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Egypt-based fintech Blnk, has raised $23.7 million in equity and debt funding, and $8.3 million in securitised bond issuance.
The pre-Seed and Seed funding rounds were led by Abu Dhabi’s Emirates International Investment Company (EIIC) and Egypt-based VC firm Sawari Ventures, with participation from several local and international angel investors. The $11.2 million debt funding was secured from a number of local banks. The $8.3 million securitised bond issuance was underwritten by the National Bank of Egypt and Banque du Caire.
Founded in 2021 by Amr Sultan and Tarek Elsheikh, Blnk has developed a digital lending platform that allows merchants of all sizes to instantly underwrite and finance their customers' purchases at the point of sale, paying over instalments ranging from six to 36 months.
The funds will support Blnk’s development of AI-powered lending infrastructure and the financing of the company’s portfolio of customers.
Press release:
Blnk, a fintech startup that enables instant consumer credit in Egypt, has raised $23.7 million in equity and debt funding, and $8.3 million in securitized bond issuance to accelerate financial inclusion within underserved communities across the country. The funds will support the further development of Blnk’s Artificial Intelligence-powered lending infrastructure and the financing of the company’s fast-growing portfolio of customers.
The combined pre-seed and seed funding rounds of $12.5 million were led by Abu Dhabi’s Emirates International Investment Company (EIIC) and Egypt-based, leading venture capital firm Sawari Ventures, with participation from several prominent local and international angel investors. The $11.2 million debt funding was secured from a number of leading local banks. The $8.3 million securitised bond issuance was underwritten by the National Bank of Egypt and Banque du Caire, making Blnk the youngest Egyptian startup to securitize its loan book.
Launched in October 2021, Blnk has developed a digital lending platform that empowers merchants of all sizes to instantly underwrite and finance their customers' purchases at the point of sale. With only a National ID and in as little as 3 minutes, consumers can access financing to purchase a wide range of products or services, including electronics, furniture and automotive services, paying over instalments ranging from 6 to 36 months. Leveraging its vast base of merchant branches across Egypt, Blnk has disbursed more than $20 million in loans to date. Merchants are also boosting their profitability via the transaction commission that Blnk provides.
According to the International Monetary Fund, Egypt is expected to become the second-largest Arab and African economy by the end of 2022. However, limited consumer credit penetration - only 4 per cent of Egyptians have credit cards - means consumers and businesses across the country are unable to take full advantage of opportunities to trade and maximise the country’s full economic potential. By providing inclusive access to financing for consumers across the country, Blnk is supporting further growth and development in the Egyptian economy.
Speaking about the new funding, Amr Sultan, Co-founder and CEO of Blnk said, “Our mission is to make it easier for more Egyptians to purchase the products and services they desire by offering inclusive and convenient consumer credit at the point of sale. We are delighted to have the backing of a great cohort of investors at an early stage in our journey. With their support, we believe we can drive financial inclusion in Egypt, as well as the wider Middle East and North Africa region”.
Joseph Iskander, Head of Investment at EIIC, said “we are convinced that the Egyptian market and its startup ecosystem present a compelling opportunity for regional and international investors and we are committed to identifying and investing in value accretive businesses. We are pleased to partner with Blnk to drive financial inclusion and economic development in Egypt and we look forward to working with the team to achieve their goals''.
Hany Al Sonbaty, the Managing Partner at Sawari Ventures, stated: “we are thrilled to have Blnk in our portfolio and backing them to deliver innovative solutions to tackle the urgent challenge of financial inclusion in Egypt. The company has the right combination of a seasoned team and a scalable business model, with a clear path to profitability”
Source: Wamda
"Stars of Science" program opens the door for participation in its 15th season
06 Nov 2022 Written by Admin Admin“Stars of Science” – the Arab world’s leading premier innovation initiated by Qatar Foundation (QF) this show empowers Arab innovators to develop technological solutions for their communities, benefitting people’s health and lifestyles, and helping to preserve the environment.
Over the course of 12 weeks, in a race against time, contestants compete to demonstrate the effectiveness of their innovations - solutions to diverse challenges, supported by a team of experienced engineers and product developers.
A panel of experts evaluates the innovations of the participants in this program and excludes the least competitive innovation weekly, within several rounds that include different stages starting from proof of concept, product modeling, and testing, to reach four finalists and compete for a prize of $600,000 USD (special terms and conditions apply program). The final ranking is determined by jury voting and online audience voting.
