Byld Ventures

BYLD Ventures Research Investment Thesis BYLD Ventures embodies a philosophy of "being the exception" by taking pride in being the first capital into early-stage startups across the Middle East and Africa. The firm was founded on humility, with partners who have themselves founded startups and understand the challenges of building from scratch. Rather than assuming a startup's first business model will be the one that lasts, BYLD invests with greater patience and tends to receive more candor from founders in return. The firm positions itself as willing to venture into the unknown and challenge conventional business wisdom. They believe that exceptional companies require founders with the courage to follow their own path, defying established routines and the comfort of familiar approaches. Sector and Industry Focus BYLD Ventures specializes exclusively in fintech and financial services across the Middle East and Africa. Their portfolio demonstrates a strong concentration in: Core Fintech : Payment platforms, wallets, banking-as-a-service, embedded finance Financial Infrastructure : API-first financial services, treasury platforms, payment rails Emerging Market Finance : Services addressing underbanked populations in Africa and MENA Adjacent Sectors : AI/ML in financial services, food security fintech, talent infrastructure, business media The firm has demonstrated particular success in identifying founders from regions with limited venture capital access but significant financial inclusion opportunities. Stage Focus BYLD primarily invests at Pre-Seed and Seed stages : Pre-Seed: $250K-$500K average check Seed: $1M-$2M average check range Data from their website notes "Most of BYLD's investments occur during the first few months of a startup's life," with the firm leading 2+ pre-seed and seed rounds in recent two-year period. They were the lead investor in approximately 80% of their portfolio companies. Check Size and Deployment Check Size Range : $100K - $1M (sweet spot: $500K per Signal NFX) Typical Investment : $250K-$2M depending on stage Ownership Target : Typically 10-20% ownership stake Portfolio Size : 40+ companies tracked across Fund I, Fund II, and Pre-BYLD (pre-fund) investments Fund Information Fund I : Launched May 2022 with $15M Fund II : Currently active and deploying Sports-Backed Capital Base : Over a dozen athletes invested in the fund, adding unique strategic value beyond capital Dubai Government Support : Fund backed by Dubai government Lead Tendency and Investment Style BYLD leads the majority of rounds - approximately 80% of investments show BYLD as the lead investor. They: Are willing to invest pre-product when founders are strong Co-lead rounds frequently with strategic co-investors Work closely with Y Combinator (many portfolio companies are YC-backed) Build relationships with global venture capital firms for follow-on rounds Recent Activity (2024-2025) Notable Recent Investments: November 2025: Stream ($4M seed) - Saudi payments platform May 2025: Tern ($3-5M) - UAE digital rental payment platform 2025: ASI (Pre-seed) - UAE AI company 2025: Bluerails (Pre-seed) - UAE treasury platform 2024: Sifi (Seed, $10M) - Saudi spend management 2024: Stitch (Seed) - Saudi payments 2024: GoLemon (Pre-seed) - Nigerian food security 2024: Jireh (Pre-seed) - Kenya financial services 2024: Tabb (Pre-seed) - Kenya AI/NLP for financial services 2024: Munify (Pre-seed, $3M) - UAE invoice financing Portfolio Highlight - Recent Notable Exits: Moove : Originally invested Pre-BYLD (2020) at seed stage; now processing $275M+ ARR, acquired Kovi, backed by Uber with $100M investment (2024) KarmaCheck : Portfolio company raised $45M Series B (2024) Telda : Portfolio company raised $20M from Sequoia Capital, GFC, Block (2022) Anchor : Embedded finance, raised $2.4M (2023) Fund Status : Actively deploying with continuous new investments through 2025 Portfolio Geography Primary Investment Regions: UAE (30+ companies) - Dubai, Abu Dhabi Nigeria (8+ companies) - Lagos region Kenya (3+ companies) Saudi Arabia (3+ companies) - Riyadh Egypt (2+ companies) Oman (office location) South Africa, Ghana, UK, US - selective investments Decision Process and Timeline Decision Process : Partnership-based with Managing Partner and Venture Partners involved Decision Timeline : Quick for strong founders (1-2 weeks) given pre-seed nature Warm Introductions : Preferred but not strictly required Board Involvement : Typically take observer or advisory board seats Follow-On Reserves : Maintain reserves for follow-on investments Team Composition Core Investment Team: Youcef Oudjidane - Managing Partner (founder of Bloom fintech) Kieran Gibbs - Venture Partner Nasser Oudjidane - Venture Partner Shekinah Adewumi - Venture Partner (Nigeria market expertise) Tuful Al Sarrai - Partner All partners have operational startup experience. Founder Preferences BYLD favors founders with: Prior startup or corporate experience Deep market knowledge in Africa/MENA Repeat founders or founders with prior exits Technical expertise in their domain Willingness to pivot based on market feedback Notable Co-Investors BYLD frequently syndicates with Y Combinator, Global Founders Capital, Character Capital, Nuwa Capital, Beco Capital, Speedinvest, and DCG.