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$50m Abu Dhabi tech fund receives PIF investment

By Neil Halligan
Startup business people group working everyday job at modern office. Tech office, tech company, tech startup, tech team. Alamy via Reuters
The Abu Dhabi fund sees the regions tech-fuelled growth as an opportunity to invest in fintech, logistics and property tech startups
  • VC firm Iliad Partners
  • Targeting early-stage startups
  • Mena region expansion

Abu Dhabi venture capital firm Iliad Partners is closing a $50 million fund that will target early-stage business-to-business tech startups in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region.

The Tech Ventures Fund I will primarily focus on fintechs, logistics and property-related technology in Saudi Arabia and the UAE at the Pre-Series A and Series A stages, Iliad Partners said.

Ten percent of the fund will be allocated to investing in European startups looking to expand to Mena, with a particular focus on Greece.

The fund is backed by a range of Saudi investors, including Jada Fund of Funds, a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund, the Olayan family, and the Masarrah Investment Company.

It also has backing from US private equity firm MLM Investments, the Constantakopoulos family of Greece and several family groups and offices in the Gulf and Europe.

The fund launched with an initial set of investments in OTO, a Saudi delivery management platform for e-commerce stores and retailers, Penny, a Saudi cloud-based SaaS procurement solution for businesses, and UAE fintech Qashio, which automates and simplifies company expense management. 

“The region is currently undergoing unprecedented transformation and growth driven by technology and innovation, establishing it as a global hub of entrepreneurship,” said Christos Mastoras, founder and managing partner of Iliad Partners. 

“We are excited to partner with founders to build great companies together and the next generation of Mena success stories.”  

Mena startups raised $258 million in November, a 92 percent increase on the previous month, according to investment and research platform Wamda. The figure was down sharply from the $764 million raised in the same month last year, which included a large volume of debt financing. 

Of the 46 investments made in November, half were in Saudi Arabia and nearly a quarter were in the UAE. 

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