fbpx

US-based Egyptian fintech MoneyHash has raised a $4.5 million Seed funding round, co-led by COTU Ventures and Sukna Ventures, with participation from RZM Investment, Dubai Future District Fund (DFDF), VentureFriends, and angel investors.

Founded in late 2020 by Nader Abdelrazik, Mustafa Eid and Anisha Sekar, MoneyHash is a payment orchestration that offers a comprehensive payment operating system as a service to address the various technological and product challenges faced by enterprise merchants.

In 2022, MoneyHash raised a $3 million pre-seed round.

The new funds will be used to expand the business team and growth capabilities while maintaining technological progress.

Press release:

We are thrilled to announce that MoneyHash, the first and leading payment orchestration platform in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), has successfully raised $4.5 million in a seed funding round. The round was co-led by COTU Ventures and Sukna Ventures, with participation from RZM Investment, Dubai Future District Fund, VentureFriends, and a group of strategic investors and operators.

Despite the significant slowdown in market activity, this investment illustrates the market’s confidence in MoneyHash and its potential for continued growth and market leadership. MoneyHash's proprietary payment orchestration platform and end-to-end payment operating system have garnered acclaim for their innovative approach to streamlining payment processes, making it the top choice for businesses seeking efficient and scalable payment infrastructure. This funding will enable MoneyHash to further invest in its technology and expand its business growth initiatives across the region.

Addressing Challenges in The MEA Payments Landscape

The payment landscape in the MEA is highly fragmented. Each country has tens of payment providers and methods, developing payment regulations, limited economic integration with other markets, and a diverse set of customer preferences and market dynamics.

The complexity of the ecosystem is compounded by the region's susceptibility to payment fraud, low checkout conversion rates, and increased transaction failures. "COVID certainly boosted the adoption of digital payments in the region, but the infrastructure remains significantly underdeveloped. In MEA, payment failure rates are three times the global average, and fraud rates and cart abandonment are over 20% higher than in all other regions. This places merchants in a challenging position, viewing payments as a cost and risk center rather than a strategic enabler," says Nader Abdelrazik, co-founder and CEO of MoneyHash.

Abdelrazik adds, "However, the opportunity is enormous. MEA's trillions of dollars in payments are still less than 10% digital, suggesting the region will experience the most growth over the next decade. Merchants who navigate the complex payment ecosystem effectively will reap significant benefits. This is where MoneyHash steps in."

Empowering MEA With a Full Suite of Payment Capabilities

MoneyHash offers a comprehensive payment operating system as a service to address the various technological and product challenges faced by enterprise merchants. Elena Panchenko, the Chief Product Officer of MoneyHash, emphasizes, “Payment challenges are intertwined. Rather than merchants juggling between solutions and in-house fixes, we offer a versatile suite to address current and future challenges simultaneously.”

MoneyHash's product includes a unified API to integrate pay-in and pay-out rails, a fully customizable checkout experience, transaction routing capabilities with fraud and failure rate optimizers, and a centralised transaction reporting hub. This is complemented by tools enabling various use cases, such as virtual wallets, subscription management, and payment links.

Elena adds, “An integrated set of solutions is essential for enterprise merchants to address challenges comprehensively and explore opportunities freely. The infrastructure is powered by over 200 pre-integrated APIs with payment service providers and payment methods across 80+ markets. This not only offers merchants maximum flexibility and coverage but also helps us gain the trust of our customers, knowing that all scenarios and implementations fall within our expertise.”

MoneyHash products promise a 10-20% increase in revenue generation and a 90% decrease in development costs.

MoneyHash Progress & Future Plans

MoneyHash was established in early 2021 by Nader Abdelrazik and Mustafa Eid, two Egyptian technologists with extensive backgrounds in fintech and enterprise software. After a successful BETA launch in 2022, which attracted key players in the region such as Foodics, Rain, and Tamatem, MoneyHash launched its enterprise suite last October, targeting large enterprises.

In 2023, MoneyHash doubled its network of integrations, achieved triple revenue, and grew its processing volume by 30x. It also landed large enterprise customers shortly after its October launch.

Amir Farha, Managing Partner at COTU, stated, “We firmly believe that the full potential of digital payments in MEA is yet to be realized. MoneyHash has developed a sophisticated and high-quality platform that can catalyze the growth of digital payments across the region, enabling both global and local merchants to tap into new revenue streams.

We are thrilled to renew our support for a team that has consistently demonstrated superior execution, not just in securing top mid-market and enterprise customers, but also in expanding value across the entire chain, even under challenging market conditions.”

Asher Siddiqui, General Partner at Sukna Ventures, expressed, “In the rapid digital transformation of the region, part of Sukna’s fundamental thesis is to back exceptional teams that are pioneering transformative infrastructures in specialized sectors. The team at MoneyHash embodies this vision, consisting of skilled payment operators who have leveraged their expertise to establish a competitive edge, prioritizing engineering precision above all else. Their product, refined with precision and supported by a stellar team, is exceptionally well-positioned to lead the market and define the future of digital payments in the region.”

This round marks the first Middle Eastern investment by Tom Preston-Werner, GitHub's founder and early Stripe investor, highlighting his belief in MoneyHash's product quality and its ability to solve critical customer issues. MoneyHash announced his participation in an earlier press release.

MoneyHash, headquartered in NYC with 30 team members across 9 countries globally, previously raised a $3 million pre-seed round in 2021. The new funds will primarily be used to expand the business team and growth capabilities while maintaining technological progress.

