Leading KSA-based Asset Manager BLOMINVEST has announced a new partnership with Flat6Labs, one of the MENA region’s largest seed-stage VC firms, to launch funds targeting early-stage start-ups in the Saudi market. Flat6Labs runs some of the region’s most notable startup programs and invests in 100 tech startups a year. Its seed-stage VC funds and programs support startups during their initial operations, through a highly diversified and structured investment process that aims to reduce the challenges and costs typically faced by early-stage startups.

Abdullah Al-Rashoud, CEO of BLOMINVEST, added: “This partnership came in light of the recent structural reforms in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia which has positioned the country as major contender for establishing and operating regional startups, supported by the significant increase in venture capital funds and the increase in merger and acquisition activity targeting emerging companies in the Saudi market. We expect greater market depth to come as more international companies look to launch their regional businesses from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to serve the rest of the Middle East and North Africa region.”

Eyad Albayouk, General Manager of Flat6Labs KSA, also explained that “We are excited about our partnership with BlomInvest and look forward to being an active contributor to the KSA ecosystem. Flat6Labs sees KSA as one of the very few markets in MENA that combine key elements for startup success – namely: size, political stability, growth, and a relatively well-structured and digitized business environment. It comes as no surprise that KSA has recently experienced a 6-fold increase in VC funding since 2016, in light of these structural reforms.”

About BLOMINVEST
BLOMINVEST is one of the leading Investment Management companies in the region, providing investment services to KSA investors, including real estate funds, asset management, advisory, and corporate finance.

BLOMINVEST Saudi Arabia started operation on May 30, 2009 under commercial registration No. 7001564553 (1010254040) and with a paid up capital of SAR 245 million. On July 27th, 2008, BLOMINVEST was granted the Saudi Arabian Capital Market Authority’s license number: 08094 – 37 to offer the following securities services: dealing as principle, as agent and underwriting, managing investment funds and client portfolios, arranging, advising, providing custody in securities business.

During the past twelve years, BLOMINVEST launched distinctive investment products in the Saudi market with the aim of growing capital and achieving attractive returns for investors. These products included more than 22 funds in various fields.

Learn more about BlomInvest through the website: www.blominvest.sa

Organon and Flat6Labs launch the Femtech Accelerator Program to help female-founded digital health start-ups, across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), succeed by providing support to build products, test market fit, and improve business models.

Dubai, United Arab Emirates – 26 October 2021: A global healthcare company with the vision of creating a better and healthier every day for every woman around the world, Organon, in partnership with Flat6Labs, the MENA region’s leading seed and early-stage venture capital firm, launched the Femtech Accelerator Program to support female-led start-ups operating in the digital healthcare space in MENA. The partnership was signed in the Expo 2020, USA Pavilion, marking the launch of Organon in the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey. The partnership is the kickoff of the company’s vision to work closely with partners in the region to empower innovative women’s healthcare programs.

Commenting on the program, Susanne Fiedler, Chief Commercial Officer of Organon, said, “As a new regional healthcare entity with a commitment to advancing the health of women in this region, we are very excited to launch this program supporting female entrepreneurs. We know that investing in women has far-reaching benefits, reaping dividends for families, local and national communities, and economies. We will continue to listen to women’s needs to better understand the gaps and identify the right solutions for a better and healthier every day for her.”

Ramy Koussa, Associate Vice President at Organon MENAT, added: “COVID-19 has accelerated digital transformation across industries, including healthcare. Due to restrictions on our movements and the strain on healthcare services globally, digital transformation has served as an important tool to enable both management of the coronavirus, as well as maintaining essential healthcare services. The future of healthcare is digital, and this accelerator program has been created to help facilitate that transformation in our region by delivering new and innovative digital tools to improve women’s healthcare. Organon is committed to building a company based on Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles and today’s announcement represents an important milestone in our commitment to working in partnership with key stakeholders across MENAT to advance women’s health”

 

 

 

Dina El-Shenoufy, Chief Investment Officer at Flat6labs, added, “Globally, both the current start-up landscape as well as the healthcare industry are male-dominated spaces. If we are to achieve greater gender equity, while supporting economic development across MENA, we need to do more to support female entrepreneurs and advance women’s healthcare. Our newly launched Femtech accelerator will meet this need and that of greater digital innovation in the healthcare space while demonstrating the importance of cross-industry collaboration to further the goals of female economic empowerment.”