Stars of Science empowers Arab innovators
The Stars of Science program has a proven track record of empowering young Arab innovators and problem solvers through science, transforming ground-breaking ideas into successful businesses.
Stars of Science serves as an innovation accelerator, as an experiment to promote a culture of innovation, and as a catalyst for social progress across the region.
Stars of Science enhances the entrepreneurship ecosystem across the region.
The program encourages young people between the ages of 15-35 years to sign up via https://www.starsofscience.info/
The Stars of Science program reflects the Arab world's leadership in scientific discovery and innovative thinking, which once again helps make Stars of Science a global leader in innovation. This is in line with Qatar's goal of becoming the preferred destination for innovators in the Arab world.
Stars of Science promotes local and international cooperation that transcends disciplines and borders, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond, where digital transformation has become the basis for dealing across sectors, making virtual collaboration around the world the norm today.
Qatar Foundation's Key Messages
Stars of Science is part of the research, development and innovation ecosystem at Qatar Foundation.
The Stars of Science program is a Qatar Foundation media initiative directed at Arab youth.
Stars of Science reflects Qatar Foundation's commitment to investing in people's capabilities and ideas, helping aspiring innovators succeed, and accelerating innovations that can make a difference in people's lives and create future jobs.
Objectives of communication in the 15th case
Emphasizing that the “Stars of Science” program is an initiative launched by Qatar Foundation, and that the Foundation is the owner of this brand, and that the program reflects the Foundation’s commitment to investing in creative ideas and its support for innovation and entrepreneurship, in addition to the position of “Stars of Science” in Qatar Science and Technology Park and within the ecosystem Research, development and innovation.
Highlight the successes of the program through the achievements of Stars of Science graduates, and the development of an entrepreneurial culture.
80 percent of posts are via digital platforms and 20 percent via traditional media.
Encouraging young creators from the Gulf Cooperation Council, Arab countries and the world to participate in the 15th season of the programme.
Emphasize the status of Stars of Science as a part of Qatar Science and Technology Park.
Abu Dhabi Digital Authority, Cisco sign framework agreement at GITEX Global 2022
15 Oct 2022 Written by Admin AdminThe agreement intends to provide digital transformation value-added services to ADDA and Abu Dhabi government entities through Cisco’s Country Digital Transformation programme.
The Department of Government Support, represented by the Abu Dhabi Digital Authority (ADDA), has signed a framework agreement with Cisco at GITEX Global 2022.
The agreement intends to provide digital transformation value-added services to ADDA and Abu Dhabi government entities through Cisco’s Country Digital Transformation (CDA) programme.
The CDA programme is aligned with the national agenda of the UAE to transform the country’s economic model towards sustainable growth by transitioning towards a digital economy. It aims to support digitisation efforts across various key industry sectors, fostering digital skills, and developing the innovation ecosystem in the country to achieve the UAE Centennial 2071 vision of digital transformation.
Within the framework agreement, Cisco is supporting the government's focus on cybersecurity – being one of the critical national sectors in the UAE and is collaborating with ADDA to create value-added initiatives to drive the Authority’s security strategy agenda for the Abu Dhabi government.
Dr. Mohamed Abdel Hameed Al Askar, Director-General of ADDA, said, “Through the ADDA-Cisco framework agreement, we continue to identify strategic pathways to strengthen, streamline and accelerate the digital transformation of Abu Dhabi. We remain focused on exploring more constructive collaborations that will aid the strategic growth of Abu Dhabi’s digital agenda.”
Mansoor Al Marzouqi, Executive Director of the Strategic Planning Sector at ADDA, said, “Enhancing the digital capabilities across Abu Dhabi Government entities is fundamental to what we do at ADDA. Our vision is to enable the digital transformation of all Abu Dhabi government entities, using emerging technologies and delivering pioneering government services and solutions.
Our partnership with Cisco will reinforce our commitment to creating a world-class digital ecosystem in Abu Dhabi enabled by innovative digital solutions which will unlock efficiencies at scale.”
Abdelilah Nejjari, Managing Director – Gulf region, Cisco, said, “We are delighted to sign the framework agreement with the Abu Dhabi Digital Authority. Through our CDA programme, we are proud to play a role in the national digitalisation agenda and create new value for the UAE, its businesses and residents.
