Mega funding rounds fuel Middle East's rising fintech giants

Al-Monitor Pro Members

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst, Al-Monitor

Feb. 21, 2023

Mega funding rounds — those over $100 million — were once rare for startups globally and almost non-existent in MENA. But that’s changing and the main reason is financial technology, or fintech, which boomed when the pandemic helped drive regional adoption of online services. In 2022, fintech companies (or those with fintech solutions core to their offerings) delivered five of MENA’s 10 largest mega rounds. Those five deals, a mixture of equity and debt financings, were alone worth $680 million combined and accounted for nearly 20% of all regional startup funding in 2022. Already, that trend is continuing into 2023: Egypt’s MNT-Halan, a super app offering numerous financial products, announced $400 million in new funding in February at a $1 billion valuation. Despite a global tech industry downturn amid broader economic uncertainty, MENA’s fintech companies are raising more capital than ever, a development that could reshape the region’s tech sector.