Source: Wamda

The meeting discussed the efforts to prepare the cooperation programme between Egypt and Switzerland for 2025-2028

Rania A. Al-Mashat, the Minister of International Cooperation and Egypt’s Governor at the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, met with Patricia Danzi, the Director General of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, and Maya Tesavi, the Head of the Middle East and North Africa Department at the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs, today. The meeting was attended by Yvonne Baumann, the Swiss Ambassador to Egypt, and officials from the Swiss Embassy and the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

The meeting discussed the efforts to prepare the cooperation programme between Egypt and Switzerland for 2025-2028, which will follow the current Swiss cooperation programme from 2021-2024, covering governance, human rights, green growth, youth skills development, protection issues, and migration.

Al-Mashat emphasized the importance of the Egyptian-Swiss economic cooperation relations and the Egyptian government’s keenness to strengthen this partnership and expand it to serve the national development agenda and the implementation of development priorities in various fields.

She also reviewed the cooperation with the institutions of the Team Europe Initiative from 2020-2023 and the preparation for the future period of joint work, referring to the comprehensive report on the Egyptian development cooperation relations under the title “Egypt & Team Europe: A Shared Development Vision for Progress and Prosperity.”

She added that Egyptian-European relations are developing within a framework of integration and partnership that meets the development requirements following the national development priorities and determinants.

She explained that the projects within the NWFE programme, a nexus of water, food and energy projects, achieve many goals, such as advancing towards comprehensive development in various parts of Egypt, diversifying between mitigation and adaptation projects to cope with climate change, implementing water desalination projects, supporting the capabilities of small farmers to adapt to climate change, increasing agricultural crop productivity and farmers’ incomes through the use of modern technology and clean energy, and benefiting from innovative financing tools to mobilize investments worth $14.7bn.

Patricia Danzi, the Director General of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, stated, “In November 2023, Switzerland disbursed an additional $102m in response to the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and the region, which will address basic humanitarian needs such as water, food and medical care.”

Source: Zawya

The Middle East and North Africa region saw sizable startup activity from its top three regional ecosystems of Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Egypt as January came to end.

The Kingdom led this weeks’ movement with two startups raising significant funding sums. Saudi Arabia’s peer-to-peer car rental platform Ejaro secured SR12.3 million ($3.27 million) in a pre-series A funding round spearheaded by the Riyadh-based insurance company Tawuniya and several angel investors.

This fresh influx of capital is earmarked for bolstering Ejaro’s development and expansion strategies.

Founded in 2019 by Mohammed Khashoggi, the company provides car-sharing services to enable individuals to generate additional sources of income.

“Completing this funding round alongside our strategic partnerships reflects our commitment to innovation and meeting the needs of our customers. We are not only working to change the concept of car sharing in the Kingdom but also striving to be leaders in the insurance sector through cooperation with Tawuniya, Najm, and Absher, a pivotal step towards supporting economic growth and innovation in line with Saudi Vision 2030,” Khashoggi said.

Fahad bin Maamar, CEO of Investments at Tawuniya, underscored their confidence in Ejaro’s innovative approach to car-sharing, viewing it as a crucial partner in transforming the mobility landscape across the Gulf Cooperation Council region.

The platform claims to have facilitated over 25,000 days of trips, indicating a growing demand for its services. Moreover, it has enabled more than 100 hosts to collectively earn over SR2.5 million in less than two years, showcasing the tangible benefits and impact of its innovative car-sharing and rental solutions.

Saudi edtech startup iStoria secures $1.3m in funding

Saudi Arabia’s educational technology sector continues to garner investor interest as iStoria secured SR5 million in a seed funding round.

This investment in the app, which specializes in English language learning, involved multiple regional players, including Saudi Arabia’s venture capital firms Nama Ventures and BIM Ventures, US-based edtech Classera, Egypt-based Flat6Labs, and various angel investors.

The investment will enable the enhancement of the app’s features and aid in expanding its global footprint.

Founded by Abdullah Al-Jaberi in 2022, iStoria has quickly gained a substantial user base, surpassing 1 million learners globally.

The company’s approach to English language education focuses on vocabulary building through reading stories at various levels, with comprehension questions and vocabulary tests.

This method prepares learners for global language tests and offers a continually updated and enriching learning experience. The company also achieved a satisfaction rate of 4.6 out of five in the app store. Its recent growth has been bolstered by expanding its services to organizations, including contracts with numerous private and public schools, where it has been integrated into educational curriculums, allowing for direct supervision.

“We are pleased with the conclusion of this investment round. Through this funding, we will continue to pursue our goal of enabling individuals to communicate effectively and confidently in English,” Al-Jaberi said.

He added: “We are optimistic and look forward to the next phase of the application’s growth and the impact we can create, primarily through offering services to organizations and expanding worldwide.”

The company also raised an undisclosed pre-seed funding round from Nama Ventures in 2022 to bolster its operations.

The edtech sector has emerged as one of the top five most-funded sectors in Saudi Arabia. In 2023, the industry saw a total of $50 million raised by Saudi-based startups, a 6 percent growth from the year before. Furthermore, in 2022, the sector witnessed substantial growth, surging by 2,069 percent compared to the previous year.

Egypt’s Roboost raises $3m to boost expansion

Egypt’s artificial intelligence-driven logistics startup, Roboost, completed a $3 million investment round led by Silicon Badia, with contributions from RZM Investment, Flat6Labs, and Saudi Angel Investors.

Founded in 2018 by Mohamed Gessraha, Hassan Gessraha and Mohamed Sadek, Roboost provides AI-powered delivery solutions in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Morocco, and Tunisia.

The company aims to utilize its capital to further boost its regional presence with a new phase of expansion. The company currently serves leading brands such as McDonald’s Egypt and Kuwait, Buffalo Burger, El Ezaby Pharmacies, and Jumlaty.

Employing proprietary machine learning algorithms, Roboost’s innovation includes pre-delivery technology that enables precision auto-dispatching and smart routes for delivery personnel, optimizing the process for the substantial portion of orders placed offline.

