Egypt-based fintech firm valU strikes $12.4mn funding deal with Saudi’s Alhokair Family
valU, the Egypt-based buy-now, pay-later (BNPL) fintech platform, has struck a $12.4 million funding deal with the Saudi-based Alhokair Family, which runs the popular Alhokair Fashion Retail.
The deal will lead to Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair, Salman Abdulaziz Alhokair, and Abdul Majeed Abdulaziz Alhokair, together known as the Alhokair Family – to acquire a 4.99 percent equity stake in the fintech start-up, the venture said. The latest round of funding will take the valuation of ValU to $247.4 million.
Sequoia Capital leads $37m funding in UAE-based startup Huspy
Sequoia Capital India led the $37 million funding into the UAE-based proptech startup Huspy to accelerate Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) expansion.
Sequoia India and Southeast Asia last week raised $2.85 billion across a set of funds, including a $2 billion early-stage, venture and growth fund for India and an $850 million Southeast Asian fund.
Scarlt – Dubai’s newly launched E-Commerce startup
Dubai, UAE-based startup e-commerce platform Scarlt has recently announced its participation at the Seamless Middle East 2022, the regional e-commerce industry’s top trade event, which takes place at Dubai World Trade. The participation closely showcased Scarlt as a new startup in the region. The brand showcased its business model and products to potential investors and partners during the event. Scarlt is a UAE-based startup e-commerce platform that aims to provide quality clothing at a price its customers can afford.
Sheikha Hend Al Qassemi joins Web3 startup Artfi
The world is moving towards Web3 and Metaverse. And traditional businesses are marking their presence in the world of Web3. Artfi has built a strong team of advisers, investors and supporters. Sheikha Hend Al Qassemi, a member of the ruling family of Sharjah, has announced her association with Artfi. She has joined Artfi as a partner and adviser to help the project in growth and scale. Sharjah is the capital of Art in the UAE, Sheikha Hend has great exposure to art and culture, she is an artist and an art patron herself and has been supporting and promoting artists from the MENA region.
Tamara, Saudi Arabia BNPL company, to grow its business in UAE
Tamara, a platform for “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) transactions with headquarters in Saudi Arabia, plans to expand into the UAE. According to the business, customers in the UAE will be able to divide their payments at popular stores like Namshi, SHEIN, Styli, Fitness Time, Faces, and Swarovski without incurring interest.
The startup said it hoped to sign up with hundreds more merchants in the coming months for its services. Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, CEO and co-founder of Tamara, said: “Given the strong market potential and current growth rates, we anticipate signing up 1,000 merchants here by the end of the year,” he added, saying that Dubai is the natural second home for Tamara.
