UAE-based Pure Harvest Smart Farms raises $60m in new funding round
15 Mar 2021 Written by Admin AdminShuaa Capital led a $50m structured sukuk for Pure Harvest co-investing with Franklin Templeton and Sancta Capital
UAE-based agritech company Pure Harvest Smart Farms has raised $60m as part of a new funding round.
Shuaa Capital led a $50m structured sukuk for Pure Harvest co-investing with Franklin Templeton and Sancta Capital, among others, in Pure Harvest through its managed funds as part of this funding round.
Pure Harvest also raised $10m in growth equity.
A statement issued by Shuaa said that this is the first time in the region that an early-stage business has been able to secure venture debt funding from capital markets.
Pure Harvest will soon complete its second high-tech hybrid greenhouse growing system within the UAE. It is currently constructing its beachhead in Saudi Arabia, and has announced a further EUR39m expansion project in Kuwait.
Upon completion of its new projects, the company will produce a variety of tomatoes, leafy greens, and berries, with plans to continue to diversify its offering in the future.
Natasha Hannoun, who led the transaction for Shuaa, said: “We witnessed Pure Harvest Smart Farms’ leadership in AgTech, the strength of the team, and its proven ability to execute, giving us the confidence that Pure Harvest Smart has significant growth potential as it seeks to address the need for food security within the Gulf and wider region.
“We are delighted that Shuaa has been able to deliver this innovative and highly complex structured financing solution for Pure Harvest Smart Farms in another regional first. This funding will help the company to scale into a major regional player in controlled-environment agriculture.”
Shuaa’s investment in Pure Harvest Smart Farms follows the recent announcement that another Shuaa technology investment, Anghami, will become the first Arab technology company to list on NASDAQ via a merger with Vistas Media Acquisition Company.
source: Gulf Businessulf
Partnership expected to offer investors from GCC and around the world new attractive investment opportunities in a thriving housing market
Dubai-based Ayana Holding has formed a joint venture with Florida’s Marsan Real Estate Group to develop a $1.6 billion (AED 5.88 billion) new project, BellaViva at Whispering Hills, in the US.
The partnership will allow Ayana to establish its presence in North America and help Marsan to expand into a wider market, offering investors from GCC states and around the world new attractive investment opportunities in a thriving housing market, Ayana said in a statement.
Located in Florida, Leesburg, the BellaViva at Whispering Hills project will have golf courses, restaurants, shopping malls, a medical clinic, boutique hotel, spa, hospital, and commercial space, the statement said.
Comprising 5,500 luxury homes across 1,800 acres of pristine land, hills, lakes, nature reserves, and an equestrian center, BellaViva is expected to be the fastest-growing community for retirees and seasoned investors.
Jean Marsan, founder of Marsan Real Estate Group, said: “Although we are not aware of the sole reason for a continuing strong momentum in Florida’s housing market, we believe that a combination of factors including the Hispanic population boom, pro-economic government, and the reputation of being one of the top five tax-friendly states are at play as well.”
In Florida alone, property prices have risen by 6.61 percent since former President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency last March.
It is estimated that by 2030, the average house price in Florida will reach $437,921, putting it in the top ten states ahead of New York and New Hampshire, with a population increase of 6 million over the decade, the statement said.
source: zawya
Music streaming platform Anghami has listed on the New York NASDAQ exchange via a merger with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), Vistas Media Acquisition Company (VMAC). The merger agreement will result in Anghami becoming the second Arab company to list on NASDAQ after Aramex 24 years ago, and the first Arab technology startup to do so.
The transaction implies a pro-forma enterprise value of $220 million, which is 2.5 times its 2022 estimated revenues and compares to Spotify’s current revenue multiple of 6.5x revenue.
The combined company will operate under the Anghami name and will trade under the new symbol “ANGH.” The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2021.
UAE-based asset management firm SHUAA Capital and Vistas Media Capital Singapore, the parent of the sponsor for (VMAC), have participated in a combined round of $40 million ($30 million from SHUAA and $10 million from Vistas Media Capital) in private investment in public equity (PIPE) financing for Anghami.