The platform’s suite of tools also features real-time dynamic fleet payroll, and comprehensive customer insights through heat maps and analytics, all aimed at enhancing customer satisfaction. Additionally, Roboost’s AI fleet control offers advanced fraud detection capabilities.

The company claims to provide operational efficiency to its clients with a network of over 15,000 delivery drivers, serving nearly 10 million unique customers, and automating more than 40 million orders. The company says its solutions have doubled delivery speeds by reducing inefficiencies and achieved task automation rates of 99.8 percent.

Furthermore, Roboost has succeeded in decreasing order returns by over 80 percent and operational costs by 30 percent, while also improving average driver productivity by 40 percent and maintaining fraud levels below 5 percent.

UAE’s Plant & Equipment acquires Global Equipment Trading

UAE-based construction technology company Plant & Equipment has announced the acquisition of Global Equipment Trading for an undisclosed amount. 

Established in 2018 by Saleh Kuba and Zayd Kuba, Plant & Equipment operates as a marketplace in the construction equipment and machinery sector, facilitating connections between buyers and sellers.

This strategic acquisition is set to bolster Plant & Equipment’s expansion efforts across the region.

 The integration with Global Equipment Trading is expected to enhance the company’s service offerings and market reach, aligning with its growth objectives in the construction equipment industry.

Source: Arab News

In today's fast-paced world, the pharmaceutical industry is constantly evolving to meet the growing demands of consumers. Yodawy, a leading player in the pharmaceutical technology sector, has been making waves with its innovative approach to revolutionizing the way people access and purchase medication. In this article, we will delve into the unique features and benefits of Yodawy's platform, and explore how it is reshaping the landscape of the pharmaceutical industry.

Understanding Yodawy's Vision

Yodawy's vision is centered around providing a seamless and convenient experience for both patients and pharmacies. By leveraging cutting-edge technology, Yodawy has created a platform that connects patients with nearby pharmacies, allowing them to easily order and receive their medications. This not only streamlines the process of obtaining essential medication but also ensures timely access to healthcare products.

The Power of Digital Transformation

Yodawy's platform harnesses the power of digital transformation to simplify the entire pharmaceutical journey. Through the use of intuitive mobile applications and user-friendly interfaces, Yodawy has successfully bridged the gap between patients and pharmacies. This digital approach not only enhances accessibility but also promotes transparency and efficiency within the pharmaceutical supply chain.

Enhancing Patient Experience

One of the key advantages of Yodawy's platform is its focus on enhancing the overall patient experience. By offering a wide range of medications and healthcare products, Yodawy ensures that patients have access to a diverse selection of options. Moreover, the platform provides valuable information about medications, empowering patients to make informed decisions about their healthcare needs.

Empowering Pharmacies

Yodawy's impact extends beyond the realm of patient care, as it also empowers pharmacies to optimize their operations. Through Yodawy's platform, pharmacies can efficiently manage inventory, process orders, and engage with a broader customer base. This not only drives business growth but also fosters stronger connections between pharmacies and the communities they serve.

The Future of Healthcare Accessibility

As the healthcare landscape continues to evolve, Yodawy stands at the forefront of driving accessibility and convenience in the pharmaceutical industry. By embracing innovation and leveraging technology, Yodawy is paving the way for a future where accessing essential medications is simpler, faster, and more efficient.

In conclusion, Yodawy's innovative approach to pharmaceutical technology is reshaping the industry by prioritizing accessibility, transparency, and efficiency. As the demand for seamless healthcare solutions continues to rise, Yodawy's platform is poised to lead the way in transforming the pharmaceutical experience for patients and pharmacies alike.

Egypt-based healthtech Almouneer has raised a $3.6 million Seed round, led by Global Ventures, Proparco and Digital Africa through the Bridge Fund (FRA), Wrightwood Investments (UK) - and other international funds.

Founded in 2017 by Noha Khater and Rania Kadry, Almouneer is a digital transformation platform to serve patients with chronic diseases.

Proceeds to further develop DRU - Almouneer’s patient-centric platform - treating pre-diabetes, diabetes and obesity.

Press release:

Almouneer, the leading digital transformation platform revolutionising healthcare for patients and doctors across the Middle East and Africa (MEA), announces its seed round fundraise of US$3.6 million.

The seed round was led by Dubai-based Global Ventures, with participation from other renowned international investors: Proparco and Digital Africa, through the Bridge Fund, Wrightwood Investments - the family office of Diane & Henry Engelhardt (UK) - and other leading international funds.

The fundraise follows rapid growth for Almouneer as it serves over 120,000 patients, with business volumes having doubled in the last year and its leadership team boosted with several key hires.

The proceeds will primarily support the development and expansion of DRU - MEA's first patient-centric, digitally-enabled lifestyle and diabetes management platform. DRU aids in the prevention and management of diabetes, pre-diabetes, and obesity - and will serve millions in Egypt and MEA. The scalable platform uses cutting-edge patient and doctor-facing applications and an extensive provider network.

Proceeds will enhance DRU’s state-of-the-art technology further and grow its wider provider ecosystem (doctors / health coaches / labs / nutritionists). Almouneer will also build MEA’s first online, patient-customized treatment plans. DRU currently connects to Continuous Glucose Monitors and other glucometers and will soon enable connection to wearables such as smart watches.

2024 is set to be a year of important milestones. In Q1, Almouneer will launch its DRU app for doctors - connecting healthcare providers with millions of patients. The company’s strategy is to expand regionally and internationally - with market entries to Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E., and African countries including Nigeria and Kenya - anticipated by next year.

The MEA region has very high levels of obesity and prediabetes - affecting over 40% of its population - making Almouneer and DRU’s mission to empower patients and healthcare professionals more critical than ever. Egypt has 15 million diabetics alone (20% of adults) with KSA having 7 million (30% of adults). Adding those suffering from pre-diabetes and obesity makes the problem even more endemic yet is largely preventable by lifestyle management and monitoring.

