SVC invests $30 million in Bedaya Fund II to back early-stage startups in Saudi Arabia

In a bid to support the growth of the VC ecosystem in Saudi Arabia, Saudi Venture Capital (SVC), a government investment company was established in 2018. The firm is a subsidiary of the SME Bank, one of the development banks affiliated with the National Development Fund.

Now, Saudi Venture Capital has announced a landmark investment of $30 million in Bedaya Fund II, which is managed by Shorooq Partners. The fund will mainly back early-stage startups with a focus on several sectors to thrive in the VC ecosystem in the country.

This investment highlights the increasing confidence in Saudi Arabia's thriving startup ecosystem. Bedaya Fund II is well-positioned to assist the expansion and innovation of early-stage firms thanks to its continued emphasis on Saudi Arabia and leadership position throughout the Middle East.

SVC aims to stimulate and sustain financing for startups and SMEs from pre-Seed to pre-IPO by investing $1.6 billion through investment in funds and co-investment in startups. SVC invested in 38 funds that have invested in 674 companies through 1,257 deals.

The subscription agreement was signed by Dr Nabeel Koshak, CEO and Board Member at SVC, and Mahmoud Adi, Founding Partner at Shorooq Partners. The signing ceremony was attended by Yousef Al-Benyan, the Chairman of the SME Bank and Abdulrahman Mansour, acting CEO of the SME Bank.