Riyadh – Sharikat Mubasher: Venture capital (VC) funding in emerging markets, including MENA, fell over 40% in 2024 compared to 2023.

According to MAGNiTT’s 2024 Venture Investment Report. The total amount raised was $9.1 billion, with deal activity dropping 20% to 1,527 deals. This reflects a global slowdown in VC funding, especially for non-AI startups.

In the MENA region, startups raised $1.9 billion in 2024, a 29% YoY decline, which fared better than Southeast Asia (45%) and Africa (44%). Encouragingly, the deal count in MENA grew 7% to 571, and the number of investors rose by 18% to 475. Nearly half of all investments ranged from $1 million to $5 million, indicating a focus on early-stage funding, even as late-stage deals declined significantly.

Fintech remained dominant across MENA, Africa, Southeast Asia, Türkiye, and Pakistan, securing $3.9 billion in funding. This strength underscores opportunities for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) across these regions.

Despite global exits plunging 32% and late-stage capital scarcity, MAGNiTT CEO Philip Bahoshy is optimistic. He expects rate cuts to improve funding availability within 6–9 months, signaling a rebound in 2025. Notably, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar saw increased deal activity, reflecting growing investor confidence in the region.