ExHubs connects customers with verified currency exchange providers across Turkey, Iran, the UAE, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and the wider MENA region — bringing transparency, reputation, and discovery to a market still run on WhatsApp groups and word of mouth.
ExHubs is building the trust layer for currency exchange across one of the world’s most active — and least transparent — exchange corridors. Millions of people in Turkey, Iran, the UAE, Iraq, Azerbaijan, and Armenia rely on informal Telegram channels, WhatsApp contacts, and personal referrals to exchange currency, with no centralized way to compare rates, verify legitimacy, or hold providers accountable.
ExHubs solves this the way Booking.com solved hotel discovery and Airbnb solved short-term stays: by building a two-sided marketplace that aggregates verified exchange providers, surfaces transparent comparisons, and creates reputation accountability — without ever touching customer funds or executing a single transaction. Providers gain a modern customer acquisition and reputation-building channel; customers gain transparency, choice, and safety.
A ~$95M SAM across 7 underserved, high-velocity exchange corridors with no dominant digital incumbent.
B2B marketplace SaaS: subscriptions, featured placements, leads, and data products sold to exchange providers.
Two-sided network effects, accumulated reputation data, and regulatory-light positioning as a discovery layer.
Istanbul-based founder with 15+ years in IT infrastructure, cloud, and cybersecurity, backed by NITACO.
We envision a Middle East and Central Asia where finding a trustworthy currency exchange provider is as simple, transparent, and confidence-inspiring as booking a hotel room — regardless of which country, city, or currency corridor a customer is operating in.
ExHubs’ mission is to build the leading discovery and trust marketplace connecting customers with verified currency exchange providers across the Middle East and beyond — improving transparency for customers and unlocking growth, reputation, and digital visibility for providers, while remaining strictly a marketplace and never a financial intermediary.
Currency exchange in Turkey, Iran, the UAE, Iraq, Azerbaijan, and Armenia happens largely off-platform — through informal networks that leave both sides of the market underserved.
ExHubs gives customers a transparent way to search, compare, and choose, and gives exchange providers a modern growth channel — all without ExHubs ever holding funds or executing a transaction.
ExHubs’ revenue model is provider-side (B2B marketplace SaaS, leads, and advertising), so market sizing is built bottom-up from the number of currency exchange and money-service businesses across target geographies, not from gross transaction volume — ExHubs never takes a cut of money moved.
Methodology: bottom-up estimate using publicly referenced counts of licensed and semi-formal currency exchange / money-service businesses per market (e.g., Turkey’s regulated döviz büfeleri network, UAE exchange houses licensed by the Central Bank, and broader informal broker networks in Iraq, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and the Iran-diaspora corridor), multiplied by an estimated addressable annual spend on digital customer acquisition, verification, and reputation tooling — analogous to OTA-style marketing and commission spend in the travel industry. Figures are illustrative planning estimates, not audited market data, and should be validated further during diligence.
| Market | Role | Est. addressable providers | Est. annual spend / provider | Contribution to SAM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | Phase 1 launch market | ~3,000 | $6,500 | $19.5M |
| UAE | Phase 2 launch market | ~1,200 | $8,500 | $10.2M |
| Iraq | Phase 3 expansion | ~4,500 | $4,500 | $20.3M |
| Azerbaijan | Phase 3 expansion | ~900 | $5,000 | $4.5M |
| Armenia | Phase 3 expansion | ~700 | $5,000 | $3.5M |
| Iran-diaspora corridor | Cross-border, served via Turkey/UAE/Armenia | ~4,200 | $6,500 | $27.3M |
| Broader MENA (future) | Beyond 5-year horizon | ~37,500 | $5,700 | — (TAM only) |
Note: ExHubs does not operate inside Iran directly; the Iran-related opportunity is served through diaspora and cross-border exchange providers operating from Turkey, the UAE, and Armenia, consistent with international sanctions and compliance requirements.