Through the CDA programme, Cisco, in collaboration with ADDA, will arrange knowledge transfer webinars and events for Abu Dhabi government entities along with granting access to their full suite of digital transformation technologies, products, and services.
source: zawya
The technical crews and labor at the project site are preparing the infrastructure, sewage and water networks in preparation for receiving the new project
Kuwait City - After the Government Communication Center announced the entertainment and games project — the Winter Wonderland — two weeks ago, heavy machinery and equipment, under the supervision of the Ministry of Public Works, began work on preparing and equipping the site at the Al-Shaab Entertainment Park, reports Al-Qabas daily.
The preparations came after completing the signing of the agreement between the Tourism Enterprises Company and an international company specialized in the entertainment industry.
The designated site for the Games City, the supervisory staff began work on leveling the land and preparing it technically based on the standards required for the installation of equipment and mechanisms and their distribution according to the agreed technical and engineering design.
The technical crews and labor at the project site are preparing the infrastructure, sewage and water networks in preparation for receiving the new project, which begins its season in London annually in November and extends until January. Winter Wonderland entertainment project relies in designing its games on a range of games, ice skating rinks and other designs for seating inspired by snow, in addition to a wide range of hand-crafted games as well as mobile restaurants and stores.
Meanwhile, an informed source revealed that entrepreneurs and owners of small and medium enterprises are waiting for the invitation of the Ministry of Finance and the Tourism Enterprises Company to inform them of the design of the Winter Wonderland project and the possibility of applying to participate in points of sale during the upcoming winter season.
According to the source, the entrepreneurs have not yet received any invitation from the relevant authorities regarding what is required of them, and whether there will be participation from owners of small and medium enterprises and national companies working in the field of restaurants and services in the upcoming Games City project or not.
source: Zawya
VUZ, a social app that allows users to stream and experience immersive realism in extended reality (XR) and metaverse digital experiences, has raised $20 million in Series B investment.
Investors in the round include Caruso Ventures, Vision VC Fund, e& capital (investment pillar of e&, formerly known as Etisalat Group), DFDF (Dubai Future District Fund), WIN (Webit Investment Network), SRMG, Elbert Capital, Yasta Partners, Faith Capital and Panthera Capital. Seven existing investors participated as well.
The Dubai-based VUZ says that this round, which has seen it onboard a mix of U.S.- and EMEA-based investors, will be pivotal to its international expansion.
Founder and chief executive officer Khaled Zaatarah launched VUZ, formerly 360VUZ, as a platform to bridge the gap between physical and virtual worlds by offering premium immersive content to a global audience. According to Zaatarah, VUZ’s vision is to connect people by providing “authentic, immersive experiences while removing the constraints of travel, time, and access.”
The platform offers more than 20,000 hours of content covering entertainment, creators, sports and XR, VR and AR experiences virtually anywhere in the world.
Users can access and engage different content — in addition to those mentioned above, live events, concerts, celebrity interviews and masterclasses, through its 360-degree live streams — by downloading VUZ’s iOS and Android apps. About 70% of its content is free and VUZ monetizes by showing ads to users in this category; on the other hand, users must pay between $4-8 for its exclusive content.
The company is planning to allow users access content via different media: Meta/Oculus headsets, Qualcomm, immersive avatars and a web platform, Zaatarah said to TechCrunch.
The web3 platform claims to have reached over 1 billion screen views from more than 10 million users since its launch. Over 44% of these views come from the Middle East, 32% from the U.S. and 24% from Egypt. VUZ said it aims to reach 3 billion views in 2023 and double its user base 2x yearly.
Creators’ immersive content collaborations have also been a core driver for VUZ content, where its top creators get over 100 million views globally.
The funds will be used to fuel these plans, including improving its 10% month-on-month recurring revenue growth, investing in content, hiring additional senior hires, new social features, launching web3 products and NFT projects and scaling with asset-light operations into eight new international markets.
The investment will also see VUZ scale its Los Angeles office and scale with creators and content in the U.S., Asia and Europe.
source: Tech Crunch
Telda, Egypt’s consumer money app, raises $20 million in a seed round
15 Oct 2022 Written by Admin AdminTelda, an Egyptian consumer money app, raised $20 million in a seed funding round led by Global Founders Capital with participation from Sequoia Capital and Jack Dorsey’s Block.
Telda will use the funds to expand into new markets and build its product offering according to its statement.
The startup obtained the final approval from The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) to start operating its card earlier this year.
It started operations last month and launched its app and a Mastercard-powered card to the public.
It has onboarded 25,000 cards ever since and has a waiting list of 110,000 customers who have ordered their cards on the app.
