The territories food and beverage arena had boasted out the major chunk of sharing of the funds within the H1 of 2021, the FinTech Start-Ups have now claimed up for the major share of the Deals closed out.
The UAE powered out the MENA’s (Middle East and North African) investment progression in the overall cumulative amount of deals as well as funding out for the initial half of 2021 (H1) with them acquiring 61 percent of overall MENA’s investments, as per the Magnitt’s H1 2021 Mena Venture Report.
One amongst the leading experts anticipated that within the second half during the year 2021 will further witness out a huge upsurge within the overall amount of the funding boosted within the territories Start-Ups.
There was also an estimate that displayed out that the territories Food and Beverage Segment to have attributed out the major Share of the funds that was invested within the H1 2021, and the FinTech Start-Ups claiming to have cornered in with major chunk of amount of deals being sealed out with.
The CEO of Opaala, Marwan Saab, stated out that; “Fintech investments have already been growing steadily, but we’re about to see a gold rush with VCs focusing almost exclusively on fintech.” The Firm is a cloud-backed platform that empowers venue and restaurant guests for ordering and doing the payment within the Contactless manner from their Smart Phones.
During the Initial Half of 2021, VC funding in the territory upsurged by 12 percent from the preceding year in 2020. This also displayed out a half-yearly as well as quarterly record huge levels of the Capital amount being circulated. Additionally, VC funding in initial H1 2021 witnessed out a 64 percent year-on-year intensification.
The territory’s investments augmented between Q3 2020 and Q2 2021, while its dealings also improved by 23 percent.
However, contrarywise, the amount of the deals secured in H1 2021 witnessed out a 20 percent decline year-on-year, taking the total amount of the deals to 254. This was principally due to the alteration of angel investors’ funds to asset classes counting property and stock markets.
The UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt cumulatively claimed 71 percent of capital arranged in the MENA’s territory. Funding for start-ups apprehended at $1.2 billion during the period. A record number of start-ups in the territory have witnessed out the straight benefits of the VC market’s post-pandemic recovery.
Nine start-ups from the territory recorded procurements in H1 2021, while 31 percent of native investments were made by the global investors.
Riyadh-backed start-up Speero, an online-based commercial for automotive after-sales solutions, freshly secured off a nearly $2 million in pre-series A funding. The funding is to be utilized to brace out the Speero’s logistics infrastructure as well as the digital market occurrence.
Fintech is constantly progressing
Within the direct course of the unprecedented, yet one of the gravest ever issue faced by human race specifically in the form of Global Pandemic, the FinTech Market has progressed out with the general global populace set out to confined indoors and businesses being shut down their warehouses for a prolonged time frame, the actual mandate for FinTech solutions have progressed dramatically.
The Equity Partner, board and IC member at Dubai-based venture capital firm Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), Walid Mansour, in his statement to Arabian Business, stated out that “Within fintech, payments and lending solutions have seen increased activity, and fintech enablers such as open banking and fintech software specialised in key verticals such as foodtech have also seen growth.”
Mansour also anticipated that; “H2 will see an acceleration in the start-up industry given all VC funds are focused on deploying across the region.”
He also stated out further that; “Fintech is integrated with all key sectors. It will be a viable payment methodology for consumers and enterprises. Cash to online payments will accelerate over the coming years.”
The CEO of Opaala, Marwan Saab, further added that; “Fintech will become a crowded space, but there are lots of opportunities in digitising most processes. But as we go into our second year of restrictions and limitations, any start-up that can help open up experiences could be a huge hit.”
Saab also stated out that; “If we put aside the crypto/blockchain trend, I’m happy to see growth in the online payments market and the beginning of digital banks that are not all controlled and dominated by the large traditional banks. We’re taking the first steps in a much-needed and long journey to be competitive globally in those areas.”
With fintech on the progression, the territory will be recovering better to strive on a global level.
The Emergence and Progression of CrowdFunding
Saab voiced his pleasure for the gradual progression of crowdfunding in the territory, as he pronounced it as a lifesaver for start-ups.
He also stated out further that; “It allows for better access to early investment and allows the founders to have more control over how much they want to give away at any point. The biggest killer of any start-up is cash flow.”
Saab also stated out that; “We’re at the start of a boom that seems to follow every crisis, making it a great time for entrepreneurs.”
“With crowdfunding, they can break down their overall requirements into smaller but more manageable rounds (short to medium term needs) while maintaining cash flow.”
At this time, Dubai is ranked second major fintech hub in the Middle East, outdone only by Tel Aviv, according to Findexable’s 2021 Global Fintech Index. Riyadh was positioned third on the list, while Abu Dhabi ended in fourth position.
He explained that the economic flourishing collective with the tech talent inflowing the UAE via the National Programme for Coders will possibly progress to a spectacular progression in the start-up ecosystem in the territory.
“We seem to be at a nexus point where demand from the public, a need driven by the pandemic and other regional issues (such as the financial situation in Lebanon), combined with regional talent needed to bring it all to life, and most importantly government regulations are coming together to open the fintech market.”
The UAE is currently ranked 28th in the world on Findexable’s 2021 Global Fintech Rankings Report.
