The Heartbeat of Tech in MENA

Grover Impact Ventures is an impact program by Grover & Company that supports ventures and innovators transforming climate-tech intellectual property (IP) into a strategic intangible asset class. Leveraging deep expertise in IP validation, commercial and financial structuring of IP(s), and IP licensing methodologies, we accelerate the commercialisation of IP. Our program enables rapid market entry and industry adoption across the Middle East, South Asia, and the Asia Pacific region, driving sustainable innovation and measurable environmental impact at scale.

Ramzy is a Senior Analyst at Global Ventures. He was born and raised in Cairo, Egypt, where he witnessed the early wave of startups that were challenging legacy players. In 2023, he joined the Global Ventures team as part of the Summer Internship program.

Transforming ideas into impactful ventures, Enhance Ventures is pioneering innovation across MENAPT and beyond. As the region’s leading venture studio and innovation advisor, we specialize in ideating, validating, building, scaling, and exiting transformative businesses.

We invests in the foundational technologies that enable AI adoption, innovation and resilience across industries. Our focus is on core pillars that represent the essential building blocks of the modern technology stack.

Ivo Detelinov is a General Partner at Salica Oryx Fund – an early-stage VC fund focused on MENA region and managed by London-based VC firm Salica Investments. Previously, he was at Riyad Capital heading the firm’s PE and VC Funds business and managing Riyad TAQNIA Fund (RTF). Following the completion of an MBA degree from New York University’s Stern School of Business, Ivo joined the Financial Sponsors Group of Merrill Lynch, where he assisted in origination, diligence and deal execution global PE and VC firms in NYC and in London. Prior to attending graduate school, Ivo started his professional career at the Technology Equity Research at Merrill Lynch, where he covered Enterprise Software companies. He is a CFA Charterholder.

Principal at Iliad Partners, investing in MENA startups at the Pre-Series A and Series A stages, with a focus on horizontal B2B and B2B models in Fintech, Proptech, and Logistics.

Anil Joshi is the Founder and Managing Partner at Unicorn India Ventures, a leading Venture Capital Fund focusing on early-stage investments in tech companies. With over two decades of experience in the field, Anil pioneered angel investments in India as the head of operations and President at Mumbai Angels, one of the most reputable and prolific Angel Investment forums in India. As an early mover in early 2000 in this segment, Anil was investing in budding companies even before venture investment had taken any formal shape in India. Within the start-up ecosystem, Anil has been at the helm of over 100 venture-financing deals. He serves on the board of several companies in the field of Fintech, Robotic, Meditech, IOT, Bigdata, SaaS and is involved with multiple incubation centres as a board member and mentor in India as well as internationally. Additionally, he also advices the government and industry bodies on start-ups regarding policy. Young entrepreneurs draw upon his vast experience for guidance and strategic direction for their own start-ups.

Almoayed Ventures W.L.L. is the venture arm of Almoayed General W.L.L. The company focuses on partnering with investment professionals with a track record of supporting and scaling innovative businesses. The company also makes direct investments and supports entrepreneurs throughout their journey. To contact, send an email to [email protected]

Magnus Ventures, along with its affiliated companies, has a mission to enhance the availability of equity capital for promising, early-stage businesses in the MENAP region (Middle East, North Africa, and Pakistan)

Since 2012, BECO Capital creates pathways that guide the bright and unstoppable to regional acclaim and global opportunity. Our compass is calibrated by conviction, not conformity. With collaborative energy and experience across market cycles, we champion founders through critical inflection points and opportunities, transforming promising ventures into industry leaders. We create enduring value, with leadership that balances ambition with humility, and vision with disciplined execution. Our institutional experience, built with purpose and intention over time, has created the foundation for a future where the Middle East’s success story commands global attention.

18 years investing across emerging markets. Excited to meet founders with track record and scaleable ideas. .

Yagub Alserkal is the Founder and CEO of YAS Investments, an investment and advisory firm serving regional startups and family groups in the UAE. He is an entrepreneur with over 10 years of experience in private equity and investment banking at top-tier global firms, including Deutsche Bank, Emirates NBD Asset Management, and Mubadala Investment Company, where he helped co-manage a USD 6 billion fund. In 2018, he also founded the VAT advisory firm Themaar Group.