Telda was founded in 2021 and raised $5 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Sequoia Capital with participation from Global Founders Capital and Class 5 Global months after its launch.
source: Waya
إطلاق أول استوديو لشركات التكنولوجيا المالية في الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا في المنامة
14 Sep 2022 Written by Admin Adminأعلن كل من صندوق الصناديق "الواحة"- الذي يديره بنك البحرين للتنمية، ومجموعة الاستثمار الدولية Hambro Perks عن تأسيس استوديو"HP Spring Studios" لمشروعات الشركات الناشئة المتخصصة في التكنولوجيا المالية في المنامة، ليكون بذلك أول استديو من نوعه في منطقة الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا.
دعم شركات التكنولوجيا المالية الناشئة
يمثل إطلاق استوديو"HP Spring Studios" دفعة قوية لشركات التكنولوجيا المالية لا في البحرين فحسب، بل في عموم منطقة الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا، كما سيكون عاملاً مساعداً على تأسيس المزيد من شركات التكنولوجيا المالية في المنطقة والتي شهدت في السنتين الأخيرتين نمواً غير مسبوقاً على كافة الاصعدة. حيث توفر استديوهات الشركات الناشئة بيئة مختبرية للشركات الناشئة تمكنها من تجريب واختبار منتجها، كما تدعهما من الناحية التكنولوجيا، وفي العمليات الفنية، ووضع الخطط وتطوير المنتج.
ولجهة استوديو"HP Spring Studios" فإن القائمين على هذا المشروع يسعون إلى لعب دور أكبر، إذ يهدف "HP Spring Studios" لأن يكون عضواً نشطاً في النظام البيئي المحلي للتكنولوجيا المالية، والاستثمار، وتطوير المواهب، والمشاركة في الفعالية، إلى جانب الترويج للبيئة الاستثمارية والتقنية التي توفرها البحرين كوجهة استثمارية. كما ستستفيد الشركات الناشئة في المملكة من بيئة تنظيمية صديقة للتكنولوجيا المالية وعلاقات وثيقة مع مصرف البحرين المركزي ومجلس التنمية الاقتصادية لتمكين الانطلاق السريع إلى السوق.
بالإضافة إلى كذلك سيعمل "HP Spring Studios" على خلق وظائف جديدة تتطلب مهارات عالية، سواء في فريق عمل الاستوديو أو في الشركات الناشئة التي سيساعد على إطلاقها.
حلول تكنولوجية جديدة ومستثمرين دوليين
في تعقيبها على إطلاق "HP Spring Studios" قالت أريج الشكر (مدير صندوق الصناديق "الواحة"): "نتشرف بالمشاركة في هذه المبادرة التي ستثبت أهميتها كمورد قيّمٍ لرواد الأعمال المحليين والمجتمعات التي ستستفيد من حلول التكنولوجيا المالية الجديدة في البحرين. حيث تأسس صندوق "الواحة" لمساندة الشركات الناشئة في التغلب على التحديات المتعلقة بالوصول إلى التمويل. وستعزز "HP Spring Studios" إلى حد كبير منظومة التكنولوجيا المالية في المنطقة، ليس عبر تمكين الشركات الناشئة فقط، إنما أيضًا عبر تحسين الطريقة التي يدخر بها الأشخاص أموالهم ويرسلونها ويقرضونها ويديرونها ويستثمرونها".
فيما علق دومينيك بيركس (الرئيس التنفيذي لشركة Hambro Perks): "بمجرد أن تصبح الشركات الناشئة المحفظة جاهزة للتوسع، لن يخلق الاستوديو وHambro Perks المزيد من الوظائف فحسب، بس سيجلب مستثمرين مشاركين عالميين موثوقين الشركات التي تتخذ من البحرين مقراً لها، ويسهل أيضاً تدفقات رأس المال الوافدة. وجذب المزيد من المواهب والمستثمرين ".
تطور سوق التكنولوجيا المالية في المنطقة
شهدت أسواق الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا نمواً سريعاً وتطوراً في بيئة التكنولوجيا المالية، إذ احتلت الشركات الناشئة الناشطة في مجال التكنولوجيا المالية مراكز متقدمة في قائمة الشركات الأكثر تمويلاً في المنطقة على مدار السنتين الماضيتين، إذ بلغت نسبة ما حصلت عليه شركات التكنولوجيا المالية الناشئة من إجمالي التمويل الشركات الناشئة في المنطقة على نحو 21% في عام 2021. فيما وصلت حصتها من إجمالي تمويل الشركات الناشئة في النصف الأول من العام الجاري إلى نحو 38.4%. كما احتلت البحرين مركزاً متقدماً في استثمارات رأس المال الجريء إذ جاءت في المركز الرابع في النصف الأول من عام 2022 بإجمالي تمويل تجاوز 111 مليون دولار.
