Education New academy to help Mena startups tap into Africa As competition within the Middle East’s startup sector intensifies, a new academy is offering free advisory services, especially those looking to scale up in the African market. The DAI Magister Academy, founded last summer by boutique investment bank DAI Magister, has already helped several startups in Africa. It now hopes to develop across the Mena […] February 3, 2023
Entertainment Egyptian gaming startup acquires Tunisian rival Galactech Egyptian startup GBarena, an esports platform operating across the Middle East, has acquired Tunisian rival Galactech in a share swap valued at $15 million. The deal comes as GBarena prepares to close its Series A funding later this year, with participation from investors in the US, Singapore and the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) […] January 26, 2023
EXCLUSIVE Startups ‘Attitude is last hurdle’ for Saudi women in business Digitalisation has removed the last practical barriers to female entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia, according to one of the kingdom’s prominent business leaders, Dina Alnahdy. The only remaining obstacle, she told AGBI, is their own or others’ attitudes. “Honestly, there are no real barriers that would prevent someone from starting up a business and flourishing in […] January 25, 2023
Analysis Banking & Finance Saudi SMEs look to sharia funding to balance cash flow In Saudi Arabia, small to medium-sized companies are increasingly turning to sharia-compliant funding to raise money for their businesses. But rather than borrow from banks, these SMEs instead rely on the kingdom’s nascent fintech sector to obtain bridging loans, invoice financing and other kinds of niche financial support. “SMEs are underserved by the banking sector, […] January 24, 2023
60 seconds with... Startups Perihan Abouzeid, founder of PeriCare nursing pods Perihan Abouzeid set up PeriCare, a Dubai-based company focused on building products that serve the needs of working mothers and mothers on the go. It became a revenue-generating startup within the first month of operations and has featured at major events like Gitex and Dubai Design Week. What does your company do? Our flagship product […] January 20, 2023
Startups Di Caprio-backed fintech to set up offices in Abu Dhabi California-based fintech company Aspiration Inc. will be setting up offices at Abu Dhabi Global Market. Aspiration is supported by Access Abu Dhabi, the business expansion program by Maven Global Access and Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), which serves as a conduit to fast-track entry to the UAE capital, the company said in a statement. The […] January 20, 2023
Analysis Agriculture Agtech startups and Egypt are hot prospects for Mena funding Startups across the Middle East and North Africa region raised $125 million in funding in December last year, with Egyptian companies leading the pack, ahead of regional powerhouses the UAE and Saudi Arabia. A joint report by Wamda and Digital Digest showed that Egyptian startups secured $45.7 million across 11 deals in December, more than […] January 13, 2023
Science & Technology Dubai ‘ultra app’ acquires Botim ahead of $800m launch Astra Tech, the Dubai-based technology firm, has bought voice calling platform Botim and intends to incorporate it into the “ultra app” it aims to launch later this year. Botim, which was founded in 2018 and also has its headquarters in Dubai, is a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) app that allows users across the Middle […] January 12, 2023
Banking & Finance New investor app taps Gulf’s appetite for stocks and shares InvestSky, a social investing platform, has raised $3.4 million in a pre-seed funding round led by venture capital fund Emkan Capital. The Dubai startup aims to use the cash to make investing more inclusive for a “new generation of investors in the GCC”, it said. InvestSky’s commission-free platform is aimed at retail investors – non-professional […] January 12, 2023
Banking & Finance New UAE partnership to cut red tape of business bank accounts Opening a bank account is listed as “the biggest hurdle” entrepreneurs and business founders face in the UAE, but a new scheme is aiming to address this. A report last year by identity verification platform IDnow Middle East, which surveyed more than 1,000 people, found that nine out of 10 UAE respondents think it takes […] January 4, 2023
Startups UAE-based Fintech Galaxy acquires Egypt’s Underlie UAE-based Fintech Galaxy has acquired Underlie, an Egypt-based open banking platform offering application programming interfaces (APIs) to banks and businesses. The deal will help set up the company’s open finance and banking across the region, develop and launch new digital solutions and push financial inclusion forward. No financial details were given. Egypt is quickly becoming […] December 23, 2022
