Industry veterans still remember the SuperReturn conference in 2009 in Dubai, which featured prominent private equity leaders like Stephen Schwarzman of Blackstone Group and David Rubenstein of Carlyle Group. (DubaiBeat.com 2009 report from the event is here)

This year, SuperReturn Middle East will be held from October 14 to 16, 2024, at The Ritz-Carlton DIFC, with Dubaibeat.com once again partnering with the event, just as we did almost every year for the past 15 years. (Among other sponsors and partners you can also find Deloitte, S&P Global, and PitchBook)

With over 500 senior leaders from the private markets expected to attend, the event will see participation from more than 175 limited partners and 200 general partners. Additionally, SuperReturn coincides with GITEX, the premier event that focuses on technology. This overlap gives attendees a chance to network and discuss connections between finance and technology. (You can get a 10% discount when you quote our VIP code FKR3559DUB).

(If for any reason you can not attend, feel free to download our Middle East Investors Directory, now in its 15th year of publication, to get a sense of private capital investors from the region.)

Master Investment Group, the investment firm of Sheikh Abdulla Al Qassimi from Ras Al Khaimah and other investors have acquired stake in Faraday Future, a California-based electric vehicle firm for $30 million.

Founded in 2014 by Chinese businessman Jia Yueting, Faraday Future is focused on the development of electric vehicles which they currently market in the United States and China. (Established in 2014, the Master Investment Group is a regional investment company headquartered in the UAE. They generate a long-term portfolio of wealth management solutions across a range of macro-economic sectors, including real estate, leisure, and tourism developments.) More details about this deal here.

To see a list and email addresses of investors similar to Sheikh Abdulla Al Qassimi check the Middle East Investors Directory.

Dubai angel investor Michael Ourabah, along with several strategic investors, has acquired stake in Tokinvest, a UAE-based crypto tokenization platform, for $500,000 during the pre-seed funding.

Founded in 2024, Tokinvest is a pioneering marketplace that connects real-world asset issuers with investors globally. The advanced platform simplifies the investment process by creating virtual tokens representing rights to assets and providing comprehensive lifecycle services from ideation to trading to asset servicing.

To see a list and email addresses of investors similar to Michael Ourabah check the Middle East Investors Directory.

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the sovereign wealth fund of Qatar, has acquired stake in TechMet, a Dublin-based minerals investment company, for $180 million.

Founded in 2017, TechMet Limited is a private company focused on securing a steady and sustainable supply of critical metals for advanced technologies. They work on projects involving mining, processing, refining, and recycling metal (QIA safeguards and grows Qatar's financial assets while helping diversify its economy. It invests in a wide range of global markets, sectors, and regions.)

Qatar Investment Authority is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BD44.

Job of the day:
Capital.com is hiring a Chief Operating Officer based in Dubai See more

DAMAC Group, a Dubai-based private business conglomerate, has acquired stake in Anthropic, a US AI startup for $50 million.

Founded in 2021 and with roughly 500 employees, Anthropic aims to study the safety and reliability of AI systems. It has developed a family of large language models called Claude, which is a competitor of OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini.

(Established in 1982, DAMAC Group is owned and managed by Hussain Sajwani. Its diverse portfolio spans various industries including Property Development and Real Estate, Data Centres, Retail and Fashion, Hospitality, Capital Markets, and Logistics.)

To see a list and email addresses of investment firms similar to Damac check the Middle East Investors Directory.

United Al Saqer Group, an Abu Dhabi-based investment group, has acquired stake in Double Negative (DNEG), a British-Indian visual effects and animation studio for $200 million.

Founded in London in 1998, DNEG is a British-Indian visual effects, computer animation and stereo conversion company. It has seven Academy Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards, and seven BAFTA awards for works such as Interstellar, Inception, and Dune. (Estasblished in 1988, UASG is an Abu Dhabi based private equity firm that manages a diverse portfolio that includes automobile, finance, real estate, construction, travel and hospitality.)

UASG is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code AJ81.

Hevolution Foundation, a Saudi investment firm focused on aging science, has invested $20 million in Aeovian, a San Francisco based biopharmaceutical company.

Aeovian Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing targeted small molecules to restore cellular metabolic quality control. Hevolution has also invested in Rubedo Life Sciences $40 million Series A round. (Hevolution is a Saudi investment firm focused on aging science with an annual budget of up to $1 billion. They also invest in platforms and technologies that aim to compress drug development timelines or increase accessibility to therapeutics.)

