–5 business days. Mamo's corporate card product has its own pricing, contact Mamo for details.
| Spend Type | Pemo Starter | Pemo Premium | Mamo Visa Card |
|---|---|---|---|
| UAE domestic AED transactions | 0% | 0% | 0.5% |
| International / FX spend | 0.5% | Up to 2% | 2% |
| Google Ads / Meta Ads (billed in AED) | 0.5% | Up to 2% | 0.5% |
| ATM withdrawals | Not publicly disclosed | Not publicly disclosed | — |
| Transfers / wallet top-ups | 0% | 0% | — |
Key insight: Pemo explicitly notes that Google Ads and Meta Ads spend qualifies for cashback even when billed in AED, a valuable perk for performance marketing teams. However, all other UAE domestic AED transactions earn nothing on the Starter and Premium plans. If most of your company's card spend occurs within the UAE, Mamo's domestic AED cashback (up to 0.5%, unlimited) may deliver more real-world value over the course of a year.
This is the most consequential difference between the two platforms, and it is binary: Pemo does not have a payment gateway.
Pemo has no facility for accepting payments from your customers. There are no payment links, no QR codes, no POS terminals, and no checkout integration. It is exclusively a tool for managing how your team spends money outward, not for bringing money in.
If you run an e-commerce store, a subscription business, a professional services firm invoicing clients, or any business that collects customer payments, you would need a separate payment processor alongside Pemo. That means two providers, two reconciliation workflows, two support relationships, and two bills to manage.
Mamo eliminates that by doing both, payment acceptance and corporate spend management, under a single DFSA-regulated account.
Mamo gives you a payment gateway, payment links and QR codes alongside your corporate cards.
Regulatory standing matters because it determines how your funds are protected, which legal framework governs disputes, and what your compliance team will accept.
Mamo holds a full, operational DFSA licence and operates from the DIFC, one of the most respected regulatory environments in the region.
Pemo received in-principle approval from the CBUAE for an SVF licence in July 2026. Pemo describes this as the first such approval for a UAE spend management platform, a meaningful milestone. However, in-principle approval is not a final licence. As of October 2026, the full licence remains pending, and until it is granted, customer funds are held with licensed banking partners rather than under Pemo's own regulatory authorisation.
Neither status is inherently disqualifying for most SMEs. But businesses in regulated sectors, those with treasury policies requiring fully licensed counterparties, or those managing significant float balances should factor this difference into their evaluation.
| Feature | Pemo | Mamo |
|---|---|---|
| Corporate Mastercard cards | Yes, unlimited | Yes |
| Virtual cards (instant) | Yes | Yes |
| Single-use virtual cards | Yes | Yes |
| Apple Pay / Google Pay | Yes | Yes |
| Per-card spend limits | Yes | Yes |
| Merchant category controls | Yes | Yes |
| Approval workflows (Face ID) | Yes | — |
| AI receipt capture | Yes | — |
| AI accounting categorisation | Yes | — |
| QuickBooks / Xero / Zoho Books / Wafeq | Yes | — |
| Sub wallets | Premium and above | — |
| Corporate Liability Waiver | USD 25,000 / card | — |
| Payment gateway | No | Yes |
| Payment links / QR codes | No | Yes |
| POS terminal | No | No |
| Visa / Amex / Jaywan / mada acceptance | No | Yes |
| Tabby BNPL acceptance | No | Yes |
| Global payouts | No | Yes |
| DFSA regulated (full licence) | No | Yes |
| CBUAE SVF in-principle approval | Yes (July 2026) | N/A |
No. Pemo is a corporate card and expense management platform. It has no capability for accepting payments from customers, no payment gateway, payment links, QR codes, or POS terminals are offered. If your business needs to collect customer payments, you would need a separate payment processor. Mamo is the only UAE platform offering both payment acceptance and corporate cards under one regulated product.
Pemo received in-principle CBUAE approval for a Stored Value Facility (SVF) licence in July 2026, which Pemo describes as the first such approval for a UAE spend management platform. The full licence remains pending as of October 2026. Until the final licence is granted, customer funds are held with licensed banking partners.
Yes. Mamo holds a full, operational DFSA licence and operates from the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). This is a final granted licence, not an in-principle approval.
Pemo's Starter and Premium plans do not offer cashback on general UAE domestic AED transactions. Cashback applies to international and foreign currency spend only: 0.5% on Starter and up to 2% on Premium. Pemo notes that Google Ads and Meta Ads spend qualifies for cashback even when billed in AED. Mamo's corporate card offers up to 0.5% unlimited cashback on AED spend and up to 2% on non-AED (unlimited) spend.
Pemo is a corporate card and spend management platform, not a business bank account. It does not currently support salary payments or general bank-to-bank transfers. Pemo's pending SVF licence may expand its product scope once granted.
Physical Pemo cards are issued within 72 hours. Virtual cards are available instantly. Both are Mastercard-branded and can be added to Apple Pay and Google Pay.
No. Same-day settlement on Mamo's payment plans carries an additional fee: +0.5% on the Premium plan and +0.75% on the Growth plan. Standard settlement takes 2–5 business days with no additional charge beyond the base transaction rate.
Accept customer payments and manage company spend under one DFSA-regulated account.
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