ExHubs’ core model monetizes the supply side of the marketplace — exchange providers — the same way OTAs monetize hotels and B2B marketplaces monetize sellers. Below, ten provider-side streams form the foundation, plus five optional consumer-facing levers (further down) that can be layered in later without ExHubs ever taking a cut of the money moved.
Tiered monthly/annual plans for providers (Basic, Pro, Enterprise) with increasing visibility and tools.
$$ · ~$19–$99/monthPay-to-feature placement in search results and city/route pages.
$$ · ~$15–$40/monthAuction-based top-of-page sponsored slots for high-intent searches.
$ · ~$5–$20/day (bid-based)Paid verification tier with documentation review, building customer trust.
$ · ~$50–$150/yearPay-per-lead or bundled lead packages for high-intent customer requests.
$$ · ~$3–$10/lead or $200–$500/month bundleDisplay and native ad inventory across the platform and content pages.
$$ · ~$100–$500/monthBundled visibility packages for providers entering a new city or corridor.
$$ · ~$300–$800 one-timeAggregated, anonymized market & rate-trend insights sold to providers and institutions.
$$$ · ~$200–$1,000/reportProgrammatic access to listings, rates, and review data for partner integrations.
$$$ · ~$0.01–$0.05/call or $500+/monthWhite-label and co-marketing deals with larger exchange networks and fintechs.
$$$ · ~$5,000–$20,000+/yearThe core model stays provider-side. These are optional, low-friction ways to monetize end customers directly without taking a cut of the money moved or acting as a money transmitter — to be layered in once trust and volume are established. Pricing shown is relative/illustrative, for planning purposes only.
Customer pays a small flat fee to lock a quoted rate for a short window before visiting the provider.
$ · ~$1–$3 per lockFlat platform fee to reserve a slot or guaranteed amount with a specific provider — not a % of the exchange.
$ · ~$2–$5 per bookingMonthly/annual plan with rate alerts, priority booking, ad-free browsing, and rate-history insights.
$$ · ~$3–$8/monthCommission from partner financial products offered to customers — travel insurance, prepaid FX cards, remittance partners. Paid by the partner, not the customer.
$$$ · ~5–15% commissionSmall flat fee per completed exchange booked through the platform — deliberately flat, not a % of volume, to avoid money-transmitter classification.
$ · ~$1–$2 flat, regulatory-sensitiveExHubs’ real competition isn’t a single company — it’s the informal status quo: Telegram channels, WhatsApp communities, Facebook groups, classifieds, and broker networks. None of these offer structured trust, comparison, or discovery.
| Alternative | Transparency | Reputation system | Discovery / comparison | Scalable network effects |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional exchange offices (walk-in) | Low | None | None | No |
| Telegram groups | Partial | Informal only | Poor | No |
| WhatsApp communities | Low | None | None | No |
| Facebook groups | Partial | Informal | Poor | No |
| Local classifieds platforms | Partial | Weak | Basic | Limited |
| Informal broker networks | Low | None | None | No |
| ExHubs | High | Structured & verified | Purpose-built engine | Yes — two-sided |
Structured listings, comparable terms, and visible reputation replace opaque, one-off conversations.
Verified reviews and ratings accumulate over time, creating switching costs informal channels can’t replicate.
Purpose-built search and comparison by route, city, and currency pair — not buried in chat history.
More providers attract more customers, which attracts more providers — a classic two-sided marketplace flywheel.
A digital-first model expands market-by-market without the capital intensity of physical infrastructure.
Aggregated rate and reputation data improves matching and risk-scoring as the network grows.
Engineered from day one for multi-market, multi-language expansion, with a cloud-native architecture and a clear roadmap toward AI-assisted trust and matching.
Responsive web app with English, Turkish & Persian localization; RTL support for Persian.
API-first microservices architecture for listings, search, messaging, reviews, and billing.
Centralized reputation, verification, and rate-comparison data store powering search ranking.
