Venture capital: New fund to back early-stage startups in MENA, Europe and North America
BUSINESS REPORTER
MUSCAT, NOV 14
Oman-based Phaze Ventures has announced the launch and initial close of its $30 million venture capital fund, targeting early-stage startups in MENA, Europe and North America.
Established in 2018, Phaze Ventures is the first private venture capital firm in the Sultanate of Oman, founded to fund early-stage disruptive technology companies from around the globe and accelerate the transformation of the region’s economies.
“We founded Phaze Ventures at the start of 2018, since then we have invested in and scaled several businesses across MENA, Europe and North America, as well as created an incredible platform with our accelerator programme and industry partnerships,” says Abdullah al Shaksy, co-founder and CEO at Phaze Ventures.
The firm’s existing investments include eMushrif, Carzaty and Voyager, and is headed by its three co-founders: Abdullah al Shaksy, co-founder and CEO, Mohammed al Wahaibi, co-founder and partner, and Masoud al Rawahi, co-founder and partner. The team is also supported by a diverse group of advisors with leadership experience at global technology firms including Amazon, Siri and Spotify.
“Our ability to support high-potential founders is backed by our world class advisory board and deeply collaborative platform of strategic industry and ecosystem partnerships. With the launch of our fund, we believe our value proposition to the ecosystem has come full circle.” “We are extremely interested in disruptive technologies in traditionally undisrupted markets, with the ability to create a significant and sustainable impact on a global scale.” The fund launches with commitments from the country’s largest investors, including Oman Information and Communications Technology Group (part of the sovereign fund of Oman), Ominvest and several prominent family offices.
