Founding MENA #2

Newsletter #2

Founding MENA · 19 Jan 2026 · 4 min read

Saudi Arabia Fintech

Welcome to the Founding MENA newsletter - bringing you the top stories from across the region every week!

I hope you find the newsletter insightful, but I’m always open to feedback and suggestions. Let’s get into it!

💰 Investment Rounds

🇦🇪 Mal raised a $230M seed round led by BlueFive Capital. See more here.
🇧🇭 FLOOSS raised $22M in a Shorooq-backed credit facility. See more here.
🇸🇦 Governata raised $4M in seed funding from Joa Capital. See more here.
🇸🇦 Aamar raised a $4M seed round led by AQAR عقار. See more here.
🇴🇲 eMushrif raised a $7.5M seed round led by Jasoor Ventures. See more here.

📰 Startup News

Mal

This is how you launch a digital bank!

UAE-based Mal just closed a jaw-dropping $230 million seed round led by BlueFive Capital, one of the largest seed rounds in MENA history.

The mission? Build the world’s first AI-native Islamic digital bank from the ground up. Not a traditional bank with AI features bolted on. A natively intelligent, Shariah-compliant financial institution designed for the next generation of Muslim consumers globally.

With Open Finance integration, personalised wealth management, and ethical banking at its core, Mal is positioning itself to serve over 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide.

Big vision. Massive backing. The race to redefine Islamic banking just got very real.

Ziina

The future of payments in the UAE just went live.

Ziina became the first company in the Emirates to execute a real, customer-initiated Open Finance payment, allowing users to complete instant account-to-account bank transfers using regulated APIs under the Central Bank’s framework.

Partnering with Lean Technologies, Ziina is pioneering a new era where payments bypass card networks entirely; faster, cheaper, and more transparent.

This isn’t a pilot or a test. This is live infrastructure that could reshape how millions of people and businesses move money across the region.

Open Banking started the conversation. Open Finance is finishing it. Expect a wave of new startups on the back of this leap forward.

Read more here.

🔦 Spotlight

Abdallah Abu-Sheikh

Who is the founder behind MENA’s largest ever seed round?

Abdallah Abu-Sheikh is back, and he’s brought the largest seed round in MENA history with him. Mal, his AI-native Islamic digital bank, secured $230M in seed funding earlier this week to bridge the gap in the $7T Islamic finance space.

But what is Abdallah’s entrepreneurial journey, and how did he get to this point?

RIZEK - Co-founded one of the UAE’s first super apps for on-demand home services.

Raised $3.5M seed (2020), then $10M Series A (2021).
Became the world’s first app to enable at-home COVID-19 vaccinations.
Acquired by Astra Tech in 2022.

Barq EV - Co-Founder and CEO of MENA’s first indigenous EV manufacturer.

Set two Guinness World Records before official launch (longest drone delivery flight: 13.6km, longest non-stop return flight: 18km with YAS1 drone).
Launched the Rena Max, dubbed “the Tesla of scooters,” the first EV designed and manufactured in MENA.
Planned production of 50k units by 2025 across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt.

Astra Tech- Founder & CEO of the region’s first Ultra App.

Acquired BOTIM, PayBy, and Rizek to create the region’s first Ultra App.
Grew to 150+ million users across 155 countries.
Exited to G42 in November 2024, stepping down after building from 0 to 1.

Everyone in the MENA startup ecosystem should be excited about Mal’s seed round for two reasons: local investors want to back big visions created by bold founders, and experienced founders like Abdallah are choosing to build again in this region!

📰 Other News

2025 - A record breaking year!

MENA’s startup ecosystem just proved it’s built different.

The region raised a record-breaking $3.8 billion across 688 deals in 2025; a massive 74% year-on-year surge in funding and a 6% bump in deal activity.

While other emerging markets struggled, MENA was the only region globally to grow both funding volume and deal count.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE absolutely dominated, capturing 91% of all capital deployed.

From fintech to proptech to AI, investors are betting big on the region’s innovation potential. The momentum is undeniable: MENA is no longer emerging, it’s arrived.

Read more here.

Oman Launches an International Financial Centre

Oman is making a serious play for regional finance supremacy.

Under Royal Decree No. 8/2026, the Sultanate just established the International Financial Centre of Oman (IFC Oman) with full administrative, financial, and legislative independence.

The game-changer? A regulatory framework based on English Common Law and tax exemptions for up to 50 years to attract global financial services, asset managers, and investors.

This isn’t just another free zone, it’s a strategic move to position Muscat as a legitimate alternative to the DIFC and ADGM.

With Oman’s geographic advantage, political stability, and now world-class financial infrastructure, the GCC’s finance map just got a lot more competitive.

Will IFC Oman pull it off? The next few years will tell.

Read more here.

Outliers VC & SVC launch 2026 Fellowship

The region’s talent pipeline just got a major upgrade.

Outliers Venture Capital and Saudi Venture Capital Company (SVC) have launched the Outliers Fellowship Program 2026: a high-caliber initiative designed to develop entrepreneurial leaders and operators across Saudi Arabia and the wider MENA region.

This isn’t your typical accelerator program. It’s a structured fellowship aimed at cultivating the founders, operators, and ecosystem builders who will define the next decade of MENA tech.

With applications opening January 26, this could be one of the most competitive cohorts in the region.

The message is clear: capital is important, but talent is everything. If you’re building or want to build in MENA, this is the network you want to be part of.

Read more here.

That’s all for this week, thanks! Sam