Noha Khater, co-founder and CEO of Almouneer, said: “We are very excited to be announcing this round—an important achievement and milestone in our journey.

Over the past year, we managed to grow our team and successfully build DRU. This round will now catapult us into the next phase of our business, helping us grow our team and talent further, invest in our technology, and broaden DRU’s provider network—inching us even closer to our vision.

And as we do, we’d like to extend our deepest gratitude to our investors—Noor Sweid and Said Murad from Global Ventures, Henry Engelhardt of Wrightwood Investments, and Proparco—for their belief in us and in our mission. We also wouldn’t be here today had it not been for the unwavering support and championing of Cartier Women’s Initiative, INSEAD, Endeavor and our friends at Alliance Law Firm."

Noor Sweid, Founder and Managing Partner of Global Ventures, commented: “We are thrilled to welcome Almouneer to the Global Ventures portfolio and lead the company's seed round.

Over the years, we have had the privilege of working with a stellar group of healthcare entrepreneurs who are materially improving the lives of patients worldwide, enhancing access, quality and cost of care. Noha and Rania are now part of this group. We are excited to work alongside them as they leverage their specialized expertise across business-building and chronic care to tackle a prevalent health issue across the Middle East and Africa.

On its mission to become the lifelong companion of diabetic patients in the region, Almouneer is a unique and necessary innovation.”

Henry Engelhardt, of Wrightwood Investments, commented: "The work Almouneer does is truly valuable to the ever-growing diabetic community in Egypt and beyond.

Noha Khater and Rania Kadry, its two leaders, are truly exceptional, talented people, driven to make a positive difference to so many people’s lives. Wrightwood Investments [the family office of Diane & Henry Engelhardt] is proud to be an investor and part of the Almouneer family.”

Fabrice Perez, Head of VC Division at Proparco, said: “Almouneer is dedicated to fostering innovation and industry disruption through its array of digital services for patients and clinic networks. This objective strongly aligns with the goals of both Proparco and Digital Africa.”

Babacar Seck, CEO of Digital Africa, commented: “Digital Africa welcomes Almouneer to the Bridge Fund portfolio with great enthusiasm, as we are investing in a strategic, high-impact sector. We are delighted to contribute to Noha and her teams, and behind them all the patients for who Almouneer simplifies life.”

Source: Wamda

Startups experienced a strong comeback in May, in terms of the funding they received. The total amount acquired by startups in the Middle East and North Africa exceeded $445 million, marking a year-on-year increase of approximately 153%. In comparison to the previous month, the increase was significant, reaching over 6257%. It is worth noting that April was one of the worst months in terms of startup funding in years, with the total amount obtained by startups not exceeding $7 million.

Regarding the number of deals, there were 39 deals in May, compared to 11 deals on a monthly basis, representing a 7% decrease on an annual basis.

Distribution of startup funding by country:

Startups in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) secured the largest share of startup funding in May, with a total amount of around $422 million distributed among 14 deals, accounting for 90% of the total funding. This was largely driven by the success of the startup "Tabby" (Buy Now, Pay Later), which alone secured funding of $350 million. Qatari startups ranked second for the first time, with a total amount of approximately $12 million obtained through one deal, which was the funding for the comprehensive delivery and online shopping application "Snoonu."

Saudi Arabian startups secured funding of around $6 million, ranking second in terms of total funding. However, in terms of the number of deals, Saudi startups ranked first with 15 companies receiving deals. This was due to the graduation of seven Saudi startups from the Flat6labs business accelerator program in Riyadh. It is expected that Saudi startups will dominate the list of companies receiving funding deals in June, following the graduation of 20 Saudi startups from the Saudi Arabian "Misk Accelerator" program. Egyptian startups witnessed a decline in both funding and the number of deals, with the total funding not exceeding $1 million and only four deals. Egyptian startups ranked third, behind the UAE with 14 deals.

Distribution of funding by sectors:

Thanks to the aforementioned "Tabby" deal, the financial technology sector received the majority of startup funding, with a total of over $388 million obtained in May, accounting for around 87% of the total startup funding.

The e-commerce sector ranked second, with a total funding of $30 million, largely driven by a funding round for the startup "Sqwatt Wolf" which secured $30 million. The comprehensive application sector followed with $12 million, while the online job market sector ranked fourth with approximately $5 million. The healthcare technology sector secured funding of $3.5 million, ranking fifth.

In terms of the number of deals, the financial technology sector also took the lead with 10 deals, followed by the healthcare technology sector with six deals. The online job market sector came next with five deals. The remaining deals were distributed among other sectors, with one or two deals in each sector, including the comprehensive application sector, which had only one deal, namely the Qatari application "Snoonu."

It is worth mentioning that excluding the debt funding obtained by "Tabby" ($350 million), the total startup funding in the Middle East and North Africa amounted to $95 million. The UAE startups accounted for approximately $71 million of this amount.

The figures for startup funding and the number of deals in May indicate a recovery for startups from the exceptional recession they experienced in June. However, the fact that debt funding accounted for 78% of the total funding suggests a partial recovery, especially considering the modest size of funding for Egyptian and Saudi startups.

Egypt’s marketplace for trucks, Trella, has raised $3.5 million from newly-launched private equity fund Avanz Capital Egypt.

The Avanz Capital fund, launched in 2022, is a subsidiary of Squared Capital International, and manages a couple of funds, one focuses on investing in startups and SMEs and the other is aimed at supporting low-carbon projects.

Trella was founded in 2018 by Omar Hagrass, Ali El Atrash, Pierre Saad and Muhammad El Garem. It connects shippers with trucks in real time.

Besides Egypt, it says it also has operations in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

Last year, Trella also secured $6 million in debt funding from ALMA Sustainable Finance (ALMA) and the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC).