Hevolution is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code AJ49.

Watar Partners, a Saudi advisory firm for private family offices, has participated in a $700 million investment in Wonder, a New York based food delivery business.

Established in 2018, Wonder is a food delivery enterprise offering access to a variety of restaurants within a single order. It was founded by serial entrepreneur and former Walmart e-commerce chief Marc Lore. (Watar Partners, established in 2014, provides financial advisory services to the private investment offices of select families. It has offices in Saudi Arabia and UAE and is led by Abdulwahab A Al Betairi, Tarek Al-Rumaim and Muhammad Humayun Latif)

Watar Partners is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code AJ27.

Dubai investment firm Oraseya Capital, has taken part in a $5.5 million series A funding in Remote Pass, a Boston-based HR and fintech platform.

Established in 2020 with a 55-member team serving over 360 businesses in 50+ countries, RemotePass makes it easy for companies to handle their global remote workforce. Other investors in this round which is led by 212 VC includes Endeavor Catalyst, Khwarizmi Ventures, Flyer One Ventures, Access Bridge Ventures, A15, and Swiss Founders Fund.

(Founded in 2023 by the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority DIEZ, Oraseya Capital is a venture capital firm that has a $136 million fund specifically allocated for startup ventures.. More details about the deal is here)

Oraseya Capital is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code JU24.

Abu Dhabi investment firm International Media Investments, has taken part in a $158 million debt financing in The Very Group, a UK-based online retailer.

The Very Group, based in Liverpool and established in 1861 from as a mail-order catalogue business, generates £2.15 billion in annual revenue. It operates digital retail brands Very and Littlewoods, serving 4.4 million customers. (International Media Investments IMI is an Abu Dhabi private investment firm owning media brands like The National and CNN Business Arabic and stake in EuroNews. They also invest globally in media brands through Redbird IMI, a partnership with Redbird Capital Partners. More details about the deal is here)

International Media Investments is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code JU14.

Prosperity7 Ventures, the venture fund of Saudi Aramco Ventures, has led a $14 million investment in Shenzhen Cispoly Bio-Tec, a Chinese developer of women's health screening tools.

Established in 2020 in Beijing, Cispoly focuses on improving women's health by detecting gynecological tumors early. They have special technology for cervical, ovarian, and endometrial cancers. The company is known for its research, development, and sales of automated testing equipment. (Prosperity7 serves as the diversified growth fund under Aramco Ventures, a subsidiary of Aramco, the Saudi energy and chemicals company. With a $1 billion venture capital fund, Prosperity7 adopts a global investment strategy across all sectors.)

Prosperity7 Ventures is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BJ96.

Dubai Investments, an investment company listed on the Dubai Financial Market, has acquired additional stake in Monument Bank, a UK-based regulated digital bank, increasing its holding to 16.93 percent.

Launched in 2021, Monument Bank has opened more than 10,000 accounts for wealthy savers, with account balances averaging over £60,000. (Dubai Investments is incorporated in 1995 and has invested heavily outside of UAE. Mr Khalid Kalban sits on the board of Monument)

Dubai Investment is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code OR191.

What we like about the deal:
Monument Bank recently concluded its Series B round of investments raising over £40 million, backed by a combination of existing and new investors and since inception has raised a total of over £103 million

Job of the day:
on CFA Institute website a firm funded by a UAE family office is hiring an Investment Associate See more

Saudi investment firm Aramco Ventures and a consortium has acquired stake in Pulsora, a A US-based platform for enterprise sustainability management for $20 million.

Founded in 2021, Pulsora helps more than 400 businesses measure, report, and improve their sustainability and ESG initiatives. Other investors include Carica Sustainable Investments, Sabancı Climate Ventures, and JetBlue Ventures (Aramco Ventures is the corporate venturing arm of Saudi Aramco and is based in Dhahran Saudi Arabia.)

Aramco Ventures is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BS15.

Saudi investment firm Aljazira Capital and a consortium has acquired stake in Axiom Space, a US firm for $350 million.

Founded in 2016, Axiom Space has completed the first private mission to the International Space Station and it is also currently building the first commercial space station. It is led by Michael Suffredini, who served as NASA's International Space Station Program Manager from 2005 to 2015. (Founded in 2008 and based in Riyadh Saudi Arabia, Aljazira Capital is a financial investment firm that invests regionally in startups like Floward and Tarabut and internationally)

Aljazira Capital is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code AU85.