Accordingly, the company expects to have approximately $142 million of cash on its balance sheet at closing to be used primarily to fuel additional growth.
Founded in 2012 in Beirut by Eddy Maroun and Elie Habib, Anghami is the first music-streaming platform in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region. Its revenues have grown by 80 per cent in the past three years and is expected to increase five-fold over the next three years according to a statement issued by the company.
“Today is a very exciting day for all of us at Anghami and our partners globally. Elie and I co-founded the company in 2012 with a vision for Anghami to be a first of its kind, digital media entertainment technology platform in the Mena region. Today, we have taken a significant step forward in our growth plans in seeking to become the region’s first Arab technology company to list on NASDAQ. Being a US listed public company gives us access to growth capital and a global platform that is the best in the world,” said Eddy Maroun, co-founder and CEO of Anghami.
Anghami offers more than 57 million Arabic and international songs to more than 70 million of its registered users, with around one billion streams per month. With an Arabic speaking population of over 450 million globally, its listing on NASDAQ allows Anghami to scale its user base and invest in technology to build on its data play.
Anghami's AI and machine learning algorithms process over 56 million data points from its user base every day. Over nine years of user data is enabling the company to predict user behaviour and trends to better focus its investments and improve monetization.
The company recently relocated its headquarters to the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) in Abu Dhabi, while maintaining its offices in Beirut, Dubai, Cairo and Riyadh to establish and maintain partnerships.
The company has established direct partnerships with 36 telecommunication companies across the region to boost free user acquisitions and facilitate subscriptions.
“We’re proud of the product and technology we’ve been able to build and now we will have the ability to invest more in R&D and innovate providing a product that goes beyond music to immersive experiences around media and entertainment while remaining relevant to our users and focused on our local edge,” said Elie Habib, cofounder, Chairman and CTO of Anghami.
Anghami has raised more than $33 million to date, from several Mena-based investors including Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), Samena Capital and MBC Ventures and others who collectively own approximately 68 per cent of Anghami, with the balance owned by the founders.
“We are delighted to be leading the PIPE for Anghami’s business combination with VMAC in what will accelerate Anghami’s growth and build upon its success as a pioneer in the music streaming space in the Middle East and North Africa. SHUAA led a funding round for Anghami earlier in the year and has been working closely with the team to secure the PIPE investment and deliver a successful listing on NASDAQ.
In addition, the enhanced reputation and access to capital that comes with a listing on NASDAQ accelerates the company’s growth journey,” said Jassim Alseddiqi, group CEO of SHUAA.
source: wamda
UAE: Abu Dhabi invites expats to explore long-term visa, citizenship options
12 Feb 2021 Written by Admin AdminAbu Dhabi has launched a programme inviting all talented professionals, students and investors to settle down with their families in the UAE capital.
Called Thrive in Abu Dhabi, the initiative seeks to develop key sectors such as culture, healthcare, research and development (R&D), and real estate.
It offers long-term visas that may translate to the coveted UAE citizenship for talented expatriates in a safe, welcoming and supportive environment, while contributing to Abu Dhabi’s sustainable development.
“Creative talent are encouraged to be part of a global arts and culture hub, join the emirate’s dynamic media and the entertainment industry, or support the development of our understanding of the past among fellow academics, conservators and archaeologists,” an official release stated.
“The creative visa builds on the five-year Culture Sector Strategy for Abu Dhabi, unveiled in November 2019 by the Department of Culture and Tourism, which covers five strategic objectives: preserve and sustain its cultural heritage; increase awareness of, and engagement with, cultural heritage and the arts; stimulate creativity as a driver for education and social change; build and enable capacity in its culture sector; contribute to economic growth and diversification.”
Abu Dhabi has a thriving cultural and creative sector with strong global credentials. They include world-class museums, art centres, art fairs, music concerts, and a grassroots artistic community.
The Capital also boasts the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Manarat Al Saadiyat, Warehouse241, Abu Dhabi Art annual fair, Qasr Al Hosn and Cultural Foundation and the forthcoming Zayed National Museum and Guggenheim — not to mention international educational institutions supporting students to excel in creative activities such as NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD), Sorbonne Abu Dhabi, Berkley College, and CNN Academy.