Avanz Capital Egypt, a subsidiary of I Squared Capital International, is making significant strides in expanding its investment portfolio with a multi-faceted approach. The company has recently announced its support for the logistics startup, Trella, alongside the launch of two new funds and a commitment to investing in existing funds and companies.

Avanz Capital Egypt has strategically invested approximately $3.5 million in Trella, a promising logistics startup operating in the field of logistics services. This investment not only demonstrates Avanz Capital Egypt’s confidence in Trella’s potential but also establishes the company as a key player in the flourishing logistics sector. With this partnership, Avanz Capital Egypt aims to leverage Trella’s innovative solutions and contribute to the growth and success of the logistics industry.

In addition to backing Trella, Avanz Capital Egypt is launching two new funds, further diversifying its investment portfolio. The first fund focuses on supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs), aiming to provide much-needed capital and resources to fuel their growth. By nurturing these enterprises, Avanz Capital Egypt aims to contribute to the overall development and expansion of the Egyptian market. The first closing of Avanz Manara Fund in March collected financial obligations of approximately 905 million pounds, with about 25% of the amount already paid.

The second fund sets its sights on low-carbon projects, intending to issue “carbon credits” under the name “EGYCOP.” With an initial target of raising one billion pounds, this fund emphasizes Avanz Capital Egypt’s commitment to sustainable investments and the transition to a greener economy. By capitalizing on opportunities in the low-carbon sector, Avanz Capital Egypt seeks to drive positive environmental impact while generating attractive returns for investors.

Beyond the launch of new funds, Avanz Capital Egypt is actively exploring opportunities to invest in existing funds and companies. The company aims to identify potential investments that align with its strategic objectives and have the potential for growth and value creation. Avanz Capital Egypt’s investment strategy encompasses various sectors, including healthcare, logistics, green economy, renewable energy, and defense, among others.

Avanz Capital’s parent company, “I Squared Global Capital,” manages assets worth over $13 billion in 130 companies worldwide. The company targets investments in funds and companies in startup and emerging markets, with a particular focus on Africa, Latin America, and Asia.

Through its backing of Trella, launch of new funds, and investment in existing funds and companies, the firm showcases its comprehensive approach to investment. By diversifying its portfolio across different sectors and supporting both emerging and established enterprises, Avanz Capital Egypt seeks to generate attractive returns while contributing to the overall economic development of Egypt.

As the firm expands its investment activities, the company aims to make a positive impact on the Egyptian market and position itself as a trusted partner for businesses seeking growth and investment opportunities. With its dynamic approach and strategic investments, Avanz Capital Egypt continues to play a vital role in driving innovation, entrepreneurship, and sustainable economic growth in Egypt and beyond.

Source: Wamda

In July 2021, Burj Khalifa was covered in red with the word “SVWL” in the middle, announcing that the Egyptian mass transit company Swvl had become “the first unicorn company* in the Middle East with a market value of $1.5 billion to be listed on the NASDAQ New York Stock Exchange.” This is how Dubai celebrated the city-based company in 2019.

It did not take long for the wave of celebration of the Swvl company to turn into heartbreak and regret. Less than 6 months after the start of trading its shares on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, the Swvl share price collapsed, losing about 95% of its value in September 2022. The downward journey of its share continued, bringing the share price in 2023 to about 20 cents, compared to $10 at the start of trading in March 2022. The market value of the company decreased from more than $1.5 billion to about $9 million only, so the company lost about 99% of its value after about twenty months of its listing on Nasdaq. How did Swvl descend from the pinnacle of success to the specter of bankruptcy? And what scenarios are waiting for the company?

 

In less than a year, Swvl succeeded in attracting financing amounting to about $9 million, starting with financing of $500,000 from “Careem” passenger transportation company, which was later acquired by “Uber”, and in 2018 it obtained financing of $8.5 million from a Series A funding round, and in the same year it succeeded in obtaining an undisclosed Series B funding round, estimated at between $20 and $30 million at the time, making Swvl the most funded startup in the Middle East and North Africa in 2018.

Swvl Mass Transport is an example of a startup that achieves great success at the beginning of its journey. The company started its operations in Egypt in 2017 with self-financing from its founders (Mustafa Qandil, Mahmoud Noah and Ahmed Sabah) that did not exceed $30,000 at the time. The idea of ​​Swvl was based on providing a reasonable alternative that combines low cost and efficiency, so that it enables individuals who wish to move away from public transportation, at a lower cost than the costs of shared transportation companies. In practical application, Swvl started operating large and small buses on specific routes, enabling users to book their trips through an application that runs on smartphones.

Funding continued to flow to Swvl, as in 2019 it succeeded in raising about $42 million from a Series C financing round, bringing the total amount it obtained, in less than two years following its foundation, to about $80 million. In view of this success, Swvl decided to move its headquarters to Dubai, in a building that includes large companies, such as: "BMW" and "Rolls-Royce". From Dubai Swvl worked to accelerate its expansion in large and important markets in the Middle East and Africa, including the Saudi, Pakistani and Emirati markets, as well as Nigeria and Kenya.

 

Media aura

Propelled by the rapid success it achieved, Swvl gained a great media aura since its launch. In 2018 the founders of Swvl were chosen among the Forbes Middle East list of the most influential youth under the age of 30, and in 2020 the name of Swvl appeared in the Forbes Middle East list of the “50 most funded startups in the Middle East”, where it ranked second, while its financial director, Youssef Salem, appeared on the same list in 2021. Mr. Salem is a prominent banker who used to work in Moelis & Co, who was among a large group of employees who were attracted by Swvl through generous salaries, temptations and other incentives.

This is in addition to many TV interviews and dozens of websites that dealt with the company's success story. The media aura contributed to increasing the confidence of investors and financiers in the success of the company and in the possibility of it becoming one of the largest companies in the field of mass transportation in the world, especially with its great expansion in foreign markets.