Bloomberg has a very interesting article on how Silicon Valley VCs are "frantically trying to get into parties held in the region by UAE and Saudi Arabian investors, without an invite"!

Read the full article below:

Tech VCs Resort to Party Crashing in Middle East During Downturn

An Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund and others have deep ties to Silicon Valley.

ByBiz Carson, Lizette Chapman and Mark Bergen
May 4, 2023 at 11:30 AM GMT+3:30

Silicon Valley has taken investment from moneyed state-run funds in the Middle East for years. Now that the technology industry is mired in a downturn, those relationships are becoming more desirable, and more visible.

In elite tech circles, connections to sovereign wealth funds are suddenly in-demand. Investors including Chamath Palihapitiya and Tribe Capital's Arjun Sethi have recently been spotted passing through the region. Ben Horowitz spoke at a major Saudi conference late last year. And one person who invests in VC funds said they'd seen multiple newer venture capitalists without an invite frantically trying to get into parties held in the region by United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabian investors.

The VCs' desperation, this person said, was poorly perceived by the Mideast investors, who value long-term relationships and were shocked by the party crashers. The person asked not to be identified discussing private information.

Relationships between VCs and their backers are usually private, particularly with overseas funds that value discretion. Some of those ties were made unusually public this spring when the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund's venture arm, Sanabil, took the rare step of listing names of the firms it has backed on its website. The more-than-$600 billion fund disclosed ties to tech's most elite firms, including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia China, Founders Fund and Tiger Global. Tech news site the Information first reported some of the names.

But while Saudi Arabia has grabbed recent headlines, other players in the region have just as extensive exposure to venture capital, though they have so far been quieter about their relationships.

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, or ADIA, has backed tech and biotech-focused venture firms for decades, including early investments in Peter Thiel's Founders Fund and Flagship Pioneering, a Massachusetts-based firm known as the investor behind Covid vaccine maker Moderna Inc. The fund also put money into Joe Lonsdale's 8VC, Josh Kushner's Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, according to multiple people familiar with the investments.

Founders Fund, Flagship Pioneering, 8VC, Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz declined to comment for this story. ADIA said it could not make investment leaders available for an interview.

Meanwhile, another Abu Dhabi-based firm, Al Nawwar Investments RSC Limited, is trying to grow its existing stake in Sequoia Capital by purchasing FTX's share for $45 million, bankruptcy court filings show.

"While the spotlight has recently been on the power of the Gulf region, we've been doing this for a while," Ibrahim Ajami, head of ventures for Mubadala Capital, tweeted in April. Mubadala, a UAE-based investment fund, is known as one of the major backers of SoftBank's giant startup investment vehicle, the Vision Fund. "This is as much about liquidity as it is about picking the right partner for the long term," Ajami wrote.

Diversification away from oil is one of the main mandates for resource-rich Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds -- a mission that's driven massive amounts of capital toward the tech industry. Gulf investors are "preparing with urgency and with efficiency for the arrival of a post-oil economy," said Chicago-based blockchain investor Paul Hsu, who is pursuing startup deals in the region. Besides putting money into in VC firms, the sovereign wealth funds also invest directly in startups and often co-invest with firms they back. ADIA's private equity department, for example, made 40 direct investments in 2021, up from 25 in 2020, its annual report stated. That included 12 co-investments in early-stage startups with VC firms it supports.

Sethi, the Tribe Capital co-founder who recently made a trip to the region, said his investors include sovereign wealth funds and multi-family offices from Saudi Arabia, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. He said that Gulf investors are mindful of how the global tech industry can aid their own economies. "They want to see Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu, etc. in their region," Sethi said, adding that interest from family offices has surged in the past few years. "They want to have companies in AI, space and infrastructure to expand into their markets."

The Gulf's richest families have also made their own venture investments. The UAE's Al Nahyan family -- the world's richest with a $300 billion fortune as calculated by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index -- has invested in startups including Rihanna's Savage X Fenty and Elon Musk's Space Exploration Technologies Corp. Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, of Saudi Arabia's $105 billion Al Saud family fortune, was also an early backer of Musk's bid to take Twitter private.

