Saudi Arabia has maintained its leading position in venture capital (VC) funding across the MENA region, according to the “2024-H1 Saudi Arabia Venture Capital Report” issued by the Saudi Venture Capital Company (SVC) and published by MAGNiTT.
The Kingdom captured 54% of the total VC funding in the MENA region, a significant increase from 38% in the first half of 2023. The amount raised totalled $412 million (SAR 1.5 billion) in the first half of 2024.
The e-commerce/retail sector received the highest funding in Saudi Arabia, accounting for 52% of total funding at $215 million (SAR 806 million). Meanwhile, the fintech sector led in the total number of deals, making up 14% of all transactions in the first half of 2024.
“Through unwavering efforts, the Kingdom maintained its leading position in the region, which comes as a result of the economic development witnessed by the Kingdom with the support of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, through the launch of many governmental initiatives to stimulate the VC and startups ecosystem within the Saudi Vision 2030 programs,” said SVC CEO and Board Member Dr. Nabeel Koshak.
The CEO of MAGNiTT also commented that Saudi Arabia continues to make significant strides in fostering innovation and supporting a robust startup ecosystem.
The Kingdom’s deal flow accounted for 30% of H1 MENA deal activity, up from 24% in H1 2023. MAGNiTT’s data indicates that KSA led in H1 VC funding in MENA, with non-mega funding (deals less than $100 million) seeing an 84% year-over-year growth.
