Beltone Financial Holding’s recently launched venture capital arm has acquired 20% of local furniture and homeware brand Ariika for EGP 31 mn in a series A round, according to separate press releases from Beltone (pdf) and Ariika on Wednesday.

Ariika: Launched in 2016 as an online bean bag store, Ariika now sells outdoor furniture, linens, sofas, bedding accessories, and more, largely through digital channels. Over the past seven years it has grown at a CAGR of more than 85% and has served some 800k customers across the region. Ariika is a Dutch firm, based in Cairo, and currently exports to markets including Saudi, the UAE, Iraq, Germany and Australia.

The firm has its eye on KSA: Ariika will use the fresh capital to establish a presence in Saudi Arabia in 4Q 2023 and is also eyeing other countries in the region. The company will also use the funds to expand its sales strategy and develop its tech and digital design offering with augmented-reality (AR) tools.

And export growth: Ariika says the funding will help it grow its exports from a current c. 15% of its sales to 50% by 2025.

Advisors: White & Case, El Boraie Law Firm, and Van Doorne acted as legal advisors on the transaction.

A running start for Beltone’s new VC arm: The investment is the second in as many weeks for Beltone Venture Capital, which recently participated in healthtech startup Sehatech ’s USD 850k pre-seed funding round alongside A15. The firm launched earlier this year, with the aim of providing early stage funding around the USD 250k mark to tech-enabled startups in impact sectors. In addition to Ariika and Sehatech, the company currently also has investments in courier service Bosta and online sportswear retailer Wayup Sports. Its parent company also last week acquired 100% of Minya-based microfinance provider Cash.

Remember: Beltone has money to spend following its landmark EGP 10 bn capital increase in July, placing some 5 bn new shares on the EGX.

ICYMI- Ariika CEO and co-founder Khaled Attalah sat down with us in May to discuss the highs and lows of founding a startup.

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