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Zest Your Equity | 19-March-2025

Zest Your Equity | 19-March-2025

Representations, warranties, indemnification—how to mitigate some of your risk as a buyer and make sure you're getting what you pay for.

Ghalia from Zest
March 19, 2025

This week’s agenda 📜

Terms and concepts ✍️
Who’s raising? 💰
M&A activity 🤝
What we’re reading 📖

Let’s dive in 👇

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Zest terms and concepts ✍️

Representations and warranties: Statements in a purchase agreement where the seller confirms certain facts about the company’s financials, operations, and legal standing.

Indemnification: A contractual obligation in which the seller agrees to compensate the buyer for certain losses or breaches post-transaction.

Management incentive plan: A program granting equity or bonuses to key executives for achieving performance targets during the owner’s holding period. Aligning management’s interests with shareholders incentivizes better execution, faster growth, and cost control. Well-designed incentives can substantially increase the likelihood of a successful exit.

Who’s raising? 💰

🇦🇪 UAE-based fintech KLAIM has raised $10 million in a Series A equity funding round led by Mad’a Investments and joined by CDG Invest and an additional $16 million through Tharawat Tuwaiq Financial Company.
🇦🇪 UAE-based gametech PlaysOut has raised $7 million in a seed funding round at a $70 million valuation from investors, including OKX Ventures, KBW Ventures, and Pacific Century Group.
🇦🇪 UAE-based wellness company Longetivy Wellness Hub has raised $4 million in funding from undisclosed investors.
🇲🇦 Morocco-based superapp ORA Technologies has closed a $1.9 million Pre-Series A funding round led by Witamax & Azur Innovation Fund.
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia-based e-commerce platform Aya has closed a $1.6 million seed funding round, led by Khwarizmi Ventures, with participation from Raed Ventures, Joa Capital, FENA Holdings, Turki Alrajhi, and a group of angel investors.
🇦🇪 UAE-based ORO Labs, a tokenised gold platform, has raised $1.5 million in a pre-seed funding round, led by 468 Capital, with participation from Fasset and angel investors.
🇸🇦 Saudi proptech startup Ajras has successfully raised a $1.5 million pre-Series A funding round, led by Veda Holding.

M&A activity

Grinta, a leading healthcare and pharmaceutical solutions company, has announced its acquisition of Citi Clinic, one of the most renowned and successful primary healthcare service chains in Egypt. Source.
PayTabs Group has acquired a 51% stake in PayTabs Egypt from EFG Finance, an EFG Holding company, according to a recent press release. Source.
Kuwait-born and UAE-based q-commerce and foodtech Talabat has completed the acquisition of 100% of instashop from Delivery Hero SE for $32 million. Source.
PIF-backed Scopely acquires Pokemon Go from US-based Niantic. Source.

What we’re reading 📖

7 Deadly Pitch Deck Sins, According To A VC

VC firms receive thousands of pitch decks a year and a typical investor will spend no more than two to three minutes assessing each one.

GCC economic growth to rise to 4 percent in 2025 despite trade headwinds: ICAEW

In an environment of rising protectionism and persistent geopolitical tensions, the GCC region will remain resilient and is expected to register a GDP growth of 4 percent this year, broadly in line with the consensus and up from an estimated 1.8 percent in 2024.

VC Aileen Lee still sees the most promise in 'unsexy tech'

Lee coined the term “unicorn” in a TechCrunch article all the way back in late 2013. In this conversation, they discuss the ongoing liquidity crisis in the startup ecosystem, the secondary market’s evolution, and how VCs and founders alike are grappling with the post-ZIRP era.

Insight VC explains the biggest mistake that keeps founders from raising a big round

Given how much money VCs are pouring into AI startups these days, it may seem like VCs have decided: If it’s not AI, they won’t write a big check.

Buyout fundraising took a blow in 2024

Private equity dealmaking and exits started to recover last year, but one corner of the market is facing a decade-long low: buyout fundraising.

Want To Sell Your Startup Quickly To A Strategic Buyer? Consider This From The Get-Go

Whether buying a startup or selling one, there are plenty of steps that need to be considered, writes guest author Murat Abdrakhmanov. In this commentary he provides recommendations to help both buyer and seller reach their strategic and financial goals.

Tabuk entrepreneurs, freelancers receive $61.2m from Social Development Bank in 2024

The government-owned financial institution announced that in 2024 it provided over SR75 million in financing to more than 200 businesses in the northwestern region and helped 4,000 freelancers with funding, totaling over SR155 million, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

Fawry partners with Contact to broaden BNPL services in Egypt

Fawry, Egypt's leading fintech company, has signed a strategic agreement with Contact Financial Holding, Egypt’s leading non-banking financial services provider, to broaden their partnership by integrating Contact’s Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) service into Fawry’s vast payment network, which includes over 370,000 POSs and its online platform.