Zbooni

Overview

Zbooni is a conversational commerce platform that empowers merchants to sell over messaging apps like WhatsApp and Instagram. It allows businesses to share product catalogs, generate instant payment links, and manage mobile storefronts directly within the chat interface where their customers already spend their time.

Founder story

Ramy Assaf and Ashraf Atia noticed that across the Middle East, thousands of small businesses and boutique brands were operating entirely through Instagram DMs and WhatsApp messages. However, when it came time to actually pay, the process was a messy mix of bank transfers or cash-on-delivery. In 2016, they founded Zbooni in Dubai to put digital rails on this behavior. They built an app that turned casual chats into secure, trackable checkouts, eventually processing millions of orders for the region's social sellers.

What it does

• Generates secure payment links directly inside chat apps
• Builds mobile-friendly digital storefronts and product catalogs
• Tracks orders, payments, and customer details automatically
• Calculates customized shipping rates and applies discounts
• Sends automated digital receipts to buyers via messaging apps.

Who it's for

• Boutique owners
• Social media sellers
• SME merchants
• Freelancers.

Why it works

• Frictionless Checkout: Captures the customer at their highest point of intent by allowing them to pay directly inside WhatsApp instead of forcing them to navigate an external website
• Zero Setup: Merchants don't need to hire a developer or build a complex Shopify store; they just download the app and start generating payment links instantly
• Human Connection: Leverages the trust and personalization of one-on-one chat to close sales that a static eCommerce website might lose
• Built-in CRM: Automatically saves customer data and order history from the chat, acting as a lightweight CRM for small business owners
• Verified Trust: Buyers feel secure knowing the payment links are processed through legitimate, verified banking gateways rather than risky peer-to-peer transfers.

Growth strategies

• Targeted the massive, informal 'social seller' market in the Middle East that relied entirely on Instagram and WhatsApp for business.
• Partnered with massive enterprise groups like Chalhoub to validate their security and gain instant credibility in the retail space.
• Positioned the app as the fastest way to accept digital payments, onboarding local merchants who were previously cash- only.
• Launched cShop market, an online marketplace aggregating their verified merchants to drive additional organic traffic to their users.

Alternatives

• Tap Payments
• Paymob
• Stripe
• Jumper.ai

Comparison overview

• Tap Payments: A massive regional payment gateway in the MENA region that offers billing links but is primarily a backend processor.
• Paymob: A dominant omnichannel payment provider in the Middle East and Africa, heavily focused on POS and enterprise gateways.
• Stripe: The global giant of payment processing, which offers payment links but lacks the localized chat-commerce features specifically tailored to the Middle East.
• Jumper.ai: An AI-based conversational commerce tool (acquired by Vonage) focused heavily on automated chatbots across social media.
• While Stripe and Paymob are designed for developers to build complex checkouts, Zbooni is an out-of-the-box business in your pocket. It is purpose-built for non-technical social media sellers, allowing them to transform their Instagram and WhatsApp DMs into fully functional, secure cash registers in seconds.