Egypt-based «Parlex AI», a startup specializing in Arabic conversational AI and voice technology solutions for banks and financial institutions, has announced its acceptance into «NVIDIA Inception», one of the world’s leading programs supporting artificial intelligence and technology startups. Important Milestone The move marks an important milestone in the company’s growth journey as it seeks to strengthen its position in Arabic language processing and voice AI technologies across the Middle East and North Africa. Through the program, «Parlex AI» will gain access to advanced computing resources, specialized development tools, training opportunities, and a global network of investors and technology experts. Integrated…
Author: Mohamed Fathy
PayMint, the pioneer company in payment and payroll management solutions for small and medium enterprises, announced a new partnership with Vezeeta, the digital healthcare company, to provide integrated medical solutions by making “Shamel” services available to employees of companies using PayMint’s payment and payroll cards, as part of the ongoing cooperation and long-standing partnership between the two companies over the years. Improve the Experience This partnership reflects the continuous steps being taken by PayMint to improve the experience of its corporate clients and provide real value-added services that go beyond payment and payroll solutions, by offering integrated benefits and solutions…
African startups are making significant progress. In this context, the digital economy platform FollowICT highlights the top startup news across Africa over the past week. – Flutterwave raises Series E funding at $3.2bn valuation; Ripple participates Nigerian payments unicorn Flutterwave has raised a Series E round of funding that values it at US$3.2 billion, with leading global blockchain-based finance company Ripple one of its new investors. Launched in 2016, Flutterwave builds modern payments technology and infrastructure for Africa to enable people and businesses to connect with the global economy. Its solution enables banks and merchants to replace multiple payment integrations…
Egypt’s entrepreneurship ecosystem saw the official launch of Startup Egypt on Tuesday evening, a non-profit civil society organisation designed to support Egyptian startup founders and connect them with sources of expertise, funding, market access, and institutional support across the government and private sectors. The launch ceremony, held at a major hotel in Greater Cairo, was attended by Minister of Finance Ahmed Kouchouk and Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Mohamed Farid Saleh, alongside senior officials, representatives of the Ministerial Group for Entrepreneurship, investors, entrepreneurs, and public figures. Bridge Gaps The event also brought together Hossam Osman, Deputy Minister of Higher…
Schneider Electric, the global leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, announced the signing of a partnership agreement with GIZ Egypt on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the Private Sector Innovation Project (PSI II. The partnership aims to support the implementation of the global ClimAccelerator programme in Egypt, which is locally operated through Athar Accelerator in collaboration with Climate-KIC. This step aligns with Schneider Electric’s commitment to leading electrification, automation, and digitalisation across industries, businesses, and homes, while delivering practical solutions that enhance efficiency and sustainability for all. Sustainability…
In a move that underscores Huawei Cloud’s commitment to supporting the next generation of digital investment platforms, Huawei Cloud has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Thndr, one of Egypt’s leading digital investment platforms. The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the Huawei Cloud FinTech Summit 2026, with the aim of strengthening collaboration in the fintech sector and fostering digital innovation through cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and secure digital infrastructure solutions. The MoU was signed by Joe Xu, CEO of Huawei Cloud Egypt, and Ahmed Hammouda, Co-Founder and CEO of Thndr, in the presence of senior leaders from…
Beltone Asset Management, a subsidiary of Beltone Holding, has partnered with Telda, the fintech platform specializing in digital financial services, to broaden access to Beltone’s investment products and mutual funds through Telda’s digital platform. Investment Solutions The partnership aims to simplify access to investment solutions by enabling Telda users to investment funds established and managed by Beltone Asset Management. through a seamless digital experience that offers zero commission fees excluding precious metals funds, with the ability to transfer redeemed proceeds directly to the Telda card, supporting broader financial inclusion and expanding participation in investment products across Egypt. By combining Beltone…
Huawei Cloud hosted the Huawei Cloud Fintech Summit 2026, bringing together financial institutions, fintech innovators, cloud experts, technology partners, and industry leaders to discuss the next stage of digital transformation in Egypt’s financial services sector. Under the theme of accelerating fintech innovation through cloud, AI, data intelligence, and secure digital infrastructure, the summit highlighted how advanced cloud technologies are enabling financial institutions to build more agile, compliant, resilient, and customer-centric services. Egypt’s Financial Sector The summit comes as Egypt’s financial sector continues to accelerate its digital transformation, with growing demand for scalable, secure, and locally hosted cloud infrastructure. Since launching…
African startups are making significant progress. In this context, the digital economy platform FollowICT highlights the top startup news across Africa over the past week. – MAX Secures USD 8 M Debt Funding To Scale Electric Mobility In Africa Metro Africa Xpress (MAX), an African electric mobility platform that evolved from a now-discontinued bike-hailing operation in Nigeria, has secured USD 8 M in debt funding from Netherlands-based impact investor Triple Jump to scale its clean transport operations. Founded in 2015 by Adetayo Bamiduro and Chinedu Azodoh, MAX provides electric vehicles, battery-swapping infrastructure, and Pay-As-You-Go (PAYGO) financing for commercial drivers. Operating…
Thndr, Egypt’s leading retail investment platform, has ranked #1 on the Financial Times Africa’s Fastest-Growing Companies 2026, becoming the first Egyptian company in the ranking’s five-year history to claim the top spot. Fastest-Growing Businesses Compiled by the Financial Times in partnership with Statista, the ranking identifies Africa’s fastest-growing businesses, evaluated across three metrics: absolute revenue growth, compound annual growth rate (CAGR), and employee growth between 2021 and 2024. Thndr ranked the first, ahead of companies from South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, and across the continent. Investing Platform Since launch, Thndr has now grown to over 5.5 million downloads, with over 75-80%…