نبذة عن صندوق الصناديق "الواحة"
تأسس صندوق الواحة للمساعدة في بناء منظومة ديناميكية لشركات رأس المال الجريء في منطقة الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا، ومن خلال خبراته الواسعة في قطاعي البنوك وريادة الأعمال، يلتزم فريق الواحة بتنمية فرص الاستثمار في منطقة الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا وتسريع نمو قطاع رأس المال الجريء ومنظومة عمل قطاع التكنولوجيا بشكل العام.
نبذة عن Hambro Perks
شركة Hambro Perks، التي يقع مقرها الرئيسي في لندن ولها مكاتب في الرياض ودبي وأبو ظبي، قامت ببناء واستثمار وتسريع أكثر من 145 شركة ناشئة تنشط في مجال التكنولوجيا على مستوى العالم. تركز بشكل خاص على التكنولوجيا المالية، بعد أن استثمرت في شركات مثل ثروة، تايد، وبايميلز.
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UAE-based metaverse startup Everdome, has succeeded raising $10 M from digital asset investment firm GEM Digital Limited based in Bahama.
Everdom achievements motivates the transaction
The announcement comes during a period of heightened activity for Everdome, since June 2022, a total of 11,700 plots (97%) located throughout the Everdome metaverse were sold throughout an eight-week auction experience. In total, plots were purchased for upwards of US$18.6 M, equivalent to 1,531 million DOME, Everdome's own digital currency. The average price of a plot of land in Everdome was $1590
Everdom will control the funding
Everdome will control the timing and the number of drawdowns under this facility, and has no minimum drawdown obligation. At its discretion, Everdome has the ability to sell up to 200% of their average daily volume, in Tokens across multiple exchanges to GEM Digital.
Sustainability of Everdome's future business
Gryn, CEO and Founder of Everdome commented about expected funding gains "the commitment from GEM will be used to strengthen Everdome's offering and ensure future sustainability in the business.
We're thrilled to partner with and achieve this investment commitment milestone with GEM, which confirms that we're on the right track as we seek to push new boundaries in the metaverse.
This is the perfect time for us to put our foot on the gas and really grow our product, which GEM's investment commitment will help us to do.
Everdome is in a very exciting place, and together with GEM we’ve taken the next step in order to build our metaverse ecosystem to the next level."
GEM's investment will be focused on team growth and metaverse technological expansion, and will see the game's virtual reality (VR) capabilities set on a fast track. Funds will also go towards boosting marketing efforts, partnership enablement, and investments that will aid Everdome's sustainable growth.
Dubai-based Stake raises $8 million to let people across the globe invest in local properties
12 Sep 2022 Written by Admin AdminDubai-based startup Stake is offering retail investors from across the globe the opportunity to buy fractions of rental property in UAE’s marquee city and earn regular income. The startup, founded in 2020, claims that because of Dubai’s real estate rules it has managed to attract investing users on the platform from more than 80 countries in the world.
The company, founded by Manar Mahmassani, Rami Tabbara and Ricardo Brizido in 2020, has raised $8 million in a pre-Series A round from investors like BY Ventures, MEVP and Vivium Holdings to expand its portfolio and launch in Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The company first raised a $4 million seed round last year.
“This round is a testament to what we are building at Stake and our mission to bring access and liquidity to the oldest, largest, and most sought-after asset class in the world. The proceeds will allow us to expand into Saudi Arabia and Egypt, continue attracting the best talent to the team, and cement Stake’s position as the category leader in the MENA region,” Mahmassani said in a written statement.
Tabbara told TechCrunch over a call that after being in the real estate business for more than 15 years, he realized a lot of people want to invest in the MENA region but can’t afford to put in large chunks of money without paying huge commissions to brokers and developers. So he wanted to accelerate the process of investing in real estate with Stake.
The firm says it lists premium properties on its platform that are already on rent. To acquire a property, Stake looks at factors like location, build quality, view and if it has tenants. Tabbara said if the property is not rented, the company uses its data to list properties that could be rented out quickly. Stake has paid over AED 1 million ($272,249) in rental income to investors, which is credited every month.