Students especially have opportunities galore. Those pursuing a PhD or have promising scientific ability at either high school or university level, can expand their horizons and ensure exciting career paths by studying at one of a collection of world-class academic institutions in Abu Dhabi such as NYUAD, Sorbonne Abu Dhabi and Khalifa University.
Students can also learn the skills of the future, including in specialist areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), at the new Mohamed bin Zayed University for Artificial Intelligence, or coding at 42 Abu Dhabi.
They can participate in pioneering research in areas related to Covid-19 and farm technology at UAE University, or focus on tolerance and coexistence at the world’s first university dedicated to the human fraternity, the Mohamed bin Zayed University for Humanities.
Thrive in Abu Dhabi also invites innovators to turn their ideas into reality — with access to funding and incentives — as part of a dynamic R&D ecosystem that is pioneering new technologies to solve the global challenges of the future, from water security to food technology.
As part of Abu Dhabi’s accelerator programme, Ghadan 21, the Department of Education and Knowledge has launched academic research grants to award Dh40 million in competitive research funding to support R&D.
Details about the programme — including the long-term visas and paths to citizenship — can be found at https://tamm.abudhabi/en/Golden-Visa or by calling 02-6664442 (outside UAE) or 800 555 (within UAE).
source: zawya
Dubai-based Rising Giants Community (RGN), a bilingual podcasting community, has secured a $1 million funding deal, led by Triangle Media, Barry Kirsch Productions and angel investor Mentioned Al Sayyed.
The corporate was based in early 2020 by Basel Anabtawi, podcaster and host of the ‘Basel Meets’ podcast, Barry Kirsch and Bashar Najjar. It scripts, produces and builds audio experiences in Arabic and English.
RGN shortly topped the charts in numerous classes quick after its launch, because it supplied plenty of Arabic exhibits together with Amalikat Al Tareek (Highway Giants) with F1 host Firas Al Nimri, Sehtak Aham (Higher Well being) with health influencer Baraa Al Sabbagh and Rihlat Al Mosara’a (Wrestling Experience) with wrestling commentators Faisal Al Meghaisib and Yusef Callaway, along with English present Legendary Rock Tales.
Basel Anabtawi, CEO of RGN, stated: “The worldwide podcasting business has just lately witnessed vital milestones with Amazon buying podcasting big Wondery for $300 million, and Spotify licensing The Joe Rogan Expertise solely for $100 million. There’s an engaged viewers of almost seven million people who find themselves in search of top-notch exhibits to get into, and the time to put money into rising this base within the area is now.
“With this funding, RGN is nicely positioned to be the main audio story-telling firm within the area. With a different slate of exhibits in growth, we’re assured that we will attain that aim and produce exhibits that may enchantment to different viewers teams from all backgrounds,” he added.
source: introducestartups
UAE-based e-commerce enabler Zbooni, has raised a $5 million Series A funding round led by an undisclosed London-based fund.
Founded in 2017, Zbooni enables small merchants to easily start, run and grow their businesses online, providing them with a range of business-focused services, such as mobile invoicing and payment solutions, digital storefronts in its marketplace, data insights, automated sales tracking and invoicing.
It initially started out as a chat commerce venture enabling payments via WhatsApp before launching its new e-commerce enablement services, signaling the growing demand for online selling.
Zbooni said that it had recorded a rapid acceleration in 2020, including 600 per cent in customer growth. It currently supports thousands of merchants, processing tens of millions of dirhams every month and has enabled its merchants to serve more than 150,000 customers.
Zbooni will use the funding to grow its team and fuel its expansion across its home market as well as in the Saudi and Jordanian markets.
“Zbooni is on a mission to help provide access to digital commerce tools, ultimately supporting our merchants to start, run and grow their business.
While we wish to keep the investor undisclosed, their reputation and track record speaks for itself, they have previously invested in some of the most successful emerging market growth stories - operating a fund of well over $1billion in assets under management.
Through this support, Zbooni will invest in people to develop even better products for our merchants and enhance the customer experience with best-in-class technology,” said Ramy Assaf, Zbooni CEO and co-founder.
