Seven Mena startups selected for Y Combinator’s summer cohort 2021

Seven Mena startups selected for Y Combinator’s summer cohort 2021

Y Combinator's latest summer cohort contains the largest group of startups from the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) in its history, with seven regional startups participating in the famous accelerator programme, which has graduated the likes of Stripe, Dropbox and Airbnb. 

While Mena-based startups comprise less than 10 per cent of this summer's cohort, the number of startups from the region has been steadily rising, reflecting the rising global interest in the region's tech ecosystem.

The seven startups selected are fintechs Baraka, Nomod and Amenli, e-commerce and logistics platforms Shipblu, Chari and Freterium and Odiggo. The startups are set to receive $125,000 in exchange for 7 per cent equity and will pitch remotely to an audience of over 1000 investors during the demo day slated for this August. YC's last winter batch featured Egypt-based fintech NowPay and Dayra and UAE-based fintech Ziina.

The fintech, e-commerce and logistics sectors are the three fastest growing sectors in Mena in terms of investment, a result of the rise in online shopping and increased digitisation. In the first six months of 2021, fintech startups raised $306 million, e-commerce startups raised $181 million while logistics startups raised $103 million.

Here's the list of