VentureSouq launches MENA region’s first fintech fund

The UAE-headquartered venture capital firm VentureSouq (VSQ) has issued a statement announcing the launch of its MENA FinTech Fund I, the region’s first sector specific fund that prioritizes fintech across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and Pakistan.

The US$50m VentureSouq fund will specifically seek out early-stage fintech and SaaS companies for investment. It will also beam its searchlight on key subsectors including payments infrastructure, alternative credit, digital banking, proptech, insurtech and personal financial management.

The fund will also work closely with innovative regional entrepreneurs that are disrupting financial services.

VentureSouq MENA FinTech Fund I enjoys the financial support of notable powerhouses from across the region including Jada Fund of Funds programme and Saudi Venture Capital Company (SVC), Bahrain’s Al Waha Fund of Funds, UAE’s DisruptAD, ADQ’s venture platform, and Mubadala Investment Company. Investors in the fund also include multinational conglomerates such as OFC, the Middle East investment arm of The Olayan Group.

Founded in 2016, VentureSouq is currently operational in the UAE, Egypt and Saudi Arabia and has backed over 200 firms globally.

The fund has played a very active role in disbursing capital to help startups across MENA and Pakistan, including regional ‘buy now pay later’ Tabby, Saudi-headquartered B2B marketplace Sary and proptech platform Huspy.

UAE-headquartered investments include Baraka, Flexxpay, fintech infrastructure company NymCard and digital bank Verity and in Pakistan, digital ledger platform Creditbook, e-commerce financing platform PostEx and salary advance startup Abhi Finance.