Author: Editorial Board

Azerbaijan has opened the first phase of SABAH.city, a new innovation campus in Baku designed to bring together universities, startups, technology companies, researchers and artificial intelligence initiatives within a single ecosystem. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended the opening of the first phase of SABAH.city on September 14. The campus has been established within the High Technologies Park of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Science and Education, with Minister of Science and Education Emin Amrullayev presenting the project during the opening. The broader SABAH.city project is planned across 20 hectares, while its first phase covers more than five hectares and approximately 20,000…

Foodics has launched Capital 2.0 at Money20/20 Middle East in Riyadh, introducing an automated funding solution that uses restaurants’ own performance data and AI-powered underwriting to pre-qualify businesses for financing. The company aims to deploy SAR 375 million in funding through the solution during its first year. Foodics, the MENA-based restaurant operations and financial technology platform, has launched Capital 2.0 at Money20/20 Middle East in Riyadh, introducing an automated funding solution designed to use restaurant performance data to pre-qualify businesses and accelerate access to capital. The launch represents the next step in Foodics’ evolution from a restaurant operations platform into…

Istanbul-based mobile gaming studio Arcustin Games has secured $500,000 in pre-seed funding from Webrazzi GSYF, the venture capital fund established in partnership between Webrazzi and İş Portföy. The investment was made at a $10 million valuation. Founded in 2025 by Barış Dikici and Tolga Dikici, Arcustin Games develops hybrid-casual puzzle games, combining technology and artificial intelligence with a lean studio structure. The company aims to build a capital-efficient and scalable development model capable of replicating successful outcomes across multiple titles. Co-founder and CEO Barış Dikici brings eight years of consulting experience, including involvement in acquisition processes across Türkiye’s gaming and…

Bahrain-founded financial infrastructure platform Tarabut has secured $50 million (SAR 187 million) in strategic financing, strengthening its position in the Kingdom as it expands its embedded finance offering. The financing attracted a group of major Saudi financial institutions and business groups, including Riyad Bank, X-Tech Fund managed by SAB Invest, GIB Saudi Arabia, Zamil Group and Kanoo Ventures, alongside other regional investors. Founded in 2017 by Abdulla Almoayed, Tarabut provides regulated financial infrastructure connecting banks, distributors and consumers across Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain. Its technology enables financial institutions to integrate services such as customer verification, credit decisioning and…

Saudi digital payments company barq has closed a $329.5 million Series A funding round, valuing the company at $1.85 billion and officially propelling it into unicorn territory. The round saw participation from Noon Investments, Sohar International Bank, and M20 Fund, marking a major milestone for one of Saudi Arabia’s fastest-growing fintech companies. Founded in Saudi Arabia, barq operates a digital financial platform offering services including personal accounts, payment cards, domestic and international transfers, rewards, children’s accounts and payment-splitting features. The company is operated by Barraq Finance Company and is licensed and supervised by the Saudi Central Bank. The fintech has…

Egypt-based convenience platform Breadfast has officially launched Breadfast Food, expanding its offering into restaurant delivery as it moves closer to becoming an all-in-one platform for consumers’ everyday needs. The launch follows a beta period that the company says generated strong customer adoption. Breadfast Food allows users to discover and order from a curated selection of restaurants directly through the existing Breadfast app, alongside the platform’s grocery, bakery, coffee and pharmacy offerings. The expansion marks another step in Breadfast’s evolution from an online grocery and bakery business into a broader everyday convenience ecosystem. The new restaurant delivery service builds on the…

Egyptian financial institutions AMAN Holding, Bokra and Erada Finance have joined Scale It Forward, a new initiative designed to accelerate the adoption of venture debt as an alternative financing tool for high-growth companies in Egypt. The three institutions signed framework agreements with programme implementer enpact during a launch event in Cairo, becoming the initiative’s first financial institution partners. The collaboration will see them explore and pilot venture debt products tailored to scaleups seeking growth capital without giving up additional equity. Expanding Financing Options for Egyptian Scaleups Scale It Forward was co-developed by GIZ Egypt and enpact to help address the…

Saudi construction technology startup BRKZ has secured $31 million in new capital, combining a $13 million Series B equity round with $18 million in growth debt, as it looks to expand its AI-powered procurement platform and embedded financing capabilities. The Series B was co-led by Wa’ed Ventures and 500 Global, with participation from BECO Capital and ANB Capital. The $18 million debt commitment comes from Stride Ventures and forms part of BRKZ’s previously announced $30 million venture debt facility. The latest financing brings the company’s total capital raised across equity and debt to more than $70 million. Founded in 2022…

Abu Dhabi-headquartered AI startup Synapse Analytics has raised $13 million in Series A funding, bringing its total capital raised since inception to $17 million. The round was led by global technology investment firm Partech, with participation from existing investors Algebra Ventures and Silicon Badia. Synapse Analytics plans to use the fresh capital to expand its team, accelerate product development and strengthen its international presence as demand for AI-powered decision infrastructure grows across the financial services sector. Founded in 2018 by Ahmed Abaza and Galal Elbeshbishy, Synapse Analytics develops an agentic AI decisioning platform designed for regulated financial institutions. The company…

The inaugural GITEX AI Türkiye brought more than 300 companies and startups from 70 countries to Istanbul, as Türkiye looks to strengthen its position as a technology and artificial intelligence hub connecting Europe, the Middle East and Asia. GITEX AI Türkiye made its Istanbul debut on September 9–10, bringing together global technology companies, startups, investors, policymakers and industry leaders at the Istanbul Expo Center. The first Türkiye edition of the global GITEX technology platform was hosted by Türkiye’s Investment and Finance Office in strategic partnership with the Ministry of Industry and Technology. More than 300 corporate exhibitors and startups representing…