Four Egyptian Startups Raise Funds from US Accelerator Y Combinator

MENA startups have been making an impact this summer at US-based accelerator, Y Combinator, with Egyptian startup, Pylon, scoring $125K in seed funding, as part of a much larger round.

Founded by Ahmed Ashour and Omar Radi (pictured in main image) in 2017, the smart energy solutions startup is the fourth Egyptian-born startup to score as part of Y Cominator’s summer 2021 cohort, with the last-mile delivery company, ShipBlu, online insurance marketplace, Amenli, also raising funds, while automotive marketplace, Odiggo, raised a $2.2 million investment of which Y Combinator contributed part of.

Elsewhere on the regional landscape, two Moroccan startups also enjoyed a productive period, with Y Combinator acquiring a 7% stake in B2B marketplace, Chari, and investing in SaaS value chain platform, Freterium. 

This batch of the accelerator has included 377 startups from across the world, including a record 15 from Africa. On a continental level, only Nigeria tops Egypt's four participating startups, with five.