The Mal Show

Funding Secrets Nobody Tells Founders! | The Mal Show (Podcast) with Armineh Baghoomian

In this episode of The MAL Show, we sit down with Armie Baghoumian, one of the leading voices in private credit and growth financing in the Middle East. Most founders understand venture capital. Raise equity, give up ownership, and use the capital to grow. But what if there was another way? We explore the world of business financing, venture debt, growth debt, and private credit—and uncover what actually makes a company fundable. In this episode, we discuss: • Why some companies get funded while others get rejected • What investors and lenders look for before providing capital • The biggest mistakes founders make when raising money • When debt can accelerate growth—and when it becomes dangerous • How startups like Tabby, Bayzat, and Trukker used debt to scale • The hidden rules of business financing • Why banks reject many growing businesses • Asset-backed lending vs. traditional business loans • The future of private credit in the Middle East • How founders should think about risk, leverage, and growth Whether you're building a startup, running an SME, or simply want to understand how business financing really works, this conversation offers valuable insights into a side of entrepreneurship that most people never see. Don't forget to subscribe for more conversations with founders, investors, operators, and business leaders shaping the future of the region. Chapters: 00:00 Intro 3:54 Growth Debt vs. Banks 7:07 Loans vs. Asset-Backed 14:43 Fintech Chicken-Egg Problem 19:22 Covenant Traps Explained 24:32 Advice for Equity Investors 28:15 Debt Literacy Evolution 31:52 Pricing & Term Sheets 36:22 Tenors & Case Studies 42:46 Multiple Lenders & Enforcement 50:09 Shariah Finance Explained 54:16 Stress Testing & Global Credit Risks 1:05:42 Retail & Wealth Bubble 1:08:39 Why PFG Is in the Region 1:13:27 Egypt & GCC Expansion 1:16:12 Cross-Cultural Business 1:18:30 Armineh's Career Path 1:24:51 Operators vs. Investors 1:27:30 14-Year Team Culture 1:29:43 Approaching PFG & Hiring To get in touch with us:  podcast@mal.ai Follow us on Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/themal.show/ https://www.tiktok.com/@themalshow.podcast https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566478614883 To get in touch with Yousef Salem https://www.linkedin.com/in/youssefsamysalem/?skipRedirect=true https://www.instagram.com/youssefsamysalem?hl=en To get in touch with Armie Baghoomian  https://www.linkedin.com/in/armineh-baghoomian-045262/ #TheMALShow #BusinessFunding #Entrepreneurship #StartupFunding #VentureDebt #PrivateCredit #BusinessGrowth #Startups #Finance #middleeastbusiness

Why Most People Never Start a Business?! | The Mal Show (Podcast) with Jad Antoun

In this episode of The MAL Show, we sit down with Jad Antoun, Founder and CEO of Huspy, one of the fastest-growing proptech companies in the Middle East and Europe. We discuss entrepreneurship, risk-taking, fear of failure, building global companies from the Middle East, and the future of real estate in an increasingly uncertain world. How do you know when it's time to leave a stable job and start a business? Why do so many people spend years thinking about entrepreneurship but never take action? What does it take to scale a company across multiple countries, raise capital, and build a high-performance team? Jad shares the lessons he learned building Huspy from a startup launched during COVID into a company operating across international markets. We also explore leadership, company culture, AI, real estate, and the psychology behind life-changing financial decisions. Topics discussed: Entrepreneurship and risk-taking Fear of failure and decision-making Building a global company from the Middle East Scaling teams and company culture AI and the future of real estate Dubai's property market Fundraising and startup growth Leadership and high-performance teams Chapters: 00:00 Intro 01:24 Starting a Business During COVID 03:14 The Real Risk of Quitting Your Job 05:43 Lebanon's Entrepreneurial DNA 08:20 How SF Changed His Thinking 12:16 Middle East Needs Bigger Ambition 13:58 Why Huspy Went to Europe 16:01 Raise First or Expand First? 19:45 AI Won't Replace Brokers 22:03 Psychology of Buying a Home 25:41 Is Dubai Real Estate a Bubble? 26:58 Dubai's Value Prop in 5 Seconds 30:48 Launching 5 Cities in 60 Days 36:46 Who Huspy Hires & Why 47:17 Employee Secondaries Explained 51:21 Managing Cash & Runway 54:02 Risk vs. Paranoia as a Founder 56:49 How to Become a Broker 1:01:59 Where to Invest in Real Estate Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of business, technology, investing, and human behavior. To get in touch with us:  podcast@mal.ai Follow us on Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/themal.show/ https://www.tiktok.com/@themalshow.podcast https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566478614883 To get in touch with Yousef Salem https://www.linkedin.com/in/youssefsamysalem/?skipRedirect=true https://www.instagram.com/youssefsamysalem?hl=en To get in touch with Jad Antoun https://www.linkedin.com/in/jad-antoun-204/ #TheMALShow #JadAntoun #Huspy #Entrepreneurship #Startups #Business #RealEstate #Dubai #Technology

