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Saudi Arabia

Fintech

+4

Egypt's Thndr receives initial approval for Saudi brokerage licence, targets Q1 2027 launch

Jun 12, 2026

•

2 min read

Egypt's Thndr receives initial approval for Saudi brokerage licence, targets Q1 2027 launch

The Saudi push comes as the EGX ranked Thndr the largest of its 120 brokerages by value traded in the first four months of 2026, with a 12.9% market share and $1 billion in assets under custody across its products.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Food Delivery

+3

Saudi unicorn Ninja weighs bid for Delivery Hero's Middle East assets as HungerStation founder eyes return

Jun 9, 2026

•

2 min read

Saudi unicorn Ninja weighs bid for Delivery Hero's Middle East assets as HungerStation founder eyes return

Ninja, which was valued at $1.5 billion during a fundraise last year, will initially focus on HungerStation, which would be easier to integrate and face fewer regulatory obstacles.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Saudi Arabia

+2

Saudi Venture Capital appoints Nora Alsarhan as CEO in leadership transition after six years under founding chief Koshak

Jun 5, 2026

•

1 min read

Saudi Venture Capital appoints Nora Alsarhan as CEO in leadership transition after six years under founding chief Koshak

Alsarhan joined SVC in June 2019 as investment director and has since risen through CIO and deputy CEO roles, overseeing the firm's investment strategy, governance and portfolio performance.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Food Delivery

+4

To understand Saudi quick commerce, look to India

Jun 4, 2026

•

21 min read

To understand Saudi quick commerce, look to India

The Kingdom's grocery-delivery shakeout is really a fight between Amazon and Noon, one in which q-commerce is almost incidental, and its early acts have already played out in India.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Food Delivery

+3

Uber increases its Delivery Hero stake to 37% at €12B valuation

May 28, 2026

•

1 min read

Uber increases its Delivery Hero stake to 37% at €12B valuation

Uber now controls 24.99% of Delivery Hero's voting rights, positioned just below the threshold that would trigger a mandatory takeover offer under German law.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Food Delivery

+4

Uber tables takeover bid at €10 billion valuation for Delivery Hero as DoorDash circles Talabat and HungerStation

May 24, 2026

•

2 min read

Uber tables takeover bid at €10 billion valuation for Delivery Hero as DoorDash circles Talabat and HungerStation

DoorDash is primarily interested in Delivery Hero’s Middle East business, which includes Talabat and HungerStation, and is also seeking the Turkish arm Yemeksepeti.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

E-Commerce

+5

Alabbar says AI will halve Noon's staff in three months

May 22, 2026

•

2 min read

Alabbar says AI will halve Noon's staff in three months

The remarks at the Belgrade Business Summit follow Alabbar's earlier ambition to reduce Noon's driver headcount by half by 2027.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Saudi Arabia

+3

The machine behind Impact46's returns

May 20, 2026

•

12 min read

The machine behind Impact46's returns

A fund-by-fund breakdown of the firm's carry mechanics, reverse-engineered DPI, how carry feeds into a bonus pool, a closer look at the nuances of the Jahez 22x exit, and what Saudi's public market exit whisperer is betting on next.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Fintech

+3

Tamara Q1 2026 revenue triples as Islamic financing line scales to 27% of revenue

May 15, 2026

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2 min read

Tamara Q1 2026 revenue triples as Islamic financing line scales to 27% of revenue

The Riyadh-headquartered BNPL lender's loan book grew 33%, its Goldman/Citi/Apollo funding facility was upsized to SAR 5.8 billion, and accumulated losses flipped into positive retained earnings for the first time.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Fintech

+3

Tabby's Saudi unit Q1 profit growth lags 34% revenue rise as in-house build-out bites

May 15, 2026

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3 min read

Tabby's Saudi unit Q1 profit growth lags 34% revenue rise as in-house build-out bites

The Riyadh-headquartered BNPL lender's loan book crossed $1 billion for the first time, but operating expenses jumped 73% and net debt remains above the SAMA-prescribed ceiling.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Startups

+4

Saudi-based Aumet raises $12M Series A led by Emkan Capital to scale AI procurement platform

May 15, 2026

•

1 min read

Saudi-based Aumet raises $12M Series A led by Emkan Capital to scale AI procurement platform

The platform processes over $1B in GMV annually, connecting over 12,000 pharmacies across Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia with more than 1,000 pharmaceutical suppliers.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Startups

+4

TruKKer secures up to $300M facility from ADCB as digital freight network unlocks institutional bank financing

May 15, 2026

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1 min read

TruKKer secures up to $300M facility from ADCB as digital freight network unlocks institutional bank financing

Founded in 2016 by Gaurav Biswas, TruKKer connects more than 60,000 transporters with over 1,200 enterprise clients across 40 countries.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Fintech

+4

Stream raises $5.2M seed extension led by BECO Capital, bringing total seed funding to $9.2M in under six months

