Ali Qaiser

At Money20/20 Middle East in Riyadh, we joined a timely conversation on the foundations of lasting investor–founder partnerships. Alongside Bilal Abou-Diab, CFA, Vault's Co-founder (and an Outliers Venture Capital founder), and Ravishankar GV, Vault’s latest backer, the panel discussed why enduring partnerships in venture are rarely born in urgency. They’re seeded with conviction, tested by time, and held together by transparency. In a region where ecosystems are maturing rapidly, being intentional about who you bring on board is as critical as the capital itself. And in venture, capital undeniably enables growth, but the right alignment surely determines outcomes.

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anb capital and Lexham Partners have announced that they are launching a $200 million Growth Fund dedicated exclusively to the #MENA region, with a strategic focus on the Kingdom of #SaudiArabia. Read more: https://lnkd.in/efPNZ4KG anb capital, Lexham Partners, Dominic Perks, Fahad Almazyad, Khalid Al Ghamdi #FintechNewsUAE #anbcapital #LexhamPartners #GrowthFund #MENA #StartupFunding #VCs #Fintech #UAEFintechNews

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Raed Ventures is pleased to welcome Kushal Shah as Growth Venture Partner. This strategic addition reinforces the firm’s commitment to supporting entrepreneurs across all stages of their journey, from early growth to regional scale. Kushal brings extensive expertise in growth investing, strategy, and ecosystem building across MENA. He spearheaded e& Capital’s Growth Investment team, was a Senior Partner at Roland Berger advising governments and Fortune 500 companies, and is the Founder of Dubai Angel Investors, where he played a pivotal role in strengthening the region’s early-stage ecosystem. In his new role at Raed Ventures, Kushal will focus on identifying high-potential growth-stage opportunities, supporting scaling strategies, and furthering Raed’s mission of building transformative companies in MENA. Omar A. Almajdouie, Founding Partner of Raed Ventures, welcomed Kushal to the firm: "We are excited to have Kushal join our team at Raed Ventures. His deep expertise in growth investing and strategic advisory, combined with his strong track record of ecosystem building, will be instrumental in supporting founders as they scale their companies and create lasting impact." Expressing his enthusiasm, Kushal Shah said: "I am thrilled to join Raed Ventures and contribute to its mission of empowering exceptional founders. Startups at the growth stage play a vital role in driving economic progress and innovation, and I look forward to working with the team to help founders achieve their full potential." Raed Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that partners with exceptional founders building transformative companies across MENA. https://lnkd.in/dwzBWBTQ

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#DIFC and Partners for Growth (PFG) have announced a strategic growth debt partnership to scale Dubai’s next generation of technology companies. The collaboration brings together DIFC’s vision to drive the future of finance with PFG’s global expertise in private credit investing, unlocking new funding pathways for high-growth technology companies across Dubai and the GCC. Aligned with the D33 Economic Agenda and DIFC’s 2030 Strategy, the partnership will provide structured growth debt to innovation-driven businesses in sectors such as FinTech, HealthTech, InsurTech, PropTech, SME Digital Finance, and SpaceTech. This milestone reinforces Dubai’s position as a global hub for innovation, entrepreneurship and capital. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dqEd5D8N

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🇸🇦 KSA leads MENA VC in funding for the third H1 period in a row In H1 2025, Saudi Arabia raised $860 million in venture funding, nearly twice and five times the UAE and Egypt's funding, respectively. To give clarity on the Kingdom’s strong performance, MAGNiTT is proud to announce our H1 2025 KSA Venture Capital report, in partnership with SVC. The Kingdom’s strong momentum was driven by: 📈 A triple-digit rise in $100M+ MEGA deals (Ninja 🥷🏽 نينجا: $250M, Tabby: $160M) 🪜 A 67% YoY rise in non-MEGA deal flow 🚨 Record 114 deals, capturing 37% of all MENA activity Why this matters: 1. KSA accounted for 56% of total MENA capital in H1 2025. 2. It is now the #1 market by both funding and deal volume in MENA, with deals at par with those of the UAE. 3. Four of the top five sectors in the Kingdom, including FinTech and EdTech, saw remarkable growth in deals. 4. Investor interest is broadening, with international players rising. 🔎 Read the full Saudi VC landscape breakdown in the full report, for FREE: https://lnkd.in/dxnTzk5H #SVC #MAGNiTT #MENA #MAGNiTT

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🚀 MENA startups raised $2.1B across 334 deals in H1 2025 From Saudi Arabia’s $1.3B surge to Egypt’s growing momentum and the UAE’s steady lead in deal count — the region is evolving fast. Explore the full investment map and insights 🔗 Read the full breakdown: bit.ly/4f8Ic11 #MENAFunding #VentureCapital #StartupInvestment #MENA #DigitalDigest #WamdaInsights #StartupEcosystem #GulfStartups #VCTrends

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anb capital and Lexham Partners have announced that they are launching a $200 million Growth Fund dedicated exclusively to the #MENA region, with a strategic focus on the Kingdom of #SaudiArabia. Read more: https://lnkd.in/efPNZ4KG anb capital, Lexham Partners, Dominic Perks, Fahad Almazyad, Khalid Al Ghamdi #FintechNewsEgypt #anbcapital #LexhamPartners #GrowthFund #MENA #StartupFunding #VCs #Fintech #EgyptFintechNews

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📢 Stride Ventures backs erad’s $33M growth debt financing round in Saudi Arabia 🌍 We are delighted to announce that erad, a Riyadh-headquartered alternative financing platform for SMEs, has successfully raised $33 million in growth debt financing. This milestone round was led by Stride Ventures, furthering our commitment to empowering ambitious businesses in the GCC. Founded in 2022 by Salem Abu-Hammour, Faris Yaghmour, Abdulmalik Almeheini, and Youssef Said, erad enables small and medium-sized enterprises to access Shariah-compliant, tech-enabled working capital solutions. With a strong presence across Saudi Arabia and the UAE, erad supports diverse sectors including retail, healthcare, F&B, and e-commerce. This new funding will accelerate erad’s mission to close the region’s $250B SME credit gap, expand operations in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and scale alternative financing solutions tailored to the needs of the GCC’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. 🚀 Closed at Money 20/20 in Riyadh, this round also coincides with Stride Ventures doubling its team size in the region and achieving the first close of its landmark ADGM fund, strengthening our long-term presence in the GCC. Congratulations to the founders and the entire erad team on this achievement! 👏 Read More: https://lnkd.in/g64-vBaU

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