Why Women Make Better Financial Decisions? | The Mal Show (Podcast) with Rami Tabbara

- Real estate has long been considered one of the most powerful ways to build wealth. But for most people, investing in property feels out of reach — requiring large amounts of capital, long-term commitments, and access to opportunities that are often reserved for a small group of investors. In this episode of The MAL Show, we sit down with Rami Tabara, Co-Founder and CEO of Stake, to explore how technology is changing the way people invest in real estate and why the future of wealth creation may look very different from the past. We discuss fractional real estate investing, tokenization, passive income, property ownership, investing psychology, the future of real estate in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and whether access to investments is becoming more important than ownership itself. We also explore how younger generations think about money, why real estate remains one of the world's largest asset classes, and how platforms like Stake are opening the market to millions of new investors. In this episode: - Can you really invest in real estate starting from AED 500? - How does fractional property ownership actually work? - Is real estate still the best way to build long-term wealth? - Why are younger investors changing the investment landscape? - What is tokenization and how could it transform ownership? - Should you invest in real estate, stocks, crypto, or all three? - How do you create a second source of income? - Why are global investors increasingly attracted to Dubai and Saudi Arabia? - What does the future of investing look like? If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe and turn on notifications for more conversations about money, investing, business, and human behavior. Chapters: 0:00 Intro 3:04 Why Everyone Should Invest in Real Estate? 6:37 Real Estate Culture in the Middle East 10:02 Investing from 500 AED 13:58 SPV vs. Tokenization 21:35 Weekly Dividends Explained 26:02 Your Second Income 27:08 How Much Real Estate in Your Portfolio? 29:10 Launching During COVID 35:09 Real Estate Made Easy 38:25 Buying a Full Home Through Stake 40:54 Mubadala, Aramco & ENBD as Investors 42:24 Managing 1.2 Billion AED 51:31 Women Invest Better Than Men 53:19 Gen Z vs. Older Investors 1:00:14 Golden Visa Through Stake 1:05:42 Why Rami Started Stake 1:08:12 Own Dubai Property in 3 Minutes 1:17:31 Skills to Work at Stake 1:21:27 Message to Regulators To get in touch with us:  podcast@mal.ai Follow us on Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/themal.show/ https://www.tiktok.com/@themalshow.podcast https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566478614883 To get in touch with Yousef Salem https://www.linkedin.com/in/youssefsamysalem/?skipRedirect=true https://www.instagram.com/youssefsamysalem?hl=en To get in touch with Rami Tabbara https://ae.linkedin.com/in/rami-tabbara #RealEstate #Investing #Stake #Dubai #WealthBuilding #PassiveIncome #Finance #TheMALShow

