Dubai-based transport startup Swvl to list on Nasdaq via $1.5bln SPAC deal

Swvl, a Dubai-headquartered transport technology startup and Queen's Gambit Growth Capital have signed a merger deal that would result in Swvl being listed on Nasdaq.

Queen's Gambit Growth Capital is the first special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) led by women.

At a valuation of approximately $1.5 billion, Swvl is expected to be the first $1 billion-plus unicorn from the Middle East to list on Nasdaq. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2021 and the combined public company will be named Swvl Holdings Corp.

In 2017, Mostafa Kandil and two of his school friends, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh, quit their jobs and gathered at public parks in Cairo, where they spent their time developing a service that they named Swvl. The transportation app initially developed for reducing the chaotic traffic jams in Cairo could book bus trips at rates that are close to 80 per cent cheaper than other ride-hailing services like Careem and Uber.

In 2019, venture-capital firms including Sweden's Vostok, Dubai-based BECO Capital, China's MSA, New York-based Endeavor Catalyst, Palo Alto-based Autotech, and Oman technology fund helped Swvl raise $42 million to fund its expansion.