Happy Friday! For those of you lucky enough to have enjoyed a well-deserved break over the holidays – welcome back! For those still on holiday, we’re not going to lie –we’re extremely jealous.

As expected, it’s been quiet on the development and announcement front, but don’t be fooled – this is just the calm before the storm.

That’s certainly true for us as we gear up for a big launch on Wednesday, January 15th. While we can’t share all the details just yet, we’re confident it’s something to get excited about (and yes, we’re a little biased).

Enjoy this week’s edition 👇

This week’s round-up is a 5 min read:

• 🥙 Calo raises $25 million Series B to expand its meal plan service beyond MENA

• 🇦🇪 Mubadala beats PIF in global sovereign spend in 2024

• 💰 SVC backs Global Ventures’ 150M Fund III

• 🇸🇦 Al Madinah Ventures Launches $10 Million Startup Fund

🚀 Startup funding round-up

YNMO (🇸🇦 Saudi), an edtech specialising in inclusive educational and rehabilitative techn for individuals with disabilities, has raised $5 million in funding led by Wa’ed Ventures, with participation from QDB)and Nour Nouf Ventures.

ReNile (🇪🇬 Egypt), an Egyptian agritech and IoT startup offering end-to-end smart farming solutions, has raised $450k in funding.

Schoolz (🇪🇬 Egypt), a tech-driven platform that provides safe, affordable, and reliable student transportation solutions, has raised a six-digit investment from EdVentures.

Ibn Sina (🇪🇬 Egypt), a provider of specialised medical training programs including courses in medical translation, coding, and digital marketing, has secured a six-figure investment from EdVentures.

VReal (🇸🇦 Saudi), a tech platform leveraging advanced scanning technology to create 3D models of products, has raised an undisclosed pre-Seed round from the Nomu Angel Investing Community.

Foodtech

Calo raises $25 million Series B to expand its meal plan service beyond MENA

🥙 Saudi-HQ’d meal plan service Calo has raised $25 million in a Series B funding round as it looks to expand into new markets and offerings.

• Founded in Bahrain in 2019 by Ahmed Al Rawi and later joined by co-founder Moayed Almoayed, Calo operates in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain.

• It offers personalised ready-to-eat meals, including breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks, with filters like high-protein, low-carb, and vegetarian options.

💰 Investor lowdown: The round was led by returning investors Nuwa Capital with participation from Khwarizmi Ventures and STV along with regional family offices.

• The oversubscribed round prompted Calo to extend its Series B to $50 million, with an additional $25 million planned for Q1 2025. Previous backers include Vision Ventures, 500 Startups, Savour Ventures, and Nama Ventures.

⚙️ Breaking it down

Calo reports customers order 30% more meals through its service compared to on-demand aggregators like Careem, attributing this to the combination of meal delivery convenience and health-focused offerings.

Operating with one central kitchen per city and a fleet of 200 vans, Calo claims a CAGR of 100% over five years and annualised revenue exceeding $100 million in 2024.

Saudi Arabia contributes 70% of Calo's revenue, with the UAE at 15%, expected to grow significantly. Meal costs range from $7 to $9, with 10 million personalised meals delivered in 2024.

🐂 Bull case

Calo, valued at $250 million, achieved nine figures in annualized revenue this year and is nearing break-even, with plans to reach profitability by next year ahead of a potential IPO. The company raised funds to diversify business models, serve more customer segments, and expand into new markets.

The global quick-service restaurant market, worth over $500 billion, remains highly competitive, with no clear leader in the “healthy” category.

🔮 Flashforward

Calo plans to strengthen its leadership in the GCC meal subscription market, expand into retail, and acquire a UK-based company in Q1 2025.

A Saudi IPO is on the cards for 2027.

Premium resource

Ahmed Al Rawi: Building Calo from MVP to MENA's leading meal subscription service ↗

[128 minute watch/listen]

The definitive online guide to Ahmed Al Rawi, founder and CEO of Calo, tells the story of how he built MENA’s leading meal subscription service in just three years.

Interviewed by Samer Bejjani, Ahmed shares his journey—from dropping out of college to founding multiple startups—before discovering his true calling with Calo.

In a world flooded with podcast fluff, this stands out. A must-watch.

💰 VC round-up

🇦🇪 Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company outspent Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) in 2024, investing $29.2 billion, up from $17.5 billion in 2023, according to Global SWF data. This accounted for nearly 20% of the $136.1 billion spent globally by sovereign wealth funds.

• PIF’s investments dropped 37% to $20 billion in 2024, down from $31.6 billion the previous year.

• PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan stated the fund is aiming to reduce foreign investments to 18–20% of its AUM, as it focuses more on domestic funding and AI.

💸 SVC has committed funding to Global Ventures’ $150 million Fund III, targeting early-stage companies across the Middle East and Africa. The fund focuses on supply chain technology, energy technology, and agri-tech. Notable Saudi-based startups backed by Global Ventures include Tabby, Lean Technologies, Classera, Immensa, Zid, and Iyris.

🇪🇬 Egypt’s MSMEDA has signed a $3 million investment agreement with Foundation Ventures to support early-stage Egyptian startups. Founded in 2019 by Mazen Nadim, Omar Barakat, and Ziyad Hamdy, the firm has backed prominent startups such as Trella, Abwaab, Rabbit, and Swypex.

🇸🇦 Value Makers Studio (VMS), the Economic Development Center, and the Madinah Chamber of Commerce have launched Madinah Ventures, a $10M fund aimed at attracting 30+ investors annually and launching five startups each year in Saudi Arabia. Value Makers Studio has already invested $180M in startups, creating 800 jobs.

💰 SVC has committed funding to Jadwa Investment’s GCC Private Equity Fund I, a $400 million blind-pool fund targeting high-potential private equity opportunities across Saudi Arabia and the GCC.

📈 Tech

❄️ US-based cloud data storage company Snowflake has established a regional headquarters in Riyadh, strengthening its presence in the Middle East. Founded in 2012, Snowflake enables enterprises to manage cloud infrastructure seamlessly across multiple providers.

 🏦 Fintech

📲 Al Ansari Financial Services and Halan have partnered to introduce Salary Advance and Send Now, Pay Later (SNPL) services, aimed at supporting underbanked populations in the UAE. Since April 2024, the collaboration has served 50,000 users, with a goal of reaching 250,000 by 2025.

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