1. 🇦🇪 UAE: startAD and VentureSouq will host the Angel Rising Symposium at COP28 from Dec 5-7, spotlighting ClimateTech for Change. Partnering with the US Mission to the UAE and The Catalyst, the event will emphasise ClimateTech's role in a sustainable UAE. Supported by Tamkeen, its aim is to attract regional investors to climate solutions.

2. 🇦🇪 UAE: Shipsy, a logistics SaaS firm, has acquired India's Stockone, enhancing its warehousing and inventory management capabilities. The move will enhance their offerings by integrating Stockone's warehouse and inventory capabilities, providing a comprehensive logistics experience across transportation, warehousing, and fulfilment.

3. 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia: STV and Google have entered a strategic partnership to advance AI, cloud computing, and digital technologies in the MENA region. They will also launch an AI-focused accelerator within the STV ecosystem. This initiative will offer training on various Google services, aiding startups in enhancing their technical skills.

4. 🇲🇦 Morocco: UM6P Ventures, the venture capital arm of Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, has invested in PayLik, a fintech startup that lets employees access portions of their salaries multiple times a month. Aiming to disrupt the traditional monthly pay cycle, PayLik currently serves 3,000 users and plans to broaden its financial services offerings.

🗝️ Ready to rent? Ejari’s got the keys. This Riyadh-based proptech platform offers a unique Rent Now, Pay Later (RNPL) solution that is aiming to democratise access to real estate.

And they just closed a $1 million pre-seed round! 

• Co-founded in 2022 by Yazeed Al-Shamsi, Fahad Albedah, Mohammed Alkhelewy, and Khalid Almunif, the company is licensed by the Real Estate General Authority of Saudi Arabia.

💰 Investor low-down: The round was led by Sanabil 500 MENA and Hambro Perks' Oryx Fund along with several angel investors.

🌆 Rental riddle

Almost 70% of residential rental contracts in Saudi Arabia are structured on an annual or semi-annual basis.

Paying rent in hefty lump sums can be daunting, especially for young professionals and new families. This can often result in financial strain for tenants who find it difficult to manage these significant payments.

📋 Everyone wins

Ejari switches things up enabling tenants to rent any unit of their choice and split their yearly rental payment across 12 months, with minimal fees. 

👪 For tenants? Empowers them to manage their monthly budgets more efficiently and alleviates concerns about large annual rental bills.

🔑 For landlords? They receive their full year's rent upfront, and potential for increased retention.

The result: A win-win - tenants get financial flexibility, and landlords can entice and retain more applicants in an ever-competitive market.

• Did we mention that their rental solutions are also fully Sharia compliant?

🚀 Looking forward

With their recent funding, Ejari have their sights set on accelerating the roll-out of its RNPL service, and also diversifying into other customer-centric prop-tech solutions.

It’s coming home! My Easy Transfer, a Tunisia-based fintech company, is simplifying remittance transfers from Tunisian diaspora to their families back home.

And, they just raised a $528,000 pre-seed.

• Co-founded by brothers Ismaïl Khenissi and Jabrane Khenissi in 2022, the company recently surpassed 10,000 registered users.

💰 Investor low-down: The round was led by Tunisian-based 216 Capital Ventures, a VC focused on early-stage tech companies.

🌍 Global reach

There are close to 2 million Tunisians living outside their homeland.

And here's the kicker - by the end of 2023, their money transfers are projected to hit the $3 billion mark. Yep, you read that right.

📲 One app to rule them all

My Easy Transfer is stepping up to the plate by providing Tunisians abroad with a faster, more cost-effective and secure remittance solution for users looking to send money back home.

And that’s just the start! The company has their sights firmly set on becoming an all-in-one SuperApp dedicated to facilitating diaspora with a seamless financial service experience. 

• The aim? Money transfers, mobile top-ups, bill payments — all from the comfort of your smartphone.

🔮 Flashforward

This fresh funding will empower the startup to transform its platform into a leading super-app, bolster its footprint in Tunisia and expand its reach into other key African markets, including Morocco, Mali, and Senegal.

Saudi-based start-up mentor, Ihab Tabbara, on how entrepreneurs can quickly make an impression.

Full article here →

👋 Message from the team

We’re delighted to welcome so many new readers this week! Thank you so much for joining us - don’t forget to share with other potential FWDstarters, let’s grow together 🚀 

We’ll see you all again on Friday. Have a question or any feedback? Just hit reply, or provide a rating below.

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