Saudi Arabia extends suspension of operations at Riyadh airport

In the third quarter of 2026, startup investment across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) surged to an all-time high of $1.65 billion, marking a staggering 108% increase from the previous quarter. Saudi Arabia emerged as the frontrunner in the region, securing the lion's share of capital with $1 billion in funding, accounting for over 60% of total investment.

The recovery in funding activity, however, remained heavily concentrated in a few companies and markets, raising concerns about the sustainability of the momentum.

Fintech took the lead as the dominant sector, claiming $1.03 billion in funding across 35 deals, accounting for roughly 62% of the total quarterly investment. Mobility and e-commerce followed, raising $285 million and $105.6 million respectively across two and nine deals. Despite the overall recovery, the recovery remained far below the $4.5 billion recorded in the same period last year, indicating that the funding environment was still far from fully recovered.

Saudi Arabia's fintech sector, in particular, saw a wave of large deals, with Barq, Tabby, and Lendo alone attracting $762.5 million, accounting for nearly three-quarters of the capital deployed in fintech during the quarter. However, the recovery was not evenly distributed, as male-led startups captured nearly all the funding, raising $1.62 billion across 116 deals, representing nearly 100% of total investment.

Female-led startups, in contrast, raised a mere $12.7 million through 16 deals, accounting for less than 1% of the total investment.