#88 -This week In MENA's Startup Scene!
Dive into the latest Startup News, Trends & Opportunities shaping the MENA region
Welcome back to MENA Startup Digest!
We are bringing you the latest round-up of startup news, updates, and opportunities in the MENA region.
Fundraising Roulette
Astra Nova (KSA/Web3 & AI) secured $48.3M to scale its AI-powered Web3 entertainment ecosystem, empower creators and accelerate global expansion across Europe and Asia
KLIQ (KSA/MarTech) secured $2.25M in Seed funding to scale its AI-driven influencer marketing platform connecting brands and creators across Saudi Arabia
CADO (UAE/E-Commerce) raised $4.5M in pre-seed funding to digitalize and globalize corporate gifting, expanding operations across KSA, Kuwait, and the US
MNT-Halan (Egypt/Fintech) raised $71.4M through its seventh bond issuance, continuing its EGP 8B ($168M) securitization program to expand digital lending operations
SehaTech (Egypt/InsurTech) raised $1.1M in Seed funding to expand its AI-powered insurance automation platform improving healthcare access and reducing fraud across emerging markets
Nanovate (Egypt/AI) secured $2M pre-seed to scale its Arabic-first AI platform across the MENA region, enabling businesses to build custom voice and chat agents via its no-code AI dashboard, with upcoming expansion into KSA and UAE
Chari (Morocco/Fintech) secured $12M Series A to scale its operations, launch a merchant super app, and develop a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform
Docline (Morocco/HealthTech) raised an undisclosed round to scale its B2B virtual care platform for insurers and corporates, expanding telemedicine access and AI-driven health services across Morocco and Africa
PAYDAY (Tunisia/Fintech) raised $3M pre-seed to expand its ethical earned wage access platform offering interest-free and credit-free salary advances and group insurance solutions across Tunisia
Alchemist Doha invested in Bionl.ai, a US-based AI-powered bioinformatics platform, as part of its strategy to back frontier technologies
Comml (KSA) invested $1.38M in US-based Kure Cells, supporting Kure’s CAR-T therapy innovations and oncology research
More rounds → here
Main Headlines
Saudi Arabia launched IB Ventures, a $50M investment platform to back startups in life sciences, establish incubator and accelerator programs, and open offices in Switzerland and the US
Crescent Enterprises (UAE) pledged $68M to expand its venture-building platform CE-Creates, backing high-growth, impact-driven startups from the UAE to global markets
University of Dubai launched Dubai TechX, a AED 100M ($27M) fund to commercialize university research and drive innovation across energy, health, education, and smart cities sectors
Investcorp (Bahrain) closed its $750M Golden Horizon Cooperation Fund to target high-growth companies in consumer, healthcare, logistics, and business services
Ithaka Group (Oman) led a $40M round for US-based 5G and satellite communications firm Movandi to collaborate with universities and launch AI-driven connectivity pilots in Oman
GWC (Qatar) acquired a stake in Austria’s Quivo to integrate digital logistics gateways across its facilities in Qatar, KSA, and the UAE
M2 Capital (UAE) invested $21M in Nasdaq-listed AVAX One, the native token of Avalanche
Multiply Group (UAE) announced a mega-merger with 2PointZero and Ghitha, creating a new $32.6B investment powerhouse in Abu Dhabi
Rasmala Investment Holdings (UAE) exited its Poseidon Fund with an 8x return, marking one of its largest exits in recent years.
Central Bank of Egypt launched the Banking Reform and Development Fund to modernize Egypt’s financial sector and accelerate fintech innovation
CI Capital (Egypt) launched an EGP 1B ($21M) turnaround fund to revive distressed industrial companies
Egypt’s Ministry of Planning unveiled a new economic strategy to foster private sector participation, attract investment, and position Egypt as a regional hub for startups
More news → here
Ecosystem Updates
Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy launched Launchpad Dubai, a one-stop platform to simplify market entry for global startups
500 Global × ITIDA graduated 22 startups from the sixth Egypt Seed Bootcamp, providing founders with investor access, growth frameworks, and over 90 one-on-one VC meetings
Creativa Innovation Hubs launched the Creativa AI Lab, a new national program to support AI and Generative AI startups from ideation to market entry
Egypt’s Ministry of Communications introduced a new digital investor platform connecting entrepreneurs with global investors
Central Bank of Egypt graduated 38 fintech startups through its FinTekrs Initiative, marking a major step in building Egypt’s financial innovation pipeline
Omantel Innovation Labs unveiled eight startups for its sixth accelerator cohort, covering AI, fintech, agritech, and deep tech sectors.
