Bahrain’s Al Waha Fund of Funds Announces ‘Substantial’ investment in US-Based VC Firm Lumia Capital

Bahrain’s Al Waha Fund of Funds announced a ‘substantial’ investment in VC firm Lumia Capital, an early-growth stage VC for US category-leaders pursuing international markets, which was launched in June 2019 and is aiming to raise $100-150 million. 

The new partnership hopes to create new connections and opportunities between the US and Bahrain, and eventually the wider MENA region. 

Lumia has already shown real interest in the Middle East, having been the first VC firm outside of MENA to invest in Careem, the region’s first unicorn. Lumia also led the Series B funding round for Dubai’s Kitopi, the world’s leading managed cloud kitchen platform, which raised USD 60 million.

Al Waha, which launched in 2018, is a government-led initiative that provides market access for international funds looking to invest in the Middle East, as well as for portfolio companies looking to expand and aims to drive greater venture capital investment across the MENA region.