Omar Onsi

A new wonderful episode of the VC React Podcast, with our amazing guests: Hasan Haider and Jessica Al-Hussaini, who provided great insights on: • Extending funding rounds and how it shows maturity in founders • Why payment gateways might want to stay focused on one big market • A deep dive into revenue based financing & how it's different than venture debt.  • How Revolut's expansion to MENA could shake things up in the regional Fintech scene, and force existing players to enhance their products and services, and would this move by Revolut influence local VC's investment theses?  • A comparison of two fintech startups that started in the same year, a global one that became a decacorn, and a local one that is still at series B.  • Selling founder shares at secondary rounds • How MENA startups could strategize their expansion to the US market if they plan to. A big thank you to our guests, and as always, thank you Jamie Lane and FWDstart. --- VC React Podcast Available on: • 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗯𝗲: https://lnkd.in/gswEc6DJ • 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆: https://lnkd.in/gERdVmEc • 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗲: https://lnkd.in/gFT3FsCB • 𝗔𝗺𝗮𝘇𝗼𝗻: https://lnkd.in/gkfNgF5K ---

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A $2 million fund has been launched to bolster Jordan's startup ecosystem, supported by the Innovative Startups and SMEs Fund (ISSF), Jordan's largest fund valued at $98 million. ISSF's investment in VentureSouq II aims to nurture MENA startups at the seed stage. VentureSouq is committed to reinvesting profits back into Jordanian companies at multiples of their initial investments, ensuring sustained growth in the local entrepreneurial landscape. VentureSouq focuses on sectors like fintech, climate tech, and logistics, boasting a portfolio of over 200 companies across 30 countries. Notable projects include UAE-based BNPL platform Tabby and Saudi Arabia's logistics innovator Trukker. The portfolio also features successful EdTech startups from MENA, such as Abwaab, offering online educational platforms, and Kido, managing a network of inclusive child care centers and schools. The MENA region is a hotbed for innovation, and we're seeing more and more exciting startups. Hredtech.vc are particularly interested in ventures that are addressing the unique challenges of the region's workforce, such as talent acquisition, education and development. If you're a founder in the MENA with a great hr or ed tech startup, we encourage you to reach out to us!

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Quick News (9/6/2024): Key Developments in Qatar's ICT and Economic Sectors Rasmal Ventures Launches First Home-Grown Qatari VC Fund: Rasmal Ventures, Qatar's first independent venture capital company, has launched its inaugural venture capital fund, Rasmal Innovation Fund LLC. Managed by a team with extensive VC experience, the fund aims for $100 million in investment commitments, with an initial closing of over $30 million. The fund will target innovative tech startups and scaleups in Qatar, the MENA region, and internationally, with a focus on sectors like climate and energy tech, fintech, supply chain logistics, B2B SaaS, and AI. (Source: Gulf Times) Qatar Electronic Systems Company (Techno Q) Listing on QSE: Techno Q will be listed on the Qatar Stock Exchange’s Venture Market on June 26, 2024. With a share capital of 84.5 million shares, the listing increases the number of companies on the QEVM to four. The reference price for the shares is set at 2.9 Qatari riyals. The company, established in 1996, operates in the #AV, hospitality, and lighting segments, and through its subsidiary, in ELV and #security systems. (Source: Qatar Stock Exchange) Potential Qatar-Sweden Joint Projects: Emerging technologies, particularly AI, large language models, and digitalization, present significant opportunities for joint innovation projects between Qatar and Sweden. Håkan Buskhe, CEO of Swedish private holding company FAM, emphasized the importance of innovation for small export-driven economies like Qatar and Sweden. He highlighted the potential for collaboration in areas such as smart city initiatives and food security technologies. (Source: Gulf Times) Qatar, an Emerging Hub for EVs and Hybrid Vehicles: Qatar is rapidly becoming a significant player in the promotion and sale of electric and hybrid vehicles in the Middle East. Qatar's rapid development of electric charging infrastructure and initiatives like the Qatar Geneva International Motor Show demonstrate its commitment to sustainable development and innovation in the automotive industry. (Source: Gulf Times) MENA Tech Startup Market Difficulty Report 2024: Does Your Startup Have Any Chance in MENA! The report provides industry data insights analyzing 30 sectors in the MENA region to identify which are easier or more difficult for startups. It examines the difficulty in raising capital, reaching customers, and market competition among startups, using data from the last six years up to January 2024. It is the first report in the region's history to address and provide solutions to these challenges. Full report can be accessed at https://lnkd.in/dTXDhS7z #Qatar #ICT #AI #VentureCapital #Quicknews #MENATechStartup

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MENA Q1 2024 Startup Funding Overview Startups in the MENA secured a total of $429 million in funding across 129 deals. SaaS, fintech, and e-commerce continue to lead the way in terms of sectors attracting investment. The top 3 countries by funding volume: Saudi Arabia: Following LEAP 24, Saudi startups raised $198 million across 25 deals. This highlights the importance of attending conferences, speaking at events, and building your network. UAE: 12 startups raised $39 million. Egypt: 8 startups raised around $7 million. The largest funding round was a $35 million pre-seed round for Tumodo, a Dubai-based business travel platform.

