| | Dear Stakeholders and Partners, |
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Q3 2026 was a quarter of engagement, knowledge-sharing, and ecosystem building across HALA Capital and our portfolio. From industry events and workshops to new partnerships, thought leadership, and recognition across regional and global platforms, the quarter was largely about showing up, sharing knowledge, and creating meaningful connections across the ecosystem. Here is a look at what this quarter brought. |
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| | Connecting, Contributing, Building |
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| The Builders Room by HALA Capital x Replit
We co-hosted "The Builders Room" alongside Replit, where we brought together founders, builders, and ecosystem players for an evening of real conversations around AI, building, and what actually works beyond the hype. We also held a session "When to Prompt and When to Build" which was led by our CFO Hussain Almarhoon. |
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| | Ali Abussaud at LEAP: The 18-Month Runway
Our CEO Ali Abussaud took founders through a practical session at LEAP, "The 18-Month Runway: Cash Discipline Without Killing Ambition," covering how to manage cash, make smarter decisions, and stay ambitious while building for the long term. |
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| | HALA Capital at Money 20/20 Middle EastOur team showed up in force at Money20/20 Middle East. Co-Founder and CFO Hussain Almarhoon joined a panel on "Who Should Allocate Capital?" alongside leading voices from across the investment ecosystem. Value Creation Manager Nada Helmy moderated a session on the MENA exit gap, covering IPO readiness, M&A, secondaries, fintech consolidation, and the role of public markets and institutional investors in unlocking liquidity across the region. |
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| | | FemiTech RiyadhOur Investment Associate AlHanouf Alzamel led a session at the 3rd edition of FemiTech in Riyadh titled "From Idea to Investment: Understanding the Startup Journey," covering validation, building the right foundations, and navigating the fundraising process. |
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| SVC's Deal Structuring & Execution Program
Our Founder and CEO Ali Abussaud joined the Saudi Venture Capital and Private Equity Association's Deal Structuring & Execution Program, walking trainees through a real industrial deal case from valuation to Term Sheet, and sharing over 20 years of experience in investment and private capital, including the nuances of why deals fall through for reasons beyond price. |
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| | Techne Summit Cairo Our Value Creation Manager Nada Helmy, moderated a fireside chat with Aanchal Mehta, Regional Lead for AI Policy Programs and Partnerships (Africa, Middle East and Türkiye) at Meta. The conversation explored Meta's AI programs in Egypt, building AI capabilities across sectors, and what it takes to make emerging technologies more inclusive and relevant to local communities. |
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Intella presented new academic research at IntelliSys 2026 in Amsterdam, where co-founder Omar Mansour and Eman Aboelela presented their paper on comparing classical and large-scale multilingual speech synthesis models for the Saudi Arabic dialect. Published in Springer’s Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, the research found that LLM-based models outperform classical approaches, strengthening the academic foundation of next-generation Arabic speech technology.
On the partnerships side, Intella announced a collaboration with Magna AI to bring localized voice intelligence to Saudi enterprises and government, and partnered with Foodics to power customer support with Arabic-native speech and conversation intelligence across multiple dialects.
The quarter also saw senior Ministry of Communications officials visit Intella’s Riyadh office, reinforcing institutional support for Arabic AI innovation. |
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| | Sarwa contributed to the Al Jalila Foundation through the CycleAgainstCancer ride, supporting an organization that provides free cancer treatment to those who cannot afford it. A meaningful moment for a team that believes building wealth and giving back go hand in hand. |
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| | Torod had one of its most active quarters to date. The company signed a partnership with Waffy app, combining Torod's logistics operations with Waffy's financial escrow solutions to give merchants a more secure, end-to-end commerce experience. At Money20/20 Middle East, Torod also signed a partnership with SingleView, integrating its corporate banking platform to strengthen Torod's financial operations. CEO Faisal Almaklas shared Torod's founding journey with students at the University Challenge 2026 (organized by StartSmart Saudi and Mujamma Jamil), spoke at a session on "Business Development in Transport and Logistics," and discussed the future of Hajj and Umrah tech at LEAP. The quarter closed on a high note as Torod was honored by H.E. Minister Abdullah Alswaha in recognition of its contributions to the success of Hajj season 1447, and welcomed Jeff Hoffman, Chairman of the Global Entrepreneurship Network, as part of the Saudi Unicorns Program. |
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VIZ partnered with dubizzle to deliver interactive 360° room tours, enabling audiences to explore properties in a more engaging and realistic way, and opening a new vertical for immersive technology in real estate. |
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| | Rize had a defining quarter. The company secured a SAR 187.5 million asset-backed Murabaha facility from Jadwa Investment, a milestone reflecting the growing confidence in Rize's model and mission. On the partnerships front, Rize continued expanding its real estate developer network, adding Bayut Saudi Arabia (exclusive partnership), Compound In, and Lean Technologies to its ecosystem. Through Lean's open banking integration, Rize can now make more informed affordability decisions and approve more qualified applicants, removing one of the biggest barriers to renting in the Kingdom. |
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| | Nearpay launched its Banking Platform, a comprehensive operating system for digital financial services covering merchant operations, payments, settlements, card issuing, and wallet-as-a-service, with 186 features across 31 operational domains. In the U.S., Tap to Pay on iPhone went live, enabling merchants to accept contactless payments directly on iPhone without additional hardware. At Money20/20 Middle East, Nearpay signed a series of MoUs and partnerships, including Quality Code SA, GFS Express, Digital Pay, SeaPay, and Vast Group, while also announcing a collaboration with Barq and a partnership with Nami to advance digital payment infrastructure across the region. Nearpay also represented the Kingdom at RetailNOW 2026 in Las Vegas, continuing its push into global markets. |
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| | Krave Mart partnered with ZIL Limited, making ZIL's trusted consumer brands available for quick delivery through the platform. Through the Rozgar Scheme in partnership with Al Qadir Welfare Foundation, Krave Mart also provided brand-new bikes free of charge to riders whose bikes were stolen, helping them get back on the road and back to earning. |
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Democrance was named Insurtech of the Year Personal Lines by Intelligent Insurer, recognized for expanding access and driving digital innovation across personal insurance in the region.
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| | | Q3 demonstrated something we believe deeply: great companies do not slow down between milestones. They sign the next partnership, publish the next paper, enter the next market, and show up for their communities. As we head into Q4 2026, HALA Capital remains focused on what has always driven us, backing founders who build with conviction and supporting the ecosystem that makes them possible. We look forward to sharing more with you next quarter
Connect with us on LinkedIn and visit hala.capital for upcoming updates. |
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| Warm regards, The HALA Capital Team |
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