Saudi FinTech start-up Manafa has raised 106 million Saudi riyals ($28.2 million) to fund its plans to offer new financial products across untapped sectors in the kingdom.
The debt and investment company's series A funding round was led by Saudi venture capital firm STV and Saudi Aramco's venture capital arm, Wa’ed Ventures.
“Manafa is planning to launch a new set of products that tackles the quick access to financing and capital, and empowers small and medium enterprises to fuel their growth,” said Abdulaziz Al Adwani, founder and chief executive of Manafa Capital.
The Arab world's biggest economy is seeking to boost the contribution of SMEs to gross domestic product to 35 per cent in 2030, from 20 per cent now, as set out in the kingdom's Vision 2030 programme and National Investment Strategy.
Venture capital funding for start-ups in Mena rose by 20 per cent annually to more than $2.3 billion in the first three quarters of 2022, putting it on track to potentially surpass the total investment attracted in 2021, an October study by data start-up platform Magnitt found.
Egypt, the UAE and Saudi Arabia retained the top three positions in both funding value and the number of deals, capturing more than 75 per cent of overall investment in the Mena region, Magnitt said.
Founded in 2018, Manafa offers SMEs in various sectors debt and equity financing based on a crowdfunding model, which allows institutional investors to gain access to SME financing opportunities.
The company is licensed by the Saudi Central Bank and the Saudi Capital Market Authority.
Manafa aims to bridge SME financing gaps by arranging investment from a larger segment of local retail and institutional investors.
To date, Manafa has funded more than 180 SMEs on its platforms to the tune of 1.5 billion riyals in total, with the participation of more than 100,000 retail and institutional investors, Wa’ed Ventures said.
“We aim ― with the completion of this round — to work with our partners to increase the impact of Manafa products and solutions on the growth of private sector companies and enhance the empowerment of financial planning for individuals,” said Amr Murad, co-founder and chairman of Manafa.
Wa'ed Ventures said Manafa was not only addressing a key gap in the market but also providing a “disruptive FinTech solution and a much-needed support line for SMEs” across the kingdom.
Dhahran-based Wa’ed Ventures is a $200 million institutional venture capital firm wholly owned by Saudi Aramco to promote economic diversification and new business expansion in the kingdom by investing in high-growth tech start-ups across various sectors. Established in 2014, Wa'ed Ventures manages a portfolio of more than 40 start-ups.
STV said SMEs were facing challenges in obtaining financing from traditional banking, with SMEs' share of the total commercial financing in the kingdom amounting to 8.4 per cent and expected to increase to 20 per cent under the Vision 2030 plan.
The partnership with Manafa "will continue to fuel greater financial stimulus by broadening the concept of crowdfunding in support of advancing the regional startup ecosystem," it said.
Launched in 2018, STV is the largest technology venture capital fund in the Middle East. With more than $800 million in capital, STV focuses on growth-stage tech companies.
Hydrogen: Market potential
Hydrogen has an estimated $11 trillion market potential, according to Bank of America Securities and is expected to generate $2.5tn in direct revenues and $11tn of indirect infrastructure by 2050 as its production increases six-fold.
"We believe we are reaching the point of harnessing the element that comprises 90 per cent of the universe, effectively and economically,” the bank said in a recent report.
Falling costs of renewable energy and electrolysers used in green hydrogen production is one of the main catalysts for the increasingly bullish sentiment over the element.
The cost of electrolysers used in green hydrogen production has halved over the last five years and will fall to 60 to 90 per cent by the end of the decade, acceding to Haim Israel, equity strategist at Merrill Lynch. A global focus on decarbonisation and sustainability is also a big driver in its development.
Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
RESULTS
6.30pm: Longines Conquest Classic Dh150,000 Maiden 1,200m.
Winner: Halima Hatun, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Ismail Mohammed (trainer).
7.05pm: Longines Gents La Grande Classique Dh155,000 Handicap 1,200m.
Winner: Moosir, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson.
7.40pm: Longines Equestrian Collection Dh150,000 Maiden 1,600m.
Winner: Mazeed, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
8.15pm: Longines Gents Master Collection Dh175,000 Handicap.
Winner: Thegreatcollection, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: Longines Ladies Master Collection Dh225,000 Conditions 1,600m.
Winner: Cosmo Charlie, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
9.25pm: Longines Ladies La Grande Classique Dh155,000 Handicap 1,600m.
Winner: Secret Trade, Tadhg O’Shea, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
10pm: Longines Moon Phase Master Collection Dh170,000 Handicap 2,000m.
Winner:
RESULT
Kolkata Knight Riders 169-7 (20 ovs)
Rajasthan Royals 144-4 (20 ovs)
Kolkata win by 25 runs
Next match
Sunrisers Hyderabad v Kolkata Knight Riders, Friday, 5.30pm
Start-up hopes to end Japan's love affair with cash
Across most of Asia, people pay for taxi rides, restaurant meals and merchandise with smartphone-readable barcodes — except in Japan, where cash still rules. Now, as the country’s biggest web companies race to dominate the payments market, one Tokyo-based startup says it has a fighting chance to win with its QR app.
Origami had a head start when it introduced a QR-code payment service in late 2015 and has since signed up fast-food chain KFC, Tokyo’s largest cab company Nihon Kotsu and convenience store operator Lawson. The company raised $66 million in September to expand nationwide and plans to more than double its staff of about 100 employees, says founder Yoshiki Yasui.
Origami is betting that stores, which until now relied on direct mail and email newsletters, will pay for the ability to reach customers on their smartphones. For example, a hair salon using Origami’s payment app would be able to send a message to past customers with a coupon for their next haircut.
Quick Response codes, the dotted squares that can be read by smartphone cameras, were invented in the 1990s by a unit of Toyota Motor to track automotive parts. But when the Japanese pioneered digital payments almost two decades ago with contactless cards for train fares, they chose the so-called near-field communications technology. The high cost of rolling out NFC payments, convenient ATMs and a culture where lost wallets are often returned have all been cited as reasons why cash remains king in the archipelago. In China, however, QR codes dominate.
Cashless payments, which includes credit cards, accounted for just 20 per cent of total consumer spending in Japan during 2016, compared with 60 per cent in China and 89 per cent in South Korea, according to a report by the Bank of Japan.
England XI for second Test
Rory Burns, Keaton Jennings, Ben Stokes, Joe Root (c), Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Ben Foakes (wk), Sam Curran, Adil Rashid, Jack Leach, James Anderson
MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Manchester United v Barcelona, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match on BeIN Sports
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
