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Who Dares to Finance Fresh Startups? Saudi Business Angels Bridge the Startup Financing Gap Government- owned SVC Co-invests with Angel Groups to Catalyze Startups with USD 750 m Jeddah: Motasem Al Felou Who would take care of a baby idea with a problem-solving concept and spend a lot to have it materialized? Banks, in general, tend to lend bigger enterprises. The share of bank loans dedicated to young entrepreneurs and fresh ideas are relatively low everywhere in the world. When banks are conservative, venture capitals are the brave hearts who pay to give wings to entrepreneurial spirits to fly as high as possible. Saudi delivery and e-commerce Apps, whose brands are worth millions now, were just small ideas that were grown by angel investor and bright entrepreneurs. We are taking a short trip to the concept of
business angels in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
FILLING THE FINANCING VACUUM From enterprise services to financial technology, and from digital learning to e-commerce, Saudi business investors are taking the risk of financing business startups for years without making immediate profits. Those angels go through the journey of financing brand evolution stages until the bran stands on its feet, either alone or in groups or even specialized equity financing funds that are risk-handling-oriented. To add more credibility and assurance, Saudi Venture Capital Company (SVC), a publicly
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Guests attend the 2020 Global AI Artificial Intelligence)( Summit in the Saudi capital Riyadh on The .2020 ,21 October summit brings together stakeholders from public sector, academia and private sector, including technology companies, investors, entrepreneurs and startups to shape the future of Artificial Intelligence (AI). (Getty)