The Dubai-based VC firm BECO Capital has closed its second fund at US$100 million, which it will use to invest in early-stage startups in the Middle East and Africa (MENA) region.
Founded in 2012, BECO Capital has made 22 investments in startups that include Careem and Property Finder, while its recent investments include Egyptian startups Swvl, Vezeeta and MaxAB.
Its first fund has had four exits to date, and BECO has now closed its second fund at US$100 million, well above its initial US$80 million target. It will continue to invest in tech startups in the seed to Series A range.
“Success stories like Careem have produced dozens of highly skilled and experienced individuals, who have built businesses to global standards and at immense scale. We believe these individuals will go on to have the equivalent impact of PayPal in the region, building the next wave of great companies that will serve regional and global markets,” said Dany Farha, co-founder and managing partner of BECO Capital.
“There have been substantial leaps in the technology and innovation landscape in MENA. Companies like Swvl, Wahed and Kitopi, which we have backed, are now exporting business model innovation from MENA to the rest of the world.”
BECO Fund II is anchored by the Dubai-based RIMCO Investment and the International Financial Corporation (IFC), and also features the Bahrain-based Al Waha Venture Capital Fund of Funds, Warba Bank and top tier family offices such as Watar Partners and KAAF Investments.
