Egypt-based artificial intelligence (AI) company MerQ has closed its seed financing round from Ahmed Kamal Selim, a financial investor, with a minority stake in the company valued at $800,000. MerQ will use the investment to develop its products, mainly Sally, a chatbot through Facebook that introduces Egyptians to all credit card systems within the country.

"We are delighted to have been able to complete our first financing round shortly after the launch of our first products into the market namely “Sally”. This financing allows us to expand our service offerings within the financial services ecosystem and supports our expansion plans in the country,” said Walid Ghalwash, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) at MerQ.

The company aims to cover various topics of financial literacy in banking and non-banking services and to help in financial inclusion by assisting the Egyptian public in making financial decisions through raising awareness on banking and financial sectors.

"We are targeting with our new investor another round of financing during Q3 2019 to launch two new products within the framework of financial services that support the state's vision for financial inclusion and the use of technology to increase the penetration of financial and banking services among Egyptians,” added Ghalwash.

Sally’s service “@SallyCreditCard” provides users with comprehensive information when deciding on different credit cards available across various banks through its artificial intelligence chatbot offered through Facebook messenger.

"The investment in MerQ comes from my personal interest in artificial intelligence and financial inclusion that is set in the state’s priorities to keep abreast of the global digital economy," said Kamel.