More than 13 Saudi startups preparing to go public: SVC CEO

Logo of  Saudi Venture Capital Co. (SVC)

More than 13 Saudi startups are preparing to go public in the coming two years, Asharq News reported, citing Nabeel Koshak, CEO of Saudi Venture Capital Co. (SVC).

Divestitures—including acquisitions, mergers or equity markets—from startups in the Kingdom, increased from two per year to 17 over the last two years. This includes the IPO of Jahez International Company for Information System Technology (Jahez) on the Saudi Exchange (Tadawul).

He said the constant updating of regulations and allowing an experimental environment that provides startups resilience and financing support are the key factors behind increasing venture capital investments, especially in the financial technology (FinTech) industry.

The company has been focusing on the FinTech industry for the last three years through injecting investments in two sector specialized funds. Additionally, 70% of the 53 funds, in which the company has investments, already have FinTech investments, and accordingly, 35% of the company’s invested funds are pumped into the FinTech industry.

SVC is urging investors to invest along the different stages of a startup—from the seed capital to the initial public offering stage, said Koshak, indicating that the company closed the startups financing gaps and supported investors.

Koshak expected education and healthcare technology, along with investments in environment and alternative energy, to see overwhelming turnout from startups over the coming period.

He also noted that 50% of the startups exit the market, while 30% of these companies double capital and 10-20% manage to increase capital by up to 30 times, allowing venture capital funds to offset risks and generate profit.