Saudi Arabia’s venture capital ecosystem reached new heights in the first half of 2025, securing a record total VC investment of $860m (SAR3.2bn), according to the newly released “H1 2025 Saudi Arabia Venture Capital Report” by MAGNiTT and sponsored by Saudi Venture Capital (SVC). This represents a 116 per cent increase compared to H1 2024 and surpasses the Kingdom’s total VC funding for the entire year of 2024.

The report highlights that Saudi Arabia retained its position as the top recipient of venture capital in the MENA region, accounting for 56 per cent of the region’s total capital deployed. The achievement underscores the Kingdom’s growing appeal as a VC destination, supported by a competitive investment landscape and its status as the region’s largest economy.

Deal activity also hit a new milestone, with Saudi Arabia recording 114 VC deals in H1 2025—a 31 per cent increase from the same period last year. This figure represents 37 per cent of all deals across MENA, marking the Kingdom’s highest-ever share of regional deal flow.

Sectors

Sector-wise, e-commerce led the way in terms of capital raised, attracting $306m (SAR1.1bn) and accounting for 36 per cent of total VC deployment in the Kingdom. Fintech remained the most active sector by number of deals, with 30 transactions, representing 26 per cent of all VC deals during the first half of the year.

Commenting on the report, Dr. Nabeel Koshak, CEO and Board Member of SVC, said: “The steady growth of the Saudi VC ecosystem in recent years has enabled it to maintain its leading position in the MENA region and achieve a record VC funding and deal count in the first half of 2025. This growth directly results from the country’s commitment to realising the Saudi Vision 2030, which emphasises fostering entrepreneurship and stimulating investment in startups from early to later stages.”

Read: A VC’s perspective on the GCC’s future workforce

Established in 2018, SVC is a subsidiary of the SME Bank, which falls under the National Development Fund. The company plays a key role in supporting Saudi Arabia’s startup and SME sectors by investing in private capital funds such as venture capital, private equity, venture debt, and private credit, along with direct investments in startups and SMEs at various growth stages.

The Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) recorded a strong first half of 2025, trading over one million contracts by the end of June. This marked a 30 per cent year-on-year increase in average daily volumes, reflecting rising demand for risk management tools amid global market uncertainty. Leading the growth were gold contracts and the exchange’s INR Quanto futures product.

A key highlight of the period was the performance of DGCX’s Shariah-compliant Gold Spot Contract (DGSG). The value of trades in DGSG jumped from $15.6m in H1 2024 to $46.8m in H1 2025, representing a 199.84 per cent year-on-year increase. Contract volumes also grew by 118 per cent over the same period.

Also driving volumes was the INR Quanto futures contract. This synthetic product allows market participants to hedge their Indian rupee exposure against the US dollar without needing access to Indian domestic markets. The contract continued to gain traction as a regional hedging solution amid persistent foreign exchange volatility.

Commenting on the exchange’s performance, Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, DGCX, said: “DGCX has seen exceptional momentum in the first half of the year, with nearly $47m traded through our spot gold contract alone – a 200 per cent year-on-year increase – and a 30 per cent rise in daily volumes across the exchange driven by demand for DGSG and INR Quanto futures. This performance not only places DGCX firmly on course to surpass its 2024 results but reinforces its role as a critical pillar in the region’s financial infrastructure. As global market conditions grow more complex, the exchange’s rising adoption by Shariah-based investors, bullion traders, and institutional participants alike highlights the growing demand and broad appeal for sophisticated, secure, and transparent hedging tools – a position we expect will get stronger as we continue to reinforce Dubai’s standing as a world-class centre for commodities and derivatives trading.”

Read: World Gold Council: Gold prices rise 26% in H1; see outlook for H2

DGCX plays a vital role in Dubai’s status as a leading global gold trading hub. Supported by DMCC’s broader ecosystem, it complements the activities of over 1,500 member companies engaged in precious metals trading.

The strong H1 results build on DGCX’s full-year 2024 performance, which saw 1.56 million contracts traded, with a notional value exceeding $37bn. The exchange is now on track to exceed that total in 2025, reinforcing its leadership as the Middle East’s top derivatives marketplace.

