RiseUp Takes Over StarterHub to Launch RiseUp Connect

RiseUp, the one-stop network for connecting MENA startups with the most relevant resource has acquired StarterHub, an online community for startups and aspiring entrepreneurs to become RiseUp Connect. Just after a month of StarterHub’s launch, the acquisition marks the fastest exit in the region and aligns with RiseUp’s growth plan for their Connect platform which will make MENA’s entrepreneurship ecosystem more accessible.

The newly-established platform will operate under RiseUp Connect name, and will acquire the StarterHub name and website domain and other resources in its possession. StarterHub’s founder Amr Hassan will remain in leadership position in the region and will also lead on other community activities as a Startup Community Manager.

“We are excited about joining forces with StarterHub. The reason behind our collaboration lies in the common values and vision shared by both entities, which is supporting entrepreneurs in the MENA with relevant resources, events, mentorship programme and more. We’re proud to have RiseUp Connect platform that will provide a chance for everyone to get closer to the entrepreneurship community, accurately identify their needs and effectively close any gap in the ecosystem,“ says Abdelhamid Shararaa, CEO and founder of RiseUp.

Established freshly in 2019, StarterHub began as an online community for startups and aspiring entrepreneurs, with the aim of providing them with all the necessary business tools, online/offline mentorship and training, as well as access to events and workshops. Since its launch, Start Hub hosted over 2,000 founders and business-owners along with 2,350 active members from 70 countries and 100 cities. StarterHub ranked high on the pedestal of innovation with entrepreneurship conversations on social media, garnering an impressive amount of interactions.

“Partnering up with RiseUp will open many paths for StarterHub to becom e the largest consortium of fast growth founders’ communities originating from the MENA region, and will broaden our horizons through establishing more connections in the entrepreneurship ecosystem. As StarterHub founder, I’m very excited to join the RiseUp journey to help, inspire and empower local entrepreneurs through offering a wide range of relevant resources and giving them more exposure, perks, and business events,” says Amr Hussein, founder at StarterHub.

RiseUp Connect will act as a full-fledged platform based on scalable and efficient deployable technology that creates and pushes for community impact through insightful and engaging content. Through the online and offline platform, members will get further exposure in the entrepreneurship community for all players, including investors, startups, organisations and the media. RiseUp Connect will ultimately help connect, as the name implies, emerging entrepreneurs with opportunities to turn their ideas into business. 

“Entrepreneurs are always looking for that engaging community both virtually and physically. With this acquisition, we will be able to compliment the great virtual with much more content, training and meetups giving the audience much more needed resources to thrive their business. They will now become part of the RiseUp community giving them access to all the resources that we have,” adds Shararaa.

RiseUp was founded in 2013 and has since taken their flagship RiseUp Summit to reach new heights as they focus on forming a solid platform that connects startups to relevant resources, and is set on the path to becoming the biggest resource provider worldwide.