Egypt’s RiseUp acquires MENAbytes

RiseUp, the company behind MENA’s largest startup and entrepreneurship event RiseUp Summit, has acquired leading regional startup and technology publication, MENAbytes. The acquisition also includes trackMENA, a new data platform by MENAbytes to help users track startups, VCs, investments and acquisition in MENA.

Founded in mid-2017 by Zubair Naeem Paracha, MENAbytes has quickly grown to become one of the leading startup media outlets of the Middle East & North Africa with hundreds of thousands of monthly pageviews. MENAbytes has recently expanded its coverage to Pakistan and is looking to further expand it to Turkey and some other emerging markets.

Zubair, the solo entrepreneur who happens to be the only employee of MENAbytes, will join RiseUp as a result of acquisition and (continue to) lead MENAbytes, trackMENA and some other digital efforts of the company.

While remaining an independent media platform (with completely independent editorial)covering startups and technology ecosystem from MENA (and beyond), MENAbytes will also integrate with RiseUp’s digital content arm, strengthening the digital presence and reach of RiseUp in the region. RiseUp will also utilize MENAbytes’ extensive network and resources to design a fully integrated platform dedicated to the RiseUp community of startups and the ecosystem.“

Zubair Naeem Paracha, founder of MENAbytes, commenting on the occasion, said, “I am very excited about becoming a part of RiseUp and working with Abdelhameed and the brilliant team there especially because of their vision of building a platform to offer every online and offline resource that an entrepreneur may need to grow their startup in MENA.”

“Partnering up with RiseUp will open many new avenues for MENAbytes and trackMENA to build the largest startup news and data platform for the emerging markets,” he added.

Abdelhameed Sharara, RiseUp’s CEO, said, “We’re immeasurably excited about the opportunities MENAbytes will offer RiseUp. The acquisition, and working with Zubair, is the first big step in our vision of being a one-stop-shop for the entire spectrum of resources entrepreneurs and startups need to grow.”

The acquisition spearheads a full Q4 for RiseUp that will also feature more exciting announcements propelling the organization into a much wider encompassing position in the regional startup ecosystem. New regional events and expansions, products, and more acquisitions are planned for RiseUp’s Q4 and 2020, amplifying RiseUp’s role, responsibility, and exposure in the region.