PayCargo, a leading digital logistics payment platform, has officially launched its services in the UAE, marking a major milestone in the digitisation of cargo operations in the region. Emirates SkyCargo is the first carrier in the UAE to adopt the solution, enabling customers to benefit from fast, secure, and seamless payment processing.

Read-Emirates SkyCargo launches new vertical: here are all the details

The integration allows Emirates SkyCargo customers in the UAE to make instant payments through credit card or direct debit, resulting in same-day or next-business-day cargo release. The collaboration signals a shift away from traditional, manual payment systems, such as cash transactions, that still dominate the cargo industry, a Dubai Media Office report said.

Improving efficiency and customer experience

“The next era of logistics, and of Emirates SkyCargo, will be defined by smart technology and digital solutions,” said Badr Abbas, Divisional Senior Vice President at Emirates SkyCargo. “This partnership with PayCargo ensures we are at the forefront of that evolution, providing faster and more secure transactions for our customers, streamlining processes for our internal teams, and solving industry-wide challenges of accessing air freight capacity.”

PayCargo’s online platform connects carriers, freight forwarders, and vendors, reducing delays and administrative burdens tied to manual payment methods. Eduardo Del Riego, President and CEO of PayCargo, emphasized the benefits of launching with a major regional partner: “We’re thrilled to begin our UAE operations with Emirates SkyCargo. By eliminating manual systems, we can provide a more efficient and reliable solution that saves customers valuable time. We look forward to further collaboration as Emirates SkyCargo leads the way in digital logistics.”

Strategic expansion backed by UAE vision

The UAE launch is a direct outcome of PayCargo’s 2022 strategic partnership with Seed Group, a company of the Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed Al Maktoum. Seed Group was instrumental in introducing PayCargo to the region and supporting its growth across the Middle East and North Africa.

Already positioned as a global trade and logistics hub, the UAE has invested heavily in multi-modal infrastructure, digital innovation, and policy frameworks to enhance its competitiveness. The launch of PayCargo, in collaboration with the world’s largest international airline, underscores the nation’s commitment to resilient and future-ready logistics solutions powered by world-class digital infrastructure.

Gulf Business is issuing a final call for nominations for the Gulf Business Awards 2025, with the submission window set to close soon.

Now in its 13th year, the Gulf Business Awards is the region’s premier platform for recognising excellence, innovation, and leadership across the Gulf’s diverse economic sectors. This year’s edition will take place on September 24, 2025, in Dubai, and will once again bring together senior executives, entrepreneurs, and decision-makers for a high-profile evening of celebration and networking.

From banking and real estate to technology, healthcare, and tourism, the awards span both company and leadership categories, offering a rare opportunity for organisations—large and small—to be acknowledged for their impact on the regional business landscape.

Each nomination is carefully evaluated by an independent panel of judges comprising industry experts, business veterans, and editorial leaders from Gulf Business. The selection process is designed to ensure transparency and recognise genuine achievement across public and private sectors.

Read: Gulf Business Awards 2025: Nominations, registration details revealed

With just days left until nominations close, organisations are encouraged to submit entries only in the most relevant categories that reflect their core strengths and accomplishments.

Submit your nomination here
More about the awards

The Gulf Business Awards 2025 promises to be an inspiring evening, shining a spotlight on the people and companies driving progress, innovation, and transformation across the GCC.

The traditional nine-to-five work model that defined our lives for a century is being superseded by a fluid, skills-based system, augmented by tech and reshaped by evolving workforce expectations.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is at the epicenter of this transformation — accelerated by powerful, converging forces — that position the region as a global testbed for the future of work:

• Government-led digital transformation: From the UAE’s AI curriculum to Saudi Arabia’s HUMAIN AI initiative and national infrastructure.
• Gig economy growth: MENA freelance registrations surged 142 per cent in 2023.
• Youth-dominated demographics: 60 per cent of the GCC’s population is under 30, giving the region one of the world’s youngest, most digitally fluent labour markets.
• VC momentum in enterprise tech: Funding is being pumped into AI-native platforms and SaaS tools, reshaping productivity.

