Author: Funding, Mergers & Acquisitions

Bahrain-headquartered private markets investment platform Tanami has closed a new funding round backed by a group of strategic regional and international investors, as the company prepares to expand into additional markets and broaden access to private investment opportunities across the region. The funding round included participation from tali ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of stc group, Qatar Development Bank (QDB), UK-based 1818 Ventures, and other strategic regional investors. The financial terms of the round were not disclosed. Founded in 2023 by Nawaf Almaskati and Faisal Aljalahma, Tanami is building a digital gateway to private markets, allowing eligible investors to…

Saudi digital payments company barq has closed a $329.5 million Series A funding round at a $1.85 billion valuation, making the Riyadh-based fintech one of Saudi Arabia’s latest unicorns. The round saw participation from Noon Investments, Sohar International Bank and M20 Fund. The financing comes roughly two years after barq launched its services and follows rapid growth in both its user base and transaction volumes. Founded in 2023 by Ahmed Alenazi, barq is a Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)-licensed financial technology company offering digital payments and money-transfer services through its app. From Launch to 15 Million Users barq says it has…

Saudi Arabia-based proptech company Rize has secured a SAR187.5 million ($50 million) asset-backed Murabaha facility from Jadwa Investment, giving the company additional financing capacity to expand its portfolio of residential rental contracts. Unlike an equity funding round, the facility is specifically structured to finance the underlying rental contracts that power Rize’s business. This allows the company to separate the capital required to finance its rental portfolio from the equity capital it uses for technology, product development, talent and expansion. Founded in 2021 by Ibrahim Balilah and Mohammed Alfraihi, Rize operates a Rent Now, Pay Later model designed to give eligible…

Saudi fintech infrastructure company Tarabut has secured $50 million in strategic financing from a group of leading Saudi financial institutions and family business groups, as the company doubles down on Saudi Arabia and its ambition to power the next generation of embedded finance across the region. The financing was announced on the sidelines of Money20/20 Middle East and includes backing from Riyad Bank, the X-Tech Fund managed by SAB Invest, GIB Saudi Arabia, Zamil Group and Kanoo Ventures, part of the Yusuf bin Ahmed Kanoo Group, alongside other regional institutions. For Tarabut, the significance of the round extends beyond the…

Tabby has raised $233 million in equity funding at a $6.5 billion valuation, giving the Middle East fintech one of its biggest financing milestones as it moves beyond its origins in buy now, pay later into a broader financial services platform. The round was led by Blue Pool Capital, with existing investors HSG, Wellington Management and Arbor Ventures also participating. The new capital will support Tabby’s expansion across Saudi Arabia and the UAE, particularly into credit, payments and money management products. Founded in the UAE in 2019 by Hosam Arab and his co-founders, Tabby became the MENA region’s first fintech…

Clay, the AI-powered go-to-market platform, has raised $115 million in Series D funding at a $7.1 billion valuation, in one of the latest signs that AI is moving beyond software development and into the way companies find customers and generate revenue. The round was led by Wellington, with participation from Sequoia, StepStone, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) Perennial, Meritech, DST, CapitalG, BoxGroup, Boldstart, Bloomberg Beta and Evolution. The New York-based company now serves more than 17,000 companies, including 80% of the Forbes AI 50, alongside customers such as Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, Stripe, ElevenLabs, Workday and Siemens. From Sales Software to an AI…

Saudi Arabia-based construction technology startup BRKZ has secured $31 million in new capital as it looks to transform how contractors and businesses source, price and procure building materials across the region. The funding comprises a $13 million Series B equity round, co-led by Wa’ed Ventures and 500 Global, with participation from BECO Capital and ANB Capital, alongside an $18 million growth debt commitment from Stride Ventures. The debt is part of BRKZ’s previously announced $30 million venture debt facility, rather than a separate new facility. With the latest financing, BRKZ has raised more than $70 million in total equity and…

UAE-based AI startup Synapse Analytics has raised $13 million in a Series A funding round led by Partech, with participation from Algebra Ventures and Silicon Badia. The latest round brings the company’s total funding to $17 million since its founding in 2018. Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, Synapse Analytics was founded by Ahmed Abaza and Galal Elbeshbishy. The company is building an agentic AI decisioning platform designed specifically for regulated financial institutions, putting greater control over AI-driven credit and risk decisions into the hands of the teams responsible for them. Building AI for Regulated Finance Banks, fintechs and other financial institutions…

Saudi Arabia-based water technology startup Flow Guard Solutions has won the 2026 Hult Prize, securing the competition’s $1 million grand prize after emerging from a field of approximately 18,000 teams representing more than 220 universities worldwide. Founded by Mohammed Ahmed, a graduate of the Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship (TIE) Master’s Program at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), and Omar Khalifa, a Ph.D. student in KAUST’s Electrical and Computer Engineering Program, Flow Guard is tackling one of the world’s most persistent infrastructure problems: water loss. The startup has developed a smart water monitoring system that combines ultrasonic sensors,…

Egypt-based fintech Zeal has raised $10 million in a new funding round, bringing its total funding to $14 million as the company looks to expand its technology across millions of payment terminals worldwide. The company, founded in 2019 by Omar Ebeid and Belal Mohamed, is building technology that sits behind the point of sale, helping physical retailers turn ordinary card payments into opportunities for customer identification, loyalty and merchant intelligence. Unlike traditional loyalty platforms that often require separate apps or programmes, Zeal is designed to work through the payment infrastructure merchants already use. Turning The Payment Terminal Into More Than…