Maalexi lands USD 20 mn facility to support SMEs: B2B food and agri-trade platform Maalexi secured a sharia-compliant credit facility of up to USD 20 mn from leading MENA investment firm Amwal Capital, according to a press release (pdf). The first USD 5 mn tranche will help it scale operations in the UAE and KSA and continue to provide SMEs in the region with financing.

The details: The securitized facility, which is collateralized against its inventory and warehouse receivables, allows the startup to draw it down through small tickets via Maalexi’s blockchain-secured platform, the statement said.

What’s next? The funding agreement will “accommodate future funding at a significantly higher scale,” as Maalexi’s trade volumes increase and the firm deepens its AI-driven risk mitigation capabilities. The startup also plans to expand into origin-market procurement through partnerships with Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) and Cooperatives. It will also divert more of its equity capital to enhancing its tech stack, the statement said.

This is the second credit facility for Maalexi this year: Earlier this year, Maalexi secured a USD 3 mn credit facility from Citi to address global food security challenges and bolster SME participation in cross-border agri-trade. The startup aims to lend a hand to the underutilized SME sector in the food supply chain by offering them risk management services, including digital contracts, AI-powered inspections, and blockchain-authenticated documentation for SME agri-businesses.

About Maalexi: Founded in 2021 by Azam Pasha (Linkedin), and Rohit Majhi (LinkedIn), Maalexi has facilitated the procurement of food supplies across 70 products from 27 countries and recorded a cumulative monthly growth rate of 60% last year. It is targeting threefold expansion in 2025, including expanding procurement from US-based exporters, optimizing supply chains, and reducing food waste in the USD 2 tn global food trade.

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