 

Acquisition and listing on NASDAQ

Swvl reached the pinnacle of its success in the summer of 2021 when it was listed on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange after its merger with Queen's Gambit Growth Capital, a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), turning the startup that launched just 4 years ago, from a small company active in the streets of Cairo and Alexandria to a global company with a market valuation of $1.5 billion, this valuation at the time was considered exaggerated.

It is also worth noting that prior to this merger, two of the founders of Swvl had left; Mahmoud Noah, who later founded Capiter for business-to-business transactions, and Ahmed Sabah, who founded the emerging financial technology company Telda, while Mustafa Kandil continued to manage SWVL.

Less than a month after the announcement of Swvl’s listing on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, the company began an expansion process in global markets. It began its global activities by acquiring the Spanish “Shotl” smart transportation company specialized in ordering buses in Spain and 22 cities in 10 European countries, in addition to its activity in Brazil [1]. It also announced its acquisition of the German company "Door2door" in an undisclosed deal. In November, it acquired a controlling stake in the Argentine company Viapool, which operates in both Argentina and Chile, for $10 million.

Swvl's appetite for expansion and acquisition did not stop, and in April of 2022, i.e. one month after its shares began trading on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange at a value of $10 per share, Swvl announced two acquisition deals, the first of which was the acquisition of the Turkish "Volt Line" company for participatory transportation. Its value amounted to 40 million dollars, and the second was the conclusion of an initial deal with the British company "Zello" in preparation for its acquisition in a deal whose estimated value was about 100 million dollars [2]. This is in addition to pumping 25 million dollars allocated to increase expansion in the Turkish market through "Vault Line"[3].

 

Falling from the top

Less than two months after Swvl's shares began trading on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, the company's share price fell to about $5. In front of this sudden drop in the share price, Swvl announced the layoffs of 400 of its employees, or about a third of the company's employees, and the reason for taking this action, according to Swvl, because it would replace its laid-off cadres with fully automated systems, in order to reduce its expenses and focus on achieving profits starting from 2023. Commenting on the decline in its share price, Swvl's management stated, "The decline in the stock does not cause concern to the management, but we have a responsibility towards every shareholder who suffers a loss, and we try to separate the action plan that we are following and the fluctuation of the stock."

Swvl's announcement was not enough to stop the collapse of its share price. On the one hand, laying off 400 employees will not lead to immediate or certain results to achieve profits that satisfy investors and shareholders. Rather, the results of the layoffs need time to appear, in addition to the fact that the process of replacing automated systems in itself is a costly and complex process. On the other hand, Swvl did not stop expanding in new markets, as the company announced its acquisition of the Mexican company "Urbvan" for mass transportation [4]. This coincided with its announcement of its intention to enter the American market at the end of the same year, meaning that the goal of the company to focus on profits does not seem likely to be achieved in light of its continued expansion into new markets, which is one of the main reasons for the decline in Swvl's share price.

The major collapse in Swvl’s share price occurred on July 8, 2022, as the company’s share price fell to about a dollar and a half, and on September 20 of the same year, the share price fell below one dollar, and reached about 50 cents, thus losing Swvl about 95% of its value, as its market valuation fell from $1.5 billion to about $75 million. The downward path of Swvl's share continued with the beginning of 2023, bringing its share price to about 20 cents and its market value to about $9 million.

 

Why did Swvl stock fall?

In addition to the poor performance and management of the Swvl itself, specifically related to its rapid expansion policy, which cost the company hundreds of millions of dollars, the collapse of the share price of Swvl on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange is also attributed to the state of the global economy.

The COVID-19 pandemic hit the transportation industry hard, and Swvl was no exception. With lockdowns and social distancing measures in place, demand for public transportation plummeted, and Swvl was forced to suspend its services. In addition, the company faced financial and operational challenges, with its high operational costs and limited revenue streams putting it at risk of bankruptcy.

Also less than a month before the start of trading of Swvl shares on the Nasdaq, The Russian-Ukrainian war broke out, which caused a significant increase in energy prices, which negatively affected the operating costs of Swvl. The global economy in general entered a state of uncertainty and slowed growth, and many countries were affected by the global inflation situation caused by the Ukrainian crisis, including Egypt, Latin America and a number of countries in which Swvl is active. This situation also led to collapse of the prices of the national currencies of a large number of countries. Moreover, the US Federal Bank raised interest rates, which made it more expensive for startups to borrow and to finance their activities.

What also indicates that the crisis that Swvl went through is linked to external causes, is that the Nasdaq index itself lost nearly a third of its value in 2022 [5], in short, Swvl was not alone in this crisis, but rather it was doubly affected because its activities being linked to energy prices, which flew.

Swvl's actions did not achieve its desired goal, as we mentioned above, its share continued to decline, and it is known that the NASDAQ Stock Exchange prevents trading of shares of companies with a share price of less than one US dollar, which made Swvl exposed to the risk of being delisted from the NASDAQ Stock Exchange, especially since it received a warning in this concern from Nasdaq. Swvl's solution was a "reverse stock split" that turned every 25 shares into one. So that its shares have traded since March 2023, at a price ranging from two dollars to $1.07.

 

What fate awaits Swivel?

In view of the major collapse of Swvl, its CEO, Mustafa Kandil, decided on November 25 to lay off more than half of the workforce and sell, stop or reduce some operations in "smaller" countries, and focus mainly on Egypt and Mexico. Five weeks after this announcement, Swvl formed a panel of independent directors to explore potential sales, mergers and other options.

A reverse stock split may be a stopgap for Swvl from delisting from the Nasdaq stock exchange, but it may not last long given the company's plight.

According to Bloomberg, quoting a person familiar with the matter (who asked not to be named because the information is confidential), Swvl is now looking for new capital from investors, while it remains listed on the Nasdaq [6]. This may be hardly the only option for the continuation of Swvl, that is, obtaining new capital and turning into a private company, to restart again.

