According to Bain & Company, the wider MENA e-commerce sector was valued at $8.4B in 2017, with annual growth of 25% since 2014, and the market is expected to reach $28.5B by 2022.
FlapKap, a firm that is changing e-commerce and SaaS growth in the Middle East and Africa region raised a $1.2M funding. The fundraising was led by A15, the leading MENA venture capital firm, and one of the most prominent backers of early-stage startups in the region.
Fund Utilisation
FlapKap, which is now available in the UAE and Egypt, will emerge soon in Saudi Arabia. In addition, the company anticipates further MEA expansion and quick merchant acquisition.
FlapKap is an MEA-based fintech company that is changing the way e-commerce and SaaS businesses grow in the region. FlapKap is able to provide recommendations to online businesses in the region on how to improve their profits and optimise their advertising expenditure by using AI-based insights and data analytics. FlapKap gives its merchants flexible payment periods after assisting them in reaching their growth potential, allowing them to grow sustainably without having to worry about immediate cash limitations.
The team
FlapKap’s management team comes with a track record of success in e-commerce, media, and digital banking. Ahmad Coucha, a Harvard graduate and co-founder of MENA’s largest advertising agency Kijamii, is the co-founder/CEO. Khaled Nassef, co-founder/CTO, formerly of German neobank N26 and Amazon; Amr Gamal, COO, formerly of McKinsey and P&G; and Sherif Bichara, FinOps Manager, formerly of Helios and Lazard, round out the founding team.
“We are happy to announce our debut and fundraise, and have the backing of such an esteemed investor as A15 – one of the premier venture capital firms in the MENA area,” said Ahmad Coucha, co-founder and CEO of FlapKap. It demonstrates the strength of our business model and justifies our strategy.
“We took a tried-and-true worldwide business model and adapted it for the Middle East.” Our approach enables SMEs and startups to grow sustainably without losing equity, while also assisting them in managing their cashflows. We are pleased to expand the growth prospects we have unlocked for our early clients to the entire area, since we have a first-mover advantage and a big market opportunity.”
“A15 is happy to lead the fundraise for FlapKap and to support its CEO, Ahmed Coucha, for –our second venture together,” stated Karim Beshara, General Partner at A15. FlapKap is not only a forward-thinking firm with a fantastic business concept; it is also producing actual concrete value for the region by assisting SMEs in growing. It also has a first-mover advantage in a significant market, all of which bodes well for the future.”
Meanwhile, FlapKap competes with the likes of PayTabs, Souqalmal.com, Bayzat and more.