The company was incubated at Facebook, the world’s largest social media network, and is backed by regional and international organisations, including Chalhoub Group, Middle East Venture Partners and B&Y Venture Capital.
“Our customers are the real heroes of this story, and we’re just scratching the surface of what we’re able to help them do,” said Assaf.
“We believe there remain millions of SMEs still left severely underserved across our geographies – we are here for them.”
source: wamda
Abu Dhabi startups to get funding and tech support from ADIO-Microsoft alliance
15 Jan 2021 Written by Admin AdminIn alliance with Microsoft, the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) will offer owners of local startups the resources and tools to “scale their businesses”. Another tech entity, Plug & Play, is also part of this initiative.
“The partnerships are part of ADIO’s commitment to supporting innovation-focused companies,” said Dr. Tariq Bin Hendi, Director-General of ADIO. “We are providing strategic funding and support to the knowledge and tech experts to develop and run programmes that accelerate opportunities in Abu Dhabi for startups.”
Startup focussed
Microsoft will brings its Startups Programme, which provides technology, Azure cloud services, and business support tools to develop the required skillsets.
The first two are the Growth X Accelerator, a virtual accelerator programme with a focus on recruiting local and regional startups, and ‘Highway to 100 Unicorns’, an initiative to recruit high-potential startups for the Accelerator as well as future programmes by Microsoft and ADIO.
Further initiatives focused on entrepreneurship for Emiratis and UAE residents, as well as university students, are in the works.
“We are committed to deepening our support for investors and innovators in 2021,” said Bin Hendi.
“As the global economy looks to the future, Abu Dhabi’s ecosystem is well-positioned as the region’s foremost investment destination for big thinkers to realise their ambitions.”
source: gulfnews
Dubai's non-oil business sectors returned to expansion in December 2020: PMI
11 Jan 2021 Written by Admin AdminThe seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Dubai Purchasing Managers' Index rose above the 50.0 no-change mark in December
A strong rise in business activity and a faster increase in new work have prompted Dubai's non-oil private sector businesses to return to growth at the end of 2020, according to the latest Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) data from IHS Markit.
However, employment numbers continued to fall as expectations for 2021 were still subdued.
The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Dubai Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose above the 50.0 no-change mark in December, posting 51.0 (from 49.0 in November) to indicate a modest expansion in the non-oil economy, and the first seen for three months.
Non-oil private sector businesses in Dubai saw a renewed fall in activity in November, as the impact of COVID-19 appeared to worsen amid rising global cases.
Cost pressures were weak in December, supporting a further drop in selling prices, albeit at the slowest rate since May. The improvement in the headline PMI was largely driven by a sharp rise in business activity in December, after Dubai non-oil firms curtailed output midway through the final quarter. The rate of expansion was the second-quickest throughout 2020, bettered only by July's uptick, IHS Markit noted.
David Owen, Economist at IHS Markit, said: "An increase in output and new orders led to a renewed improvement in the health of the Dubai non-oil sector in December, shown by the headline PMI rising back above the 50.0 neutral mark. At 51.0, however, the index signalled only a slight expansion in Dubai's economy, as falling employment, lower stocks of purchases and shorter delivery times all acted as drags on the headline reading."
Firms related the rise in output to higher sales during the month, which increased at the strongest rate since September.
According to the IHS Markit survey, there were renewed expansions in new work across the travel and tourism and construction sectors, but growth was quickest in the retail and wholesale category.
Output expectations for 2021 returned to positive territory in December, after firms gave a negative forecast in November for the first time since sentiment data were collected in April 2012. That said, the overall outlook remained subdued, with many respondents expecting output to remain unchanged by the end of 2021.
"Looking ahead, firms continued to present a highly subdued outlook for business activity in December, despite some confidence that the confirmed
effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines should help a global economic recovery in 2021," Owen said.
Some survey respondents were skeptical of an economic recovery in the near-term due to the continued impact of COVID-19 on business turnover.
