Venture debt funding in MENA crosses $260m in 2022

Venture debt funding in MENA crosses $260m in 2022

Venture debt aggregated $260m across 18 deals in the Middle East and North Africa region last year, a new report has revealed. The first mega-deal for venture debt in the MENA region was closed by UAE-based fintech startup Tabby last year, contributing 39 per cent to total venture debt funding, a report by UAE-based investment banking platform Shuaa Capital and data platform MAGNiTT. The report maps growth in venture debt funding across MENA over the past five years. Venture debt is a type of debt funding that is received by early-stage companies and startups and is used as a complementary method to equity venture financing. According to the the top five venture debt deals, closed by Tabby, TruKKer, Pure Harvest and STARZPLAY, accounted for $275m. Average deal size in 2022 declined to $14.4m from $26.6m in 2021. Venture debt funding was concentrated in four countries across the MENA region – namely UAE, Saudi, Egypt and Jordan. The UAE was the most funded market through venture debt, constituting over 50 per cent of the number of deals and value reported for the MENA region between 2018 and 2022. Saudi Arabia ranked second in funding, accounting for 29 per cent. Fintech secured