Sachhyam Regmi, a Managing Partner at YAS Investments, is an investment professional with more than 11 years of private equity and venture capital experience in New York, London, and Dubai, having executed financial transactions totaling USD 4.5 billion. His previous roles include heading the investment division of Millennial Capital, where he structured and closed a USD 20 million joint venture partnership, and experience at BECO Capital, M3, and BNY Mellon Investment Management. Mr. Alserkal holds a Bachelor’s degree with a Double Major in Banking and Finance from Queensland University of Technology, while Mr. Regmi holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Oxford, Saïd Business School.

Christos is the Founder & Managing Partner of Iliad Partners, a venture capital firm based in the UAE. Iliad invests in early-stage B2B tech companies in MENA and European startups expanding into the region. He has over 25 years of investment and operating experience across VC, tech startups, tech corporate and management consulting. He has spent the past 18 years in the UAE, after living in Boston, New York, Washington D.C., and Athens, Greece earlier in his career. Previously, he was Head of Business Development at Yahoo! in Dubai and an Engagement Manager with the Telecom, Media & Technology (TMT) practice at Booz & Company (now Strategy&). As a tech entrepreneur, Christos has co-founded and exited multiple startups, including GlamBox (Dubai), SloanGear (Boston) and previously held operating roles at Upstream (Athens) and govWorks (New York). Christos holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

ABRA Ventures backs founders turning breakthrough science into scalable companies. We invest early across MENA, Africa, and Europe, focusing where scientific validation meets commercial readiness. Our track record includes 20 investments, 8 exits, a 10.5x MoIC, and 121% IRR, supported by deep networks in Dubai, Casablanca, and London. We focus on Health & Biotech, AI & Data Infrastructure, Climate & Smart Systems, Agritech, and Blockchain Infrastructure. ABRA combines local access, institutional discipline, and founder empathy. If you’re building impactful deep tech.

Raed is an Early stage (Seed -Series A) sector agnostic VC looking to back exceptional founders and who are building in and for the MENA regions with a focus on KSA

Nadine Mojadidi is a venture capital investor focused on high-tech, impact-driven startups across sustainability, wellness and future economies. She sources and evaluates deals, leads due diligence, and manages a portfolio of over 10 companies with investments exceeding USD 11 million. Nadine is actively engaged in the startup ecosystem through accelerator programs, investor networks, and industry events, and frequently moderates panels on innovation, green tech, and entrepreneurship. She also contributes to national transformation initiatives through her work at KAUST and the NTI Seminar Series. Nadine is passionate about supporting founders, driving meaningful innovation, and shaping the region’s emerging tech landscape.

Siddharth Havaldar has over 8 years of venture capital investing experience focusing on early and growth-stage companies across the US, MENA, and India regions. He has a track record of evaluating and investing in technology startups operating across the software, mobility, fintech, e-commerce, and consumer sectors. Prior to joining Crescent Enterprises, Siddharth was on the startup side of the venture ecosystem in MENA.

Senior Investment Associate at Oryx Fund

A Tech Futurist and a New Age Serial Entrepreneur, Puru Modani is a versatile and passionate leader with strategic investments in Emerging Tech/ AI-ML, Space Tech, Climate Tech, Fintech, Cloud Telephony/ CRM, eCommerce & Enterprise SaaS. Co-Founder at BM Capital Family Office, he is also a seasoned angel investor having invested in 55 odd startups across sectors with significant exits. He is the founding member of Mumbai Angels (MA), Anchor Investor at MA – Hyderabad Chapter, Co-Founder – Goa Angels Network & The Marwari Angels. He also serves on the board of Incubators/ Accelarators & select few Investee companies. He is an avid sports enthusiast and serves on board of Telangana Olympic Association and Telangana Fencing Association. An IIM – K alumnus, before embarking on his successful multi-sector entrepreneurship journey, Puru served various Fortune 500 companies in Senior Leadership roles.

Michael Lints has 20+ years of experience as a startup operator and investor. Michael is a partner at Golden Gate Ventures and has launched the firm’s first MENA-focused venture fund. Previously Michael co-founded an IT-managed services startup and was a vice-chairman of the Economic Development Board Rotterdam and chairman of the Young Economic Development Board.

Hussein Attar is the CEO of Tech Invest Com, an investment firm that was established in 2005 with 1Bn SAR to invest in regional growth stage tech startups. Ex-Founder of a startup, and ex- CEO of software development company. He is now also an investment committee member of two angel investor groups, and a board member of several of the leading tech startups in the region.

