INFOGRAPHIC: Startup Funding in Africa and the Middle East — Week 21, 2025

From Cairo to Cape Town, African and Middle Eastern startups just raised over $80 million and they’re not playing it safe. From AI-powered ambulances and virtual investment advisors to quick commerce and space radar, MENA and African startups are chasing bold missions with fresh capital in hand. Here’s a look at who’s cashing in and where the money is headed.

Something’s shifting across the MENA and African startup scene and it’s not subtle. Over the past few weeks, a wave of funding announcements has spotlighted the region’s appetite for ambitious ideas and global impact.

Let’s start in Cairo, where Thndr, a digital investment platform making it easier for everyday people to invest, just raised $15.7 million in a round led by Prosus Ventures. With backing from Y Combinator, BECO Capital, and others, this brings Thndr’s total to nearly $38 million. The fresh capital will fuel its expansion into the UAE and Saudi Arabia, while also powering new products tailored for both novice and experienced investors.

Right alongside them is Sylndr, another Egyptian startup rethinking the used car market. It also announced a $15.7 million Series A to deepen its e-commerce offering and gear up for regional expansion. With Egypt’s used car sector heating up, this funding gives Sylndr fuel to scale smart and fast.

Over in Dubai, Tarjama, a language technology company, secured $15 million in Series A funding led by Global Ventures, with participation from Wamda Capital and others. It’s a major jump from the $5 million the company last raised in 2019. With this round, Tarjama plans to scale its AI-powered content and translation tools across sectors like legal, government, and media.

Down in South Africa, AURA is building a global emergency response layer. The company raised €13.5 million ($14.5 million) in Series B funding to expand into the U.S. and build a “clearing house” for emergency dispatches that can operate across borders. The mission? Make life-saving services more accessible, no matter where you are.

VUZ, a Saudi Arabian immersive media platform, has secured $12 million in pre-Series C funding, increasing its total funding to over $35 million. The IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, was a key investor, along with Al Jazira Capital, Crosswork VC Success Fund, current investors, and notable Saudi family offices.

Kuwait-based Circle, a quick commerce startup, raised $6 million in Series A funding, although the investors remain unnamed. The company’s keeping quiet on specifics, but the raise suggests a push to gain ground in the region’s increasingly competitive last-mile delivery space.

Saudi Arabia’s SARsatX has its eyes on orbit. The space-tech startup just closed a $2.6 million seed round to further develop its radar satellite tech (SAR) and support the country’s broader NewSpace ambitions. It’s a pivotal step in Saudi’s push to play a bigger role in the global space economy.

From sand to farmland—literally. Morocco’s Sand to Green walked away with a $50,000 grant from the DeepTech Summit 2025 for its ambitious mission to turn degraded desert land into fertile farmland using innovative agri-tech methods. It’s early days, but the concept could have sweeping implications for climate and food security.

While Egypt-based fintech ElGameya has raised a 7-figure USD investment round led by AYADY for Investment and Development. Other participants include Jedar Capital, Cubit Ventures, Ventures Notes, P-Maestro, and a group of local and international angel investors.

Ziadah, a Saudi-based SaaS e-commerce startup, also joined the funding wave. The company closed its seed round from an undisclosed angel investor, which will go toward enhancing its smart conversion and sales optimisation tools for online retailers. With more merchants turning to automation to boost performance, Ziadah wants to be the engine behind smarter storefronts.

And finally, Cape Town-based Impulse Biomedical is ready to go global. The biomedical engineering startup secured undisclosed funding to support the international rollout of its healthcare products. From needle-free injection devices to emergency asthma tech, it’s one of the few startups in the region turning medtech research into market-ready tools.

From finance to space, health to e-commerce, these startups are pushing boundaries with confidence and capital. The funding surge isn’t just about numbers. It’s a signal that founders across MENA and Africa are building with global vision, and investors are finally paying attention.