Cairo-based B2B marketplace start-up Teegara raised an undisclosed amount of funding from a recently concluded bridge round led by Alexandria Angel Network and Angel Investors from several countries.
Teegara was founded by Ahmad Kayyali, Nader Ibrahim, and later joined by Ahmed Samir as the first investor.
The start-up offers vendors new distribution methods, ways for increasing both margins and incomes for small merchants by decreasing the process between vendors and merchants as well as providing credit lines and other financial aids.
The Egyptian venture capital (VC) ecosystem has observed stellar growth in funding this year, amassing $156m in the first quarter (1Q), as recorded in MAGNiTT’s Egypt 1Q, 2022 Venture Investment Report.
The sector also closed the lion’s share of transactions with nine deals with a total value of $36.5m, credited mainly to Egypt’s social commerce platform Brimore’s $25m.
The sector has been on a path of steady growth since last year after raising almost five times the capital deployed in 2020 with double the transactions in 2021.
Egypt is also the only country out of the top three in MENA to have recorded a healthy deal flow in Early-Stage deals ($1m) accounting for 39% of total transactions, same as Later-Stage deals ($1m-$5m)
The services and beneficiaries Teegara offers are first hand prices; innovative payment methods; fixable shipping and returns procedures; and a vast assortment of household products, plastics, kitchenware, detergents, makeup, and lingerie directly from factories to merchants.
“Teegara held a bridge round of financing with participation from Alex Angels and investors from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan. The company is now preparing for its ‘seed round’ of financing, which will be held in the second half (2H) of 2022 with VCs from the region,” said Kayyali.
Alex Angels Investor Ramy Gamal commented on the conclusion of the round by saying: “Pleased and excited to participate in Teegara’s new investment round following my participation in their first investment round last year. This comes as a reflection of my belief in the founders’ team vision, dedication, and the real socioeconomic value Teegara is offering to its customers. I’m so optimistic about seeing significant growth in Teegara after this round and inviting VCs to stay tuned and keep an eye on this startup.”
Teegara aims to help new small traders make the most benefits out of using the service. Its goal is to be able to connect vendors directly to merchants through their digital ordering platform and mobile apps.
“This round of funding will be utilised in the expansion plan of the company by adding more verticals to its platform and hiring more sales and operations forces, in addition to enhancing its technical capabilities,” Kayyali added.
