- EQIQ plans to double the size of its investment fund from $15 million to $30 million to enhance its investments in Iraq’s digital economy.
- Since the fund’s launch in January 2023, the company has invested $8.5 million in five tech startups.
- EQIQ aims to allocate 80% of its capital to building an interconnected ecosystem of tech startups in Iraq.
EQIQ, a venture capital fund and startup builder focused on the Iraqi market, announced that it is doubling the size of its fund from $15 million to $30 million to enhance its investments in e-commerce, logistics, and fintech sectors in Iraq.
The fund is headquartered in Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) and is led by founding partners who have previously invested over $500 million in tech companies and achieved returns exceeding 3.3 times the invested capital. EQIQ follows a dual approach, investing both in greenfield startups and scaling existing companies within the Iraqi market.
The fund was founded by Mohamed Al-Hakim, an Iraqi entrepreneur who launched his first startup at the age of 15 and sold it at 19. After professional experience at Goldman Sachs in London and studying at University College London, he returned to Iraq in 2014 to contribute to building the tech sector.
EQIQ closed its first funding round in January 2023, raising $15 million from local and regional investors. To date, it has invested $8.5 million in five tech startups operating in social commerce, logistics, fintech, and digital education, three of which were co-created directly with entrepreneurs from EQIQ’s network.
The fund’s strategy aims to allocate 80% of its capital to building an interconnected ecosystem of projects where each company benefits from the services and customer base of the others.
Said Rahmani, co-founder of EQIQ, emphasized that the stabilization of Iraq’s economic fundamentals and its rapid growth provide a fertile ground for innovation, highlighting EQIQ’s support for founders in building impactful tech companies that will serve the regional economy for decades to come.
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