New Delhi, Aug. 29 -- Dubai Future District Fund-backed proptech startup Holo was ahead in the startup fundraising activity in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region this week, securing eight-digit growth capital from new and existing investors. Its new backers included the UAE's sovereign wealth fund, Mubadala.

Other key deals were early-stage fundraising by UAE-based crypto-education and trading-support platform Cointel and device-as-a-service (DaaS) provider Zetta. Agritech startup Maalexi secured debt funding.

In the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) space, Saudi Arabia-based VC Impact46 bought the Saudi game development studio Kammelna for $53 million (around Rs 467 crore).

Holo

UAE-based Holo raised $22 million (around Rs 194 crore) in a Series A round led by Saudi Arabia's Impact46, to scale up its operations and to expand across Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

Other investors that participated in the round include sovereign investor Mubadala, Rua Growth Fund, and MoreThan Capital, besides returning investors Salica Oryx Fund and Dubai Future District Fund (DFDF).

Launched in 2020 by Michael Hunter and Arran Summerhill, Holo offers digital mortgage services, allowing buyers and homeowners to explore refinancing options.

The latest round comes a year after the startup raised an undisclosed pre-Series A round, led by existing investor DFDF and with participation from Oryx Fund and Aditum Investment Management Limited, to expand across the GCC.

Maalexi

UAE-based B2B food and agri fintech startup Maalexi, which secured a $3 million (around Rs 26.4 crore) debt finance facility from Citi earlier this year, has raised more debt to scale its operations.

This time, Maalexi has secured a shariah-compliant credit facility of up to $20 million (around Rs 176 crore) from Amwal Capital Partners, starting with an initial $5 million tranche.

Founded in 2021 by Azam Pasha and Rohit Majhi in the UAE, Maalexi offers risk management tools that help small food and agri-businesses directly access cross-border trade. These tools include digital contracts, AI-enhanced inspections, and blockchain-authenticated documentation.

It aims to deploy the funds towards enhancing its platform and driving customer acquisition in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, among others.

Maalexi had raised $3 million in pre-Series A funding in January last year, led by Dubai-based venture capital firm Global Ventures. Its existing investors, Amsterdam-based Rockstart and Delhi-based Ankurit Capital, had committed additional capital to the startup in the round.

Cointel

UAE-based edtech platform Cointel secured $7.4 million (around Rs 65.2 crore) in a round that saw participation from several investors including US-based blockchain platform Avalanche and Japanese Web3 innovation firm Sugafam Inc.

Launched in 2025, Cointel describes itself as an AI-native platform for crypto education, intelligence and trading support.

It aims to utilize the funding to accelerate its expansion in North America in the December quarter of 2025, following its product fit in Japan.

Zetta

Saudi Arabia-based device-as-a-service (DaaS) provider Zetta raised $12 million (around Rs 106 crore) in a round led by Core Vision Investments and Ab'ad Al-Watan Investment.

Founded in 2023 by Faisal Al-Abdulsalam, Tabreez Mohiuddin, Alwaleed Altheeb, and Saeeduddin Shah, the Riyadh-based Zetta offers tech services as a subscription with a flexible payment plan.

The startup plans to use funding to expand in the Saudi market and enhance its product offerings.

The latest round comes a year after Zetta raised $1.5 million in pre-seed funding led by Core Vision.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from VC Circle.