BitOasis, the leading bitcoin wallet and exchange service in the Middle East and North Africa, has announced its first round of funding, led by Wamda Capital and drawing support from Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group (DCG); Samih Toukan, the serial tech entrepreneur chairman of Jabbar Group; Payfort and other tech angel investors based in New York and Dubai.

“Fintech is a primary focus in our investment strategy, and payments is among the largest market opportunities for tech startups in MENA,” said Fadi Ghandour, CEO and founder of Wamda Capital, in a statement.

The amount raise in the seed funding round has not been disclosed. BitOasis intends to use the investment fund to grow its team further and strengthen its presence outside of the UAE, within the next year.

Founded in early 2015, the fintech startup is based in Dubai and focuses on building infrastructure for new digital payment products using blockchain technology that underpins digital currencies such as bitcoin. The BitOasis bitcoin exchange platform, wallet and cross border payment integrations, provide the tools to onboard consumers and businesses on a digital payment system.

“Our aim since launch is to build the largest digital currency exchange and payments infrastructure platform in the Middle East and North Africa,” said Ola Doudin, CEO and cofounder of BitOasis.

BitOasis is also a founding member of the recently established Dubai Blockchain Council, and has also teamed up with financial entities based in Dubai to develop blockchain applications. The council’s first pilot project is the BitOasis project, which will be implemented by Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) to secure flexidesk contracts and registration process using the Blockchain ledger.

Barry Silbert, CEO and founder of DCG, noted the opportunities presented by the Middle East for the expansion of bitcoin and blockchain technology, adding that he is confident that BitOasis is “extremely well positioned” to build MENA’s leading bitcoin platforms.