UAE-based AI-healthtech platform, Valeo, has raised a $12M Series B funding round led by Flintera, with participation from Nuw Capital, Fj Labs, Oryx Fund, Mindshift Capital, Oraseya Capital, and Eirad.
More to Know:
- Valeo was founded in 2021 by Sundeep Sahni, Nadin Karadag, and Ankur Majumder.
- It provides personalized and AI-driven healthcare and treatment plans.
- The funding will be used for expansion across Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the rest of the GCC.
- This round brings the company’s total funding to $20M, including the Seed round that was announced in June 2021 and led by Global Founders Capital.
–
Salasa, Saudi Arabia’s e-commerce fulfillment platform, announced that it has closed a $30 million Series B round led by Artal Capital, with participation from SVC, Wa’ed Ventures, 500 Global, Alsulaiman Group, and other strategic investors.
More to Know:
- Salasa was founded in 2017 by Abdulmajeed Alyemni and Hasan Alhazmi.
- It provides logistics solutions for the e-commerce sector, including distribution, shipping, inventory management, bonded zones, last-mile delivery, and cross-border logistics.
- The funding will support geographic expansion, product development, and the growth of its dark store network.
- It stated that it has fulfilled and shipped over 50 million products domestically and internationally since its inception, and has become a logistics partner of choice for over 1,000 merchants, including major brands like Noon, Amazon, Cenomi, Boutiqaat, Laverne, Sharaf DG and Alothaim Retail.
- It offers integrations with Salla, ZID, Amazon, Trendyol, and Shopify, and carrier partnerships with Aramex, DHL, Saudi Post, and more than 40 other logistics providers.
- Alsulaiman Group previously led Salasa’s $8.6M Series A round in 2022 with participation from SVC and 500 Global.
Related Comments:
- “This funding marks a major milestone,” said Abdulmajeed Alyemni, Co-founder and CEO of Salasa. “We’re scaling across fulfillment, technology, and talent to become a tech-first logistics company. With our investors’ backing, we’ll plan smarter, deliver faster, and expand globally with forward-thinking logistics.”
- Hasan Alhazmi, Co-Founder and CBO of Salasa, stated, “We’re embedding AI across planning, inventory, and fulfillment to create predictive, self-optimizing logistics,” he added, “This boosts speed, accuracy, and efficiency for merchants, while our cross-border expansion and bonded zone operations open access to new markets regionally and beyond.”
- Wassim Moukahhal, Head of Alternative Investments at Artal Capital, said: “Salasa is solving one of the biggest pain points in regional e-commerce: reliable, scalable logistics infrastructure. We’re excited to partner with a visionary team that is building a future-ready platform, combining physical scale with technological innovation. This investment aligns with our conviction that logistics is a key enabler of Saudi Arabia’s digital transformation and a critical layer of the next generation of commerce.”
UAE-based fintech startup, Fuse, has announced that it closed a $6.6M Seed funding round led by Northzone, with participation from Flourish Ventures, Alter Global, and angel investors.
More to Know:
- George Davis and James Smith founded Fuse in 2023.
- The startup develops infrastructure solutions to simplify payments and cross-border money transfers.
- Its services include issuing virtual IBANs for users to receive bank transfers
- Currently operates in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, with plans to expand into the MENA and Asian markets.
–
Sadq, a Saudi platform for digital signatures and integrated workflow authentication solutions, has announced the successful close of its Pre-Series A funding round. X by Unifonic led the round with participation from Unifonic and angel investors.
More to Know:
- Sadq was wounded in 2022 by Abdullah Allaho and Salem Albadawi.
- Sadq specialises in digital verification and e-signature services for businesses of all sizes
- The company is licensed by the Saudi Digital Government Authority to provide trusted digital services, making its solutions admissible in Saudi courts.
- In 2023, it closed a Seed round led by Sanabil 500 MENA.
- According to Sadq’s statement, it is serving over 3,200 users, including major entities such as Foodics, Ninja, Maharah, and D360 Bank.
Related Comments:
- “This investment comes at a pivotal time as Saudi Arabia witnesses a transformative shift in the digital trust landscape,” said Abdullah Allahuo, Co-Founder and CEO of Sadq. “It enables us to enhance our technology, forge strategic partnerships, and attract top-tier talent — reinforcing our position as a key provider of secure and legally recognized digital signature solutions. Obtaining the DGA license was a turning point, significantly increasing the credibility of our platform and elevating the legal weight of digitally signed documents, especially under Article 58 of the Saudi Evidence Law.”
- Ayman Hamdan, Founding Partner of X by Unifonic Fund, added: “Sadq is uniquely positioned to lead the digital trust ecosystem in Saudi Arabia. The company holds tremendous potential to transform the way digital authentication and signatures are managed. Through this funding round, we are proud to support Sadq’s journey as it scales its service offerings, strengthens its market presence, and innovates across the digital trust space. As a fund, we are deeply committed to driving digital transformation by backing B2B SaaS companies that deliver mission-critical solutions for evolving markets.”