Together, these shifts are more than just an evolution in employment. They mark a wholesale reimagining of how work is organised, accessed, and delivered. In this dynamic environment, three venture capital opportunities stand out.

The new hiring stack: A VC playbook for global, on-demand, skills-based talent

Hiring across the GCC is moving beyond just digitisation. A re-engineering is occurring — to match the speed, fluidity, and expectations of a radically reimagined working environment.

Traditional CVs and degree-centric hiring practices are being superseded by real-time assessments and skills-first matching. AI-powered platforms such as Elevatus (Saudi Arabia) are leading this shift, helping companies overcome bias and accelerating talent acquisition by focusing on capability over credentials.

In parallel, companies such as Ogram (UAE) are utilising intelligent systems to deploy pre-vetted talent on demand, often within hours, in sectors including hospitality, logistics, and e-commerce.

Borderless hiring platforms such as Deel (US), Remote (US), and Workpay (Nigeria) are decoupling employment from geography.

Startups now have access to talent across jurisdictions while benefitting from streamlined contracts, compliance, and compensation – among other benefits.

This approach is more than mere convenience. From day one, it is essential to attract and enable a workforce newly defined by mobility, optionality, and seamless onboarding.

The result is a new hiring architecture: distributed, data-driven, and designed for a world where talent is global, liquid, and increasingly empowered.

Beyond SaaS: Investing in the next wave of AI-first enterprise tools

The greatest shift in the future of work is not who gets hired. Rather, it is “how” work gets done. We are entering the age of AI-native productivity, where tools execute on tasks rather than merely assist. AI is streamlining tasks today and will soon run workflows with minimal oversight. Ultimately, AI is poised to fully redefine enterprise models and productivity.

The GCC is leading in sectors where AI-native tools can leapfrog legacy infrastructure. Startups such as Tarjama (UAE) are building Arabic-first AI infrastructure for content creation and translation, equipping regional businesses with tools tuned to local language and nuance.

Meanwhile, solutions such as Queen.ai (UAE) are powering conversational sales and marketing automation for e-commerce, while the Applied AI Company (UAE) is focused on end-to-end workflow automation within heavily regulated sectors.

For founders, the most compelling opportunities lie in building AI-native tools that address real operational challenges in specific verticals, rather than creating generic platforms.

Investors, however, will generate long-term value from platforms that embed AI into their core operating model, and go beyond just bolting it on. In these ventures, AI will be more than a support businesses. It will shape how businesses run.

The portfolio career play: investing in the platforms powering career fluidity

As the future of work evolves, public and private sectors are creating models where learning, working, and earning form a seamless cycle.

Regional governments are investing heavily in upskilling and human capital development.

Saudi Arabia has committed to training 300,000 AI specialists by 2030, while a new generation of learning-to-earning platforms is creating faster, more adaptive paths from education to employment, tuned to the needs of a workforce in flux.

The rise of portfolio careers is also redrawing professional identity. Rather than climbing a single corporate ladder, knowledge workers are assembling flexible, self-directed careers often spanning multiple sectors, roles, and borders.

Platforms such as Neol (Turkey-based and operating in the UAE) are making this shift tangible, connecting creative professionals to global, project-based opportunities that prioritise autonomy and impact.

For founders, the opportunity lies in building platforms that treat learning as a continuous asset.

For investors, value can be generated from scalable, personalised ecosystems — built for a fluid, multi-career future, adapting as fast as the talent they serve.

Building the infrastructure for the next work era

Relationships, processes, and priorities within the workforce are being re-architected from the ground up. We are witnessing the rise of a new workforce operating system: AI-powered, inclusive, and globally distributed.

For founders, this means creating agile, accessible, and automated solutions. For investors, the next wave of category-defining ventures will embed intelligence into core workflows, not just layered-on AI; enable diverse, borderless access to income and opportunity; and unlock economic mobility – freeing up time for learning, creativity, and purpose.

Explore the future of work in greater depth, with analysis and insights from Global Ventures’ new report.

The writer is a senior partner at Global Ventures.