Latest
Startups
+3
Apr 2, 2026
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3 min read
Tunisian co-founders Rihab Lajmi and Badis Zormati join Y Combinator with AI recruitment startup Asendia
The pair say they’re the first Tunisian founders to join YC, with Lajmi the first Tunisian woman to be accepted into the programme.
Funding
+3
Apr 2, 2026
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5 min read
Abu Dhabi's MGX co-leads as OpenAI closes $122B round at $852B valuation
The co-lead position represents a deepening of a relationship that began in October 2024, when MGX participated in OpenAI's $6.6 billion Series E.
Startups
+5
Mar 31, 2026
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4 min read
Egyptian-American founder Will Ahmed's Whoop raises $575m at $10.1bn valuation with QIA, Mubadala and 2PointZero all participating
Whoop now has over 2.5 million members globally, was cash flow positive in 2025 and doubled bookings year on year to a $1.1 billion run rate.
Results
+4
Mar 30, 2026
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3 min read
Exclusive: Tabby's Saudi arm posts $55 million profit on $378 million revenue in first audited annual accounts
The numbers land at a moment when Tabby is widely understood to be preparing for a Tadawul listing, with reports that HSBC, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley are advising on a potential flotation.
Startups
+4
Mar 26, 2026
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5 min read
Lebanese founder Tarek Mansour's Kalshi valued at $22B after latest $1B round
The round marks the third time in under a year that Kalshi's valuation has roughly doubled, from $5 billion earlier in 2025 to $11 billion in December to $22 billion now.
Sudan
+4
Mar 26, 2026
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4 min read
Scalvy, founded by Egyptian and Sudanese engineers, raises $13.9m Series A co-led by Silicon Badia to solve AI's power bottleneck
The company serves over 350 enterprise clients and has processed more than $2 billion in transaction volume across the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
Fintech
+3
Mar 26, 2026
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5 min read
Lean Technologies becomes first fully licensed open banking provider in Saudi Arabia
The company serves over 350 enterprise clients and has processed more than $2 billion in transaction volume across the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
SWFs
+4
Mar 26, 2026
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5 min read
Jeff Bezos pitches Gulf sovereign wealth funds on $100B manufacturing automation fund
If it closes at that scale, the fund would rival SoftBank's $100 billion Vision Fund as the largest private investment vehicle ever assembled, and like the Vision Fund before it, its viability would depend heavily on Gulf sovereign capital.
Fintech
+3
Mar 25, 2026
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23 min read
How stablecoins are rebuilding MENA cross-border payments
How stablecoins actually work and why Tether owns emerging markets. The regulatory landscape across Saudi, Egypt, and the UAE. The founders building the pipes, the sovereignty question, and why the window is closing.
Startups
+4
Mar 25, 2026
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3 min read
Saudi edtech GAGA raises $2.5m pre-Series A led by Abu Dhabi's Phoenix Venture Partners
The platform offers more than 1,000 live programmes across over 200 subjects, combining academic and skill-based learning through real-time teacher-student interaction.
Fintech
+3
Mar 24, 2026
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4 min read
AWS Bahrain region disrupted by drone activity for second time in three weeks
The incident comes just three weeks after drone strikes on March 1 directly hit two AWS facilities in the UAE and caused physical damage to infrastructure in Bahrain, triggering what became one of the most severe cloud outages in the region's history.