The company's leadership team recognized the need for change and embarked on a bold transformation strategy. They diversified their revenue streams, shifting their focus from bus rides to logistics and delivery services. They also implemented cost-cutting measures, streamlined operations, and renegotiated contracts with suppliers.

The company has also expanded its services to include last-mile deliveries, e-commerce logistics, and ride-hailing. Swvl's story is a testament to the resilience and adaptability of businesses in the face of adversity. It also teaches us the importance of diversifying revenue streams, being agile and flexible, and taking bold actions to survive and thrive in challenging times.

 

Sources:


* An economic term applied to emerging companies whose market valuation exceeds one billion dollars.


* Special purpose acquisition companies are public companies that have no business but to choose a private company to merge with, and the latter inherits the inclusion of the first.

[1] Swvl prepares to enter the Spanish market by purchasing Shotl buses, Wamda website, 08/19/2021, available at: https://bit.ly/407w5be

[2] Swvl acquires the English “Zilo” for $100 million, WAYA Arabic website, 08/05/2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3GNrfcd

[3] “Swvl” acquires the Turkish “Volt Line” for ride-hailing services, Lumberj Middle East, 04/25/2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3A0AIJw

[4] Swvl Acquires Mexican Urbvan to Penetrate Markets There, Arabia Inc, 07/18/2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3mBZUTA

[5] Sherif Othman, “The Nasdaq index lost nearly a third of its value in 2022,” Al-Araby Al-Jadeed website, 10/01/2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3GKrpRK

[6] Samuel Gebre at el, Middle East Unicorn Swvl’s Spectacular Rise and 99% Stock Tumble, bloomberglaw, 09/03/2023, Available at: https://bit.ly/43zVyNw

The markets for startups in the Middle East and North Africa have once again shown significant growth in funding volume during February, contrary to expectations of a slowdown in funding growth. This comes after successfully raising more than $760 million in funding across 48 deals. This represents a 638% monthly increase in funding for startups in the Middle East and North Africa, and a 103% increase compared to January 2022.

Startups funding by country

Egyptian startups saw significant momentum in February, raising $422 million across 16 deals, taking the top spot in terms of both funding volume and number of deals. This was due to a deal by the payment application company, "Fawry", which raised about $400 million, representing approximately 95% of total Egyptian startup funding for February and nearly half of startup funding in the Middle East and North Africa for the same period.

Saudi Arabian startups came in second with a total funding of $316 million across 13 deals. The largest share of Saudi Arabian startup funding was divided between two major deals: the "Flowerd" deal, which operates a specialized online flower and gift shop, raised about $156 million, while the second deal went to the food technology company, "Nana", which raised around $133 million. The Saudi Arabian startups' share of total startup funding in February was about 41%.

Despite having the lowest funding volume in years, Emirati startups ranked third after raising only $8 million across seven deals. However, this does not necessarily indicate a downward trend in funding for Emirati startups, as the UAE remains a hub for entrepreneurship and innovation in the region.

Behind the UAE startups, Bahraini startups came with a total of 6 million dollars distributed among two deals, then Moroccan startups with around 5 million dollars distributed among seven deals. Oman's authority also recorded funding for startups amounting to about 2.7 million dollars. Additionally, startups in Iraq, Algeria, Yemen, and Tunisia each witnessed a funding deal ranging from 220,000 dollars to about 16,000 dollars.

Regarding the concentration of startup funding in the region, we find that more than 96% of startup funding in February was concentrated in Egyptian and Saudi startups. The concentration of funding deals in both countries accounted for around 60% of the total number of startup funding deals during the same period.

The average funding size per deal was more than 15 million dollars, which is about three times the average funding size per deal recorded in 2022.

Distribution of funding deals for startups according to sectors

February witnessed several changes in the funding of startup deals according to their activity sectors. The multi-use application sector came in first place in terms of funding volume, but this was due to one financing deal, namely the financing deal for the Egyptian application "Halan" which became the most comprehensive and superior application to obtain funding in the Middle East and North Africa.

The e-commerce sector came in second place after companies operating in this sector raised about $160 million from 4 deals, which is an exception, as the e-commerce sector has relatively declined over the past three years compared to other more active sectors.

Food technology companies ranked third with a total funding volume of about $136 million, distributed over 5 deals. In fourth place came the healthcare technology sector with about $16 million, followed by the financial technology sector with about $14 million distributed over 10 deals, making it the sector that receives the most funding deals for February. Thus, funding for startups is concentrated in three sectors, namely comprehensive applications, e-commerce, and food technology, which account for more than ninety percent of the investments.

Financing startups according to investment stages

Funding through growth accelerators in February was one of the most prominent stages of startups financing, as 12 financing deals were obtained through growth accelerators. In terms of the number of deals also, we find that 8 financing deals took place in the initial investment stage, followed by the pre-initial financing stage with 6 deals, then pre-series (A) financing with 4 deals, while the amount of financing in 7 deals was not announced. As for the large financing deals, it was limited to three deals, two of which are in the Series (C) financing stage, and one deal is in the Series (B) financing stage.

Egyptian fintech and e-commerce ecosystem MNT-Halan has raised up to $400 million in equity and debt financing from local and global investors as it continues to serve underbanked and unbanked customers in the North African country.

The round includes $260 million in equity financing and $140 million through two securitized bond issuances secured within the past year, investments that will now see MNT-Halan command a post-money valuation of about $1 billion.

A large chunk of the equity, about $200 million, was provided by Abu Dhabi–based Chimera Investments. The investment firm invested that amount in exchange for 20% of the Egyptian digital lender and e-commerce platform, which is also in advanced stages of raising $60 million in additional capital in the coming weeks.