"Businesses noted that the after-effects of the pandemic will continue to be felt across the non-oil sector, particularly as hiring remains weak and containment measures continue to stem export demand," he added.
source: zwaya
The value of Dubai non-oil foreign trade doubled 10 times between 2000-2019
05 Dec 2020 Written by Admin AdminDubai Customs played a major role in supporting the prosperity of foreign trade and economic growth, during its history of achievements, as Dubai’s non-oil foreign trade witnessed a significant growth and its value doubled about 10 times between 2000 and 2019, rising from 143 billion dirhams in The year 2000, to reach in the year 2019 of 1.371 trillion dirhams, while the value of Dubai’s foreign trade in the first half of this year reached about 551 billion dirhams.
The march of Dubai Customs witnessed successive stages of work and completion. In the seventies of the last century, Dubai Customs established customs centers in various sea, air and land ports of the Emirate of Dubai, which include coastal customs centers in Dubai Creek, Port Rashid Customs Center in addition to Jebel Ali customs centers and with the expansion of Dubai. In the construction of airports, customs centers were established in the buildings of Dubai International Airport and the Al Maktoum Airport building.
Air customs centers specialized in air freight have also been established. Land customs centers have witnessed a great development that enhances Dubai’s role in the trade movement transported by land to local markets and transit from Dubai to neighboring countries.
On April 1, 2001, Dubai Customs entered a new development phase with the establishment of the “Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation” and since 2006, Dubai Customs has witnessed a significant improvement in the level of performance as the development of customs services provided by the department has actively contributed to the UAE’s acquisition of the status. The first in the world in the index of effectiveness of customs authorities.
Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director General of Dubai Customs said that the department is keen to play its vital role in performing the tasks entrusted to it in protecting society, facilitating trade and supporting travel and tourism. The department has worked to continuously develop its capabilities and kept pace with all stages of development witnessed by the country, guided by the vision of our wise leadership in future foresight and planning.
The right to achieve the most important achievements with diligence, perseverance and careful study of the projects and initiatives launched by the department to develop customs work and consolidate its position in the global forefront by providing the best commercial and customs services to dealers through leadership in customs innovation at the international level.
He added that with the celebration of the 49th National Day of the UAE, Dubai Customs continues to prepare for the future plans for the next 50 years in the country’s march and is working on developing new projects and initiatives that enable it to make new leaps in improving the level of its services provided to customers in order to make them happy and enable them to achieve the added value of their choice. Dubai is a destination for their commercial operations to support the economic development of the UAE by transforming challenges into achievements and opportunities that enable us to continuously achieve new achievements.
Dubai Customs achieved many achievements and sought to provide the best services to customers by developing and innovating new methods that facilitate customs procedures. The department’s achievements in this field include the launch of the integrated customs system Mersal 2, the electronic business channel, the smart risk engine system, and smart services.
The department strengthened its efforts to achieve more communication with the private sector. And the business community through the advisory board to enhance cooperation with trade groups and the “engagement” initiative to coordinate with diplomatic bodies and foreign business councils.
Out of its keenness to make customers happy, the department launched the “Our 7-Star Centers” project with the aim of raising the efficiency and classification of customer service centers according to the international star rating system to provide a welcoming and comfortable service environment for customers in order to make them happy and encourage them to expand their trade through Dubai and Dubai Customs kept pace with the developments witnessed by the world in the year 2020 In terms of the Covid 19 pandemic crisis, it supported the ability of dealers to complete their customs transactions through smart services, and the department also took all precautionary measures to confront the pandemic, with the completion of inspections without delay to enable dealers to complete customs clearance quickly, which supports their ability to deliver their goods directly to the market.
source: uae24x7
For the first time ever, five major tech events are taking place this December
05 Dec 2020 Written by Admin AdminOn December 6--10, Dubai will host five major technology events, namely GITEX Technology Week, GITEX Technology Stars, GITEX Future Stars, Gulf Information Security Exhibition and Conference, Future Blockchain Summit and Marketing Minya.
These events will be held in the presence of major global technology companies and startups who will showcase the latest innovations from 5G technology, artificial intelligence and electronic security..And according to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce, more than 60 countries have confirmed their participation to date.
For more information: https://www.gitex.com/