Mideast sovereign wealth funds have long had a keen eye for investing in venture capital, said Paul Rose, a law professor at Ohio State University who studies sovereign wealth funds. But for a long time, they didn't want to disclose it. "The Gulf funds have been less transparent than other funds," Rose said. "They've kept their own counsel more than, say, the Norwegians."

The recent public listing of names on the Sanabil website was a departure from that stance, as well as a branding exercise for Saudi Arabia, Rose said. It's also a way to generate deal flow. "It kind of sends out this signal, to say, 'If you're a GP, we'll talk to you,'" he said.

There's another part to the branding: Showing off connections to Silicon Valley luminaries like Thiel, Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. In one photo showcasing the connections taken a few weeks before the slaying of Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was photographed with a who's-who list of top tech investors, including Thiel, Horowitz, Andreessen, Sequoia's Michael Moritz, Kleiner Perkins' John Doerr and billionaire Greylock partner Reid Hoffman.

Although the international reaction to Khashoggi's killing in 2018 prompted many American business leaders to distance themselves from Saudi Arabia, that reticence appears to have cooled. In the fall, Horowitz took the stage at Saudi Arabia's FII conference, nicknamed "Davos in the Desert," and last month appeared again at a conference in Miami Beach to praise Saudi Arabia as a "startup country."

"Saudi has a founder," Horowitz said. "You don't call him a founder, you call him his royal highness." Horowitz also announced he'd be returning to the country -- this time with portfolio companies in tow.#

Dubai investment firm Panthera Capital and a consortium has acquired stake in Jar, an Indian fintech firm for $22 million.

Launched in 2021 and based in Bangalore, Jar is an investment tech startup that allows users to save money by taking spare change from online transactions and investing it in digital gold automatically. (Panthera Capital Investments is a VC and PE firm based in Dubai. It is the investment subsidiary of Fujairah Holding.)

Panthera Capital Ventures is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code SE15.

What we like about the deal:
The company is launched in Covid days in June 2021 serving over 9 million customers with an average of 220,000 daily transactions. More details here.

Job of the day:
Amazon is hiring a Senior Venture Capital, Business Development Manager based in Dubai See more

What we are reading:
Forbes interviews Muna AbuSulayman: From Fashion StartUp, Venture Capital, Metaverse, AI, To Philanthropy Read here.

Qatar Investment Authority and a consortium has acquired stake in Celonis, a German software company, for $400 million.

Launched in 2011, Celonis provides software solutions for companies to run their business processes entirely on data and intelligence. (QIA was established in 2005. Headquartered in Doha, it was founded as a means to strengthen the country's economy. the fund predominantly invests in international markets United States, Europe and Asia-Pacific and within Qatar outside the energy sector.)

Qatar Investment Authority is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BD44.

What we like about the deal:
We like how their funding has increased in each series: Series A $27.5 million, Series B $50 million, Series C $290. More details in their press release here.

Job of the day:
London Stock Exchange Group is hiring a business development manager for Africa & Middle East based in Dubai See more

Prosperity7 Ventures, the growth fund of Saudi Aramco Ventures, has led a $35 million investment in Insilico Medicine, a Hong Kong-based AI-driven drug discovery company.

Based in Hong Kong with more than 200 employees, Insilico Medicine develops an AI platform for drug development to treat cancer and age-related diseases.Alex Zhavoronkov is its founder and CEO. (Prosperity7 is the diversified growth fund of Aramco Ventures, a subsidiary of Aramco, the Saudi energy and chemicals company, with $1 billion venture capital fund and a global investment strategy in all sectors)

Prosperity7 Ventures is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BJ96.

Saudi investors of Sanabil Investments and a consortium have invested $52 million in JobGet, a US-based marketplace for employers and job seekers.

Based in Boston, JobGet is a marketplace where employers and job seekers can instantly message each other, schedule meetings, or perform video interviews. More than 50,000 companies have used its services.

Sanabil Investments is a Saudi investment firm specializing in direct and fund of funds investments. They invest
approximately $2 billion in global private investments every year. (more details about this deal is here)

Sanabil Investments is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code XB181.

Three Middle East investors are among 18 investors that are helping Elon Musk securing a total of $7.14 billion to fund his $44 billion takeover of Twitter - according to a SEC filing just released.

Dubai Vy Capital is investing $700 million, Qatar Holding is investing $375 million. Saudi investor Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud (Kingdom Holding Company) is committing 34,948,975 of his Twitter Inc shares in the new company (valued at $54.20 per share).

