Kenz, a lingerie and intimate wear e-commerce startup, announced today it has successfully closed a six-figure pre-Series A round to extend its operations and grow its brand in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Kenz, which launched the first bra and shape-wear size calculator in Arabic, aims to help every woman find the right fit and style.

Lingerie is a notoriously difficult product category to fit correctly as over 80 percent of women are wearing the incorrect size. Kenz addresses this common challenge by making fit information and high-quality products accessible to all women across the GCC.

The round was led by Ibtikar Fund, reinforcing their contribution in Kenz's seed round, and included participation from Palestinian, Saudi and American angel investors.

A key participant in the round was Palestinian based investment holding company, the Arab Palestine Investment Company (APIC), an investment holding company with diverse investments spanning manufacturing, trade and distribution with a presence across the MENA region.

“Kenz is thrilled to have APIC's participation in the round and will leverage their distribution and retail experience in Kenz's key market, Saudi Arabia,” said Christina Ganim, CEO Kenz. “Our new investors offer operational and marketing expertise that enable Kenz to grow to the next level and bring us to a position where we can scale rapidly.

The team is excited and ready to simplify the process of finding the right fit, with our proprietary fit tools, excellent customer service, and finely curated lingerie.”

Commenting on the announcement, Ambar Amleh, Partner at Ibtikar Fund, said: “We are excited to join Kenz once again in this round. We are very proud of Kenz's growth and are look forward to supporting them as they continue to expand in the region and become a leader in this industry.”

Founded by Christina Ganim and Nicola Cuoco in 2017, Kenz is primed to gain market share and take advantage of the rapid post-COVID-19 growth of e-commerce in the region, while deepening supply and value chain relationships.

Kenz's team proudly includes 80 percent women, which allows them to be close to their customer base and understand pain points to address them properly. Kenz has focused on supply-chain efficiencies and global partnerships, and this round of funding enables the team to reach a broader segment of women across the Kingdom and enhance its teams in Palestine and Saudi Arabia.

As larger retail giants increasingly focus on their online presence, Kenz will use this cash injection to expand its product selection and technology, and cater to customers' needs and services. Kenz is ready to take on the competition and become a recognized leader in its industry in 2021.

source: wafa

The licenses that will be awarded to up to 3 companies will allow them to provide e-signature certificates, e-seal, and time stamp services for both individuals and businesses, according to ITIDA

Egypt’s Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) issued on Thursday new licenses for local firms to provide e-signature services.
The licenses, which will be granted to up to three companies, will allow recipients to provide e-signature certificates, e-seal, and time stamp services for both individuals and businesses, according to ITIDA.

ITIDA said that the statement of work will be available at its premise at the smart village through the coming Tuesday, 9 March, for an amount of EGP 40,000.

The statement of work includes the general and financial regulations and conditions stipulated by ITIDA for registration.

It also announced that applicants must be local firms working inside Egypt and meet all conditions and guarantees stipulated in law number 15 of 2004 and its bylaws, in addition to providing all required documents.

The ITIDA is committed to observing all substantive and technical conditions and all the regulations specified by law no.15 for the year 2004 and its executive regulations, according to the statement.

The issuing of additional e-signature services licenses is one of a series of initiatives and policies led by ITIDA that aim to support Egypt’s digital transformation.

ITIDA’s CEO Amr Mahfouz said the issuing of additional e-signature licenses comes in response to the fast development witnessed in the local information technology sector and also to further enhance Egypt’s digital readiness.

Mahfouz explained that the new licenses will enable the spread of high-security e-signature services’ usage to meet the increasing and unprecedented demand across all sectors.

The ITIDA will host a series of Q&A sessions to answer all applicants' queries in March, according to the statement.

After the deadline for submitting bids, the ITIDA will commence reviewing and evaluating all bids by a committee of specialists and experts, and results will be officially announced soon afterwards.

The ITIDA said that it is committed to awarding licenses in a period not exceeding 60 days from the date of submitting license applications, and after the submission of all required documents, unless ITIDA decides to extend applications grace-- period.

The ITIDA licenses will be valid for three years.

The e-signature law was issued in 2004 to support Egypt’s e-commerce industry by securing the internet as a legally viable medium for digital transactions in order to boost digital transformation in all state sectors.

The bylaws of the e-signature law No. 361 of 2020 have been amended under the decision of the communications and information technology minister to accelerate Egypt’s digital transformation adoption, strengthen the central role of e-signatures in developing the efficiency of administrative work, improve government services, and add to Egypt’s competitiveness globally.

In 2020, Egypt was ranked among the top 10 improvers in Roland Berger’s Digital Inclusion Index.

The index measures and analyses levels of digital inclusiveness in 82 countries across the globe based on their scores across four digital inclusion levers: accessibility, affordability, ability, and attitude.

source: Ahramhram