Those start-ups selected to participate in the accelerator program will be female-founded and demonstrate that they can address unmet women’s needs in line with Organon’s mission to advance women’s health. Ten of the best start-ups will be invited to join the two-month intensive accelerator program following a selection process and receive support in turning their idea into a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and securing venture funding.

Flat6labs will provide business and technical training and access to their local and regional partner networks. Participating start-ups will be connected to businesses, local and international experts, and access big data and new opportunities. Organon, meanwhile, will mentor participants, connect them with global industry experts, and provide access to their entire business network, including internal teams and external partners.

Cairo, Egypt. 11th of October, 2021.

Flat6Labs, MENA’s leading seed and early-stage VC firm and the manager of the most renowned startup programs in the region, celebrates 10 years of supporting startups and empowering entrepreneurs all over the region. Launched in Cairo in 2011 by the founders of Sawari Ventures, Flat6Labs has since expanded to Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Tunisia, Beirut, Bahrain, and most recently Jordan. The firm is currently managing 8 seed funds across the MENA region with a total value amounting to USD 85 million, with over 25 institutional investors and limited partners.

“Since day one, Flat6Labs has been there to enable thousands of ambitious entrepreneurs to pursue their startups’ journey towards growth, by giving them an unparalleled opportunity to work with an expansive network that includes hundreds of business mentors, investors, and corporates. said Ramez El-Serafy, Flat6Labs’ CEO. “We’re extremely proud to be celebrating 10 years as we look back to our fruitful work with our institutional investors, partners, startups, and community. It’s only onwards and upwards from here.”

In the past decade, Flat6Labs has funded over 1,000 startups that have been vetted from over 23,000 applications, and more than 2,000 founders supported, 36% of them being female founders.

The firm’s regional network has more than 1000 mentors and coaches from all over the world, and 300+ corporate, governmental, and ecosystem partners. Currently, the Flat6Labs portfolio companies have thus far raised over USD 70 million in follow-on funding, and directly helped create more than 4,000 new jobs.

This milestone was marked with a grand ceremony that took place in Manial Palace last night. The event saw presence from all Flat6Labs offices across MENA, partners, startups, and mentors. The activities included panels with regional key opinion leaders, talks by Flat6Labs’ Limited Partners, and a celebration of Flat6Labs’ portfolio and achievements over the last decade.

Building Capacities for 20 Regional Supporting Structures in Tunisia

Launched by Flat6Labs, Ignite Tunisia is a capacity building program for regional support structures in Tunisia and is a part of the “Innov’i” initiative which is funded by the European Union and implemented by Expertise France.

 

Given the fact that 90% of startup support structures are based in the capital Tunis, Ignite Tunisia is a program that aims to boost regional ecosystems by transferring skills and expertise in the implementation of support programs for startups that Flat6Labs has acquired for more than a decade of operation across the MENA region. The program will be implemented during 24 months and will support 20 structures over 3 cohorts.

More than 80 support structures from all over Tunisia have applied to be part of the first cohort of Ignite Tunisia and benefit from a total review to their program and access to the extensive network of experts, mentors and investors from Flat6Labs

 

“Ignite Tunisia was born after a reflection of more than two years. We were able to identify the challenges encountered by regional support structures, which can range from the implementation of a program appropriate to the needs of entrepreneurs in each region to the economic model of the said structures. Through Ignite Tunisia , we have set ourselves the goal of transferring skills to enable regional structures and startups to have an active and innovative ecosystem” confirms Yehia Houry, Managing Director of Flat6Labs.

