Saudi fintech deals lift MENA startup funding to $1.65 billion

Startup investment in the Middle East and North Africa more than doubled from the previous quarter to $1.65 billion across 145 deals, according to Wamda. But the jump was driven far more by a few unusually large transactions than by a broad-based revival: three Saudi fintech financings alone accounted for about $762.5 million, or nearly half the total, and one was debt financing rather than a conventional equity round. Saudi Arabia led the quarter with roughly $1 billion invested, ahead of the UAE’s $507 million. The result shows that big, mature fintech companies can quickly reshape regional funding headlines—while saying less about whether smaller startups are finding it easier to raise money.