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Start-ups in the UAE continue to dominate fundraisings in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), with over $65 million raised in February.
The amount was secured in 22 deals, half of which went to the Flare Network, according to a report from Wamda and Digital Digest.
Young businesses in Saudi Arabia raised the second-highest capital, having secured $39 million in three investment rounds.
Egypt came third on the list, raising $4.6 million, followed by Morocco ($1.6 million), Kuwait ($300,000), Iraq ($150,000) and Bahrain ($130,000).
Number of investments
In terms of number of deals, the UAE also led the table with a total of 22 investments, followed by Saudi Arabia, which saw 7 deals.
Total funds raised in the MENA region stood at $88.7 million across 37 deals, registering a modest growth of 2% compared to the previous month.
However, compared to the previous year, last month’s investments into start-ups fell by 88%, reflecting a global slowdown.
Last year, start-ups across the globe raised $285 billion in funding, registering a 38% decline from the $462 billion secured in 2022, as venture capital investors held back investments, according to Crunchbase.
(Writing by Cleofe Maceda; editing by Seban Scaria)