- Salem Al-Badawi, Co-Founder and CTO of Sadq, said: “We’re proud of how far we’ve come. This new funding will allow us to further strengthen our robust, multi-layered technical infrastructure, enabling us to scale with agility and respond efficiently to growing demand. We’ve also integrated advanced auto-scaling systems, portable and consistent deployment environments, and global-grade security protocols — all of which ensure our platform is resilient, reliable, and secure against cyber threats. Our partnership with Unifonic will help us continue expanding our service portfolio in the digital authentication space.”
Saudi based RoomHour closed a SAR 2 million ($532.5K) funding round from Nmu Hub incubator and accelerator, during the Biban24 Forum.
More to Know:
- RoomHour offers an online hotel booking service and is licensed by the Saudi Ministry of Tourism.
- Nomu Hub incubator and accelerator provides financial, administrative, and project management consulting to entrepreneurs and startups.
UAE-based fintech platform, Alaan, has raised a $48M Series A round led by Peak XV Partners, with participation from Y Combinator, 468 Capital, Pioneer Fund, and angel investors including Hosam Arab, co-founder of Tabby, Mudassir Sheikha, co-founder of Careem, and Omar Kassim, founder of Nomod.
More to Know:
- Alaan was founded in 2021 by Parthi Duraisamy and Karun Kurien.
- It offers a corporate spend management platform powered by AI to automate financial processes such as invoicing, VAT extraction, and expense categorisation.
- The platform serves over 1,500 companies in the region, including Careem, Tabby, Lulu Market, and G42.
- The funds will be used to expand its services into a full AI-driven finance operations suite, as well as grow its sales team.
- Previously raised $2.5M in a Seed round in 2022 led by 468 Capital, and $4.5M in a Pre-Series A round in January 2023 co-led by Y Combinator.
Turkish crypto exchange Paribu has announced the acquisition of Bahrain-based CoinMENA in a transaction valued at over $240 million, marking the largest deal to date…
Algeria-based, LabLabee, has raised $3.4 million in a Seed round led by Reach Capital, with participation from Classera, Brighteye Ventures, and e& Capita, along with angel investors Cedric Sellin and Mohammed Husamddin.
Why it Matters: The investment will help the company expand operations into the US market after expanding to the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.
More to Know:
- LabLabee was founded in 2021 by Samir Tahraoui and Mahfoud Sidi Ali Mebarek.
- The platform offers practical, hands-on learning experiences focusing on network technologies such as 5G and cloud computing.
- LabLabee will use the funds to hire more talent and develop technologies.
Saudi Arabia’s Sary and ShopUp from Bangladesh have merged to form SILQ Group, backed by $110 million funding round to support the merger. The round was led by Sanabil Investments, a wholly owned PIF company, and Peter Thiel’s Valar Ventures, with participation from STV, Raed Ventures, VentureSouq, Flourish Ventures, MSA Capital, Al Wafra Investment, Rocketship VC, Endeavor, Qatar Development Bank, Peak XV, Tiger Global, and Prosus.
Why does it matter? The newly formed SILQ Group will become the largest B2B e-commerce platform connecting the Gulf region with emerging markets in Asia.
More Details:
- According to data obtained by ZTO, SILQ Group will be headquartered in Singapore.
- The funding round included both equity investments and debt facilities.
- SILQ will focus on delivering financial tools, logistics, and commerce services to support the growth of small and medium businesses in the region.
- Sary and ShopUp will continue operating under their respective brands, leveraging SILQ’s unified infrastructure.
Reachware, the Saudi-based IPaaS platform, has raised $3 million in a Seed Funding round led by Sadu Capital. Sanabil 500 MENA and Elm Company also participated in the round.
Why it Matters? Reachware offers a solution that allows companies to integrate several systems in one place.
More to Know:
- Founded in 2021 by Hamza Abusitta and Maysarah Mashaal.
- The platform says it has over 300 clients in different sectors.
- It has partnered with several tech companies which allowed its platform to integrate with over 200 systems, according to its press release.
- Reachware will use the funds to hire more talents, expand in GCC and develop new products.
Ibtikar Fund, a Palestine-based VC fund, has announced the final closure of its second fund at $25 million, after receiving a $3 million investment from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
Why it Matters? Ibtikar is the only VC company in Palestine.
More to Know:
- The initial targeted value of the fund was $15 million.
- The fund aims to invest in 25 Palestinian startups.
- It was previously invested in Vatrin and DataQueue.
Iraqi last-mile platform, Boxy, has raised $1.5 million in a Pre-Seed round from EQIQ, the Iraqi venture capital company.