Why Most People Stay Broke? | The Mal Show (Podcast) with Sherine Kabesh

What does financial freedom actually look like — and how do you get there? In this episode of The Mal Show, Youssef sits down with Sherine Kabesh, founder of Flash, Egypt's leading financial wellness platform and Ex - Uber. Shireen brings rare honesty to the conversation — from the social challenges of being a woman in fintech, to how she walked away from a Dubai salary to build a startup, to her take on investing, data privacy, credit culture, and what it really means to be financially free. If you've ever spent money to impress people, avoided saving because of what others might think, or wondered how to start building real financial wellness — this episode is for you. Don't forget to subscribe to our channel to get the latest episode of The Mal Show CHAPTERS: 0:00 Introduction 1:06 Women in Fintech: The Real Challenges 4:23 Where Do Women in Finance Disappear To? 5:34 From Finance to Marketing — Numbers Are Everywhere 6:53 What Is Financial Wellness? 10:45 How Shireen De-Risked Before Starting Flash 13:23 Breaking Free From Social Pressure  14:10 Confidence Comes From Within 15:52 What Is Financial Freedom? 18:37 Ethics & Investing — Is the S&P 500 Halal? 22:00 How Flash Uses Your Financial Data 25:04 The Culture of Credit 29:54 Why You Should Trust QR Code Payments 32:26 Digitization Is Like Electricity 34:35 Uber, Safety & Moral Responsibility 36:46 One Step Towards Financial Freedom To get in touch with us:  podcast@mal.ai Follow us on Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/themal.show/ https://www.tiktok.com/@themalshow.podcast https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566478614883 To get in touch with Yousef Salem https://www.linkedin.com/in/youssefsamysalem/?skipRedirect=true https://www.instagram.com/youssefsamysalem?hl=en To get in touch with Sherine Kabesh https://eg.linkedin.com/in/sherine-kabesh-9b385860 #TheMALShow #financialfreedom #Startup #Fintech #IslamicFinance #UAE #entrepreneurship #business

The SME Paradox No One Is Fixing! | The Mal Show (Podcast) with Dr. Vishnu Katara

In this episode of The MAL Show, we sit down with Dr. Vishnu Katara — GM of SMEs at MAL, investor, operator, and former finance leader at companies like Flipkart, Noon, and Ola — to explore how AI, ethical finance, and SME banking could completely reshape the future of business. We discuss why traditional banks continue to fail SMEs, why 90% of the economy is powered by small businesses while only a tiny percentage gets funded, and how AI-native banking could change underwriting, collections, payroll, and business operations forever. Dr. Vishnu also explains how companies like Flipkart, Noon, and Ola competed against Western giants like Amazon and Uber — and won through local understanding, speed, and entrepreneurial culture. The conversation also dives into: The transformation of the UAE into a global business hub Ethical and Sharia-compliant finance AI agents replacing entire business functions What founders actually need to raise capital Angel investing and startup evaluation Why learning and curiosity matter more than ever in the AI era The mindset shift from employee to entrepreneur This is a deep conversation about the future of finance, startups, technology, and building meaningful businesses in the Middle East and beyond. Don’t forget to subscribe for more conversations on business, finance, technology, and culture. Chapters: 0:00 Intro 1:56 From Heavy Industry to Startups 5:05 Being Entrepreneurial Inside a Corporate 6:19 The Non-Unicorn to Unicorn Secret 8:06 Competing With Western Giants 11:22 Why the Middle East? 13:26 UAE as a Global Business Hub 15:38 From CFO to Running a Business Segment 17:23 The SME Funding Gap 18:26 Why Banks Fail SMEs 20:08 MAL's AI-Native Banking Vision 26:17 AI Agents Working for Your Business 29:44 Competing With Traditional Banks 36:48 Sharia Compliance & Ethical Finance 44:23 MAL's Hiring & AI-Driven Recruitment 49:51 The Obsession With Learning 53:49 Angel Investing: How to Start 1:06:36 Finance Career Advice: From CFO to CEO 1:17:42 Advice for Founders Raising Capital To get in touch with us:  podcast@mal.ai Follow us on Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/themal.show/ https://www.tiktok.com/@themalshow.podcast https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566478614883 To get in touch with Yousef Salem https://www.linkedin.com/in/youssefsamysalem/?skipRedirect=true https://www.instagram.com/youssefsamysalem?hl=en To get in touch with Dr. Vishnu Katara https://ae.linkedin.com/in/vishnukatara #TheMALShow #AI #SMEs #Startup #Fintech #IslamicFinance #UAE #Entrepreneurship #Business #ArtificialIntelligence #MiddleEast #MAL