By: Amr Adel
Dubai – Mubasher: Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP) on Wednesday announced the launch of its third venture capital fund worth $250 million, in partnership with Emaar Properties chairman Mohamed Alabbar.
The new fund will invest in IT startups in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, the company said during a press conference.
Last May, MEVP announced that Alabbar had acquired a large stake in the company.
Alabbar announced, during the conference, that he owns 50% of the company now, adding that he is investing personally in the new fund.
The main target of the fund is to participate in the economic transformation of all vital sectors in the MENA region, as technology became indispensable in all sectors, Alabbar added.
The volume of venture capital investments represents 0.03% of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the MENA region in 2016, which is too low comparing to the percentage in India and the USA, with 0.2% and 0.4%, respectively.
Despite the tangible developments in the market in the past few years, there is a shortage of capital available for investment in ventures, founder and executive managing director of MEVP Waleed Hannah said.
The MEVP third fund will fill this gap and help accelerating the growth of the investment environment, Hannah added, noting that his company invests in more than 40 projects, with 1100 job opportunities in the IT sector.
Translated by: Mohammad Shokhba
