MENA music streaming platform Anghami merges with Vistas Media, to list on Nasdaq New York

MENA music streaming platform Anghami announced that it is merging with US-based Vistas Media Acquisition Company, a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company.

The agreement will result in Anghami becoming the first Arab technology company to list on Nasdaq in New York, a statement said.

The transaction implies an initial pro-forma enterprise valuation of approximately $220m, or 2.5x of 2022 estimated revenues. The combined company will operate under the Anghami name and will trade under the new symbol ANGH.

The transaction is expected to close in Q2 of 2021.

Dubai-based Shuaa Capital and Singapore based Vistas Media Capital have gathered commitments of a combined $40m in a PIPE – private investment in public equity – deal (Shuaa committed $30m and Vistas committed $10m).

Anghami’s management team led by co-founder and CEO Eddy Maroun will continue to operate and manage Anghami following the transaction, while co-founder and chairman Elie Habib will continue as the CTO.

Jacob Cherian, CEO of Vistas Media Acquisition Company, is expected to join the company as co-CEO for a period of one year.

A listing on Nasdaq will allow the company to “scale its user base and invest in technology to build on its data play”, the statement said.

Based in Abu Dhabi with offices in Beirut, Dubai, Cairo and Riyadh, Anghami was founded in 2012 by Eddy Maroun and Elie Habib. It offers more than 57 million songs to more than 70 million registered users with around one billion streams per month.

The company has partnerships with all major global labels including Universal Music Group, Sony Music and Warner Music Group. It also has licensing agreements with independent labels and distributors and has direct partnerships with 36 telecommunication companies across the MENA region to boost free user acquisitions and facilitate subscriptions.

Anghami is supported by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) and backed by MENA venture capital firms inlcuding Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP) and strategic shareholders, including media groups and telecommunications companies that collectively own approximately 68 per cent, with the balance owned by the founders. Shuaa also led a funding round for Anghami earlier in the year.

The company’s revenues have grown 80 per cent over the last three years with expectations for a five-fold increase over the next three years, the statement said.

Anghami expects to have approximately $142m of cash on its balance sheet at closing to be used primarily to fuel additional growth.

Eddy Maroun said: “We have taken a significant step forward in our growth plans in seeking to become the region’s first Arab technology company to list on Nasdaq. Being a US listed public company gives us access to growth capital and a global platform that is the best in the world.”

Elie Habib added: “Now we will have the ability to invest more in R&D and innovate providing a product that goes beyond music to immersive experiences around media and entertainment while remaining relevant to our users and focused on our local edge.”

Shuaa Capital acted as financial advisor and global underwriter and Norton Rose Fulbright acted as legal advisor to Anghami.