Kingdom Holding Company is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BFD84. Vy Capital with code JL48, Qatar Holding with code LIP09

Dubai-based Vy Capital and a consortium of global investors have invested $675 million in The Boring Company, the transportation company founded by Elon Musk.

The Boring Company was founded to solve the problem of traffic by creating an underground network of tunnels. This round of $675 million, is led by Vy Capital and Sequoia Capital, with participation from Valor Equity Partners, Founders Fund, 8VC, Craft Ventures, and DFJ Growth. The financing now values The Boring Company at $5.675 billion.

Vy Capital is a Dubai investment firm based in DIFC and invests mainly in the internet and software sector. (more details about this deal is here)

Vy Capital is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code JL48.

Dubai investment firm Exotix Advisory and a consortium has acquired stake in ZirooPay, a Finland-based payments company series-A for $11 million.

Launched in 2014, ZirooPay is a maker of a mobile card reader that allows small businesses to accept card payments anywhere they operate. (Exotix Advisory is a Dubai-based corporate finance and M&A advisory boutique focused on emerging and developing markets. Fabrizio Ferrero and Chiamaka Ezenwa are their managing directors. More details on the deal here)

Exotix Advisory is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code JP14.

Qatar Investment Authority and a consortium has acquired stake in Checkout.com, a UK-based global payments processor, for 1 billion USD.

Launched in 2012, checkout.com provides payments solutions in more than 150 currencies with a team of 1,700 people across 19 offices. (QIA was established in 2005. Headquartered in Doha, it was founded as a means to strengthen the country's economy. the fund predominantly invests in international markets United States, Europe and Asia-Pacific and within Qatar outside the energy sector.)

Qatar Investment Authority is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BD44.

What we like about the deal:
This is Checkout.com series D of fundraising and they are talking about Web3 in their press release; a lot! We are witnessing a huge interest from Middle East investors in crypto and Web3.

Job of the day:
Morgan Stanley is offering an investment banking internship in Dubai. See more

Cianna Capital, an investment firm based in UAE, and a consortium has acquired stake in Graphite, a technological platform based in the US, for $15 million.

Founded in 2019 and headquartered in San Francisco and New York, Graphite is a technology platform that assists companies on their business performance with on-demand experts, consultants, and executives with over 7,500 experts & boutique firms on-demand. (Founded in 2017 and headquartered in Abu Dhabi, Cianna Capital is a private investment firm that focuses on early-stage companies.) More details here.

Cianna Capital is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code JP71.

Dubai advisory and capital firm Tahseen Consulting and a consortium has acquired stake in OlaClick, a Peru-based for $2 million.

OlaClick is established in 2020 and is a web-based digital menu solution that helps businesses receive online orders through WhatsApp. (Established in 2012 Tahseen Consulting is a specialized advisor on strategic and organizational issues at the intersection of technology, government, and public policy. Walid Aradi and Wes Schwalje are the co-founders)

Tahseen Consulting is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code JM13.

Dubai venture capital firm Global Millennial Capital has acquired stake in Blue Studios, a US-based ed-tech venture. The amount is not disclosed but Millennial Capital had raised $3 million for its fund before.

Blue Studios Inc established in 2019 is a subscription-based digital education platform with a business model that falls at the intersection of e-commerce and ed-tech, providing on demand classes online.

(Established in 2016, and backed by Al Attiyah family office, Global Millennial Capital invests in scalable, tech enabled and consumer-centric early-stage opportunities all over the world. It is headed by Andreea Danila Dash.)

Global Millennial Capital is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code JB43.

HB Investments, Dubai Based private investment office of Kattan family, and a consortium has acquired stake in Uptime , a London-based app featuring 5-minute knowledge hacks, for $3 million.

Uptime is an app that distills knowledge from leading books, courses and documentaries in 5-minute tappable stories. Among other investors in uptime you can find Chad Hurley, co-founder of YouTube and Chris Messina, hashtag inventor and open source advocate. HB Investments has made investments in startups like Clubhouse and Fresha with Huda Kattan as its Chairwoman.

HB Investments is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code CM8

Dubai venture capital fund Sahra Growth Capital and a consortium has acquired stake in Qredo, a London-based decentralized digital asset management firm, for $11 million.

