Dealmaking accelerated within the Middle East area this week, led by a slew of fundraises by startups, moreover an acquisition and the launch of a company enterprise capital fund.  

The UAE-based startups that raised funding embody Revibe, an electronics ecommerce platform, and healthtech platform Alma Health. Saudi Arabian foodtech startup Kaso Technologies additionally secured funding.  

Besides, Abu Dhabi-based cybersecurity participant OryxLabs was acquired by know-how group EDGE and meals and beverage firm Agthia Group arrange a company enterprise capital car to deploy funds in food-related startups.  

Kaso Technologies, a Saudi Arabia-based foodtech startup, raised $10.5 million in seed capital from buyers comparable to Dubai-based Spade Ventures and Saudi Arabia’s Hala Ventures, Seedra Ventures and Derayah.  

Other buyers embody Oman-based Cyfr Capital, San Francisco’s Pioneer Fund, and Singapore’s Vulpes Ventures. Regional household workplaces and different buyers from Saudi Arabia additionally took half within the spherical, as did earlier buyers. 

Founded in 2021 by Manar Alkassar and Ahmed Soliman, Kaso is a business-to-business platform digitizing orders and procurement between eating places and meals suppliers. It additionally presents credit score and cost services for eating places.  

The firm will use the funding to scale its restaurant provide administration instruments to supply improved providers to its community of over 5,000 companions within the UAE and Saudi Arabia. It additionally launched a fintech platform to increase its operations within the meals and beverage procurement market within the Gulf area. It goals to realize a gross merchandise worth of $1 billion within the subsequent one yr.  

Abu Dhabu-based healthtech startup Alma Health secured $10 million in Series A funding to speed up its development in Saudi Arabia, enter new markets, and increase its workforce dimension.  

The funding spherical was led by Knuru Capital and Hambro Perks Oryx Fund, and likewise noticed participation from e& Capital, S3 Ventures, Pinnacle Capital, and Khwarizmi Ventures.  

Founded in 2021 by Tariq Seksek and Khaldoon Bushnaq, Alma Health is a direct-to-patient digital healthcare software, which presents digital physician consultations immediately with the corporate’s licensed in-house physicians. It is aimed to cater to sufferers with continual situations. Alma Health at present operates within the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt.   

The refurbished electronics market raised $2.3 million in a funding spherical led by Paris-based Resonance and Flat6Labs. It additionally noticed participation from Techmind, Financiere Saint James and a number of other angel buyers. 

Revibe will use the funding to increase in its core markets and scale its operations and buyer care workforce.  

Revibe was based in July 2022 by Abdessamad Benzakour and Hamza Iraqui. It presents a business-to-consumer platform for refurbished electronics that it claims are 30-70% cheaper than model new merchandise. It goals to boost additional capital within the second half of 2023.    

Agthia Group and its guardian, sovereign wealth fund ADQ, launched a $54-million company enterprise capital fund to take a position primarily in meals and snack-related startups. The stage-agnostic fund is aimed toward increasing Agthia’s innovation and capabilities and create worth with startups, the group stated.  

Agthia Ventures will consider startups that supply snacks and drinks, useful water and hydration, different proteins, sustainability options in farming and packaging, e-commerce options for the meals and beverage business, and different functionality enhancements related to the group’s worth chains.  

It will look throughout early-stage, seed, and development funding alternatives. The fund will likely be co-managed with Touchdown Ventures, which specialises in establishing and working company VC programmes for blue-chip corporates. 

The UAE-based EDGE Group acquired Abu Dhabi-based cybersecurity firm OryxLabs for an undisclosed quantity.  

The acquisition will permit EDGE to increase its portfolio to supply superior options addressing key cybersecurity-related points, each regionally and internationally.  

Founded in 2019 by Mansour AlMulla, EDGE Group presents options for the defence sector. OryxLabs, based in 2020, supplies tailor-made cybersecurity options to safeguard its purchasers from rising cyber threats, leveraging its experience in information science, AI, safety analysis, and Big Data.