Stake currently manages more than 44 properties with a combined value of AED 56 million ($17.9 million). The company claims that it has achieved an average 17% monthly growth rate in both investors and assets under management (AUM).
“Our platform currently boasts 42,000 registered users and more than 2,100 active investors on the platform. While we have users from many countries on the site, folks from UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the U.K. and India are our top five investor bases,” Tabbara said.
Users can quickly register with the platform and invest from as low as AED 500 ($136). Because of Dubai’s investment rules individual investors can only invest up to AED 183,500 ($50,000) per year. The proptech company also limits maximum ownership by a single investor in a property to 33% to evenly spread out gains.
The firm doesn’t rely on financing to acquire homes. All the money to purchase a property comes from the investors. While Dubai’s property rule allows for partial deeds, there’s a cap of four investors, so Stake creates a special purpose vehicle for each property to facilitate deed registration. All properties usually have an investment term of five periods, but a house’s value goes up 30% in the market, and the investors can vote to sell it.
Stake’s business model relies on various fees. When investors purchase a property, the company charges them 1.5% with an additional 0.5% charged annually for maintenance. Plus, there are 0.2% Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-money laundering fees up front and 0.1% annually from the second year of the term. The company also charges investors 2.5% as an exit fee when they sell their stake. What’s more, if the property is sold at a higher rate than its acquisition, Stake takes a 15% cut from the profit. The company is not profitable yet but has achieved 470% year-on-year growth in terms of revenue.
In the next 12 months, apart from launching its platform in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, the company also wants to build a second-day trading platform, where investors can sell their stake in a property to other investors. Stake is focusing on launching a way to let people invest in vacation properties that go on platforms like Airbnb — something that platforms like Komoco and Here are trying in the U.S.
In the local market, Stake’s closest competitor is SmartCrowd, which raised a $3 million bridge round in June. Tabbara claims that his company has already surpassed SmartCrowd when it comes to AUM.
“We are banking on our team, technology and experience in dealing with different properties to become the most prominent real estate investment platform in the Middlel East and North Africa (MENA) region,” he said.
Source: Techcrunch
Jordan-based fintech liwwa has closed an $18.5 million pre-Series B round of equity and debt. The $4.5 million in equity investment was led by existing investors, DASH Ventures, Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank FMO, Edgo, and Bank al Etihad, in addition to German Development Finance Institution DEG approving an investment of $790,000.
The round also included debt contributions from a network of local banks and international development finance institutions; Bank al Etihad increased its debt financing agreement by $5 million, while an additional $8.5 million debt facility was raised from the Capital Bank of Jordan under the NASIRA agreement, Jordan Kuwait Bank and Triodos Bank extended a $1.1 million and a $2.2 million finance facility respectively, PROPARCO approved a €1 facility and Triple Jump approved a $500,000 loan.
Founded in 2015, liwwa employs technology across its operations to provide tailored financial solutions. It also owns and operates the liwwa Investment Platform, a peer-to-peer platform that enables retail investors to finance liwwa loans and earn returns.
liwwa will utilise the funds for its growth and expansion plans.
Press release:
Jordan-based Fintech liwwa closed an $18.5 million pre-Series B round of equity and debt. Founded in 2015, liwwa employs technology across its operations to provide tailored financial solutions. It also owns and operates the liwwa Investment Platform, a peer-to-peer platform that enables retail investors to finance liwwa loans and earn returns.
The round included $4.5 million in equity investment led by existing investors, DASH Ventures, Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank FMO, Edgo, and Bank al Etihad, in addition to German Development Finance Institution DEG approving an investment of $0.79 million.
The round also included debt contributions from a network of local banks and international development finance institutions; Bank al Etihad increased its debt financing agreement by $5 million, whereas an additional $8.5 million debt facility was raised from the Capital Bank of Jordan under the NASIRA agreement, Jordan Kuwait Bank and Triodos Bank extended a $1.1 million and a $2.2 million finance facility respectively, PROPARCO approved a €1 facility and Triple Jump approved a $500,000 loan.
liwwa will be utilizing the funds for its growth and expansion plans. liwwa’s CEO, Dennis Ardis, shared his thought on the funding round, “With this funding round, we have yet taken another major step towards accomplishing our goals.
We will continue to grow as the market grows by bringing in innovative Fintech solutions and cash flow-based lending."
