stc’s colab: Employee Innovation Driving Unicorn Growth.
From Concept to Fintech Scale
stc’s internal innovation hub, colab, has moved employee ideas from pitch stage into billion-dollar businesses. The clearest proof point is stc pay, which began as an internal concept and scaled into Saudi Arabia’s leading digital wallet. In 2020, Western Union acquired a 15% stake for $200 million, valuing stc pay at over SAR 5 billion (Brand Finance).
That trajectory, from staff idea to fintech unicorn, anchors colab’s credibility as a structured engine for growth.
Workforce Capability as Strategy
colab is integrated with stc’s DARE strategy (Digitise, Accelerate, Reinvent, Expand). Employees are given access to training, technical support, and funding routes that move projects from prototype to product. Brand Finance highlights this model as a mechanism that turns employees into intrapreneurs, linking professional development with corporate growth (Brand Finance Global 500 Preview).
The system embeds innovation into the company itself rather than outsourcing it through acquisitions.
Outcomes: Venture Pipeline and Retention Value
colab has generated a pipeline of ventures across fintech, cloud, and digital services, with several scaling into independent business units. The approach has a second-order effect: retention. Employees who see their ideas funded and scaled are more likely to stay, reducing attrition in a market where digital talent is highly contested.
Brand Finance attributes stc’s 12% brand value increase in 2025, reaching $13.9 billion, partly to these internal innovation and workforce programs.
Inclusion as Growth System
colab is structured so that employees at every level can participate. This open access expands the pool of ideas and ensures diverse perspectives feed into product creation.
For stc, inclusion is a growth system: wider participation fuels better ideas and strengthens internal culture. For employees, it provides visible career pathways through venture creation.
This integration of inclusion and innovation builds both commercial products and internal trust.
Strategic Consequences for Leaders
The directives are clear:
Internalize venture building to capture growth and loyalty.
Invest in workforce capability so training produces tangible innovation.
Broaden access to innovation to surface stronger ideas and reinforce cultural alignment.
Bottom Line
stc’s colab shows that internal innovation, reinforced by workforce capability and inclusive access, can create unicorns, retain scarce talent, and lift brand value.
The lesson for leaders is blunt: when employee creativity is systematized, it becomes a compounding source of equity and growth.
