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UAE-based Web3 startup Bundle has emerged from stealth with US$5.5 million (approximately KES 715 million) in pre-seed funding to build what it describes as the world’s first networked rewards platform, enabling businesses to pool their marketing budgets and offer significantly larger customer rewards while lowering customer acquisition costs.
The funding round was led by Ethereal Ventures, founded by Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin, and Further Ventures, with participation from Nascent, GSR, Scenius Capital, Anchorage Digital, and Nuwa Capital.
Founded by Bader Al Kalooti and Mostafa Wanas, Bundle is rethinking traditional loyalty programmes by allowing brands to combine their incentive budgets into shared reward pools. Instead of relying on discounts and cashback campaigns that often erode margins and struggle to retain customers, the platform enables businesses of all sizes to offer consumers access to larger, more attractive rewards.
The company says its model addresses a growing challenge facing businesses as customer acquisition costs continue to rise while conventional promotional campaigns deliver diminishing returns.
“Bundle was built to level that playing field,” said Bader Al Kalooti, Co-Founder and CEO of Bundle.
“We believe every business, regardless of size, should be able to offer their customers the kind of rewards that genuinely excite them, rather than relying on discounting, which is a race to the bottom.”
Consumers earn Bundle tickets by completing everyday actions such as making purchases or referring friends. Those tickets provide entries into shared reward pools funded collectively by participating brands, giving customers access to prizes that would typically be beyond the reach of individual businesses.
For merchants, the platform simplifies campaign management by handling rewards infrastructure, regulatory compliance and cross-border operations through a single system.
Although built on blockchain technology, Bundle keeps the experience familiar for both brands and consumers. The platform uses stablecoins and blockchain payment rails behind the scenes to enable transparent, low-cost international reward payouts, while customers interact with a standard Web2 interface. Funds can be withdrawn through licensed payment service providers without requiring users to understand blockchain technology.
Bundle has already demonstrated early traction during pilot programmes conducted across five markets. The company distributed US$100,000 in rewards to more than 1,100 winners, including a US$50,000 grand prize. According to Bundle, participating brands achieved conversion rates of up to four times higher than those generated through traditional incentive campaigns.
Building on those results, Bundle plans to launch commercially in Singapore, Vietnam and the Philippines, where more than 50 founding brands have already joined the platform. The company intends to use its compliance-focused operating model as a foundation for expansion into additional global markets.
Investors say the startup illustrates how blockchain technology can solve real business problems without exposing users to the complexity often associated with Web3.
“The next wave of blockchain businesses like Bundle will drive mainstream consumer applications by feeling native to users and solving real problems,” said Min Teo, Managing Partner at Ethereal Ventures.
“It is a perfect example that uses shared rewards and blockchain rails to help brands drive loyalty and customer growth at scale.”
Robbie Nakarmi, Partner at Further Ventures, said the shared rewards model enables businesses of all sizes to compete more effectively by offering larger incentives at a fraction of the traditional cost.
“Through its innovative shared rewards network, Bundle now gives brands of all sizes access to larger rewards to drive higher conversions from their marketing campaigns at a fraction of the cost, creating a more effective way to engage customers,” he said.
The newly raised capital will be used to accelerate product development, strengthen strategic partnerships and support Bundle’s expansion across Asia before entering additional international markets.
As businesses worldwide search for more effective alternatives to traditional loyalty programmes, Bundle is betting that collaborative rewards powered by blockchain infrastructure can improve customer engagement while bringing practical Web3 applications to mainstream consumers without adding complexity.