Startups Israeli startup makes inroads with personal flying vehicle An Israeli-made electric vehicle designed to fly commuters on short trips far above streets overcrowded with cars has made its maiden unmanned flight, a milestone the developer says will help it reach the market in the next two years. The test-phase voyage may not look out of the ordinary at first given the huge progress […] December 22, 2022
Analysis Startups You’ve come a long way, Baby – female-led startups land in Gulf Women in the UK are launching their own businesses at a record rate. In 2018, 56,200 female-led startups were established in Britain. Three years later, the number had soared to 145,200, according to the 2022 Alison Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship. One of the key beneficiaries of this rapid growth is the Gulf, as UK […] December 20, 2022
Startups British lawyers aim to shake up Gulf legal sector Oryx Law, a British legal startup aiming to shake up the Gulf legal industry with the introduction of a new business model, has handled deals of around $1 billion for 30 clients in its first quarter of operation. The company was established by Natalie Boyd in the UK in 2018, where she mainly worked with […] December 16, 2022
Startups Cyprus watchdog to extend FTX EU licence suspension Cyprus’s securities regulator plans to extend the suspension of the licence of FTX EU and will meet to discuss the matter next week, a spokesperson said on Tuesday. “CySEC is taking all the necessary actions to safeguard the interests of investors of FTX EU and is working closely with the administrator in the US under […] December 14, 2022
Opinion Startups Spare a thought for founders fundraising over the holidays For startup founders in the throes of raising investor funds, holidays like Christmas and Ramadan can be a difficult time December 6, 2022
Startups Venture capitalists flock to fund DeFi and Web3 startups Decentralised finance (DeFi) and Web3 were the primary targets of early-stage startup funding from some of the top private investors in the third quarter, research firm Pitchbook said on Tuesday, even as overall venture capital investments declined. Web3 – a term used to describe a potential next phase of the internet – firms that were […] November 29, 2022
Startups Invygo, Gulf’s largest car subscription startup, raises $10m Invygo, the Gulf’s first car subscription operator, has secured $10 million in new funding, endorsing a trend for businesses to opt for renting over ownership. Headquartered in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Invygo is an app-based service that allows people to choose, drive and swap cars. Founded in 2019, the new funding was led by […] October 31, 2022
Analysis Technology Cairo is the tech hub of Africa – and it’s just getting started Almost 20 percent of African tech startups are based in Egypt, and the vast majority in its sprawling capital of 10 million inhabitants. Egypt is Africa’s tech hub and Cairo is its heart. According to Access Partnership, a public policy consultancy focused on technology, more than a third of Egypt’s startups have benefited from national […] October 28, 2022
Analysis Finance & Banking MENA startup valuations take a hit as funding tightens Funding for startups in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has continued to decline this year, in line with global trends, but industry experts remain optimistic that the end of the year will see a resurgence. The tightening of cash has also meant investors are looking for increasingly bigger stakes, resulting in startup valuations […] October 18, 2022
Startups Mexican used-car startup to invest $130m expanding to the Gulf Mexican online used-car dealership Kavak has expanded to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman and Saudi Arabia, boosting its presence in emerging-market countries, the firm’s chief executive, Carlos Garcia, told Reuters on Tuesday. Kavak plans to invest $130 million over the next two years in the three Middle-Eastern countries, which are set to represent seven […] October 13, 2022
Analysis Venture builder launches new $200m fund in Abu Dhabi Further, a new venture building and investment firm in Abu Dhabi, has launched a $200 million fund dedicated to co-creating ventures focused on digital assets, fintech and supply chain. Backed by ADQ, an Abu Dhabi-based investment and holding company, Further seeks to partner with entrepreneurs as an institutional co-founder to launch and grow new ventures. […] September 27, 2022
