Shorooq Partners, a Middle East and North Africa (MENA) alternative investment firm, announced the first closing of its second credit fund at $100 million. The firm partnered with Korean investment firm IMM Investment Global, the investment arm of IMM which manages over $6 billion in assets, for this fund. IMM served as a minority partner, continuing a two-year partnership established with Shorooq Partners’ first fund.
Shorooq Partners’ previous fund invested in companies like Tamara, a FinTech firm providing buy-now-pay-later solutions, and Pure Harvest, a UAE-based agricultural technology company. The second credit fund aims to finance and support companies in manufacturing, finance, and software sectors.
Shorooq Partners has a strong track record, with over 80 investments in more than 50 companies totaling $1.5 billion in gross equity. Their portfolio includes Pure Harvest Smart Farms, TruKKer, Capiter, Lean Technologies, Sarwa, QuickBus, uLendo, NymCard, Breadfast, Airlift, Mozn, Aumet, and others, creating over 5,000 jobs.
The firm has grown significantly in the past five years. Shorooq Partners boasts a strong reputation with backing from seven sovereign wealth funds and a physical presence in six countries, enabling exceptional deal sourcing capabilities. Notably, they launched the region’s first venture debt fund, Nahda Fund, in 2021, and actively supported promising startups like Pure Harvest Smart Farms and Retailo Technologies. Their network of physical offices allows experienced investors and staff to provide strong on-the-ground support to portfolio companies.
“Merely a few years ago, Shane and I started Shorooq Partners from humble beginnings, bootstrapping our first investments with only our close friends and families committing to it,” said Mahmoud Adi, a founding partner at Shorooq Partners.
“Now with offices across our core markets and a large team, we are humbled and privileged to be a market maker in the region’s accelerating startup ecosystem. We are proud to take on this mission to support founders who deserve only the best kinds of investors that can provide them with inflection points.”
The growing interest from regional and global institutional investors in MENA’s mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market and high-growth startups is strengthening the exit market, creating a more attractive environment for investors and founders alike.
