Alexandria. Med-Angels, the first Mediterranean-wide network of angel networks, has just announced a new partnership with Hivos that will facilitate the injection of up to €500,000 into North African startups across countries in the region.
The new partnership will allow for investors within MedAngels’ network to co-invest, while Hivos, through its Green Works Program, will offer co-matching grants for startups, with up to 55% for each deal. The partnership involves startups across various industries across North Africa, who secure funding from angel investors from Medangel’s 9 member countries: Lebanon, Egypt, Tunisia, Portugal, Italy, Croatia, Montenegro, Spain, and France.
“During Covid19, some startups are having a surge in their services, and others coming up with new solutions that can be sustainable beyond this context. We want to support those startups, as well as those investors looking into investing in an alternative asset class,” says Tarek El Kady, Founder and Chairman of The Mediterranean Business Angel Network as well as Alexandria Business Angel Network.
“We are piloting the angel Investment matching fund mechanism in an effort to incentivize more cross border investments in the green economy in North Africa. The fund is offering 40% matching for angel investments going to startups, however, as the biggest Angel network of networks in the Mediterranean, we are exclusively offering the 55% investment matching opportunity to members of the Med Angels”Network,” says Ahmed Sameh, Hivos’ Green Works Alliance Program Manager.
The announcement was made during the Virtual Investor Masterclass held by MedAngls in partnership with Alex Angels and Sanaad on April 22nd, 2020.
The event included panels to discuss Angel Networks, Clubs, Funds and Syndicates, as well as valuations and their prospects post-COVID19. It featured speakers including Marcia Dawood, Board Member of the Angel Capital Association (ACA), Greg Campbell – President and CEO of Rainmaker and Managing Director of Medingenii, Eli Velasquez, Director of Venture Development at Venture Well, Sara Gamay, Advisory Board Member of Cairo Angels; Faris Al Rashed, Founder and Chairman of the Board at Oqal Angels Investors Network, Tarek El Kady, Founder and Chairman of The Mediterranean Business Angel Network as well as Alexandria Business Angel Network; and Walid Bakr. Managing Partner at Ripples Impact.
The angel investment network, launched on September 2019, at the iconic Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt, with the support of Hivos and GIZ, aiming to connect over 100 networks with approximately 10,000 angel investors, as well as regional enablers, funds and diaspora investors from
At the event, it was also announced the incorporation of Azza Yehia as the new Network Manager of MedAngels, who will facilitate cross-border investments across Mediterranean countries. Azza has over 15 years of experience across the Middle Eastern investment ecosystem, from challenging landscapes like Kurdistan to more developed ones such as Dubai. She was previously the Research and Data Director at ArabNet, leading the Business Intelligence unit.
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About MedAngels:
MedAngels is the first network of business angel networks across the entire Mediterranean countries, aiming to facilitate cross-border investing among participating member networks.
Launched on September 30th at the iconic Bibliotheca Alexandrina, in the coastal city of Alexandria, Egypt, the network was founded by Egyptian investor and founder of Techne Summit, Tarek El Kady.
The network sets off to connect +100 networks with a total of approximately 10,000 angel investors, as well as regional enablers, funds and diaspora investors from France, Spain, Greece, Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, Slovenia, Croatia, among others.