MENA startup funding falls 96% in October to USD 40 mn as megadeals vanish

Startup funding across the MENA region plunged 96% m-o-m to around USD 40 mn in October, although September’s USD 1.1 bn made for an unusually high comparison base. Three Saudi fintech rounds — Barq, Tabby, and Lendo — accounted for USD 762.5 mn, or nearly 70% of September’s total. The number of transactions also fell 56% to 32 from 73, according to a monthly report by Wamda and Digital Digest. And Wamda’s count for October 2025 was USD 784.9 mn, putting the y-o-y drop at 95% as well.

But the slowdown went beyond the absence of big-ticket plays. Not a single startup across the region secured funding beyond the early stage in October. Early-stage startups raised USD 33.7 mn across 24 transactions, while debt financing was limited to a single USD 550k transaction. There were also no late-stage or mega-round investments. Seven other startups raised USD 5.7 mn between them without disclosing a stage.

The month was narrow as well as small. B2B startups took USD 34.3 mn across 21 transactions, or 86% of the month’s total, and female-founded or mixed-gender teams raised USD 200k between them from two rounds — 0.5% of the month.

Saudi Arabia led the region, attracting USD 18.8 mn, or 47% of October’s funding, across nine transactions. Autobia’s USD 12 mn Series A accounted for nearly two-thirds of Saudi Arabia’s total and 30% of all funding raised across MENA. And the UAE followed with USD 12.9 mn across 10 transactions, while Qatar came third with a single USD 5 mn round. The rest of the field was smaller than a single Series A: Kuwait USD 650k, Jordan USD 560k, and Syria USD 365k.

Egypt slipped to fourth place, raising just USD 1.7 mn across six transactions, averaging less than USD 300k each. That’s down from USD 49.2 mn in September, when Paymob’s USD 35 mn round accounted for most of the funding. But even excluding Paymob, September’s total would have stood at USD 14.2 mn, by our math, suggesting Egypt’s October slowdown went well beyond the absence of a large funding round.

BACKGROUND: Egyptian startups raised USD 206 mn in 9M 2026, down 20% y-o-y, and Saudi funding fell 29% to USD 1 bn, while UAE funding rose 17% to USD 1.6 bn, according to Magnitt data seen by EnterpriseAM last month. The same report logged 31 startup M&A transactions across MENA in 9M, down 26% y-o-y, and expected a higher-for-longer rate environment to weigh on venture activity through 2027. Thin exits and dear money help explain why the late-stage tier has gone quiet.

MENA startups have raised around USD 3.4 bn in the first 10 months of 2026, by Wamda’s count, compared with a record USD 7.5 bn in all of 2025. The figures capture only disclosed rounds, however. When reported funding in Egypt dried up in March amid regional war jitters, local VCs told us that capital was still moving, but transactions weren’t necessarily being announced.

Why it matters: At USD 40 mn, the monthly total is a reading on the top of the market — a handful of Gulf financings — not on the pipeline underneath. Three Saudi transactions were 70% of September’s USD 1.1 bn, and October had none. Strip those three out, and September would have still come to USD 338 mn, by our math, more than eight times October’s USD 40 mn. Early stage is where most founders in the region actually raise, and it keeps thinning: 9M early-stage dealcount was down 45% y-o-y even as mega-rounds set records. That is the line to watch, not the headline. Wamda’s own framing is that November and December will test whether investors regain confidence after the near-freeze.

MARKETS THIS MORNING-

Asian markets closed higher yesterday. Japan’s Nikkei gained 1.3% and South Korea’s Kospi climbed 2.6%, even as more investors expect the US Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by 50 basis points. Kospi started the day down 0.6%, but bounced back to finish higher.

THE CLOSING BELL-

The ADX rose 0.3% yesterday on turnover of AED 2.2 bn. The index is down 4.1% YTD.

In the green: ADIB Rights Issue 2026 (+18.7%), Invest Bank (+10.3%), and Ins. House (+10.0%).

In the red: Aram Group (-4.5%), E7 Group Warrants (-4.5%), and Alpha Dhabi Holding (-1.9%).

Over on the DFM, the index rose 0.8% on turnover of AED 1.3 bn. Meanwhile, Nasdaq Dubai was up 1.1%.