Saudi Arabia leads MENA venture capital with $860m in H1 2025, surpassing 2024 total
The 'H1 2025 MENA Venture Investment Report' from venture data platform MAGNiTT revealed that Saudi Arabia accounted for 56 per cent of total capital deployed across the MENA region, underscoring its pivotal role in shaping the region's startup and innovation economy.
The Kingdom also saw a record-breaking 114 VC deals during the first six months of the year, signalling robust investor confidence and continued momentum in startup activity.
Saudi VC funding
This milestone aligns closely with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030, which has positioned venture capital and entrepreneurship as key pillars for diversifying the Kingdom's economy and reducing dependency on oil.
Dr. Nabeel Koshak, CEO and Board Member at SVC, said: 'The Kingdom's leading position in the VC scene in the region comes as a result of many governmental initiatives launched to stimulate the VC and startups ecosystem within the Saudi Vision 2030 programs.
'We at SVC are committed to continuing to lead the development of the ecosystem by stimulating private investors to provide support for startups and SMEs to be capable of fast and high growth, leading to diversifying the national economy and achieving the goals of the Saudi Vision 2030.'
SVC, a subsidiary of the SME Bank under the National Development Fund (NDF), plays a central role in enabling early-stage and growth-stage companies by investing in funds and directly in startups, from pre-Seed to pre-IPO.
With Saudi Arabia now representing more than half of all VC funding in the region, the report confirms that the Kingdom's startup landscape is entering a new phase of maturity, fuelled by public-private partnerships, policy reform, and sustained investor appetite.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Khaleej Times
an hour ago
- Khaleej Times
Dubai's Parkin announces monthly parking subscription for students, teachers
Here's good news for students and school staff to save on their parking expenses: Parkin Company PJSC announced on Wednesday new parking subscriptions designed for students, educators, and users of multi-storey parking. Students with cars can now subscribe to a seasonal parking permit starting at Dh100 per month. Parkin, Dubai's largest provider of paid public parking facilities, said students can 'maximise savings with the student parking subscription, granting (them) access to both roadside and plots parking with zone codes A, B, C, and D, within a 500-metre radius of their campus. Staff of private educational establishments can also subscribe to a seasonal parking card from Dh100 monthly to enjoy 'convenient and budget-friendly parking near their campus.' Subscription to multi-storey parking is also now offered starting at Dh735 monthly. This will give motorists 'convenient multi-storey parking near (their) home, workplace, or favourite destinations in Dubai,' Parkin posted on social media platform X. Parkin introduces new subscriptions designed for students, educators, and multi-storey parking access, with flexible options to suit your daily needs. Discover them now on our app or at — ParkinUAE (@ParkinUAE) July 16, 2025 Several motorists have raised the issue of incurring additional expenses after Dubai introduced variable parking fees across the emirate in April this year. Peak hours tariffs The implementation of variable parking fees has translated to higher parking fees during peak hours in locations designated as premium areas. For example, parking at a residential area in Al Barsha that carries code 373CP (designated as a premium area) is now Dh6 for one hour during peak hours (8am to 10am; and from 4pm to 8pm), from the previous rate of Dh2. Parking charge goes up to Dh12 for 2 hours (from Dh 5); Dh18 for 3 hours (previously Dh 8 for 3 hours); Dh24 for 4 hours (Dh 11 for 4 hours before April 4) Peak pricing applies for 6 out of the 14 chargeable hours per day — from 8am to 10am (2 hours) and 4pm to 8pm (4 hours), excluding Sundays and public holidays. Premium parking is categorised as parking facilities in high-demand, densely populated areas, including adjacent to or near public transport infrastructure. The zones are marked with dedicated signage and tariff details on display. Dh273.3 million revenues Parkin posted a record Dh273.3 million total revenue in the first quarter this year, marking a 27 per cent increase compared to the first three months of 2024. The income was posted before the implementation of variable parking tariff. Parkin has yet to release its second quarter revenues but earlier expected a 'growth in revenues driven by the implementation of the variable pricing tariff policy and expansion of (our) public parking portfolio." Early this month, Parkin announced signing an agreement with Dubai Municipality giving them the opportunity to operate parking facilities at some public parks in Dubai.
Zawya
an hour ago
- Zawya
Jazeera Airways resumes direct flights to Saudi destination
Jazeera Airways has relaunched tree weekly direct flights to Abha in Saudi Arabia, according to an official statement. Abha is Jazeera Airways' seventh destination in Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, the resumption of this direct route between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia offers travelers easy access to one of the Kingdom's most scenic and culturally rich cities. The Kuwaiti airlines company stated that 'the relaunch was marked by a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Bandar Bin Aboud, Counselor at the Saudi Embassy, alongside Jazeera Airways CEO, Barathan Pasupathi, and Chief Executive Government Affairs, Naser Fahad Alobaid.' All Rights Reserved - Mubasher Info © 2005 - 2022 Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Zawya
an hour ago
- Zawya
Youth-led Saudi businesses exceed 474,000
RIYADH — The number of commercial registrations held by young Saudis of both genders has surpassed 474,000, accounting for 38% of all active commercial records in Saudi Arabia as of the end of Q2 2025, the Ministry of Commerce announced. The ministry highlighted notable growth in several promising sectors led by entrepreneurs aged 18 to 40. Most significantly, commercial registrations for app development surged by 28% year-on-year, reaching 18,700 registrationsby the end of the second quarter. Commercial records in the artificial intelligence technologies sector also saw a strong 34% increase, reaching 14,400, while video game development registrations grew by 32%, totaling 8,200 records. Meanwhile, the number of commercial registrations in film, video, and television production rose by 20%, with the total reaching 5,700 active records by Q2 2025. © Copyright 2022 The Saudi Gazette. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
