Keeping track of MENA's mega-projects
Meet the Dubai-based YC-backed startup with Paul Graham and Peter Thiel on its cap table
Jamie Lane & Zoe O Dwyer
September 04, 2024
Welcome back, and a very big hello to the new subscribers who have joined FWDstart since last week! 👋
This week’s edition is the first instalment in a new two-part series, where we’ll be diving into a sector that has experienced a remarkable 1069.7% year-over-year increase in regional funding—contech 👷♀️.
Today, we’ll start by putting YC-backed Tenderd under the microscope.
Then next week, we’ll dig into potential reasons behind this surge in investment, explore what it means for the industry, and highlight the key players to watch, both operators and investors.
Ever dreamt of having Paul Graham and Peter Thiel on your seed round cap table?*
Now, imagine achieving that just six months after launching—without even using a pitch deck.
That's exactly what Arjun Mohan did in 2019.
He raised the then-largest seed round in MENA's history—$5.8 million—for Tenderd, a startup matching construction companies with idle equipment to those looking to rent.
How did he do it? Let's rewind. ⏮️
*(It’s probably the only table where you could get them to sit next to each-other)
🏗️ The foundations
After graduating from university in Toronto, Arjun and two friends launched Eureka King in San Francisco - a platform to help publishers better target their audience.
But a family emergency brought him back to the UAE, where he saw a new opportunity.
The construction business his father was a partner in, in Dubai, was struggling.
A number of companies were renting out idle equipment for free cash flow.
Arjun thought there was a market gap and founded Tenderd, a platform connecting equipment owners with potential renters.
Y Combinator saw the potential.
They accepted Tenderd as only the second MENA-based startup into its famed accelerator, which has produced Airbnb, Reddit, Coinbase and Stripe to name only a few.
The timing was perfect.
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Just three years prior, YC had backed EquipmentShare, a U.S. company with a similar model that quickly skyrocketed to a $1 billion valuation.
During his three months at Y Combinator, Arjun refined the product and then returned to Dubai to build the business, signing up equipment owners and potential renters.
When it came to fundraising after graduating, Arjun chose a bold strategy: skip the pitch deck.
Instead, he focused on in-person conversations to share insights organically and address investor concerns directly.
If investors insisted on a deck, he’d send over a brief email with bullet points.
By the end of 2018, his approach paid off—raising $5.6 million from a stellar lineup, which also included Paul Buchheit (Gmail creator), Justin Mateen (Tinder founder), Matt Mickiewicz (Flippa founder), BECO Capital, VentureSouq, SOMA, Dynamo, and Global Founders Capital.
🔄 The pivot
Originally a marketplace for heavy equipment rentals—like bulldozers, excavators, cranes, rollers, and trucks—Tenderd later pivoted to a SaaS platform offering end-to-end management of heavy machinery.
More on the why later.
How it works?
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