Tara has over 8 years of experience across venture capital, investments, technology, and entrepreneurship. Tara is currently a Principal at BY, where she manages the investment team leading the investment and due diligence process. She is focused on advising and supporting the portfolio on multiple different streams including strategy, business development, financial planning, and future fundraising. Prior to rejoining the BY team, Tara was working in investment banking at SHUAA Capital, focusing on their SPAC business. Previously Tara was an associate at BY, where she started her career. Tara completed a dual degree holding a Bachelor’s in Business Administration (BBA) with a concentration in Finance and a Bachelor in Science (BSc) in Biology from American University of Beirut. Tara is currently a CFA charterholder.

Ghassan Noursi is the Chief of Staff at Nuwa Capital, where he works across investments, fund strategy, and operations. He has been involved in investments spanning foodtech, healthtech, proptech, and SaaS, while also building Nuwa’s internal programs and supporting portfolio companies through value-creation initiatives. His role bridges investment execution with strategic and operational priorities, helping position Nuwa as one of the region’s leading venture platforms.

Founder turned investor. Looking to invest in ambitious, restless, and obsessive Founders in emerging markets from Seed to Series A.

Dimitris Kalavros-Gousiou is a founding figure in the Greek startup and tech ecosystem. He launched TEDxAthens (with more than 450 work-renowned speakers and a cumulative viewership of 18 million views). In 2009 and later co-founded Found.ation, the country’s first accelerator and incubator, both of which played a defining role in shaping Greece’s entrepreneurial landscape. Since then, he has remained at the forefront of the ecosystem as one of its earliest and most consistent supporters. Today, as Founding Partner of Apeiron Ventures ♾️, he backs ambitious founders building category-defining companies with strong values at their core, with a particular focus on enterprise software, security, and defense.

Abrar Ahmad is a Partner at Travel Capitalist Ventures, the first multi-stage travel focused venture capital fund with 10 portfolio companies across 7 countries. With 24 years in the travel industry, he brings rare operational depth—from travel agent to running a 50-person OTA, serving as CTO of a 20-person travel tech company, and now completing his 10th year as a travel venture capitalist. He serves on boards including Travel Trade Today (AI Travel News) and Voopter (Latin America’s leading meta search). Ahmad has spoken at The Economist’s Future of Travel Summit, multiple IATA symposiums, and appeared in Bloomberg, CNBC, SKIFT, and Economic Times.

Sion leads the ventures and investment activities at Plug and Play Abu Dhabi. From direct investments in early stage startups, to technology sourcing for corporate and government partners, Sion has interfaced with entities across the fintech, healthtech and industry 4.0 verticals. She hopes to build a thriving local ecosystem for startups of all stages. Outside of Sion’s day-to-day work, she is an advocate and advisor to female founders through the Women in VC network and supports social impact initiatives such as the TiE Women MENA Program.

Konstantin Behr is a venture capital and strategy leader with experience building and scaling investment platforms across Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Southeast Asia. As Chief Strategy Officer at Utopia Capital Management, he drives growth and operations across multiple funds and subsidiaries. Previously, he was Chief of Staff at Founders Factory Africa, supporting $120m+ in fundraising and organizational expansion, as well as a founding member of Satgana, the first ClimateTech fund focusing on Africa and Europe. He holds an MSc in Social Innovation & Entrepreneurship (Distinction) from the London School of Economics.

Rua Growth Fund is a venture capital firm that aims to lead the next wave of tech ventures. It was born out of a unique strategic partnership between Osool & Bakheet Investment Company and iMENA Group, two pioneers in their respective sectors to lead the next wave of innovative tech ventures in Saudi Arabia

Dusan is a serial entrepreneur turned investor. He is a Managing Partner at Zero One Hundred, an early-stage VC fund focusing on investing in companies from CEE and the Middle East. Dusan is also a co-founder of The Doers Company, which is a holding company behind various projects, such as Doers Summit and Doers United. He also co-founded and sits on the board of Zero One Hundred Conferences, pan-European VC/PE conference platform connecting GPs & LPs. Based in Abu Dhabi, Dusan’s main passion is connecting the dots between Europe and the Middle East while looking for exceptional founders and talent and supporting them through their journey.