10 Women Behind Middle Eastern Tech Brands

1. Mona Ataya, Leena Khalil Brand: Mumzworld Category: E-Commerce Establishment: 2011 Nationality: Palestinians Headquarters: U.A.E.

Since its establishment in 2011, Mumzworld. com has raised $50 million through five rounds of funding. The brand caters to over 2.5 million mothers, selling over 5,000 global brands and 300,000 products. In 2020, the company introduced 3,000 new products. Ataya received an honorary selection as a UN advocate for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. The brand partnered with MBC for the Sabah Al Khair program. In June 2021, Mumzworld agreed to be acquired by Tamer Group in what will be the largest exit for an all-woman-founded startup in the region.

2. Ambareen Musa Brand: Souqalmal.com Category: Financial Products Comparison Establishment: 2012 Nationality: Mauritian Headquarters: U.A.E.

Musa is the founder of Souqalmal, which enables customers to compare over 3,200 personal finance products in the U.A.E. and Saudi Arabia, including personal loans, home loans, car loans, credit cards, bank accounts, car insurance, and home insurance. In 2021, the company’s subbrand, MoneyDoctor, unveiled a new financial education program to help employers train their employees to alleviate financial stress and increase productivity. Musa was selected to be a member of “The Task Force on Digital Financing”—a UN-led global initiative, which focuses on the role of Fintech in sustainable development. So far, Souqamal has raised about $15 million from investors, including GoCompare, UAE Exchange, Riyad Taqnia Fund, Hummingbird, VentureSouq, and NNS Capital.

3. Dana Baki Brand: Munch: On Category: Food Delivery Establishment: 2015 Nationality: Lebanese-American Headquarters: U.A.E.

Dana Baki launched food delivery app MUNCH:ON (formerly known as LUNCH:ON) in 2015. The startup has since raised $15 million in investments from sources including Wamda Capital, Global Ventures, B&Y Ventures, Derayah VC Fund, Mindshift Capital, Shorooq Investments, and Vision VC. It now works with more than 400 restaurants in Dubai and delivers to more than 500 offices across the U.A.E. Recently, MUNCH:ON expanded to Saudi Arabia. Dana previously served as a senior manager at P&G.

4. Ola Younis Doudin Brand: BitOasis Category: Crypto Trading Establishment: 2015 Nationality: Jordanian Headquarters: U.A.E.

Ola Doudin is the co-founder and CEO of BitOasis, which offers digital assets to buy, sell and trade against the U.A.E. Dirham. The platform is available to users in the U.A.E., Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Jordan, Egypt, and Morocco. The exchange won a preliminary license to operate in the U.A.E. from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority at the Abu Dhabi Global Market Authorities. So far, BitOasis has secured two rounds of funding from international and regional venture capital funds.

5. Nadine Mezher Brand: Sarwa Category: Fintech Establishment: 2017 Nationality: Lebanese Headquarters: U.A.E.

Mezher is the co-founder and CMO of Dubaibased Sarwa, one of the first automated investment advisory platforms in the Middle East. The company has raised $9.9 million so far and recently expanded to Saudi Arabia after receiving a Fintech experimental permit from Saudi's Capital Markets Authority. In 2020, the company partnered with Saxo Bank to unveil a new Sarwa X product. In July 2021, it launched Sarwa crypto portfolios.

6. Sarah Toukan Brand: Ziina Category: Fintech Establishment: 2020 Nationality: Jordanian-American Headquarters: U.A.E.

Jointly founded by Sarah and Faisal Toukan and Andrew Gold in 2020, U.A.E.-based peer-to-peer payment application Ziina allows users to send and receive payments with a phone number without the need for an international bank account number or a swift code. Ziina secured $7.5 million in its latest funding round, taking its total funding to more than $8.6 million so far. Currently available to only U.A.E. residents, Toukan plans to expand into Saudi Arabia and Jordan next year.

7. Katharine Budd Brand: NOW Money Category: Fintech Establishment: 2016 Nationality: British Headquarters: U.A.E.

Founded in 2016 by Katharine Budd and Ian Dillon, NOW Money uses mobile banking technology to offer accounts, low-cost remittances, and other financial services to migrant workers. In March 2021, The U.A.E.based Fintech startup secured $7 million in a funding round, taking its total funding since inception to $8.5 million. NOW Money has also received funding from Expo 2020 and Visa. The company plans to expand to Saudi Arabia and increase its customer base to 200,000 by the end of 2021. Budd also played a vital role in launching Cardlytics, which went public on Nasdaq with a valuation of $285 million.

8. Latifa Altamimi Brand: Gathern Category: Vacation Rental Marketplace Establishment: 2017 Nationality: Saudi Arabian Headquarters: Saudi Arabia

Altamimi is co-founder and CEO of peer-to-peer rental marketplace, Gathern, which secured a $6 million Series A funding round in May 2021. Gathern is currently active in more than 115 cities and provinces, including Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Abha, Al-Baha, Taif, Al-Ula, and Umluj. It has a capacity of over 1.2 million guests per month.

9. Afnan Sherbeeni Brand: Sabbar Category: Staffing Platform Establishment: 2019 Nationality: Saudi Arabian Headquarters: Saudi Arabia

Sherbeeni is the co-founder of Saudi-based on-demand staffing platform Sabbar, which specializes in gig jobs in the retail, hospitality, and entertainment industries, targeting the $11 billion temporary blue-collar staff market in the MENA and Pakistan. In July 2021, the company raised $4 million in a pre-series A funding round led by STV and backed by Derayah VC and SEEDRA Ventures. According to Sherbeeni, the platform has a monthly growth rate of 40% and more than 70,000 workers on its registration waiting list. It plans to expand its scope to cover warehousing, logistics, and tourism.

10. Melda Akin Brand: D14.AI Category: AI Consultancy Establishment: 2019 Nationality: Turkish Headquarters: U.A.E.

Akin founded AI-driven software platform D14.AI in 2019, after previously setting up a digital transformation consultancy. The U.A.E.-based startup helps healthcare clinics, gyms, and logistics companies optimize their workforce and manage business operations. It plans to use its technology to help build a socially smart clinic and workforce management platform.