Weekly Market Highlights

8th of January 2026

This week’s developments highlight strong momentum across MENA’s technology ecosystem, with funding rounds, regulatory milestones, and strategic expansions spanning AI, fintech, cloud infrastructure, PropTech, gaming, and digital payments. The activity reflects both deepening regional innovation and MENA’s increasing integration into global technology and capital markets.

Business For Teens closed a six-figure pre-seed funding round led by angel investors to scale its entrepreneurship and financial literacy programmes for teenagers aged 10–16. Founded in 2024 by Nadeem Barakat, the startup has partnered with 10+ schools across Egypt and Saudi Arabia, reaching over 600 students, and will use the funding to expand operations and deepen school partnerships across Egypt and the GCC.

FitXpert raised a seven-figure investment from Foras Investment under the 0107 Invest initiative to scale its end-to-end SaaS platform for fitness trainers, nutrition centres, and clinics. Founded in 2023 by Salah Selim and Mostafa Mahmoud, the company will use the funding to enhance its technology stack, strengthen operations, and accelerate regional expansion, positioning itself as a core operating platform for fitness and nutrition businesses across the Arab world.

MilkStraw AI raised $2M in seed funding led by VentureSouq, with participation from Ibtikar Fund and M Capital, to scale its AI-powered cloud cost optimisation platform. Founded in 2023 by Jawad Shreim, the company automates cloud infrastructure optimisation for startups and will use the funding to expand its product suite,including Right Sizing and an AI-driven conversational interface,and accelerate regional expansion across MENA.

Aamar closed a Seed funding round exceeding $4M with participation from Aqar App, Rzm Investment, Al Majdiah Investment, Blom Invest, and angel investors to scale its AI-powered leasing and asset-finance platform. Founded in late 2023 by Faisal Alarfaj, Abdulaziz Alyabis, and Yousef Qanaq, Aamar will use the funding to expand product capabilities and scale geographically across Saudi Arabia, streamlining the rental journey for individuals and businesses through automation and AI.

Doushesh closed a pre-seed funding round, marking a milestone for Syria’s emerging startup ecosystem. Founded in 2025 by Alaaeddin Zarzour and Zafer Odabashi, the platform offers a local-first classifieds marketplace spanning real estate, vehicles, electronics, jobs, and services. The funding will support nationwide expansion across Syria and enhancements in trust and safety, with a focus on verified listings, retention, and transaction reliability

Valu, a subsidiary of EFG Holding, received final approval from the Central Bank of Jordan to launch its services in Jordan under a specialised financing licence. The company plans to start operations in Q1 2026 and has appointed Muthanna Gharaibeh as Chairman and Mohammad Al-Yousef as CEO of valU Jordan, as part of its regional expansion strategy to deliver BNPL and flexible financing solutions across key consumer sectors in the Jordanian market.

Red Sea Global partnered with Bunat Ventures Limited to launch a Saudi-focused AI venture fund, targeting early- and growth-stage startups that are AI-native or use AI as a core business enabler. The fund plans to back ~25 startups over the next three years, with a strong focus on Saudi-based founders and Saudi-founded global companies expanding into the Kingdom, while providing portfolio companies access to RSG’s real-world infrastructure to pilot and validate AI solutions across destinations such as The Red Sea and AMAALA.

VoPay has established its global headquarters in Doha, Qatar, positioning the city as a hub for expanding its financial infrastructure services across regional and global markets. Supported by Invest Qatar and the Qatar Financial Centre, VoPay plans to hire 400+ professionals in Qatar over the next three years to scale infrastructure serving central banks, financial institutions, governments, and large enterprises, while modernising financial systems and enabling cross-border financial connectivity.

Mastercard granted a licence to QNB Group to expand card issuing and payment acceptance in Syria, enabling locally and internationally accepted Mastercard payment solutions for individuals and businesses. The move follows a MoU with the Central Bank of Syria to modernise the country’s digital payments infrastructure, and aims to enhance digital banking services, promote financial inclusion, and support Syria’s transition toward a more advanced and secure digital payments ecosystem.

SPARQ has announced its relocation to Innovation City in Ras Al Khaimah, the world’s first AI-powered free zone, marking a major milestone for the region’s growing gaming and creator ecosystem. Built by industry veterans, SPARQ is developing an AI-native game engine and creator platform that enables creators to build and launch games 10–100x faster than traditional engines through full AI-assisted development. The company plans to invest long term in Ras Al Khaimah, establish a SPARQ Creators Centre, and attract global engineering and creative talent, reinforcing the Emirate’s ambition to become a global hub for gaming, AI, and digital creation.

We’ll be back next week with the latest funding announcements, product launches, and ecosystem updates from across the region.