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Homegrown tech startup Salla secures big funds pre-IPO: Local e-commerce platform Salla raised USD 130 mn in a pre-IPO investment round led by Bahrain-based alternative asset manager Investcorp and others, a statement by Investcorp read yesterday. The round saw participation from PIF company Sanabil Investment and Riyadh-based venture capital firm STV, which is an existing shareholder in the startup, according to the statement.
What we know: Investcorp made the investment in Salla through its USD 500 mn Saudi Pre-IPO Growth Fund, which provides funds for pre-IPO companies here. The transaction sees Investcorp Principal Robin Manssour joining Salla’s Board of Directors, according to the statement. Investcorp declined to disclose information about the startup’s valuation of a timeline for the potential listing, according to Bloomberg.
About Salla: Founded in 2016, Salla provides a SaaS (Software as a Service) solution that allows users to set up their e-commerce stores in Arabic to sell and deliver products to customers. It has enabled USD 7 bn in sales through its services with over 80k active merchants on the platform since 2020.
Not the fund’s first: The dedicated Saudi fund by Investcorp led a pre-IPO funding round for Saudi-based digital freight network TruKKer in 2022. It also acquired a majority stake in leading ICT services provider NourNet in the same year.
