Flat6Labs , a Mena-focused Seed and early-stage venture capital firm has announced its first close of the “Startup Seed Fund” in Saudi Arabia, with the participation of the Saudi Venture Capital Company (SVC), a subsidiary of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Bank, one of the development banks affiliated with the National Development Fund, and the “Jada” Fund of Funds, wholly owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
The Startup Seed Fund fund is dedicated to investing in early-stage startups operating in the technology and innovation sectors within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, enabling startups to receive follow-on funding of up to $64,000 (SAR2.4 million), and support and training programmes.
According to the company,the fund will adopt a highly diversified, systematic investment plan that aims to reduce the risks faced by venture capital and reduce the administrative and legal costs incurred by early-stage startups.
The fund aims to develop the capabilities of more than 180 entrepreneurs, create more than 6,000 jobs in the private sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and enable Saudi companies to expand in the region through Flat6Labs regional offices. This will contribute to completing the structural transformation that the Kingdom aspires to by increasing the share of the digital economy in GDP and enhancing the contribution of the non-oil private sector.
