Dubai: Members of the Dubai Internet City (DIC) community have collectively attracted Dh7.8 billion in funding since its launch as a technology business hub.
Over the last 12 months particularly, several DIC partners have attracted strong investments, officials said.
These include the acquisition of e-retailer Souq.com by US e-commerce giant Amazon for an undisclosed sum. The deal is estimated to have been in the range of Dh2.2 billion ($600 million).
Dubai-based ride-hailing app Careem became a ‘Unicorn’ (a term used to refer to start-ups valued at a billion dollars or over) in December 2016. In its last funding round, Careem raised over Dh1.5 billion from Japanese, Chinese, and Saudi investors.
Meanwhile, Mumzworld, an online shop, was another business that attracted strong funding, getting multi-million-dollar funding from Wamda Capital and Al Tayyar Travel Group.
In a statement on Tuesday, Dubai Internet City said the latest round of funding for businesses based there reaffirms its status as a regional innovation hub that connects its partners with the right investors, allowing them to grow.
“Our specialised ecosystem continues to provide cutting-edge companies of all sizes with the right environment to achieve their strategic business goals, translating into a diversified local economy and productive partnerships that accelerate the implementation of the Smart Dubai vision,” said Ammar Al Malik, executive director of DIC.
Another major funding announcement for one of DIC’s partners involved a Chinese consortium buying Media.net, an ad-tech start-up, for a reported Dh3.28 billion in late 2016. This marked the third largest acquisition deal in the history of the advertising technology industry globally.
Partners of in5, DIC’s platform for entrepreneurs and start-ups, also contributed to the investment figures. Arabic music streaming app Anghami raised more than Dh106.6 million from regional investors, while digital health platform Altibbi brought in funding worth Dh18.4 million.
DIC said in its statement that several other start-ups received undisclosed funding ranging from Dh50,000 to six-figure sums.
DIC has a network of 1,600 business partners spanning across industries that include internet of things, artificial intelligence, big data, cyber security, and robotics.