Cloud-hosted, containerized, multi-region-ready, with security & compliance hardened by NITACO’s cybersecurity practice.
Client layer (Web, mobile-responsive, multi-language UI) → API Gateway (auth, rate-limiting, localization) → Core Services (Provider Directory · Search & Matching · Reviews & Reputation · Messaging · Leads & CRM · Billing & Subscriptions) → Data Layer (relational store for transactional data, search index for discovery, analytics warehouse for BI products) → Trust & Risk Layer (verification workflows, fraud signals, future AI risk scoring) → Admin & Ops Console (provider verification, content moderation, market configuration).
AI-assisted matching of customer requests to the most relevant, available providers.
Pattern-based fraud detection signals and provider risk scoring to strengthen marketplace trust.
Reputation intelligence and aggregated market-insight products for providers and institutional partners.
Concentrated launch in Istanbul and key Turkish cities. Focus on onboarding founding exchange providers, SEO foundations, and early community trust-building with the Iranian and regional diaspora already based in Turkey.
Scale Turkey operations while launching in the UAE, leveraging its role as a regional financial and travel hub with high cross-border exchange demand.
Expand into Iraq, Azerbaijan, and Armenia, then broader MENA, replicating the playbook validated in Phases 1 and 2.
Programmatic, localized landing pages by city, currency pair, and route to capture high-intent search demand.
Educational content on exchange rates, safety, and regional finance topics in English, Turkish, and Persian.
Partnerships with travel platforms, diaspora associations, and fintech-adjacent businesses for distribution.
Engagement within existing diaspora and expat communities to seed early trust and word-of-mouth growth.
Direct outreach and free onboarding incentives for founding exchange providers in each launch market.
Incentivized referral programs for both customers and providers to accelerate organic, low-CAC growth.
Projections reflect a typical marketplace adoption curve: slow early traction during trust-building, accelerating provider monetization from Year 3, and a path to operating profitability by Year 4–5.
| Metric | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Markets live | Turkey | + UAE | + Iraq, Azerbaijan, Armenia | Deepening 5 markets | + MENA expansion |
| Monthly active users (consumer) | 15,000 | 70,000 | 220,000 | 480,000 | 850,000 |
| Total providers onboarded | 150 | 420 | 1,100 | 2,000 | 3,100 |
| Paying providers | 30 | 220 | 550 | 950 | 1,400 |
| Blended ARPU (monthly) | $80 | $120 | $150 | $170 | $200 |
| Revenue | $45K | $280K | $1.0M | $2.3M | $4.2M |
| Team size (FTE) | 5 | 9 | 16 | 26 | 38 |
| Operating expenses | $380K | $650K | $1.3M | $2.1M | $3.4M |
| Net income / (loss) | ($335K) | ($370K) | ($300K) | $200K | $800K |
Assumptions: provider acquisition accelerates with each new market launch; ARPU grows as the product matures from basic listings toward bundled subscriptions, featured placements, and BI/data products; expenses include team, cloud infrastructure, marketing/provider acquisition, and compliance/legal costs. The model assumes no large one-time revenue events and is deliberately conservative on early monetization to remain defensible to investors.
ExHubs is raising a pre-seed round to complete MVP development, validate the Turkey launch, and reach the traction milestones required for a strong seed round.
| Scenario | Raise | Equity offered | Implied pre-money | Implied post-money | Est. runway |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A — Conservative | $75,000 | 10% | $675,000 | $750,000 | ~6 months |
| B — Recommended | $150,000 | 15% | $850,000 | $1,000,000 | ~11–12 months |
| C — Aggressive | $250,000 | 10% | $2,250,000 | $2,500,000 | ~16–17 months |
Advantages: minimal dilution, easier to close quickly, low bar for investor commitment.
Disadvantages: ~6 months of runway is too short to reach meaningful traction milestones before needing to raise again — high re-fundraising risk.
Investor attractiveness: Low ticket size suits angels testing the thesis, but the short runway raises execution-risk concerns.
