Dubai: Mintoak, the payments and engagement operating system for acquirers, has announced its acquisition of ICC Loyalty, a fintech company headquartered in the Middle East. This strategic acquisition aims to expand Mintoak's presence across the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia, enhancing its capacity to assist banks in unlocking new revenue opportunities beyond traditional payment services. According to African Press Organization, ICC Loyalty, based in Dubai, UAE, provides loyalty and rewards technology to over 30 leading banks. The platform is designed to enable financial institutions to offer personalized rewards, targeted campaigns, and lifecycle engagement programs that increase customer retention and transaction frequency. Currently, ICC Loyalty serves over 11 million customers in more than 10 countries. The acquisition signifies a new phase in Mintoak's evolution, broadening its capabilities beyond merchant payments and value-added services to include customer engagement, loyalty, and re wards. This expansion will allow banks to serve both acquiring and issuing businesses through a unified platform. The combined entity generates over US$30 million in annual revenue with a profitability margin exceeding 30%, establishing a solid financial base for ongoing innovation and global growth. "This acquisition represents a defining milestone for Mintoak," said Raman Khanduja, Co-founder and CEO of Mintoak. "Payments have become the foundation of banking relationships. The next phase of growth will come from engagement. By bringing together merchant engagement, customer loyalty, and data-driven intelligence, we are building a payments and engagement OS that enables banks to create greater value for merchants, consumers, and banks." Amit Narang, Co-founder and CEO of ICC Loyalty, added, "Joining Mintoak allows us to integrate their advanced AI and platform capabilities into ICC's ecosystem, delivering next-generation hyper-personalization for both our existing and new clients. Together, we will help b anks deliver more meaningful customer experiences while creating measurable commercial value." The payments industry is entering a new phase of growth, with value shifting towards engagement, intelligence, and monetization as payment infrastructure becomes increasingly commoditized. While banks have built strong payment infrastructures, many have not yet fully tapped into the monetization opportunities presented by increased customer engagement and loyalty. Following the acquisition, Mintoak now partners with more than 50 banks in over 20 countries, including notable names such as HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, and SBI Payments in India, and Emirates Islamic and RAKBANK in the Middle East. Supported by investors like PayPal Ventures, British International Investment, Pravega Ventures, HDFC Bank, and Z3Partners, Mintoak's platform supports over 5 million merchants and 11 million customers, processing more than US$93 billion in annual payment volume. The acquisition enhances its capabilities across both acquiring and issuing businesses, further solidifying its position in emerging markets. Together, Mintoak and ICC Loyalty are building a leading payments and engagement operating system for banks in emerging markets. As financial institutions look beyond transaction processing, the combined platform will help deepen customer relationships, unlock new revenue opportunities, and drive long-term growth.