UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar
Mastercard Gateway will process Tamatem Plus checkouts in more than 13 markets, starting with Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Players can use cards, local methods and telecom wallets. No fee or volume was disclosed.
The World Bank put Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the world’s top 25 for model work and heavy computing, and first in the region on data-centre capacity. A jobs lift of up to 20 percent is a forecast. The report announced no new spending.
Echelon closed a round with East40, RAED Ventures, Avra and Ben Horowitz, and did not disclose the amount. The Riyadh firm, founded in 2025, installs foreign tools for Saudi companies and government bodies. A defence unit is planned for 2027.
SAMA approved a rise in Go Money’s capital from SAR 20 million to SAR 138 million. GO Telecom will inject SAR 100 million in cash and capitalise SAR 18 million already advanced. The parent keeps 100 percent. Articles still have to be amended.
CMA chairman Mazen Al-Sudairi said reforms for declining stocks, IPO quality and retail participation should land within 90 days. He said the retail slice of offerings should rise toward 30 percent. The 4 October comments are an interview, not a published rule.
Bosta said it won four Egypt titles at the International Business Magazine Awards 2026 and is bracing last-mile operations for Black Friday. A 2025 note from the chief executive cited 37 million shipments. Judges and scoring were not published.
Doha’s Aligator raised a $1.2 million seed round led by Qatar Development Bank and Media City Qatar’s Next Ventures. The company builds PR agents. Valuation, customers and the private investors were not named in the 30 September note.
MedGulf’s chief executive put Saudi insurers’ investment portfolios at about SAR 60 billion, double the level of four years ago, at an Asharqia Chamber workshop. He also cited a 2% sector margin. The figure is a briefing, not an official asset tally.
Egypt’s Entrepreneur Awards opened an Arab Entrepreneur of the Year category on 28 September 2026. Firms need an Arab founder, an Arab register and two to ten years of operations. The published jury list names three people. Applications are open.
Saudi platform erad closed a $22 million Series A led by MEVP to expand Shariah-compliant corporate financing for SMEs. It cites SAR 500 million deployed and SAR 4 billion in requests. Those figures are company-reported. Valuation was not published.