Byit, an Egypt-born proptech startup, has announced its expansion into the UAE alongside the launch of a new suite of AI powered solutions. These tools are designed to empower real estate brokers and enable more efficient cross-border property transactions. Strategic Funding The move comes just months after the strategic funding round backed by A15, Beltone Holding, and a group of angel investors. This investment reinforces confidence in Byit’s vision to modernise real estate broking across the region. As part of its regional expansion strategy, Byit has established Byit Ventures in the UAE. This positioning allows the company to connect Egyptian…
Egrobots, a leading specialist in DeepTech and intelligent robotics, has officially announced the launch of the first autonomous agricultural harvesting robot fully developed by Egyptian engineers. This milestone represents a pioneering step for both Egypt and the Arab region, showcasing the advanced capabilities of Egyptian firms in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, autonomous systems, and deep technology. Agricultural Automation The new robot introduces a paradigm shift in the concept of agricultural automation and smart farming, as it was built using sophisticated computer vision, AI, and autonomous navigation systems. These technologies enable the robot to identify ripe crops, determine the most…
African startups are making significant progress. In this context, the digital economy platform FollowICT highlights the top startup news across Africa over the past week. – Nigeria-Based Fintech Startup Bfree Raises Fresh Capital to Tackle Non-Performing Loans With AI Across Africa Nigerian credit management startup Bfree has successfully raised fresh capital in a funding round from undisclosed investors. This latest financial boost aims to enhance Bfree’s innovative platform, which utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) to manage and recover defaulted digital loans across Africa’s burgeoning fintech landscape. Since its founding in 2020 by Julian Flosbach, Chukwudi Enyi, and Moses Nmor, Bfree has…
Startup Sync, an integrated entrepreneurship platform active in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, has announced its strategic sponsorship of the Business Lobby event, set to take place on Saturday, 9 May 2026, at the Heliopolis Library in Cairo, bringing together a select group of entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts. Interactive Platform The fifth edition of Business Lobby will take place as an interactive platform designed to foster meaningful collaboration among key players in the entrepreneurship ecosystem. The event aims to turn professional connections into real investment opportunities and scalable partnerships, in line with its vision of redefining modern business communities. The…
African startups are making significant progress. In this context, the digital economy platform FollowICT highlights the top startup news across Africa over the past week. – SA’s Shiprazor raises $2.65m to build intelligent logistics layer for African e-commerce South African e-commerce merchant technology and smart logistics platform Shiprazor has raised US$2.65 million in seed funding to help African online merchants reduce delivery costs, improve conversion, and simplify fulfilment. Founded in 2023 and based in Cape Town, Shiprazor is an e-commerce logistics platform that helps merchants reduce delivery costs, improve fulfillment performance, and simplify shipping at scale. Through a single integration,…
Egypt is participating for the first time with a dedicated pavilion featuring 10 technology startups at SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026, held in Tokyo, Japan, from April 27 to 29, 2026. The participation comes as part of an official delegation led by the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), in collaboration with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), reflecting the growing global presence of Egypt’s technology startups. The Egyptian pavilion received an official visit from H.E. Ambassador Ragui ElEtreby, Egypt’s Ambassador to Japan, and Ms. Yuriko Koike, Governor of Tokyo, highlighting the importance of Egypt’s participation at the event. Strategic Partnership…
The opening of Alshaya Group’s first global Contact Center and Information Technology hub in Egypt represents a significant milestone in the company’s journey, reflecting its long-term commitment to this vital and fast-growing market, said the Group’s Managing Director in Egypt. Janset kasht stated that the Alshaya Global Contact Center and IT hub serves the Group’s markets across the Arab region, in addition to markets in Europe and Asia. She added that Egypt has become a key strategic partner in Alshaya’s regional growth journey, noting that the establishment of this global hub reflects the importance of Egypt’s role within the Group’s…
iSchool, the leading K-12 AI and coding education platform in the MENA region, today announced the acquisition of Rubikal, a globally recognized software engineering company, in a strategic move to accelerate the development of its next-generation AI products and infrastructure for schools. The Team As part of the acquisition, Rubikal’s leadership team and engineering talent will join iSchool. Mohamed Ibrahim, Co-founder of Rubikal, will take the role of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at iSchool, while Moustafa Badawy, Co-founder, will join as Vice President of Engineering. The transaction also brings a team of 21 software engineers into iSchool’s growing technology division.…
Sinai.ai, the next-generation adaptive reading platform transforming books into dynamic, intelligent experiences, today announced the close of its $1.45M pre-seed funding round. The round was led by KAUST Innovation Ventures (KIV) and DisrupTech Ventures, with participation from Maza Ventures and YOUXEL Ventures, alongside a coalition of angel investors. The capital will fund proprietary tech, AI infrastructure, user acquisition, and licensing. Global Book Market The global book market represents over $150 billion in value, yet the core format of books has remained largely unchanged for decades. Sinai.ai was founded on the conviction that this is about to change, and that the…
Behind every frictionless financial app lies a sophisticated digital foundation; as embedded finance scales globally, fortifying this core infrastructure is now the industry’s central focus. Leading this charge is Banknbox, a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform rapidly evolving from a MENA regional powerhouse into a cross-border infrastructure provider currently powering financial services across the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and now Europe. Digital Demand Targeting geographies where digital demand is surging but legacy systems remain constrained, Banknbox is scaling its modular infrastructure to help banks, fintechs, and enterprises launch financial products in record time. Expanding Over the past year, the company has capitalized…