A whole lotta investments. Yesterday was busy with investment news from fresh funds from the Gulf to Azimut announcing fresh funds.

EGYPT WAS ONE OF KSA’S TOP INVESTORS-

Egypt among top investors in Saudi Arabia in 1Q 2024: Egypt ranked as the joint top third investor in Saudi Arabia by number of transactions in the first quarter of the year, according to Saudi Investment Ministry’s Economic and Investment Monitor (pdf). Egypt along with the UAE and Singapore each closed three agreements in the Kingdom, behind the UK in second place with five, and the US with 11 closed transactions.

And there’s signs that Egyptian interest in Saudi investments is growing: Egypt received 950 investment licenses in 1Q 2024 from the Saudi Investment Ministry, way ahead of Yemen in second place with 346 licenses and India in third place with 321 licenses.

The bigger picture: Net inflows of foreign direct investment into Saudi grew 32% y-o-y in 4Q 2023 to SAR 19 bn (c. USD 5.07 bn). FDI inflows hit SAR 72 bn in 2023, growing 12.1% y-o-y, not including Aramco’s SAR 58.1 bn agreement with BlackRock Real Assets and Hassana Investment in February 2022, according to the report.

Want more? EnterpriseAM KSA has the full breakdown of the report. Check it out here.

NEW AZIMUT FUNDS-

Three new Azimut funds in 2024? Asset manager Azimut is planning to launch three new investment funds before the end of 2024, one of which will invest in shariah-compliant stocks and go live when the EGX launches its maiden sharia-compliant index, Azimut Managing Director. Ahmed Aboul Saad told Al Borsa. The firm is also gearing up to launch a USD fixed-income fund which will invest in Eurobonds.

Refresher: EGX Head Ahmed El Sheikh said last month that the bourse has put together a committee to launch the index this quarter with 30 to 50 companies.

Also in the pipeline: The firm is planning to launch the country’s first silver-backed investment fund, with initial investments of EGP 150-200 mn. The company launched the country’s first gold fund with Evolve Investment Holding in May 2023.

FRESH FUNDS FOR ECOMILEZ-

Vhubs invests in Ecomilez: Abu Dhabi-based logistics firm Vhubz has invested some EGP 50 mn in local logistics startup Ecomilez, writes Al Borsa. With its 20 years of experience in the field and the fresh funds, Vhubz will help Ecomilez expand their tech logistics solutions, boost efficiency, and bring down freight costs 30-40%, Ecomilez CEO, Mohamed Ismail told the news outlet.

Expanding its footprint: The startup wants to step into the UAE and Saudi market by the end of the year, backed by the funding from Chubs.

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