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Jeel and audax a fintech venture by SC Ventures by Standard Chartered join forces to revolutionize banking in Saudi Arabia. Their partnership aims to modernize legacy systems, enabling digital banks and super apps. This collaboration could reshape the financial landscape of a $1.1 trillion economy. #DigitalBanking #FinTech #SaudiArabia #BankingInnovation #TechTransformation What innovative banking solutions do you think will emerge from this partnership?

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Putting talabat $10.2 billion market cap into perspective. → It accounts for over 66 percent of the total market cap of public tech companies in #MENA. Talabat’s market cap is double that of all other tech companies combined. → Delivery Hero, which owns Talabat and will retain 80 percent after the #IPO, has a market cap of $12.16 billion. By spinning off (and floating 20 percent of) Talabat, it’s creating another company of similar size that could potentially surpass it. → With this market cap, it would rank among the top 8 companies (with a chance of breaking into the top 5 if it does well on the debut) on the Dubai Financial Market, and top 25 in UAE overall. More on Termsheet. Subscribe now: https://lnkd.in/dcnb4gFz

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🎤 Honored to have been a keynote speaker at the inaugural #FinTech Summit in KSA, hosted by 24 Fintech where I shared insights on the evolving investment landscape and the state of FinTech in the GCC region 🌍. It was a pleasure meeting Nezar Alhaidar and catching up with Karim Samakie and Sagar R Shah. Congrats on the event! 💼 Key insights I shared in the key note: 1️⃣ Global Trends: While global venture funding continues to slow down, AI funding hit an all-time high in Q2’24, reflecting the growing focus on cutting-edge technology. However, the surge in startup shutdowns – up by 58% in Q1'24 – is a concerning trend. 2️⃣ MENA’s FinTech Scene: Despite a slight dip in funding (-34% YoY), the region remains resilient, with steady investments in mid-sized deals ($1M-$5M). The UAE continues to lead, while Saudi Arabia saw an impressive 391% rise in funding, driven by major deals. 3️⃣ Taking a 5 year aggregated view of 2019 to 2023, interesting to note that #KSA and #UAE each accounted for 33% of all FinTech funding which totaled $3.2BN in MENA while the UAE accounted for 37% of all deal flow. 4️⃣ Sector Highlights: FinTech remains a dominant force in the region, securing the 2nd highest funding after E-commerce/Retail. The Payment Solutions sub-sector leads with a 44% share of FinTech funding. 🔮 Looking ahead, the MENA FinTech sector shows great promise, with local and international investors contributing to 65% of all capital deployed. Grateful to be part of the conversation shaping the future of FinTech in the region! 🙌 Big thanks to Tahaluf and Fintech Saudi | فنتك السعودية for the opportunity! Dive deeper into our EVM report, benchmarking key markets: https://lnkd.in/dnuwpdWV Did you attend 24 Fintech? What were your key takeaways? Share them below 👇 #FinTech #MENA #Investments #Innovation #FutureofFinance #GCC #FinTechInsights

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📊 A month of revitalization in MENA MENA startups raised $282M across 63 deals in September — 234% increase from August and a 607% surge compared to September 2023. Venture capitalists continue to favor early-stage investments, with Seed-stage startups securing $102M across 32 deals. Debt financing accounted for only 12% of the total volume. The largest deal was closed by Saudi Arabian startup SHIFT, raising $82.8M to expand its car-sharing platform. In second place was Syarah, an online marketplace for buying and selling cars, which raised $60M in a Series C round (including $20M in debt financing). The top three countries remained unchanged: 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia: 23 startups raised $170.8M.  🇦🇪 UAE: 12 startups raised $73.8M.  🇪🇬 Egypt: 13 startups raised $25M. Despite geopolitical challenges, the MENA ecosystem continues to grow. In Q3 2024, startups raised $727M, a 192% increase year-over-year. The outlook for Q4 remains positive.