More to Know:
- Founded in 2024 by Ahmed Baqer and Mehrshad Pezeshk.
- Boxy develops a last-mile logistics platform that enables merchants to access instant shipping services.
- Developed an AI engine that connects orders with the best available delivery providers.
- The funding will be used to enhance its proprietary technology and expand operations across Iraq.
lite, a Saudi fintech startup, has secured $3.2 million in Pre-Seed funding led by Scene Holding, with the participation of angel investors.
More to Know:
- Fahad Anteet, Mohammed Fahim, and Sulaiman Al Dakheel founded lite in 2025.
- The startup aims to provide comprehensive payment solutions for businesses.
- Currently, lite is in the process of obtaining an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), which will enable the company to fully operate.
Latest News
More to Know:
– Nabt provides a marketplace connecting farmers with commercial buyers
– It operates from a central warehouse hub, managing order fulfillment, sorting, and temperature-controlled logistics through to final delivery
– It recently launched the Nabt Auction to facilitate large-scale produce trading across the Kingdom, and Nabt Intel, which delivers real-time price and market-demand intelligence
– The company previously raised $1.5 million in its Seed round led by Merak – Founded by Abdullah Alotaibi in 2022.
- Mahmoud Qandeel
The UAE-based startup Reno raised $4 million led by MENA 500, Hub71, Plus VC, Zero 100 VC, Flyer One Ventures, Sandstorm VC, AngelSpark, and Swiss Founders Fund.
More to Know:
– Reno focuses on “Renovate Now, Pay Later” solutions in the home and building renovation management sector – It provides a system that integrates design solutions, project management, contractor oversight, and financing options
– The funding is a mix of equity and debt, and will be used to launch its application in early 2026 and expand into GCC markets
– Founded by Marc Michel, Amr Hosny, and Farah Karabeg in 2024
- Mahmoud Qandeel
More to Know:
– It utilizes the chain-of-thought (CoT) prompting technique to explain the specific decisions a vehicle makes while driving
– It processes data captured by the vehicle’s sensors and transforms these observations into a clear, human-readable narrative explaining the reasoning used to navigate road challenges and choose the correct path
– The model tackles a critical safety gap in today’s autonomous driving systems: they cannot clearly explain the mechanisms behind their split-second decisions
– NVIDIA developed this model on its Cosmos Reason platform, initially released earlier this year (2025)
- Mahmoud Qandeel
UAE-based startup funch has secured a $500K pre-seed funding round led by angel investors including Angel Spark, 5inDubai, Mustafa Qandil and others.
More to Know:
– funch offers an AI-powered lunch service through its app, priced at AED 19, with a flexible confirmation system that reduces waste and minimizes daily decision fatigue
– The investment will be used to build a fully integrated lunch infrastructure across the region and to achieve its goal of one million meals by Q2 2026.
funch was founded in Dubai in 2025 by Ahmad Joehnny and Ghada Zanaty.
- Mahmoud Qandeel
The Q1 2025 ended with increased value and announced VC deals in the Middle East, surpassing $475 million across 85 deals.
This report provides an overview of the venture capital and startup landscape in the MENA region, featuring a comprehensive analysis of the deals, startups, investors, and key sector trends during the first three months of the year — with a particular focus on the Saudi Arabia market.
Explore the full details in the report (here)
Subscribe to Newsletter
News
- Startup: Proptech, Fintech.
- Founding date: 2020.
- Country: UAE.
- Investors: DFDF and Oryx Fund, Aditum Investment Management Limited.
UAE-based proptech, Holo, announced raising funds in a Pre-Series A round led by DFDF and Oryx Fund, with participation from Aditum Investment Management Limited.
Holo which focuses on mortgages will use the funds towards enlarging its market presence in the UAE. Furthermore, the funding enables team expansion and the development of key product lines, as well as expanding the company’s footprint across to other GCC, with an immediate focus on KSA.
Founded in 2020, the startup provides a secure and transparent algorithm-backed platform that would allow prospective homeowners complete visibility and access to a full range of unbiased mortgage and remortgage options from more than 20 local lenders, within minutes. The startup said it has helped advise more than 20,000 clients in financing their homes.
The Saudi-based e-commerce platform, Taager, has announced the closing of a $6.75 Million Pre-Series B Investment Round led by Norrsken22، with participation from Endeavor Catalyst, Beltone VC, Raed Ventures, 4DX Ventures, BECO Capital, and Breyer Capital.
More to Know:
- Founded by Mohammed Elhorishy Abdelrahman Sherief, Ahmed Ismail, and Ismail Omar, in 2019.
- It was launched in Egypt, and is now headquartered in Saudi Arabia.
- Taager is an e-commerce platform that enables users to start selling online.