Last week, the IFC disclosed that it was investing $40 million in the company, but MNT-Halan declined to comment; it’s expected that the remaining financing will come from existing shareholders.

In a statement, MNT-Halan says the investments “demonstrate continued confidence in its value proposition, management team, and superior technology.” The company also plans to expand internationally after solid growth in Egypt and progress on the swap agreement between super app Halan and Netherlands-based microlending platform MNT Investments.

In 2021, Halan, operating a digital wallet that offered bill payments, e-commerce and ride-hailing as well as micro, nano and consumer loans, entered into a swap agreement with MNT Investments (a microlending platform operating in Egypt with roots dating back to 2010) to provide financing solutions to the underbanked and unbanked. The leveraged buyout deal, which was formed in 2018, saw both companies adopt a new name: MNT-Halan. Headquartered in Egypt, its digital ecosystem connects consumers, merchants and micro-enterprises with business loans, consumer finance, payments, BNPL and e-commerce offerings, all backed by Neuron, its proprietary technology.

Last year, MNT-Halan raised $120 million from private equity firms, including Apis Growth Fund II, Development Partners International (DPI) and Lorax Capital Partners, and venture capitalists such as Middle East Venture Partners, Endeavor Catalyst and DisruptTech. At the time, it had served over 4 million and disbursed more than $1.7 billion worth of loans since inception.

CEO Mounir Nakhla, who founded the company with Ahmed Mohsen, said MNT-Halan continued where it left off and is presently Egypt’s largest lender to the unbanked: Total loans disbursed now exceed $2 billion per the company’s website (MNT-Halan issued loans north of $65 million last month).

On average, businesses access $1,000 worth of loans while paying a 25% annual interest on the platform; Nakhla noted the fintech maintains a healthy nonperforming loan ratio without disclosing its figure.

The two securitizations, totaling $140 million, that MNT-Halan secured last year are behind its impressive lending operations. The fintech’s wholly owned subsidiary, Tasaheel, managed to secure these funds locally via a securitization program with the Commercial International Bank (CIB), Egypt’s largest private sector bank.

It can further securitize up to $250 million, the company said. In addition to CIB, participating regional and local financial institutions include Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait, Al Baraka Bank and National Bank of Egypt.

It’s been demonstrated that lending is MNT-Halan’s primary business and main revenue generator; however, what’s interesting about the company is how it has layered a digital ecosystem of products, including e-commerce, FMCG delivery and mobile POS payments that feed its lending operations.

To paint a picture: Last June, the five-year-old company acquired Talabeyah, a B2B e-commerce platform that offers FMCG supplies directly to small merchants and retailers with next-day delivery. Nakhla tells me that this acquisition has allowed MNT-Halan to provide loans to these merchants or grocers, who then, in an agency banking play, act as mobile agents to individual customers who frequent their shops.

The company also wants to extend grocery shopping — in addition to other e-commerce stores selling electronics and personal items — to individual customers.

“We’re capitalizing on our existing distribution through million-plus customers and adding services within our ecosystem,” said the chief executive. “If you need a loan for your business, we’re going to give you one; you need a loan for consumption, we’re going to give you one; you need to order groceries or buy a mobile phone on our platform, we’ll deliver it to you via our e-commerce stores. Also, we can give them the credit they can use to make all of these purchases within the ecosystem.”

MNT-Halan lends to single small business owners or individuals who need lending to manage their businesses.

According to the Egyptian startup, its digital ecosystem serves more than 5 million customers in Egypt, of which 3.5 million are financial clients and over 2 million are borrowers. The startup plans to launch a debit card for its customers by the end of March.

Nakhla noted that due to the company’s focus on commerce and lending, it’s had to shut down its ride-hailing operations, one of Halan’s core offerings — before the merger — which mostly lagged international mobility outfits like Uber, Careem and inDriver. Meanwhile, MNT-Halan faces competition from Khazna, Paymob and MaxAB across its other product offerings.

“In some sectors, we do have competition. But in the most important sector, we’re the largest, and no one is as advanced in technology or creates a fully-fledged ecosystem for the underbanked.

I think this is where we differentiate ourselves from any other player in the market,” said the chief executive when asked about competing players in Egypt, while adding that the company is exploring a couple of mergers and acquisitions to consolidate its position in the country’s fintech and e-commerce space.

For MNT-Halan to raise this sum in the current venture capital climate, it had to increase its revenues and open new streams, Nakhla noted in his statement. The fintech claims to have made over $300 million in revenue last year, representing a modest 3.4x multiples on its unicorn valuation which aligns with the present public market calculations as previously reported by TechCrunch.

On a related note, MNT-Halan is Egypt’s only private billion-dollar company; payments giant Fawry achieved that valuation after going public in 2019 (although it’s well off the mark now).

“We are thrilled to be part of Egypt’s greatest fintech success story,” said Seif Fikry, CEO of Chimera Abu Dhabi, in a statement. MNT-Halan’s upward trajectory and momentum reflect the management team’s realization of its extraordinary vision to transform a high-touch business by seamlessly infusing an unparalleled proprietary tech platform while increasing product depth for its target customer segment.”

Source: Techcrunch

Page 1 of 7

About Us

Enjoy the power of entrepreneurs' platform offering comprehensive economic information on the Arab world and Switzerland, with databases on various economic issues, mainly Swiss-Arab trade statistics, a platform linking international entrepreneurs and decision makers. Become member and be part of international entrepreneurs' network, where business and pleasure meet.

 

 

Contact Us

Please contact us : 

Cogestra Laser SA

144, route du Mandement 

1242 Satigny - Geneva

Switzerland

We use cookies on our website. Some of them are essential for the operation of the site, while others help us to improve this site and the user experience (tracking cookies). You can decide for yourself whether you want to allow cookies or not. Please note that if you reject them, you may not be able to use all the functionalities of the site.