Founder dilution: Lowest (10%) but increases risk of a rushed, less favorable next round.
Advantages: ~12 months of runway — enough to complete the MVP, execute the Turkey launch, and reach seed-worthy KPIs.
Disadvantages: higher dilution than Scenario A; $1M post-money requires clear articulation of why the team and market justify it.
Investor attractiveness: Balanced ticket size, valuation, and runway — the most defensible scenario for both founder and investor.
Founder dilution: Moderate (15%), offset by a materially de-risked path to seed.
Advantages: longest runway (~16–17 months), most capital to invest in growth and hiring.
Disadvantages: $2.5M post-money is a rich valuation for a pre-revenue, MVP-stage company — may be hard to justify to disciplined investors and creates down-round risk if the next round can’t clear $2.25M pre-money.
Investor attractiveness: Appeals to investors with high conviction and larger check sizes, but a smaller pool will engage at this valuation pre-seed.
Founder dilution: Lowest dilution (10%) but highest valuation-justification risk.
Illustrative cap table progression assuming Scenario B is executed at pre-seed, followed by a future seed and Series A round.
| Stakeholder | Ownership |
|---|---|
| Founder (Babak) | 90% |
| Reserved option pool (unallocated) | 10% |
| Total | 100% |
| Stakeholder | Ownership |
|---|---|
| Founder (Babak) | 76.5% |
| Pre-seed investors | 15.0% |
| Option pool | 8.5% |
| Total | 100% |
| Round | Raise | Pre-money | Post-money | New investor % | Founder ownership after |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Seed (Scenario B) | $150,000 | $850,000 | $1,000,000 | 15.0% | 76.5% |
| Seed (example) | $1,200,000 | $6,000,000 | $7,200,000 | 16.7% | 63.7% |
| Series A (example) | $5,000,000 | $20,000,000 | $25,000,000 | 20.0% | 51.0% |
Founder ownership declines from 90% → 76.5% → 63.7% → 51.0% across pre-seed, seed, and Series A — a typical and healthy dilution path, with the founder retaining majority economic and (with appropriate board structuring) governance influence through Series A. Each round is assumed to dilute all existing stakeholders pro rata, with no additional option pool top-up modeled (a top-up at seed or Series A would modestly accelerate dilution for all parties, including new investors).
Pre-seed, MVP-stage marketplace and fintech-adjacent startups in Turkey and the broader MENA region typically price between $500K and $2M pre-money, depending on founder track record, market size, and degree of validation. ExHubs sits in the upper-middle of that range given: a completed brand identity, an MVP in active development, a founder with 15+ years of relevant infrastructure and cybersecurity experience, and institutional backing from an established technology company (NITACO).
Brand identity completed; website and MVP under active development; initial market validation in progress.
Public launch in Istanbul and key cities; onboard founding providers; begin SEO and content foundation.
Scale Turkey provider network and MAU; launch UAE; introduce premium memberships and featured listings.
Launch Iraq, Azerbaijan, Armenia; introduce lead-gen packages, BI reports, and verified badges at scale.
Roll out AI-assisted matching, risk scoring, and enterprise/API partnerships; pursue broader MENA expansion.
Establish ExHubs as the default discovery layer for currency exchange across the region; evaluate strategic options.
| Risk | Description | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|
| Regulatory | Risk of being mistaken for a financial institution or money transmitter, inviting unwarranted regulatory scrutiny. | Strict positioning and product design as a discovery/marketplace platform only; no fund custody, no transaction processing; legal review per market before launch. |
| Market adoption | Customers and providers may be slow to shift from trusted informal networks to a new platform. | Founding-provider incentive programs, referral loops, and community-embedded launch strategy in each market. |
| Competition | Local players or larger fintechs could attempt to replicate the marketplace model. | First-mover advantage, accumulated reputation data, and network effects create a compounding moat over time. |
| Liquidity (two-sided) | Marketplace needs sufficient providers and customers simultaneously to deliver value. | Phased, city-by-city launch strategy concentrates density before expanding geographically. |
| Reputation risk | A bad actor provider or a fraud incident could damage platform trust. | Verification workflows, review moderation, badge tiers, and (longer-term) AI-assisted fraud signals. |
Istanbul-based founder with 15+ years of experience across IT infrastructure, cloud computing, enterprise systems, cybersecurity, networking, digital transformation, and technology consulting. Deep, on-the-ground understanding of regional markets across Turkey and the wider Middle East, with direct experience navigating the operational and trust challenges that ExHubs is built to solve.
