MENA startup funding surged in July 2025, with 57 startups raising USD 783 million, a 1,411% month-on-month increase and more than double July 2024’s total. Saudi Arabia leads with USD 396.5 million across 16 deals, followed by the UAE with USD 359 million from 22 startups. This underscores their dominance as regional innovation hubs. Notably, Iraq and Morocco broke into the top four as Egypt slipped to 5th amid macroeconomic headwinds. For the first time in months, deeptech overtook fintech as the leading sector, securing USD 250.3 million (tied with e-commerce’s USD 250 million rebound). Fintech fell to 4th, with USD 61 million. Two mega-deals (XPANCEO and Ninja) accounted for over half the total, reflecting investor appetites for late-stage, B2C-driven growth. At the same time, the gender funding gap remained stark, with male-led ventures capturing 99% of capital. Seven months into 2025, the region has already surpassed its full-year 2024 totals, with investors signaling confidence in both late-stage scale-ups and early-stage pipelines. This momentum positions the region as an increasingly attractive global growth hotspot.
