- Startups in MENA raised $764 million in November 2023, a 390% MoM increase and a 74% YoY increase, with mega rounds dominating.
- Saudi Arabia led in funding with $338 million, followed by the UAE with $284 million; fintech was the top sector.
- Male-founded startups secured 98.5% of funds ($753 million), while female founders received less than 2% ($9 million), highlighting a significant gender gap.
As per the recent report by Wamda, Startups in the Middle East and North Africa secured $764 million in funding across 42 rounds in November 2023, marking the highest monthly amount raised so far this year. This represented massive increases of 390% month-over-month and 74% year-over-year.
Excluding debt rounds from October, total equity funding still reached $384 million, a 180% MoM surge. Mega-rounds played a major role, spearheaded by a $250M debt raise for Tamara in Saudi Arabia, Tabby’s $200M Series D in the UAE, and MNT-Halan’s $130M in securitized bonds. Collectively, these three rounds alone accounted for nearly 76% of total November funding.
At the country level, startups based in Saudi Arabia topped the charts with $338 million across nine deals. The UAE followed closely with $284 million spread over 22 deals, while Egyptian startups captured $130.5 million in five rounds. Kuwait, Morocco, Oman and Tunisia also saw investments.
Unsurprisingly, fintech emerged as the highest-funded sector thanks to the huge rounds raised by Tamara and Tabby. Meanwhile, the ‘superapp’ category benefited massively from MNT-Halan’s round. Edtech came third with $41.4 million to Noon.
Additional rounds between $15-$28 million went to players in retail, lending and sports. Retailo secured $15 million, Ajras raised $28 million, Flow48 gathered $25 million, and Immensa secured $20 million in respective funding rounds.
Of the 42 deals concluded, 10 attracted direct global capital from US investors. Domestically, UAE-based Modus Capital was the most prolific early-stage backer, contributing $2.8 million to eight portfolio firms. Saudi investors also participated actively in 10 deals.
However, male-founded startups again secured the lion’s share at $753 million constituting 98.5% versus female founders who received less than 2% of funding with a share of $9 million. Whereas, nine other startups, namely Nowmoney, Awfar, Lynk, Lath, Chari, Wayup Sport, Winshot, Akhdar, and Farcana chose not to disclose fundraising details.
With follow-on megadeals and cross-border investments on the rise, the MENA region is cementing its status as an emerging tech powerhouse.
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