Saudi’s Mabaat secures SAR9m in seed funding round

Saudi Arabia’s marketplace for short-term rental Mabaat has secured SAR9m in a seed funding round, it announced on August 17.

The round was led by Saudi venture capital fund Deryah Ventures with participation from SEEDRA Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm.

Funding will be used for increasing awareness of the brand and highlighting its unique value proposition to property owners and guests, a statement said.

Marketing activities also aim to target regional travellers seeking short-term rental solutions, while visiting Saudi Arabia. Funds have also been earmarked for the platform’s technology enhancements to ensure continuation of matching guests with the most suitable properties.

Mabaat is also keen to hire relevant resources over the forthcoming months. Mabaat onboards properties and manages them on behalf of its owners, with offerings ranging from mid to high-end private homes and compounds distributed throughout key markets in the kingdom. The platform provides transparency and efficiency to property partners and guests through real-time information, streamlining operations like booking and payment, sterilization and cleaning schedules, and property maintenance updates, among others, a statement said.

Talal Al Sorayai, founder and chief executive officer of Mabaat said: “Mabaat’s innovative platform is unique as it offers property partners higher occupancy levels at attractive rates. With this direct support that we have received from the Saudi government and our partnership with the Ministry of Investment and Tourism, Mabaat is now well positioned to disrupt the alternate accommodations market throughout the kingdom.”

“Investment in the tourism sector is one of the pillars of the Saudi Vision 2030 that targets a contribution from this sector close to 11.5 per cent of Saudi GDP by 2029,” adds Faris Al Rashed, head of Derayah Ventures. “In order to realise this, one of the new models considered is short-term rental that capitalises on existing and hardly-utilised capacities, therefore, prepare them for medium to short-term stays.”