May 15, 2026

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1 min read

Stream raises $5.2M seed extension led by BECO Capital, bringing total seed funding to $9.2M in under six months

The fintech company builds billing and payments infrastructure that consolidates invoicing, recurring payments, reconciliation and cash flow tracking into a single platform.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Fintech

+4

Saudi fintech Stitch raises $25M Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz in the firm's first GCC investment

May 14, 2026

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1 min read

Saudi fintech Stitch raises $25M Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz in the firm's first GCC investment

The round brings Stitch's total funding to $35 million as the Riyadh-based financial infrastructure platform reports $5 billion transacted in the past six months.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Food Delivery

+4

Delivery Hero CEO to step down under activist pressure: what it means for talabat and HungerStation

May 13, 2026

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3 min read

Delivery Hero CEO to step down under activist pressure: what it means for talabat and HungerStation

Aspex Management, now Delivery Hero's largest practical voting bloc after raising its stake to 15%, has called for withdrawals from entire regions, including the one now generating most of the group's profit – MENA.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Startups

+4

Saudi early-stage VC Khwarizmi Ventures closes Fund II first close at $70M

May 8, 2026

•

1 min read

Saudi early-stage VC Khwarizmi Ventures closes Fund II first close at $70M

Fund II will invest $1 million to $5 million initial cheques into seed and Series A startups across the GCC, up from the $500,000 to $2 million range in Fund I.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Jordan

+5

Careem makes sweeping layoffs across multiple markets, closes Berlin office

May 7, 2026

•

1 min read

Careem makes sweeping layoffs across multiple markets, closes Berlin office

The cuts span the UAE, Jordan, Egypt, Pakistan and Germany, with Careem yet to publicly acknowledge them.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Food Delivery

+3

Exclusive: Careem is winding down most of its consumer services in Saudi Arabia

May 3, 2026

•

4 min read

Exclusive: Careem is winding down most of its consumer services in Saudi Arabia

Co-founder Abdulla Elyas confirms a 'strategic pause' as Careem strips most consumer services from its Saudi app, with the exception of Rides and Bikes.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Public Markets

+4

At Delivery Hero, MENA is doing most of the heavy lifting

Apr 30, 2026

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4 min read

At Delivery Hero, MENA is doing most of the heavy lifting

The Berlin-listed group's Gulf operations now generate roughly 60% of its EBITDA from 30% of its GMV. A regulator-mandated divestment of its largest shareholder will test what that engine is worth.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Results

+5

Inside Tamara's Books

Apr 29, 2026

•

20 min read

Inside Tamara's Books

What 40 pages of audited financial statements reveal about how Saudi's first homegrown fintech unicorn rebuilt its revenue model, underwrites a lending book it didn't have twelve months ago, funds it all at rates its nearest competitor can't match, and prepares for what comes next.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Contech

+3

Saudi's BRKZ lands investment from SIDF's investment arm as supply chain platform eyes cloud manufacturing

Apr 29, 2026

•

1 min read

Saudi's BRKZ lands investment from SIDF's investment arm as supply chain platform eyes cloud manufacturing

The investment will accelerate BRKZ's evolution from a procurement digitisation platform into what the company calls cloud manufacturing.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Saudi Arabia

+3

SVC backs new $200M Growth Catalyst Fund targeting mid-market companies

Apr 24, 2026

•

1 min read

SVC backs new $200M Growth Catalyst Fund targeting mid-market companies

The Riyadh-based private equity firm was founded in 2025 by Turki Al-Dayel, who chaired SVC's own Investment Committee from 2023 to 2025 before stepping down to launch the vehicle.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

Startups

+3

Saudi grocery delivery platform Nana enters financial reorganisation after raising over $200M from Kingdom Holding, STV and others

Apr 20, 2026

•

2 min read

Saudi grocery delivery platform Nana enters financial reorganisation after raising over $200M from Kingdom Holding, STV and others

The financial reorganisation comes as Saudi Arabia's delivery and quick commerce market has become one of the most competitive in the world.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

SaaS

+3

Signit raises $15m Series A to build AI-powered contract management for Saudi government and enterprise

Apr 20, 2026

•

1 min read

Signit raises $15m Series A to build AI-powered contract management for Saudi government and enterprise

Founded in 2021 by Mohamed El Abbouri, the company built its initial business around a digital signature platform designed specifically for the Saudi market.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane

E-Commerce

+4

Saudi fashion startup Aya raises $7m Series A led by RAED Ventures as demand-driven abaya model draws PIF's Sanabil

Apr 16, 2026

•

1 min read

Saudi fashion startup Aya raises $7m Series A led by RAED Ventures as demand-driven abaya model draws PIF's Sanabil

Aya was founded in 2024 by Munira Al Kadi (CEO) and Abdulrahman Al Ammar, who both previously worked together at Soum, the Saudi second-hand electronics and used goods marketplace.

Jamie Lane
Jamie Lane
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