Top News
There were 6 investments in the MENA between 16-22 September:
Investments:
2 Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), 1 United Arab Emirates (UAE), 1 Egypt, 1 Algeria, 1 Lebanon
Sectors Received Investments:
3 Fintech
1 Blockchain
1 Logistics
1 Human Resource
🎯 Logistics company GroDesto raised funding.
GroDesto, which distributes consumer goods, Raises $1.4 Million in Public Offering. Algeria Logistics Platform GroDesto has announced that it has raised $ 1.4 million through an IPO (public offering) in order to become a joint stock company (SPA).
Transaction Type: IPO
Investment Amount: $1.400.000
Investors: Public Offering
Co-founders: Mustapha Siaci
Country: Algeria
🎯 NFT platform NIFTY Souq raised funding.
UAE-based NFT marketplace NIFTY Souq closes $1.5 million Seed round. Palm Ventures, Falak Investment Hub, Fitzy Fund, and angel investors participated in the investment round. NIFTY Souq uses the core technology of Ethereum and Polygon blockchains and smart contracts.
Transaction Type: Investment
Investment Amount: $1.500.000
Investors: Palm Ventures, Falak Investment Hub, Fitzy Fund, Angel Investors
Co-founders: Talal Afghani, Nabil AlSayed
Country: United Arab Emirates (UAE)
🎯 Recruiting platform, Elevatus closed $10.5 million Series A round
Saudi-based Saas video interviewing and recruiting platform Elevatus has raised $10.5 million in Series A funding, jointly managed by Global Ventures and Wa’ed Ventures, with participation from Jasoor Ventures.
Transaction Type: Investment
Investment Amount: $10.500.000
Investors: Global Ventures, Wa’ed Ventures, Jasoor Ventures
Co-founders: Yara Burgan, Yacoub Zureikat, Yanal Kashou
Country: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)
🎯 Lebanon-based remittance startup, Purpl raised funding.
Lebanon-based remittance fintech startup Purpl has raised $2 million in funding from undisclosed investors. The startup is part of the Hub71 ecosystem in Abu Dhabi and the headquarters of the startup is in Beirut, Lebanon.
Transaction Type: Investment
Investment Amount: $2.000.000
Investors: –
Co-founders: Karl Naim, Wissam Ghorra, Jean-Marie Khoueir
Country: Lebanon
🎯 Investment marketplace Exits.me raised funding.
Egypt-based investment banking marketplace Exits.me has raised $1 million in a pre-Seed round from Exits.me (UK-based arm of the same entity), Baseeta Investments Holding, Mawelni Holding for Financial Investments, and Angel investors. Founded in 2022, the startup was recently acquired by Egypt-based M&A boutique consulting firm PIE.
Transaction Type: Investment
Investment Amount: $1.000.000
Investors: Exits.me (UK-based arm of the same entity), Baseeta Investments Holding, Mawelni Holding for Financial Investments, Angel investors
Co-founders: Mohamed Aboulnaga, Ahella El Saban, Ayman El Tanbouly
Country: Egypt
🎯 Fintech startup erad closed $2.4 million pre-Seed round
Saudi-based fintech Erad, a growth finance platform for online businesses in the Middle East, raised $2.4M in pre-seed funding from Nuwa Capital, VentureSouq, Khwarizmi Ventures, and angel investors. Erad was part of Y Combinator’s Summer 2022 cohort.
Transaction Type: Investment
Investment Amount: $2.400.000
Investors: Nuwa Capital, VentureSouq, Khwarizmi Ventures, Angel investors
Co-founders: Salem Abu-Hammour, Faris Yaghmour, Youssef Said
Country: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)
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Other News:
📌 Saudi Arabia-based customer interaction platform Unifonic has launched the accelerator program in partnership with The Space. The accelerator program targets startups in the cloud communications and SaaS industries, focusing on security and privacy, customer experience, and digital transformation.
📌 UK-based Byld Ventures has launched a $15 million fund aimed at investing in fintech in Africa, specifically Egypt and Nigeria, as well as Algeria and Ethiopia. Byld was founded by the co-founder of Sudan-based fintech startup Bloom.
📌 In March, under the leadership of Dubai-based Global Ventures, partnerships with state banks and companies were established, and the Nclude fund of 85 million USD reached the first closing. In the second funding round, local and international investors have committed approximately USD 20 million to Global Ventures’ Nclude fund, raising the total capital of the fintech-focused VC fund to USD 105 million. It has already invested in local startups such as Khazna , Paymob , Lucky, and Mozare3 .
📌 The Ma’an Social Incubator (MSI) has announced its program for mission-driven initiatives working on Sustainable Cities and Communities. Ma’an offers a social incubation program in partnership with startAD, Mohammed Bin Rashid Global Maker Challenge, and United Nations Habitat.
📌 Egyptian Energy Initiative KarmSolar Announces New Investment Round. It will use the new investment to support existing power generation and distribution businesses and for the development of solar water desalination solutions provider KarmWater and electric mobility startup KarmCharge.
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