Egypt topped the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region in start-up deals brokered in July with a total of 19 deals, followed by Qatar with 16 deals, and the UAE with 12 deals, according to Wamda’s report on the region’s start-up scene.

Egypt also placed second in terms of the value of start-up investments in MENA during July with a total of $70 million, while the UAE ranked on the top with a total of $530 million in investments.

Start-ups in the region raised almost $632 million in July through 77 deals — which is a record-breaking month — on the back of Kitopi’s $415 million Series C round, according to the report.

The report also highlighted other significant rounds that took place in the region, including the UAE-based SWVL, which announced its plans to go public on the US NASDAQ via a special-purpose acquisition company merger, which raised $100 million from Agility, Luxor Capital, and Zain Group through a private investment in public equity.

Meanwhile, Egypt-based business to business e-commerce enabler MaxAB raised the highest Series A round with $40 million, one of 16 deals in the e-commerce sector, which together raised $63 million.

In Saudi Arabia, 11 start-ups raised $23.8 million — a modest 7 percent rise M-o-M — while 16 start-ups in Qatar raised $1.5 million in total.

Both Kitopi and SWVL’s rounds have skewed the amount invested in male founding teams heavily in July with $626.5 million across 60 deals, according to the report.

Thirteen start-ups founded by women raised $2 million while four mixed-team start-ups managed to raise $3 million, according to the report.

Wamda is a start-up accelerator that focuses on entrepreneurship ecosystems and tracking MENA start-up investments and deals.

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