Company Insights Wamda Banking and Finance Wamda News Finance Agtech in spotlight as Mena startup funding recovers Startup funding in the Mena region in October remained subdued on a year-on-year basis, but agtech is one of the areas set to shine. Mena startups raised $156 million in October, compared to $646 million raised in October 2022, but vastly up on the $36 million raised in September, according to data from Wamda, a […] November 17, 2023 Exclusive Banking and Finance $250m Aliph Fund expects closure on GCC deals Aliph, a private equity fund that attracted $125 million from an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund last year, is aiming to close up to three investments in GCC states UAE and Saudi Arabia by the end of 2023. The Aliph Fund, set up by Aliph Capital and one of the few female-led private equity companies […] October 2, 2023 Finance Dubai SMEs turn to banks as VC funding declines Small businesses in Dubai are turning to traditional banks for financing as the global slowdown in venture capital funding continues. Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank by assets, reported that it funded 34 percent more small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) over the opening seven months of 2023 compared to the same period last year. Lucy Chow, […] September 18, 2023 Opinion Entrepreneurs In Dubai vs Riyadh, it’s the startups that win Competition between the two major business hubs is great for entrepreneurs July 27, 2023 Entrepreneurs Egypt’s currency slump deters startup investors Egypt’s economic woes have led to a 70 percent decline in the number of startup funding deals in the first half of the year. The country’s currency devaluation and other ongoing economic challenges are deterring investors, industry experts said. Funding for startups across the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) fell 21 percent year-on-year to […] July 11, 2023 Analysis Entrepreneurs Female startup founders have ‘tough sell’ in the region More women need to be in investment decision-making positions to rebalance the gender bias within the Mena startup funding sector, industry experts say. The amount raised by female-led startups tumbled by 88 percent over the first half of this year to $5.6 million, according to the latest data from Wamda, the largest early-stage investment fund […] July 7, 2023 Tech Skills shortage pushes up Gulf tech leaders’ salaries Technology chiefs working in the Gulf are typically earning $528,000, according to a new survey, as leadership talent remains “scarce” in the region. That figure is the median salary calculated by the first annual Middle East Technology Officers Compensation Survey from US advisory firm Heidrick & Struggles. The report said strong GDP growth in the […] June 20, 2023 Banking and Finance Debt and fintech dominate Mena startup funding Fintech and debt financing were the dominant themes in Mena startup funding in May, as experts predicted continued growth for the remainder of the year. In May, $445 million was invested in 39 startups in the Middle East and North Africa, up from only $7 million and 11 deals in April. The data was compiled […] June 16, 2023 Banking and Finance UAE remittance market nears ‘saturation point’ The remittance and foreign exchange market in the UAE is “saturated” and will need consolidation as new businesses continue to emerge. “Either people will have to grow digitally [at scale] to capture market share or they’ll get amalgamated,” said Zahir Moghal, CEO of Abu Dhabi currency provider Delma Exchange. “It’s totally saturated. It’s completely over-supplied […] June 12, 2023 Banking and Finance Fintech pushes Mena startups to raise $445m in May Venture capital (VC) activity bounced back in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) in May 2023, as funding into the regional startups reached $445 million. The fundings were spread across 39 deals, compared to $7 million raised across 11 deals in April 2023, Dubai-based Wamda said in its monthly report. On a year-on-year basis, […] June 12, 2023 Posts navigation Previous 1 … 3 4 5 … 7 Next
Finance Agtech in spotlight as Mena startup funding recovers Startup funding in the Mena region in October remained subdued on a year-on-year basis, but agtech is one of the areas set to shine. Mena startups raised $156 million in October, compared to $646 million raised in October 2022, but vastly up on the $36 million raised in September, according to data from Wamda, a […] November 17, 2023
Exclusive Banking and Finance $250m Aliph Fund expects closure on GCC deals Aliph, a private equity fund that attracted $125 million from an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund last year, is aiming to close up to three investments in GCC states UAE and Saudi Arabia by the end of 2023. The Aliph Fund, set up by Aliph Capital and one of the few female-led private equity companies […] October 2, 2023
Finance Dubai SMEs turn to banks as VC funding declines Small businesses in Dubai are turning to traditional banks for financing as the global slowdown in venture capital funding continues. Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank by assets, reported that it funded 34 percent more small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) over the opening seven months of 2023 compared to the same period last year. Lucy Chow, […] September 18, 2023
Opinion Entrepreneurs In Dubai vs Riyadh, it’s the startups that win Competition between the two major business hubs is great for entrepreneurs July 27, 2023
Entrepreneurs Egypt’s currency slump deters startup investors Egypt’s economic woes have led to a 70 percent decline in the number of startup funding deals in the first half of the year. The country’s currency devaluation and other ongoing economic challenges are deterring investors, industry experts said. Funding for startups across the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) fell 21 percent year-on-year to […] July 11, 2023
Analysis Entrepreneurs Female startup founders have ‘tough sell’ in the region More women need to be in investment decision-making positions to rebalance the gender bias within the Mena startup funding sector, industry experts say. The amount raised by female-led startups tumbled by 88 percent over the first half of this year to $5.6 million, according to the latest data from Wamda, the largest early-stage investment fund […] July 7, 2023
Tech Skills shortage pushes up Gulf tech leaders’ salaries Technology chiefs working in the Gulf are typically earning $528,000, according to a new survey, as leadership talent remains “scarce” in the region. That figure is the median salary calculated by the first annual Middle East Technology Officers Compensation Survey from US advisory firm Heidrick & Struggles. The report said strong GDP growth in the […] June 20, 2023
Banking and Finance Debt and fintech dominate Mena startup funding Fintech and debt financing were the dominant themes in Mena startup funding in May, as experts predicted continued growth for the remainder of the year. In May, $445 million was invested in 39 startups in the Middle East and North Africa, up from only $7 million and 11 deals in April. The data was compiled […] June 16, 2023
Banking and Finance UAE remittance market nears ‘saturation point’ The remittance and foreign exchange market in the UAE is “saturated” and will need consolidation as new businesses continue to emerge. “Either people will have to grow digitally [at scale] to capture market share or they’ll get amalgamated,” said Zahir Moghal, CEO of Abu Dhabi currency provider Delma Exchange. “It’s totally saturated. It’s completely over-supplied […] June 12, 2023
Banking and Finance Fintech pushes Mena startups to raise $445m in May Venture capital (VC) activity bounced back in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) in May 2023, as funding into the regional startups reached $445 million. The fundings were spread across 39 deals, compared to $7 million raised across 11 deals in April 2023, Dubai-based Wamda said in its monthly report. On a year-on-year basis, […] June 12, 2023