- The company currently operates in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, and Iraq, and will use the funds to expand in the MENA region.
- Startup: AgriTech.
- Founding date: 2018.
- Country: Saudi Arabia.
- Investors: Sanabil Investments, Raed Ventures, anb seed, Rua Ventures, Byld, KBW Ventures, Khwarizmi Ventures, Seedra Ventures, Tech Invest Com.
Simplified Financial Solutions Company (SiFi) announced today the closure of its $10 million seed round led by Sanabil Investments, a wholly owned company by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), and RAED Ventures, with participation from Arab National Bank’s anb seed, Rua Ventures, Byld and KBW Ventures, as well as Khwarizmi Ventures, Seedra Ventures, and Tech Invest Com.
SiFi solutions focus on assisting companies to simplify spend management processes by offering tools and solutions; such as smart corporate cards, real-time insights into corporate spending, and automated expense management workflows.
“We are thrilled to have closed this significant round and gained the support of such prominent and strategic partners. This funding will enable us to further enhance our offering, deliver even greater value to our customers, and cement our position as the go-to spend management solution in Saudi Arabia,” said H.E. Ahmed Alhakbani, Founder and CEO of SiFi.
AlHakbani added: “Our aim is to empower stakeholders within companies to make informed decisions at the right time while providing finance teams with the tools they need to effectively enforce company spending policies. By doing so, we aim to help businesses decentralise spending while enhancing control and driving growth.”
SiFi said that its Saudi-based affiliate, Alhulul Almobassatah Financial Company, recently received an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) licence from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA). This allows the company to provide e-wallet services, enabling users to store and manage money by electronic means.
Commenting on the round, a spokesperson for Sanabil Investments said: “What attracted us to SiFi was three-fold: its outstanding team, compelling product offering, and the largely underserved market in Saudi Arabia, as businesses are increasingly recognising the need for more efficient financial management tools. We look forward to supporting their next phase of growth and helping them capture the opportunity ahead”.
Omar Almajdouie, founding partner at RAED Ventures, added: “Expense management for enterprises in Saudi Arabia and the GCC is at a transformative stage, with businesses increasingly seeking more efficient and transparent solutions. SiFi’s innovative platform addresses this critical need by offering comprehensive spend management software tools that empower organisations to optimise their financial processes. Under the leadership of H.E. Ahmed Alhakbani, we believe SiFi has tremendous potential to revolutionise the financial landscape in Saudi Arabia, and we are excited to support them on this journey”.
Founded in 2021, SiFi has closed its undisclosed pre-seed round in 2022 led by Khwarizmi Ventures which participated in this round.
The UAE-based startup MANSA has announced the closure of a Pre-Seed investment round worth $3 million, led by Tether and Polymorphic Capital, with participation from Faculty Group, Octerra Capital, and Trive Digital.
More to Know:
- MANSA was Co-founded by Mouloukou Sanoh and Nkiru Uwaje and officially launched in August 2024.
- It provides cross-border payment solutions based on stablecoins, enabling businesses to accept and send instant payments.
- MANSA stated that it has secured liquidity funding from institutions, including corporate investors, quantitative funds, and alternative investment firms.
- After focusing on the African market, MANSA noted that the funds raised will be used to expand into Latin America and Southeast Asia.
MealPlanet, a UAE-based food tech platform, has closed a $6 million seed round led by Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), AlTouq Group, Sanabil 500, Faith Capital, and Alturki Ventures, as well as renowned entrepreneurs Marc Lore and Samih Toukan.
Why it Matters? The growing interest in healthy meals subscriptions in the region is fueling investor interest in the food technology sector.
More to Know:
- MealPlanet was founded at the beginning of 2024.
- It connects the consumers with a wide range of brands allowing them to discover, subscribe to and manage their healthy meal plans.
- The funds will be used to propel its regional expansion plans, starting with Saudi Arabia in the first quarter of 2025.
- MealPlanet’s revenues come from charging providers a commission fee based on their monthly sales through its platform.
- Khalid Baareh, the founder of MealPlanet, has previously co-founded a cloud kitchen platform, iKcon, which was acquired by US’s REEF technology.
BRKZ, a Saudi-based construction startup, has secured a $9 million in Series A funding round led by Wa’ed Ventures and BECO Capital. Better Tomorrow Ventures, Class 5 Global, Fluent Ventures, Knollwood Investment Advisory, MISY Ventures, RZM Investment, and 9900 Capital all participated in the round.
More to Know:
- BRKZ is a B2B marketplace for the construction sector founded by Ibrahim Manna in 2022.
- The latest funds included $8 million in equity and $1 million in venture debt.
- In March 2024, BRKZ announced that it raised $8 million in a Series A round. This brings the total funds of its Series A round to $17 million.
Join more than 122 thousand investors and decision makers
