Grow your business

Dubai’s start-up scene

Sun, September 27, 2020

The entrepreneurial spirit is ingrained in Dubai’s DNA, which is why the region’s leading start-up hub attracts investment from industry giants around the world.

60%

of all funding in MENA

According to the report from MENA start-ups data platform Magnitt, the UAE attracted 60% of all funding in the region.

94%

SMEs and new start-ups

Small and medium companies represent more than 94% of the market in the UAE, and employ over 86% of the private sector workforce.

Top 20

for ease of doing business

In 2019, the UAE was recognised among the Top 20 in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business ranking for nurturing entrepreneurs.

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US$700 m

total investment

A record-breaking 564 deals were signed in the MENA region in 2019, amounting to more than US$700 million in investment.

Start-upsuccess stories

CareemTransportation and delivery company
Careem is the start-up success story that will act as a catalyst for investors and entrepreneurs alike for years to come. Founded by two former management consultants in 2012, it expanded its offering to more than 100 cities in 15 countries. It was acquired by San Francisco-based Uber in the record deal in January 2019, with both firms continuing to operate independently.
Souq.comE-commerce
Originally an online auction site when it was founded in 2005, it is now the largest e-commerce platform in the Arab world. After Amazon’s US$580 million acquisition of Souq.com in 2017, it now trades as Amazon.ae.
The EntertainerRetail discount platform
Lending credence to the notion that sometimes, the simplest ideas work best, Dubai-based Australian resident Donna Benton sold an 85% stake in her lifestyle company for a reported nine-figure sum in 2018. Benton founded The Entertainer in 2001 as a way of offering two-for-one deals on meals, spa treatment and entertainment. Now an app, it offers deals from more than 10,000 merchants across the Middle East, Europe, Asia and Africa.