Bekia and Delta Oil land Madica backing as Egypt anchors the fund's latest cohort

Good afternoon, ladies and gents, and happy hump day. Today we break down the digital EGP — what a central bank digital currency actually is, why it’s different from everything you’re already using, and why the CBE is moving carefully. We also found a chicken pane sandwich in Maadi that tastes like someone’s grandmother made it — the highest possible praise — as well as a recap of last night’s 78th Primetime Emmy Awards.

But first, the news…

THE BIG STORY TODAY-

Pan-African pre-seed fund Madica has picked up two Egyptian startups showing continued appetite for the domestic market. The fund is backing recycling platform Bekia and used-cooking-oil aggregator Delta Oil at up to USD 200k each, part of a five-company cohort spanning four African markets, according to a press release (pdf). The two Egyptian startups anchor a five-company cohort spanning four African markets; the wider batch marks Madica’s first investments in Algeria (HR-tech platform Talenteo) and Cameroon (neobank Paysika), alongside Nigeria’s ChipMango, a semiconductor startup.

“[It’s] one market that we’re really excited about,” Madica Investment Associate Francis Veste tells us, where whole sectors still sit underfunded and reward investors willing to look past fintech and retail. We’ll have full details on what the two checks are actually funding, how Madica sizes up the local competition, and the next Egyptian agreement it’s already circling in tomorrow’s EnterpriseAM.

The EnterpriseAM Egypt Forum is less than a month away — and here’s some of what’s shaping up on the agenda:

• Where AI fits on the list of topics keeping CEOs awake at night
• What AI means for your company, your team, your job, and your family
• What's the AI opportunity for Egypt
• Building the AI infrastructure

And more panels to come.

Join us on 5 October in Cairo. Attendance is by invitation only, and seats are filling up quickly.

Request your invitation here.

** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:

• The Egyptian arm of MNT-Halan lined up approval yesterday from the EGX for what looks set to be a blockbuster IPO that’s being closely watched by investors well beyond Cairo. Shares of MNT Tech Holding for Financial Investments will trade on the big board under the ticker HALN.CA;
• The Finance Ministry is weighing a return to the international debt market between October and December, tapping foreign funding aimed at narrowing the financing gap. The cabinet approved measures under the ministry’s FY 2026/27 issuance plan, targeting some USD 3 bn of international bonds — a mix of conventional and “innovative” instruments, plus credit-backed panda bonds — to be executed as investor demand and market conditions allow;
• Cairo-born AI firm Synapse Analytics raised USD 13 mn in a Series A funding round led by Paris-headquartered tech investment company Partech, with our friends at Algebra Ventures also participating alongside Silicon Badia. The round is fully priced, drawn down in a single tranche, with no earlier instruments converting into it, and takes total capital raised to USD 17 mn since 2018;
• The pharma industry is targeting around USD 1.6 bn in exports by the end of 2026, up from some USD 1.3 bn in 2025. This follows expansion into new markets and more competitive local products, with exports reaching USD 550 mn through May. The government wants USD 3 bn by 2030: The domestic market is growing at a c. 15% CAGR — nearly double the global average — while exports increased by around 20% y-o-y in 2025.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Keep those water bottles close, folks; it’s going to be another toasty day in the capital. Highs are set to climb to 37°C, with an overnight low of 26°C, according to our favorite weather app.