AUC Venture Lab × Standard Chartered × Village Capital launched the Futuremakers Women in Tech Accelerator, unveiling the first cohort of 11 women-led startups
Iraq designated March 4th as the National Day for Entrepreneurship
More updates → here
Startups Highlights
Foodics (KSA) signed a $10M strategic agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to enhance its AI-powered restaurant management platform
Dubizzle (UAE) confirmed plans for a landmark IPO on the Dubai Financial Market, offering 1.24B shares in a deal that could value the company near $2B
Crypto.com (UAE) secured In-Principle Approval from the UAE Central Bank for a digital payments license, allowing customers to pay Dubai Government fees using digital assets converted to dirhams
Wise secured Central Bank approval to launch its low-cost money transfer and management services in the country
Holo (UAE) launched a mobile-first AI platform that serves as its internal command center to streamline client management and mortgage submissions
Tawqi3i (Jordan) won the DiSiFi Challenge 2025 for its secure eSignature solution for financial institutions
AIM Intelligence (Korea) won the $100K Supernova Challenge 2.0 at Expand North Star, recognized for solutions that secure generative AI models and embodied AI systems
Sahl (KSA) won the TiE Women MENA 2025 competition, earning an AED 70K equity-free grant to scale its compliance automation platform, with TarKeys named runner-up
PayTabs × Valu (Egypt) launched a merchant app that transforms in-store payments through QR-powered, smartphone-based transactions
WideBot (Egypt) launched MENA’s first Arabic AI Voice Agent for WhatsApp Business calls, enabling real-time, multi-dialect voice automation for enterprises and governments
More highlights → here
Open For Application
Attliq Accelerator Program | Saudi Arabia
Startups House Investment Company invites early-stage tech founders to join the fifth edition of the Attliq Accelerator, providing up to SAR 375K in funding, mentorship, and investor access
Qatar FinTech Hub Accelerator (Wave 7) | Qatar
QFTH has opened applications for its 7th Acceleration Program, welcoming FinTech startups with live products to scale in Qatar and the wider MENA region. Offers market access, regulatory guidance, investor readiness, and mentorship
CleanTech Hackathon | Egypt
Entlaq Holding invites researchers and early-stage CleanTech startups to join a five-day in-person hackathon designed to turn prototypes into scalable climate innovations
IMPACTNASS Program | Morocco
A six-month free support program for Moroccan associations working with vulnerable communities. Offers training, coaching, and networking to strengthen inclusive entrepreneurship
FinTech 525 National Directory | Saudi Arabia
FinTech 525 invites Saudi FinTech startups and companies to join its new national directory, a community-driven hub to connect startups, investors, and regulators shaping the Kingdom’s FinTech ecosystem
More Programs and Opportunities → here
Cool Events
Orange Corners Masterclass with Luma Fawaz | Oct 21 | Online
A live masterclass on fundraising and investment readiness, teaching founders how to negotiate term sheets, target investors, and prepare for due diligence
Robotics and Automation Workshop by Robotna | Oct 21–22 | Amman
A free two-day workshop for youth to gain hands-on experience in industrial robotics, automation, and smart manufacturing
Investment Meetup by Entrepreneurship Vision | Oct 25 | Riyadh
A curated evening bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, and decision-makers to foster partnerships and unlock new opportunities in Saudi Arabia
AI for (X) by ITIDA – EME Innovation Labs | Nov 1 | Giza
A one-day event at Creativa Hub bringing together innovators, students, and startups to explore the latest AI trends and applications shaping Egypt’s tech ecosystem
Rowad Conference 2025 | Nov 17–19 | Doha
Qatar’s flagship entrepreneurship and investment event, featuring workshops, networking sessions, and the Pitching Arena connecting startups with regional and global investors
Techy Bytes
Core42 launched an on-demand sovereign AI Cloud platform in the UAE, offering instant access to NVIDIA-accelerated computing
G42 × OpenAI unveiled a landmark partnership during GITEX, announcing the Stargate project, the first OpenAI data infrastructure hub outside the US
Deloitte teamed up with Dell and NVIDIA to launch an advanced AI platform in the Middle East
Kuwait launched Kuwait AI, a national initiative to accelerate the country’s digital transformation through free AI training, global partnerships, and nationwide upskilling programs
Abu Dhabi Government introduced a no-code AI-in-a-box platform to empower public employees to build and deploy AI tools without coding skills
Abu Dhabi launched a global online marriage service through its TAMM super app, allowing couples worldwide to legally marry remotely via a fully digitalized process
Presight × Khazna partnered to deploy an AI-powered facility management system across 30 data centers in the UAE
e& × AWS introduced AI Nation, a nationwide upskilling initiative to train 30,000 individuals in AI and ML to strengthen the UAE’s knowledge-based economy
Google introduced AI Mode in Arabic, bringing its generative search experience to millions across the MENA region
More tech → here
That’s a wrap for this week!
We hope this week’s digest of the latest funding, insights, and ecosystem news helps you stay ahead in the fast-paced MENA region.
Stay tuned for more insights next week
More Topics: AI | Gaming | Fintech | Femtech | GITEX
More regions: KSA | UAE | Egypt | Syria | Morocco
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