erad raises $22m Series A led by MEVP after Gulf SMEs sought SAR 4bn in financing
Salem Abu-Hammour built erad around a problem he sees across Gulf economies: small and medium-sized businesses produce much of the region's output, yet struggle to secure the working capital they need to grow. "SMEs represent approximately 50% of regional GDP and employ two-thirds of the workforce across the GCC, yet face a financing gap that limits their growth," said Abu-Hammour, co-founder of erad.
That problem has now drawn a $22 million Series A round led by MEVP. New investors 500 Global, SVC, S60 Ventures, ANB Capital, Conjunction Capital and Araya Ventures joined the round, alongside returning backers Khwarizmi Ventures, Nuwa Capital, Aljazira Capital, Oraseya Capital and Joa Capital.
erad has deployed more than SAR 500 million ($133 million) in cumulative financing, while SMEs have submitted over SAR 4 billion (roughly $1 billion) in financing requests. The company reported 8x year-over-year growth in Saudi Arabia, with clients using the capital for fleet expansion, inventory, new locations and larger contracts.
Approvals take 48 hours on average, and 85% of clients expand their financing with erad within their first year. "This round marks a pivotal chapter for erad as our clients seek speed to capital and markets," Abu-Hammour said. "We have proven that our model works and businesses across sectors are coming to us because we make financing fast, fair and frictionless."
erad offers several working capital products, with financing of up to SAR 10 million, all Shariah-compliant. Its underwriting tracks client cash flows, and the company said its proprietary AI models allow it to handle higher volumes and larger ticket sizes while managing risk.
Jad El Boustani, partner at MEVP, pointed to the size of the opportunity and the team behind it. "We're backing erad because they're addressing the GCC's $250 billion SME financing gap while building a sustainable, high-quality financing business," he said. "What gives us the most conviction is the team: Salem and the founding team have paired real domain expertise with disciplined execution, turning a clear market need into 8x year-over-year growth in Saudi and a 48-hour approval engine that scales."
The gap erad targets exists well beyond the Gulf. In markets worldwide, businesses that have outgrown microfinance but lack the collateral or credit history banks demand have turned to specialist lenders that underwrite on transaction and cash-flow data. For investors, the test of these platforms is whether loan quality holds as volumes rise. "Their technology-first approach and rigorous underwriting balance growth ambition with risk discipline, which is exactly what the GCC's economic transformation needs," El Boustani said.
erad will use the funding to build new financing products for industrial, logistics and manufacturing businesses, expand across the GCC, and hire in technology and commercial roles. "What excites me most is where we go from here, which is deeper into new sectors, into new products that did not exist before, and powering the businesses that are scaling across the region," Abu-Hammour said.
