1. U-Topia (🇦🇪 UAE), a Web3 entertainment company specialising in GameFi, AI music, and video entertainment, has raised $850,000 from GDA Capital.

2. Arab Therapy (🇯🇴 Jordan), a mental health platform connecting Arabs with qualified psychotherapists, has secured $1 million in a seed round led by Flat6Labs and the German Vision Health Pioneers, along with angel investors.

3. Potcast (🇪🇬 Egypt), a leading regional podcast production company has raised an early financing round at an undisclosed value, through the Shark Tank programme.

4. Penny Software (🇸🇦 KSA), a B2B SaaS startup specialising in procurement, has raised an undisclosed pre-Series A funding round, from Iliad Partners, joined by GSI and US-based Knollwood Investments, along with existing investors, including Dallah Investment, Hambro Perks Oryx Fund, and others.

💸 Here’s Fortis! They’re a UAE-based start-up providing POS and CRM solutions that empower small businesses to seamlessly accept both offline and online POS payments.

And they’ve just announced the closure of a $20 million series A funding round! 

• Founded in 2023 by Alberto Caruso, the company recently relocated its headquarters to Dubai.

💰 Investor lowdown: The investment round was led by Opportunity Venture (Asia).

• Last year, Opportunity Venture invested $40 million in UAE-based deeptech XPANCEO's Seed round.

⚙️ Break it down

• Why? SMEs in the MENA region often face significant challenges in the integration of various payment systems and customer management tools. According to a report by the World Bank, approximately 50% of SMEs in emerging markets lack proper access to formal credit, which underscores the broader issue of inadequate business infrastructure, including inefficient payment and CRM systems.

• How? Fortis acts as a one stop shop for small businesses to handle transactions, manage orders, and implement personalised loyalty programs. 

🔮 Flashforward

Fortis will use the fresh funding to enrich its services by focusing on seamless integration with external platforms and prioritising UX/UI design, forging strategic partnerships with banks and B2B services, and developing omni-channel capabilities for a seamless user experience.

Additionally, the startup will invest in brand-building to boost its presence in the fintech and retail tech sectors, and allocate resources to expand in the MENA region and hire new talent.

👋 Say hello to Beltone Venture Capital! They’ve teamed up with CI Venture Capital to manage new $30 million fund aimed at boosting fast-growing tech startups across the MENA region.

• A subsidiary of Beltone Holding, BVC was established in 2023 with the aim of stimulating and providing sustainable funding for early-stage tech and tech-enabled startups in Egypt with regional ambitions.

• CI Venture Capital, a subsidiary of UAE's Citadel International Holdings, invests in emerging and regional SMEs, providing equity capital, debt financing, and growth expertise to its partners.

🎯 Target areas

The fund will invest in pre-seed and seed rounds of innovative MENA-based tech startups and continue supporting its top-performing portfolio companies.

Since its inception in 2023, the fund has already begun deploying capital, finalising transactions in startups, including Bosta, Trella, Qlub, and ariika, over the last couple of months.

🌱 Doubling down on early stage

Ali Mokhtar, CEO of Beltone Venture Capital, emphasised the fund's commitment to investing in pre-seed and seed funding rounds.

This strategy includes supporting standout portfolio companies through subsequent funding rounds and exploring promising investment opportunities across various stages.

• A core focus? High-margin sectors where technology can drive growth.

🤖 Microsoft has invested $1.5 billion in G42 (🇦🇪 UAE), an AI and cloud computing company led by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, to enhance AI solutions via Microsoft Azure.

• Microsoft's investment will secure a minority stake and a board position in G42, while also supporting a $1 billion fund to elevate AI skills in the UAE and surrounding regions.

💡Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV), a joint venture between Kepple Africa Ventures and Verod Holdings, has successfully closed its pan-African VC fund at $60 million.

• The fund aims to bridge the funding gap for African startups transitioning to Series A and B stages.

• Led by existing investors and new investors, including SCM Capital from Nigeria and institutional investors from Japan, including Taiyo Holdings and C2C Global Education Japan.

• iRobot. Boston Dynamics introduces a new, all-electric "Atlas" robot

• Close call. NASA identifies the 1.6-pound metal object that crashed through a Florida home as space debris

• Dismissed. Google dismisses 28 employees for protesting the company's most recent cloud computing deal

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