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🔍 Investors shift focus to early stage across MENA in H1 2024! 📊 Throughout H1’24, we’ve observed a significant shift in investor focus towards #seed and pre-#SeriesA deals. Notably, $1M-$5M round sizes in the MENA region have surged, tripling from 15% in 2020 to 45% in H1'24. Learn more in the full #MENA #H1report: https://lnkd.in/dXREk8hd The $5M-$20M round size in MENA has also increased to 14% in H1'24 from 10% in 2022, mirroring trends in #Africa and #SEA. However, big-ticket investments in the $20M+ range have declined, dropping to 3% in H1'24 from 4% in H1'23. 📉 Key drivers of this trend: - Valuations return to pre-pandemic levels, more attractive for investors. - Early-stage companies are now focusing on unit economics. - Time to exit coincides with a likely upswing in VC liquidity in the next 6-7 yrs. While there's a conservative stance on major tickets amid the slowdown, activity is definitely brewing in smaller to mid-size rounds! Have you been hearing the same on the street? Share your insights below! 👇 #fundinground #VC #venturecapital #investments #H1trends

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Commercial Bank International (CBI) has entered into a strategic partnership with areeba, becoming the first UAE-based lender to offer areeba's comprehensive card and payment solutions to fintechs across the country. This collaboration marks a great step forward in the UAE's rapidly evolving digital payments landscape. Through this partnership, CBI will leverage areeba's advanced payment platform to provide fintechs with scalable, secure and efficient solutions for launching and managing digital payment products. The initiative is designed to provide UAE-based fintechs with robust card management capabilities, accelerating the growth of the country's digital payments ecosystem. This development is in line with the growing fintech sector in the UAE, where assets under management (AUM) are expected to reach $5.70 billion by 2029. (Image by Areeba) #FinTech #DigitalPayments #Innovation #UAE #CardSolutions #Partnerships

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UAE-based fintech Ziina زينة has raised $22 million in a Series A funding round, led by US-based Altos Ventures along with other investors including FinTech Collective, Avenir, Activant Capital, Y Combinator, FJ Labs, Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), and Jabbar Internet Group. Founded in 2020 by Faisal Toukan and Sarah Toukan, Ziina helps individuals send and receive payments through its app with just a phone number, no IBAN or Swift Code required. It launched its digital wallet in February 2022. The new round will fuel Ziina’s expansion beyond a #payments solution to providing end-to-end #financial services for businesses and consumers, starting with the soon-to-launch ZiiCard. In June 2021, Ziina, fresh from completing YC’s first cohort that year and securing a $7.5 million seed, launched its #fintech app to 20,000 #retail customers, allowing them to send and receive #money. Three years later, the Dubai-based startup, which now counts 50,000 retail and business customers after expanding its offerings to meet the needs of micro, small, and medium-sized #MSME businesses in the #UAE Full TechCrunch article in comments

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Breaking News! I am proud to share an Exciting Development; Smpl Holdings has just launched a $10 million fund - Smpl Fund I, to support tech and AI startups in the MENA region and beyond. As the UAE continues to emerge as a global hub for startups and innovation, this fund aims to provide seed capital and strategic value-added services to the promising ventures. 🔗 Read more about it here via a Gulf News story : https://lnkd.in/dBPbDfyn #SmplHoldings #Smpl #TechStartups #AIInvestment #VentureCapital #StartupFunding #Innovation #TechInvestment #MENAStartups

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🇦🇪 From #FinTech to F&B - Abu Dhabi’s top fundraisers are quite diverse! The city has recently been making waves as one of the fastest-growing startup ecosystems in #MENA according to 3rd party reports. The MAGNiTT team decided to take a closer look at the most funded Abu Dhabi-based startups from each month over the past year, from June 2023 to May 2024. Leading the charge with $48M was the blockchain-powered tech platform Andalusia Labs. Not far behind, Alma Health and Fuze also scored impressive funding rounds, with $10M and $14M respectively. Turning to the most recent news, RemotePass secured $5.5M in Series A funding from investors like 212 VC, Khwarizmi Ventures and Endeavor Catalyst, OCTA secured $1M from Sukna Ventures, and The Cloud - Food Ecosystem secured $6M in equity financing from MENA Moonshots. What’s even more exciting is the diversity among these eight startups. They represent a wide range of sectors including Media & Entertainment, Healthcare, Travel & Tourism, FinTech, F&B, and Enterprise Software. And the Abu Dhabi Ecosystem continues to develop with key developments Hub71 with new cohorts, ADQ new fund announcements, Lunate and Mubadala Capital investments in MENA startups. Government entities continue to push on initiatives including ADGM, Abu Dhabi Investment Office and Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development. Want to stay up to date with all MENA funding news? Make sure to subscribe to our weekly newsletter 👉 https://lnkd.in/daDKeJXH #venturecapital #funding #UAE #VC #startups