Ignite Tunisia ensures to provide the necessary tools to put together a clear strategy in order to build the capacities of 20 structures such as incubators, co-working spaces, non-governmental organizations as well as public structures operating directly with startups. The main goal is to ensure the viability of the structures and to capitalize on the number of startups created in the regions.

 

The program will also include the gathering of a community composed of multiple structures in order to optimize exchanges and facilitate contacts between the different actors.

Ignite Tunisia also aims to provide specific responses to the needs of innovative support structures, by offering a multitude of training to guarantee their success and sustainability and especially, the creation of a regional strategy.

 

“By supporting 20 structures in the different cities, Flat6Labs contributes to increased regional integration of the Tunisian ecosystem and creates a better climate and  networking opportunities to support entrepreneurs. It is also a great way for disseminating the culture of innovation and for opening up access to new opportunities for project leaders ”adds Clara Guilhem, Innov’i project manager.

 

Our Partners:

DisruptAD, one of the region’s largest venture platforms, is partnering with Flat6Labs, MENA’s leading seed investor and the largest manager of startup programs in the region, to launch Ignite, a new start-up accelerator in Abu Dhabi that will support early stage companies with AED 120 million in funding and other benefits including office space and mentorship.

The program is part of DisruptAD’s broader mission to support and nurture 1,000 start-ups over the next five years and create a thriving local community of founders, fund managers, incubators and accelerators in Abu Dhabi. Ignite will be the first of many such accelerator partnerships for DisruptAD.

The launch of Ignite in partnership with Flat6Labs underpins DisruptAD’s long-term desire to maximize value creation and deliver long-term economic benefits for the UAE by seeding businesses that are technology pioneers and change leaders.

The program will run over a three-year period, investing in 20 startups every year. Applications for the first cycle will be open until 30th of April 2021, offering participating companies the opportunity to benefit from a seed investment worth up to AED 550,000, together with follow-on funding of up to AED 2 million. Startups will also receive tailored support designed to help them effectively scale and grow their businesses to become regional champions and ultimately global champions.

As part of the Ignite program, startups will benefit from opportunities for regional exposure and world-class mentorship through Flat6Labs’ international connections and top-tier coaching. These companies will also enjoy access to DisruptAD’s network and resources. The program will organize Flat6Labs Demo Days, support fundraising and business build out, and ultimately offer the full spectrum of support needed for start-ups to thrive and flourish in Abu Dhabi.

Ramez El-Serafy, Flat6Labs CEO, commented: “We are delighted to partner with DisruptAD for the launch of this three-year program. Flat6Labs’ presence in Abu Dhabi opens up exciting new possibilities, not only for this program but for the long-term evolution of Abu Dhabi as a global start-up destination. Together, we will harness our accumulated knowledge and experience to better serve the entrepreneurial ecosystem and create unique opportunities for promising startups.”

To find out more about Flat6Labs Ignite, please visit this link.

StartEgypt, the pre-acceleration incubation program, established to inspire and support thousands of Egyptian entrepreneurs in the field of social impact enterprises, held its second annual forum to showcase its 45 graduating startups, from all over Egypt incubated in Cairo, Assiut, and Alexandria during 2019.

StartEgypt Forum is an annual showcasing event that presents the incubated startups culmination of efforts during the previous year. The startups get the opportunity to present their businesses to investors, leading business professionals, government officials, press, and coaches & mentors to expand their business connections in order to take their ideas to an even more advanced stage.

The program had originally launched in Cairo in 2017, with the first cycle starting in June, 2018. After their launch in Cairo, StartEgypt recognised the potential that entrepreneurs in non-centralized cities had. Therefore in 2019, the program has expanded to Assiut and Alexandria, graduating 45 social impact startups over the course of two cycles in Cairo, two cycles in Assiut, and one cycle in Alexandria, with entrepreneurs coming from all over Egypt, and startups working across various industries offering innovative solutions to disrupt the market.