ExHubs is being developed as an independent venture under NITACO, an established technology company specializing in IT services, cloud solutions, cybersecurity, AI systems, automation, and digital transformation. NITACO provides ExHubs with technical credibility, infrastructure expertise, and operational support during its early build phase.
Regional fintechs, payment networks, travel/OTA platforms, or super-apps seeking a trust/discovery layer for currency services.
Banks or licensed exchange networks acquiring ExHubs as a customer acquisition and reputation channel.
Growth into a standalone, profitable regional marketplace category leader, with later-stage growth equity or eventual public listing as long-term options.
Recruit 2–3 advisors with regional fintech, payments, or marketplace experience to strengthen credibility and investor confidence.
Secure letters of intent or pilot commitments from a handful of Istanbul exchange providers ahead of fundraising to evidence demand.
Engage regional counsel early to formalize ExHubs’ non-financial-institution positioning across each target jurisdiction.
Prepare a data room with financial model, cap table, legal docs, and product roadmap ahead of investor outreach.
Apply to regional accelerators/incubators (Turkey, UAE) for non-dilutive credibility, mentorship, and warm investor introductions.
Lead investor conversations with concrete weekly/monthly traction metrics as soon as the MVP is live, even if early-stage.
A ready-to-build slide-by-slide structure for investor presentations, condensed from the full proposal above.
Company: ExHubs (a venture developed under NITACO) | Stage: Pre-seed | Sector: Marketplace / Fintech-adjacent (non-regulated discovery platform) | Geography: Turkey, Iran-diaspora, UAE, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Armenia, MENA
Thesis: ExHubs addresses a large, underserved trust gap in currency exchange discovery across high-velocity, underbanked-adjacent corridors, applying a proven two-sided marketplace model (à la Booking.com/Airbnb) to a category with no dominant digital incumbent. The model is intentionally non-custodial and non-transactional, materially reducing regulatory complexity relative to fintech or payments competitors.
Recommendation: Proceed with a $150,000 pre-seed investment for 15% equity ($1.0M post-money), subject to standard pre-seed diligence (cap table review, legal entity confirmation, and verification of MVP development progress). The round is appropriately sized to fund a 12-month runway to a clear set of seed-readiness milestones.
Key risks: regulatory perception risk (mitigated by strict non-custodial positioning), two-sided marketplace liquidity risk (mitigated by phased, city-by-city launch), and market adoption risk (mitigated by community-embedded, referral-driven growth strategy).
Return potential: A successful five-year execution to $4.2M ARR, combined with typical SaaS/marketplace revenue multiples (4–8x ARR) at scale, implies a credible path to a $17M–$34M valuation outcome by Year 5 — a 17x–34x return on a $1.0M post-money pre-seed entry, before accounting for further dilution across seed and Series A rounds.
ExHubs is tackling a large, underserved, multi-country problem with a proven marketplace playbook, a regulatory-light model, and a founder with the technical and regional credibility to execute. The pre-seed round offers investors entry at a defensible valuation, with a clear 12-month path to traction milestones that de-risk the next round.
$95M SAM across 7 corridors with no dominant digital incumbent.
A regionally-localized application of the marketplace playbook that built Booking.com and Airbnb.
Non-custodial, non-transactional positioning materially reduces regulatory exposure relative to fintech peers.