Established in 2011 and headquartered in London with development offices in Sofia, Bulgaria, Qredo is a cross-chain protocol for asset managers and traders active in the digital asset markets. (Sahra Growth Capital is a Dubai-based venture fund investing in frontier technology companies with a specialization in SaaS technologies. Jamal Al-Barrack is their Managing Partner.)

Sahra Growth Capital is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code CJ8.

Prosperity7 Ventures, the growth fund of Saudi Aramco Ventures, has led a $25 million investment in Wasabi, a Boston-based cloud storage company.

With nearly $275 million in funding to date, Wasabi has reported 3x year-over-year growth, reaching 23,000 customers worldwide and over 5,000 Channel Partners and 350 Technology Alliance Partners. (Prosperity7 is the diversified growth fund of Aramco Ventures, a subsidiary of Aramco, the Saudi energy and chemicals company, with $1 billion venture capital fund and a global investment strategy in all sectors)

Prosperity7 Ventures is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BJ96.

Bahrain-based global investment firm Investcorp has acquired stake in Investis Digital, the London-based digital corporate communications and marketing firm

Established in 2000, Investis Digital is based in London and with over 500 digital experts across nine global offices in the US, UK, EU and India is serving 1600 clients. (Founded in 1982, Investcorp is based in Bahrain and is a global manager of alternative investment products, for private and institutional clients.)

The amount of the deal is not disclosed, but ECI Partners which had acquired Investis back in 2014 for a reported £35 million has announced making return of 2.6x on its investment. There are also reports that Investis Digital has adjusted EBITDA of £11 million for full-year 2019.

Investcorp is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code OR30.

Dubai venture capital firm Global Millennial Capital has acquired stake in Unifimoney, a mobile-based investment and money management platform. The amount is not disclosed but Millennial Capital had raised $3 million for its fund before.

Established in 2019 and based in San Francisco, Unifimoney provides a digital mobile account with a checking account, credit card and investing package.

(Established in 2016, and backed by Al Attiyah family office, Global Millennial Capital invests in scalable, tech enabled and consumer-centric early-stage opportunities all over the world. It is headed by Andreea Danila Dash.)

Global Millennial Capital is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code JB43.

Dubai venture capital firm Mindshift Capital has participated in Series C fundraising of OtoNexus Medical Technologies, a US-based medical device maker. The amount is not disclosed but the firm total fundraising is now $13 million.

OtoNexus Medical is headquartered near Seattle and is a technology innovator developing an ultrasound based medical device to allow clinicians to instantly assess middle ear infections. (Mindshift Capital is based in Dubai and is focused on post-seed early-stage companies in the U.S., Europe and Middle East. It is led by Heather Henyon a venture investor with different direct and fund investments in the US, Europe and Middle East.)

Mindshift Capital is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code BR15.

Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of Saudi Aramco and a consortium, has acquired stake in Seeq, US-based provider of software and services for industrial data, for $50 million.

Established in 2012 and based in Seattle, Seeq provides software and services that convert industrial data into information and has raised $115 million so far. (SAEV invest globally into start-up and high growth companies and has so far invested publicly in 45 companies. Based out of Dhahran, SAEV also operates through regional offices in North America and Europe)

Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code SINOC23 .

Saudi Venture Capital firm Riyadh Valley Company (RVC) and a consortium invested $21 million in UK biotechnology company Prokarium

Prokarium is headquartered in London and is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing microbial cancer immunotherapies. Riyadh Valley Company (RVC) is the investment arm of King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It has invested in several firms including GLM Company, Calltech Co, SOLEXEL, Advanced Dental Technologies, Aser Technologies and Knowledge Developers. Khalid Al-Saleh is the director appointed by RVC at Prokarium.

Riyadh Valley Company (RVC) is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code SIJ54.

Abu Dhabi investment firm Chimera Investments announced investment in Zoi Meet, a Dutch startup based in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Chimera Investments is part of Abu Dhabi's Royal Group, a conglomerate comprising over 60 entities and employing 20,000 employees. Syed Basar Shueb is Chairman, and Ahmed Mohamed Al Dehaim and Majed Fuad Mohammed Odeh are servings as their director. (Zoi Meet startup Founded in 2019 and specializes in speech recognition and AI technology. The amount is not disclosed but their pre-seed fundraising has been for $180,000.)

Chimera Investments is listed in the Middle East Investors Directory with the code SY24.