Latest
Startups
+2
Sep 26, 2025
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2 min read
Saudi stocks post biggest gain since 2020 as CMA signals possible foreign investor shift
The Tadawul All Share Index jumped 5.1% on Wednesday, adding $124 billion in market value, after a Capital Market Authority board member said majority foreign ownership could come into effect by year-end.
Startups
+1
Sep 26, 2025
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2 min read
CloudKitchens, led by ex-Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, lines up banks for Middle East IPO
The company has added JPMorgan, SNB Capital, and First Abu Dhabi Bank to its roster of advisers, joining Goldman Sachs on the deal.
Startups
+3
Sep 25, 2025
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2 min read
Cairo-born Instabug rebrands as Luciq, bets big on agentic mobile observability
The new positioning reflects the company’s ambition to build AI systems that can move engineering teams from reactive debugging to predictive and autonomous issue resolution.
Fintech
+3
Sep 24, 2025
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12 min read
Stitching together financial infrastructure from the Gulf to the world
The Gulf is on the cusp of a cashless economy, yet new products can still take a year to launch. Saudi-based Stitch argues the region doesn’t just need better vendors. It needs a unified stack, built locally from the ledger up, so financial institutions across the globe can launch quickly without compromising compliance.
Startups
+4
Sep 23, 2025
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2 min read
Presight and Shorooq launch $100M global AI fund to accelerate innovation
The vehicle will target AI and analytics startups across multiple stages, with an investment focus spanning smart cities, energy, fintech, AI/ML, AR/VR, gaming, Industry 4.0, and deep tech.
Startups
+3
Sep 22, 2025
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2 min read
erad secures $33M debt facility from Stride Ventures to expand SME financing
Founded in 2022 by Salem Abu-Hammour, Faris Yaghmour, Abdulmalik Almeheini, and Youssef Said, erad offers Shariah-compliant, data-driven financing solutions for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) across the GCC.
News
+1
Sep 22, 2025
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2 min read
VC React Podcast (Episode #52)
This week on VC React, we unpack Tamara’s $1.4B debt facility, debate Hala’s $157M Series B and its Square-style ambitions, and ask if Robinhood’s plan to democratise startup investing is visionary or risky.
Fintech
+3
Sep 19, 2025
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2 min read
Saudi fintech Lendo signs $53M Murabaha deal with Jadwa to boost SME financing
The Murabaha deal follows a $690 million warehouse facility secured earlier this year from JP Morgan to scale SME financing in Saudi Arabia
Analysis
+2
Sep 17, 2025
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4 min read
Advice for the solo (for now) founder
If you are still searching for the right co-founder, or weighing up whether to go it alone, know that you are far from the only one.
Analysis
+2
Sep 17, 2025
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7 min read
How to choose a co-founder with complementary skills
Finding a complementary co-founder is about balance. Know what you need and what you don’t have – then find someone you respect enough to handle that realm completely.
Analysis
+3
Sep 17, 2025
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11 min read
How to find the right co-founder
Co-founders are like a marriage, the cliché goes. But beyond the saying, how do you actually choose the person (or people) you’ll build with? And how do you set that relationship up for long-term success?
Analysis
+2
Sep 17, 2025
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3 min read
How to get partnership terms right: legal and equity considerations
Spelling out the hard stuff early; equity division, vesting schedules, roles and titles, decision rights, departure clauses – can save enormous pain down the road.
Analysis
+2
Sep 17, 2025
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4 min read
How to manage co-founder conflict
Even the “perfect” co-founder pairing will run into friction. In fact, you should expect it. A bit of creative tension is often the hallmark of a strong founding team. The difference lies in how you handle it.
Analysis
+2
Sep 17, 2025
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4 min read
How to test for co-founder compatibility and alignment
A variety of approaches, from gut-feel heuristics to deliberate trial periods, to vet a co-founder match.
Startups
+3
Sep 17, 2025
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2 min read
Agentic AI startup Clarity raises $12M to expand CX platform globally
Founded by Abed Kasaji and Pavel Kochetkov, both part of the “Careem mafia”, Clarity rebranded this year from its former name Anecdote.
Fintech
+4
Sep 15, 2025
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2 min read
HALA raises $157M Series B from TPG’s Rise Fund, Sanabil and others
Founded in 2018 by Esam Alnahdi and Maher Loubieh, HALA provides SME banking and freelancer solutions designed to simplify how small businesses start, run, and grow.
Fintech
+4
Sep 15, 2025
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10 min read
How Lean Technologies builds around the merchant’s hierarchy of needs
Lean’s Mehdi Tazi on why revenue in Saudi still skews to data while the UAE is driven by payments, how the firm applies Maslow’s hierarchy to merchant needs, and what A/B testing reveals about consumer trust.
