Gate Capital News Letter | Issue 764

Saudi Arabia’s PayTabs Group and Amazon Payment Services have agreed to a transaction that would transfer Amazon’s Middle East and North Africa (Mena) payments operations to PayTabs in a deal that would significantly consolidate the region’s fragmented payments landscape.

PayTabs has spent years building banking connectivity, regulatory licenses and AI-driven payment infrastructure largely outside the spotlight.

Kuwait-based education technology startup Dawraty has secured an investment from Qatar Development Bank (QDB) as part of a $2 million Seed funding round aimed at supporting its regional expansion across healthcare education, professional certification and exam preparation.

The round values Dawraty at $10 million and remains open to additional co-investors, with its final close expected at the end of November 2026. QDB’s investment followed a due diligence process conducted through its 2026 Accelerator Program.

Takween Advanced Industries Co. completed the acquisition of a 70% stake in Advanced Fabrics Factory Co. (SAAF) from its Chinese partner JOFO Nonwovens Co. The Saudi-listed firm now fully owns SAAF, with all regulatory procedures complete including amendment to SAAF’s commercial registration and Articles of Association.

The transaction involved the acquisition of the Chinese partner’s entire 70% stake in SAAF’s capital, representing 129,360 shares. Takween already owned the remaining 30% stake, representing 55,440 shares.

Saudi venture capital firm STV has secured an investment from global alternative investment manager Arcapita for its Emerging Tech & AI Fund, adding to an institutional investor base that includes Google, regional semi-sovereign entities and endowment investors. The size of Arcapita’s investment was not disclosed.

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), the UAE’s global bank and one of the world’s largest financial institutions, has become the first bank in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region to sign the UN Sustainable Blue Economy Finance Principles, and establish a AED100 billion ($27.23) blue finance target to support water and blue economy-related financing between 2026 and 2035.

UAE-based EDGE Group has completed the acquisition of Brazilian aerospace engineering specialist AKAER, with all customary conditions precedent fulfilled. This follows the share purchase agreement by the two firms in July.

Saudi Arabia-based enterprise AI startup Gaia has raised $1.5 million in a pre-Seed round led by Seedra Ventures.

Gaia was founded by Badr Al-Malluh, Co-Founder and CEO, and Mohammad Rababah, Co-Founder and CPTO. Gaia is a Saudi sovereign AI platform for enterprises that connects knowledge, files, systems, emails and workflows into a single operational intelligence layer where data never leaves the organisation.

Salla, the leading Saudi platform for e-commerce solutions, announced its acquisition of Paylink, a company specialising in payment solutions, in a strategic step aimed at enhancing Salla’s capabilities in the fintech sector and expanding the scope of financial solutions that enable merchants to manage and grow their businesses.

Phoenix Venture Partners Limited (PVP), an Abu Dhabi-based venture capital fund manager, today announced that it has led a US$3.5 million Pre-Series A financing round in Sav, an autonomous consumer fintech platform leveraging artificial intelligence and open finance infrastructure to help consumers save, invest, manage credit, and build wealth through a unified financial ecosystem.

Building on its rapid regional expansion across Saudi Arabia and Egypt, AI startup Velents is driving its growth momentum forward by expanding into Bahrain following a strategic agreement signed with stc Bahrain on the sidelines of LEAP 2026 in Riyadh. The partnership aims to launch an exclusive suite of Agentic AI product bundles tailored for enterprise customers across the Kingdom.

Kuwait-based education technology startup Dawraty has secured an investment from Qatar Development Bank (QDB) as part of a $2 million Seed funding round aimed at supporting its regional expansion across healthcare education, professional certification and exam preparation.

flynas said it signed a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) and a shareholders’ agreement to acquire a 10% of Swissport Saudi Arabia Limited for SAR 50 million ($13.33 million), according to a statement to Tadawul.

The transaction also includes a limited variable consideration linked to shares, calculated in accordance with the mechanism stipulated in the two agreements.

Abu Dhabi’s sovereign investment vehicle L’imad has cleared all key conditions required to proceed with its voluntary cash offer to acquire up to 100 per cent of AD Ports Group. ADQ, a wholly owned subsidiary of L’imad, is offering Dh6.25 ($1.70) per share for AD Ports shares it does not already own. L’imad, through ADQ, already owns 75.42 per cent of the company and launched a voluntary tender offer on August 18 to acquire the remaining issued and paid-up share capital.

Qassim Cement Co. signed on Sept. 8 a share purchase agreement with the shareholders of Amix for Ready Mix Concrete Co. to acquire 100% of the company’s shares for SAR 65 million.  According to a statement to Tadawul, completion of the transaction and transfer of the shares are subject to several conditions precedent, including obtaining the required regulatory approvals and permits from the relevant authorities.

The Boring Company (TBC), founded by Elon Musk, has secured $3 billion in its Series D funding round, led by the United Arab Emirates and affiliated investment entities, valuing the tunnelling and infrastructure startup at $23 billion. The company said the investment will support the expansion of its partnership with the UAE and accelerate the deployment of large-scale underground infrastructure projects across the country, including more than 150 kilometres of tunnels.

Abu Dhabi-based BlueFive Capital has acquired a 30% equity stake in Bugatti Rimac, the producer of Bugatti supercars. The Rimac Group, which holds a 55% stake in Bugatti Rimac said on Wednesday that a consortium led by the New York-based HOF Capital, including BlueFive Capital as its largest investor, agreed to acquire Porsche’s 45% shareholding in Rimac Group and Bugatti Rimac in April.

Mubadala Investment Company has agreed to make a significant minority investment in China-based Luckin Coffee Inc. alongside Centurium Capital, the coffee chain’s controlling shareholder, in a transaction valued at approximately $1 billion. The Abu Dhabi sovereign investor, with a $385 billion portfolio, said the investment comes amid continued growth in China’s coffee market, driven by rising consumption of freshly brewed coffee.

Zeal, the payments technology company bringing loyalty and merchant intelligence to payment terminals, today announced a $10 million funding round, taking its total funding to $14 million. Zeal secures $10 million for global expansionThe company is not disclosing the participants in this round. Zeal has signed contracts with payment acquirers globally to activate its technology on more than four million card machines over the next 24 months.