Startups across the Middle East and North Africa raised $148.2 million in June 2026, spread across 41 deals, according to figures compiled by Wamda. The monthly total dropped 76 percent from May, but the headline number hides a more encouraging picture underneath.
Most of the drop traces back to one line item: debt financing. Strip debt out of both months and the gap between May and June narrows to about 15 percent. Deal count actually rose, from 33 transactions in May to 41 in June, a sign that more companies are closing rounds even as the dollar totals swing.
Set against June 2025, the picture looks far healthier. Funding came in 190 percent higher than the same month a year earlier, when the region logged one of its weakest stretches of 2025.
Egypt climbs back into the top three
The United Arab Emirates held its usual place at the front. Twelve UAE startups raised a combined $93.8 million, more than half of the region's total for the month.
Egypt was the bigger surprise. Eight Egyptian startups raised $41.4 million, enough to push the country into second place. The rebound lines up with steadier economic footing at home: the pound has held relatively firm against the US dollar, and tourism revenues have reached their highest level in years after a pause in regional fighting.
Saudi Arabia, normally one of the top two markets, slipped to a distant third. Five Saudi startups raised just $5.7 million between them.
Morocco returned to the table in fourth after a blank May. Proptech startup Agenz raised a $5 million oversubscribed seed round, the country's only disclosed deal of the month. Oman was busy on volume if not value, with 10 startups raising a combined $1.3 million, a total that points to the growing pull of its accelerator programmes.
Two AI deals reshuffle the sector rankings
Enterprise AI took the top sector spot on the strength of just two rounds worth a combined $76 million. That is the kind of concentration where a single large cheque can flip the monthly rankings.
Fintech held second place for the second month running and kept the highest deal count, with 13 startups raising $43.5 million. Regtech followed at $15.2 million across three rounds, and proptech drew $7 million through three deals.
Early-stage bets and debt dominate
No later-stage equity round closed in June. Capital flowed almost entirely to early-stage companies and to debt financing, while 14 startups did not disclose the stage at which they raised.
Business-to-business startups pulled in the most money, $96.3 million across 27 deals. Consumer-focused companies raised under $50 million across 11 transactions, with the remainder going to startups running hybrid models.
Women founders still shut out of the capital
The divide between male and female founders widened again. Startups led solely by women raised just $260,000 across two deals. Mixed-gender teams raised $5.6 million. Male-founded startups took the overwhelming share, $142.3 million across 37 transactions.
The first half of 2026 has been shaped by caution, with investors holding back through the regional conflict that broke out in February and the still-unresolved talks between the United States and Iran. June's higher deal count, and the far narrower gap once debt is set aside, point to a funding engine slowly grinding back into gear before those bigger questions are settled.
