Located at 6001 N . Central Expressway near the University of Texas at Dallas ( UTD ) campus and the many businesses surrounding it , the Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant is the third Shawarma Press operating within Walmart stores , joining additional locations in San Antonio and Arlington .

Co-founder Dr Ehap Sabri , an adjunct professor at UTD ’ s School of Business , said additional restaurants would open inside Walmart stores in Texas this year , including an upcoming Shawarma Press in Georgetown near Austin , followed by Wichita Falls , Lufkin , and Temple .

“ Since we opened our first restaurant

in Irving in 2017 , we have been excited to be the first to introduce authentic shawarma to Texas ,” Sabri said .

“ During the next five years , our expansion plan is to open more than 100 Shawarma Press locations inside Walmart stores to provide healthy and authentic Mediterranean cuisine to the masses .”

With the new restaurant ’ s proximity to UTD , students and faculty members and residents and businesses in the area are taking advantage of a vast selection of menu items for breakfast , lunch , dinner , and catering .

Breakfast is served on Saturdays and Sundays 9am-11am . and includes hummus , falafel , pancakes , hash browns , and the new steak , eggs , and cheese wraps .

Open weekdays from 11am to 9pm for lunch and dinner , and guests are frequently invited to sample shawarma ,

the signature Mediterranean wraps with thin slices of premium beef or all-natural chicken stacked in cone-like shapes and roasted on a rotisserie .

“ Usually , when customers sample our shawarma , they are hooked !” said Shawarma Press CEO and co-founder Sawsan Abublan .

“ Some prefer traditional beef or chicken shawarmas , while others favour our fusion offerings such as the spicy Tandoori Press™ and the Tex-Mex Press™ . Although we have only been open for a few weeks , it is rewarding to see many customers coming back after experiencing our authentic , made from scratch Mediterranean dishes for the first time .”

In addition to the popular shawarma wraps , the menu includes a variety of appetisers such as grape leaf rolls , cheese and spinach pastries , French fries , falafel bites , and delicious homemade hummus

Shawarma Press , the nation ' s first authentic shawarma franchise , announced an expansion plan to open 100 restaurants within Walmart stores in the next five years .

that has quickly emerged as a customer favourite .

“ The Mediterranean Diet has been named the healthiest way to eat in 2022 based on rankings from US News and World Report ,” said Abublan .

“ We are proud to serve fresh , homemade menu items with only high-quality ingredients , including 100 per cent natural chicken and premium beef raised with no hormones , steroids , or antibiotics , while preparing and humanely handling everything according to halal guidelines .”

ETIHAD Credit Insurance ( ECI ), the UAE Federal export credit company , has signed a Memorandum of Arrangement ( MoA ) with New Zealand Export Credit ( NZEC ) to boost bilateral trade relations and enhance the capabilities of SMEs in both countries to expand globally , without worrying about the payment risks due to commercial or non-commercial reasons .

ECI and NZEC have agreed to promote UAE and New Zealand exports and exportrelated investments by providing tailored trade credit insurance and financial guarantees , backed by the UAE and New Zealand governments , respectively .

Both export credit agencies have signed this agreement to complement and not compete with the private sector through supporting smaller and growing firms and offering the market capacity to larger firms .

The partnership will focus on improving halal trade by leveraging Shariah-compliant finance solutions as they expand their businesses in strategic sectors like steel and aluminium , ceramics , mechanical , waste management industries , among others .

Both organisations will jointly organise workshops , forums , B2B meetings , and events among exporting corporates located in New Zealand and the UAE to equip

H . E . Dr . Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi , Minister of State for Foreign Trade , and Deputy Chairman of Etihad Credit Insurance ( ECI ), witnessing the signing ceremony between export credit agencies of UAE and New Zealand .

these businesses . The UAE is New Zealand ’ s largest trading partner in the Middle East and its 12th largest trading partner globally , and a significant “ hub ” for doing business with the broader Middle East and beyond .

According to Statistics New Zealand , the total two-way trade between New Zealand and the UAE in 2021 reached AED 8.63 billion . Moreover , New Zealand is Dubai ’ s second top food trade partner , accounting for 13 per cent of total food imports to the emirate in 2020 , as per the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry data .

Massimo Falcioni , CEO of ECI , said : “ We are pleased to enter into this agreement with NZEC to improve the competitiveness of businesses

in the UAE for them to expand internationally . In addition to improving the food-stuff trade between the UAE and Zealand , we believe this partnership will help local companies increase their foothold globally in various sectors , strengthening the position of the UAE as a commercial , and later , a manufacturing hub .”

Chris Chapman , Head of NZEC , said : “ From food security to renewable energy cooperation , New Zealand has enjoyed long-standing bilateral relations with the UAE . Our joining hands with ECI will yield competitive advantages to businesses based in both countries . We are pleased to collaborate with ECI as it will help New Zealand businesses to enter new markets and see significant growth .”

AZENTIO Software (“ Azentio ”), a Singaporeheadquartered technology firm owned by funds advised by Apax Partners , announced that Bank of Abyssinia (“ BoA ”) has gone live with iMAL * IslamicFinancing and iMAL * ProfitCalculation-System in less than four months to support the growth of its Islamic window operations .

Azentio ’ s Shariahcompliant profit calculation and distribution system makes profit distribution highly efficient . With the company ’ s AAOIFI-certified Islamic banking suite , BoA will be able to compete with both Islamic banks and conventional banking methods of interest payouts , in rates and customer satisfaction , reducing time-to-market for new products and distribution of profits .

All profit rate adjustments are made within the confines of the rules of Islamic jurisprudence and handled automatically by the system .

Mohammed Kateeb , Global Head of Islamic Banking and President of Middle East & Africa at Azentio , commented : “ We are proud to support BoA , one of the leading private banks in Ethiopia , to achieve the highest levels of transparency and complete automation to manage the

restricted and unrestricted Islamic investments , compute and share profits as prescribed by the Shariah .”

“ iMAL * IslamicFinancing and iMAL * ProfitCalculation- System were integrated online with the bank ’ s existing core banking platform and are running smoothly as standalone applications . The approach we adopted during the implementation phase was an innovative deviation from the normal one , enabling BoA to save the costly process of migration iterations , frequent CIF and account updates maintenance .”

Abdulkadir Redwan , Director – Interest Free Banking at BoA , said : “ Islamic banking has been growing rapidly in recent years in Ethiopia . Choosing the right technology partner was critical to stay nimble and move fast . We made a great choice in partnering with Azentio , because of their in-depth experience , system understanding , vast industry expertise and the team professionalism .

This partnership will create an edge for our Islamic banking operations to operate in a more Shariah-compliant manner and comply with the National Bank of Ethiopia ’ s regulations .”