Gate Capital News Letter | Issue 738

CASHIN, a Saudi fintech platform specialized in the energy sector, has announced the closing of a SAR 60 million “Series A” investment round led by Impact46. The round reflects growing confidence in CASHIN’s role in advancing the digital infrastructure of fuel stations and energy across the Kingdom.

CASHIN is the first fintech platform specialized in the energy sector in Saudi Arabia. Founded by Omar Alrammah, Abdulkarim Zrik, and Obay AlMadi.

Egyptian e-commerce platform Breadfast has secured $50 million in a pre-Series C funding round, backed by Mubadala Investment Co., a Saudi billionaire family, Japan’s SBI Investment Co., and Olayan Financing Company, alongside venture capital and institutional investors.

Founded in Cairo, Breadfast has evolved from a fresh bread delivery service into a vertically integrated e-commerce platform offering groceries, pharmaceuticals, payment services, private-label products, and branded coffee shops.

Madfu, a Saudi-based fintech startup specialising in Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) solutions, has raised SAR 95 million ($25.5 million) in a Pre-Series A funding round led by Afaq Capital, with participation from a group of angel investors.

The newly secured capital will support Madfu’s next phase of growth, including expanding its merchant network across Saudi Arabia, strengthening operational infrastructure, and enhancing its technology stack.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia will continue to lead the Middle East’s sustainable bond issuance, which is forecast to hit around $20 billion to $25 billion this year, according to S&P Global.

Saudi Arabia’s United Pharmacies Group has fully acquired shares of Kunooz Pharmacies, owned by Global Health and Beauty Co., in a deal valued at more than SAR 100 million, with the aim to strengthen its position in the pharmaceutical retail market.

Retal Urban Development Co. signed a share swap agreement (SSA), on Feb. 14, with Al Fozan Holding Co. to acquire the latter’s entire stake in Ajdan Real Estate Development Co.

Dubai-based regional digital real estate investment platform Stake has raised $31 million in a Series B round led by Emirates NBD, bringing its total funding to $58 million.

Other participants in the round included Mubadala Investment Company, Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), Property Finder, STV NICE, Wa’ed Ventures, GFH Partners and Ellington Properties. Since entering Saudi Arabia, Stake has closed three real estate funds in the market and channeled more than SAR 416 ($111 million) million into the local sector, according to a statement on Tuesday.

Ascentium, a leading global business services platform headquartered in Singapore, has acquired Clara, the largest licensed corporate service provider (CSP) in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). This acquisition significantly expands Ascentium’s footprint in the Middle East via Clara’s established presence in ADGM and the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

ZIWO, an Arabic-first, AI-powered cloud contact centre platform purpose-built for the Middle East, has secured a strategic growth credit investment from the Amplify Growth Fund, managed by Ajeej Capital (DIFC) Limited.

The investment builds on a period of strong enterprise adoption and will support ZIWO’s continued expansion across the GCC, amid rising demand for AI-driven customer communication and automation.

Solidrange, the Saudi-based cybersecurity startup specialising in AI-powered Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) automation and cybersecurity awareness solutions, has announced the successful closure of a $2.4 million Seed funding round.

The round was led by Sharaka Capital, with participation from Sadu Capital, SEEDRA Ventures, and Tali Ventures, the investment arm of stc (Saudi Telecom Company).

QuicKart, the UAE’s first dedicated fresh commerce platform specialising in dairy and farm produce, has secured $1.5 million in seed funding to accelerate its farm-to-home model, strengthen operational infrastructure across Dubai, Sharjah, and Ajman, and prepare for its upcoming launch in Abu Dhabi.

The capital will be deployed with precision toward supply-chain optimisation, technology enhancement, and expanding last-mile fulfilment capabilities to support scalable growth across the Emirates.

Egypt-based e-commerce infrastructure startup Flextock has raised $12.6 million in a Series A round led by TLcom Capital, with participation from Conjunction Capital, Capria Ventures, Access Bridge Ventures, Foundation Ventures, BY Venture Partners, JIMCO, Alter Global, MSA Capital, and other investors.

WinVeston Capital Company recently announced the closure of the WinVeston Financing Fund, a private fund compliant with Shariah standards, following an outstanding performance over approximately six months since its launch in July 2025. The Fund recorded a return of 28.87% during its operating period, equivalent to an annualized return of approximately 57%.

Kuwait Energy Basra Limited (KEBL) has secured a $346 million Reserve-Based Lending (RBL) facility from Arab Energy Fund to further the expansion of Iraq’s Block 9 conventional oil field development. The Arab Energy Fund is the initial mandated lead arranger and structuring bank, along with Kuwait Finance House (DIFC Branch) and Trafigura Pte. Ltd. as mandated lead arrangers.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has announced five new projects in Egypt aimed at supporting climate finance, healthcare, food security, and MSME development, signed during a visit by IFC’s Vice President for Africa.

The initiative includes a $150 million investment with Banque Misr to scale green finance across energy efficiency, renewable energy, sustainable transport, and green buildings, while allocating 20% of MSME lending to women-owned businesses.

Saudi AI startup Deep.SA has announced the participation of Vision Ventures in its pre-seed round, extending a previously raised SAR 4.5 million from TAM and Raed Ventures. The new investment will accelerate the development of locally hosted Saudi AI platforms and models, while supporting the expansion of tailored AI solutions for government entities and enterprises.

Origen, an Abu Dhabi-based technology company focused on applying artificial intelligence to real-world commercial environments, today announced a $50 million strategic investment from Bluefive Capital. The investment will support Origen’s mission to design, deploy, and scale AI solutions that address complex operational challenges across government services, smart homes, and advanced manufacturing.

Dawar by Environ Adapt, the Cairo-based circular economy platform, has acquired a strategic stake in BekyaPay, a consumer-facing application that enables households to exchange sorted recyclable materials for cash. The acquisition extends Dawar’s digital infrastructure beyond aggregation and trade layers to the point of waste generation.