Welcome to the second edition of EMEA Weekly! This edition will dive into the exciting tech happenings across EMEA. It has been an eventful week, from EIB Global's investment in Seedstars Africa Ventures I to Paymob's partnership with Tamara, and not forgetting the merger of Tier and Dott. Brace yourselves for a review of all these exciting developments.

Africa

Important News:

• Paymob, a prominent financial services enabler in the MENA-P region, has disclosed a strategic partnership with Tamara, the leading shopping and payments platform in the GCC region, as per an official statement. Tamara's Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) service is now integrated with Paymob's secure gateway.

• The introduction of cNGN, Nigeria's official stablecoin, originally slated for Tuesday, February 27, 2024, has been delayed to adhere to regulatory requirements.

• Coinbase has incorporated the Yellow Card Widget into its platform, providing Coinbase Wallet users access to Yellow Card's diverse payment methods spanning 20 African countries. This partnership is set to revolutionize the accessibility and convenience of digital assets across Africa.

• Ghana has instituted a restriction preventing the operation of Cybersecurity Service Providers who lack proper licensing or accreditation in the country.

Top Funding Rounds:

• Cleva, a Nigerian fintech company establishing a banking platform that enables African individuals and businesses to receive international payments through USD accounts, has secured $1.5 million in pre-seed funding.

• FriendyM, an Autotech company based in Egypt, has obtained a $2 million investment to expand its services to all governorates within the Arab Republic.

• The eyecare startup Lapaire, based in Ivory Coast, has successfully raised $3 million in equity funding to support its expansion and growth initiatives across Africa.

Notable Exits:

• Egyptian online tutoring startup Orcas has been acquired by Baims a Kuwaiti ed-tech company

About Investors:

• EIB Global declares a $30 million investment in Seedstars Africa Ventures I providing essential risk capital for entrepreneurs across Africa, fostering growth, and contributing to job creation.

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Europe

Important News:

• Pitch, a startup based in Berlin that specializes in creating alternative products to PowerPoint and Google Slides, has disclosed plans to reduce its team, with two-thirds of the workforce facing layoffs.

• Thomson Reuters has proposed to acquire Sweden's Pagero Group for approximately $627 million. The agreement involves Thomson Reuters obtaining full ownership of Pagero Group by acquiring 100 percent of its shares.

Top Funding Rounds:

• Tokamak Energy, a UK nuclear fusion startup, has garnered over $50 million in a continuing Series C funding round.

• Northvolt, a Swedish startup, and Europe's most well-funded battery manufacturer, has received approval from the European Commission for €902 million in state aid from Germany. This funding is earmarked for the construction of a production plant in the northern part of the country.

• Picnic, based in Amsterdam, secures €355 million in funding and experiences a 40% growth, reaching a turnover of €1.25 billion in 2023.

• FINN, a Munich-based car subscription platform, has disclosed the completion of a €100 million Series C funding round, valuing the company at over $600 million.

• Norwegian AI startup 1X has revealed its $100 million Series B funding round, with EQT Ventures leading the investment. The Startup plans to deploy the capital to introduce NEO, its new android designed specifically for everyday domestic tasks for consumers.

Notable Exits:

• Tier and Dott, two scooter startups based in Europe, have revealed their plans to merge, as announced by the companies with their investors injecting an additional 60 million euros into the combined business.

• Novartis is set to acquire Calypso Biotech, a company based in Amsterdam, for an estimated sum of nearly $425 million.

• Intel has acquired Silicon Mobility, a French company specializing in electric vehicle (EV) energy management solutions, thereby advancing its AI initiative in the automotive industry.

• Other Notable exits: Persoo, KnowledgeHound, Klaus, Sevensense, Heliox, Gjosa, Monsido

About Investors:

• Kost Capital, a venture capital firm with a primary focus on food technology in Europe, announces the successful initial closing of a $25 million fund.

• Syndicate One, a leading angel investment group based in Brussels, has declared the successful initial close of its inaugural fund at €4.8 million.

• Encomenda, a venture capital firm headquartered in Barcelona, has officially disclosed the initial closing of its Encomenda II fund, along with the announcement of its first seven investments from this newly secured capital pool. While the firm has gathered €15 million, its investment target is set between €40 million to €50 million.

• Carbon13, the venture builder dedicated to addressing the climate emergency, has revealed the initial closing of its €30 million fund.

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Middle East

Important News:

• Tamara has officially announced a significant collaboration with Paymob, a prominent financial services enabler in the MENA-P region. According to an official statement, Tamara's Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) service is now integrated into Paymob's secure gateway.

Top Funding Rounds:

• Clinicy, a healthcare technology startup based in Saudi Arabia, successfully secured $5 million in a Series A funding round. The funding was led by Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP).

• Maalexi, the dynamic risk management platform catering to SME agri-businesses in the UAE, has concluded a pre-Series A funding round, securing $3 million. Global Ventures took the lead in this funding round.

• Nawel, a logistics solutions provider headquartered in Saudi Arabia, has successfully concluded a Seed funding round of $1 million led by Nomad Holdings.

• Lokalee, a Dubai-based AI-powered content platform catering to hotels and holiday homes, has secured USD 5.6 million in pre-Series A funding.

Notable Exits:

• Baims, a leading Kuwaiti ed-tech company, strategically acquired Orcas, an online tutoring startup based in Egypt. This acquisition is aimed at enabling Baims to tap into the thriving education market in MENA, estimated at a substantial $100 billion.

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Thank you for joining us in this edition of EMEA Weekly! We've covered a spectrum of thrilling tech developments across the EMEA region. The tech landscape in EMEA is undoubtedly dynamic and evolving. Stay tuned for more updates on the latest trends, innovations, and collaborations shaping the future of technology in the region. Your continued interest in EMEA Weekly is greatly appreciated, and we look forward to bringing you more exciting updates in our future editions.