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Qardy Secures 7-Figure Pre-Seed Round to Transform Lending Marketplace in MENA, Backed by Key Investors  Read more: https://lnkd.in/dgN2Gx9i #Qardy #funding #fundraising #LendingMarketplace #MENA #Fintech #Investment #BusinessGrowth #Innovation #finance #fintech #FinancialIT Abdelaziz Abdel Nabi, Asser Yehia

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US interest rate cut could see funding taps turn on for GCC startups After nearly two years of rate hikes, the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 0.5% to 4.75-5%. What does this mean for startups and VC? Washington’s rate decisions heavily influence capital availability and cost. Lower rates make borrowing cheaper, encouraging investment in riskier assets like startups. Gulf Cooperation Council central banks followed suit due to dollar pegs. Philip Bahoshy, founder of MAGNiTT, highlights that the trend of rate cuts is key. Jerome Powell aims to control inflation while maintaining low unemployment, avoiding a US recession. Lower rates decrease capital costs, making VC more attractive. High rates, conversely, push investors towards safer options like real estate. Original post by arabnews عرب نيوز Repost by Salem Bagami Chief Executive Officer Digital Transformation Company & Managing Director 2080 Ventures Email: [email protected] Website: www.2080.ventures - #VentureCapital #Startups #EconomicTrends #Investment #Entrepreneurship

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SETTLE PAYMENTS, an Egypt-based B2B payment platform, has successfully raised $2 million in a pre-seed #funding round led by Shorooq Partners with other notable #investors that participated included Elsewedy Capital Holding, Acasia Ventures, and Plus VC (+VC). With this new funding, SETTLE PAYMENTS plans to accelerate its transition into the global market and further develop its platform with a focus on enabling CFOs and business owners to make confident decisions based on real-time financial data. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dQRSJx2a SETTLE PAYMENTS, Shorooq Partners, Elsewedy Capital Holding, Acasia Ventures, Plus VC (+VC), Mostafa Mobarak, Kamil Sayour, Majid Serageldin, Marina Ehab #FintechNewsEgypt #SettlePayments #Funding #ShorooqPartners #B2BPayments #Egypt #ElSewedyCapital #AcasiaVentures #PlusVC #InvestingInInnovation #MENAPStartups #investments #Entrepreneurship #venturecapital #VCs #Founders #Startups #EgyptianFintech #Startups #FintechNews #EgyptFintechNews

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SETTLE PAYMENTS, an Egypt-based B2B payment platform, has successfully raised $2 million in a pre-seed #funding round led by Shorooq Partners with other notable #investors that participated included Elsewedy Capital Holding, Acasia Ventures, and Plus VC (+VC). With this new funding, SETTLE PAYMENTS plans to accelerate its transition into the global market and further develop its platform with a focus on enabling CFOs and business owners to make confident decisions based on real-time financial data. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dQRSJx2a SETTLE PAYMENTS, Shorooq Partners, Elsewedy Capital Holding, Acasia Ventures, Plus VC (+VC), Mostafa Mobarak, Kamil Sayour, Majid Serageldin, Marina Ehab #FintechNewsUAE #SettlePayments #Funding #ShorooqPartners #B2BPayments #Egypt #ElSewedyCapital #AcasiaVentures #PlusVC #InvestingInInnovation #MENAPStartups #investments #Entrepreneurship #venturecapital #VCs #Founders #Startups #EgyptianFintech #Startups #FintechNews #UAEFintechNews #MiddleEast #MENA

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SETTLE PAYMENTS, an Egypt-based B2B payment platform, has successfully raised $2 million in a pre-seed #funding round led by Shorooq Partners with other notable #investors that participated included Elsewedy Capital Holding, Acasia Ventures, and Plus VC (+VC). With this new funding, SETTLE PAYMENTS plans to accelerate its transition into the global market and further develop its platform with a focus on enabling CFOs and business owners to make confident decisions based on real-time financial data. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dQRSJx2a SETTLE PAYMENTS, Shorooq Partners, Elsewedy Capital Holding, Acasia Ventures, Plus VC (+VC), Mostafa Mobarak, Kamil Sayour, Majid Serageldin, Marina Ehab #FintechNewsSaudiArabia #SettlePayments #Funding #ShorooqPartners #B2BPayments #Egypt #ElSewedyCapital #AcasiaVentures #PlusVC #InvestingInInnovation #MENAPStartups #investments #Entrepreneurship #venturecapital #VCs #Founders #Startups #EgyptianFintech #Startups #FintechNews #SaudiArabiaFintechNews #MiddleEast #MENA

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