All · 286Accelerators & incubators · 63VC funds & investors · 83Grants & prizes · 16Government programmes · 48Angel networks · 17Corporate VCs · 19State equity · 5Loans & guarantees · 12Funds of funds · 5Support programmes · 18
Saudi Arabia · 12 →
CMA FinTech Lab (ExPermit)
Government · Saudi Arabia
Regulatory permission to test products live; no funding provided.
No equity — service or permission
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KAUST University
Government · Saudi Arabia
R&D grants plus equity investment.
Equity or convertible note
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MCIT — Ministry of Communications
Government · Saudi Arabia
Access to CODE programmes and national financing.
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MISA — Ministry of Investment
Government · Saudi Arabia
Investor registration, RHQ programme access and Startup Saudi services.
No equity — service or permission
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Premium Residency — Entrepreneur Track
Government · Saudi Arabia
Residency for founders with a round of SAR 400K+ (20% share) or SAR 15M+ (10% share).
No equity — one-time fee SAR 4,000
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Cloud Computing SEZ
Government · Saudi Arabia
OECD-compliant tax treatment, expat-levy exemption and electricity at $0.05/kWh.
No equity — service or permission
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MEWA
Government · Saudi Arabia
Programme support, plus a debt route via the ADF.
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Monsha'at
Government · Saudi Arabia
Loan guarantees and programme support for SMEs.
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PIF Startup Ecosystem
Government · Saudi Arabia
Not a direct-application fund — invests in funds rather than startups.
Indirect — invests in funds, not startups
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SAMA FinTech Sandbox
Government · Saudi Arabia
Regulatory permission to test fintech and insurtech products.
No equity — service or permission
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SDAIA
Government · Saudi Arabia
Access to a $160M AI fund with $40K per GAIA cohort startup.
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SHIFT Innovation Center Riyadh
Government · Saudi Arabia
Clinical testing access and MoH regulator connections.
No equity — service or permission
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UAE · 9 →
ADGM
Government · UAE
A RegLab regulatory sandbox; not a funding programme.
No equity — service or permission
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ADIO
Government · UAE
Project-dependent incentive packages plus regulatory fast-tracking.
No equity — service or permission
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CBUAE FinTech Sandbox
Government · UAE
Regulatory permission to test fintech and digital-banking products.
No equity — service or permission
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DIFC
Government · UAE
100% foreign ownership in a dedicated free zone; not a funding programme.
No equity — service or permission
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Dubai Future Foundation
Government · UAE
Programme support and co-creation opportunities.
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Masdar City Free Zone
Government · UAE
100% foreign ownership free-zone setup.
No equity — service or permission
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twofour54
Government · UAE
Creative Lab funding, licence-fee waivers and production-rebate access.
No equity — service or permission
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UAE AI and Data Authority
Government · UAE
National AI incentive packages.
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UAE Golden Visa — Entrepreneur
Government · UAE
5-year renewable residency for entrepreneurs with a qualifying project.
No equity — residency permission
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Qatar · 7 →
Invest Qatar
Government · Qatar
FDI facilitation, government introductions and direct pitching to VC funds via Gateway.
No equity — service or permission
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Media City Qatar
Government · Qatar
Gaming and screen incentive programmes; licensing with 100% foreign ownership.
No equity — incentives for licensed entities
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QFC Digital Assets Lab
Government · Qatar
Regulatory pathway only; no capital is deployed.
No equity — regulatory pathway
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Qatar Development Bank
Government · Qatar
Backing via Startup Qatar, targeting a QAR 1 billion portfolio by 2030.
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Qatar Financial Centre (QFC)
Government · Qatar
Business licensing; its Feb 2026 package waives registration and renewal fees for three years.
No equity — service or permission
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Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZ)
Government · Qatar
Free zone investment incentives and benefits.
No equity — service or permission
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Startup Qatar
Government · Qatar
One-stop platform routing founders to the QDB-powered Investment Program.
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Kuwait · 8 →
CBK Wolooj Innovation Hub
Government · Kuwait
R&D programme support for fintech innovation projects.
No equity — programme support
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CBK Wolooj Regulatory Sandbox
Government · Kuwait
Regulatory permission to test fintech products live; no funding provided.
No equity — service or permission
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CBK Digital Banking Guidelines
Government · Kuwait
A licensing pathway toward operating a digital bank.
No equity — service or permission
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CMA FinTech Unit (Module 19)
Government · Kuwait
Regulatory permission to operate as a securities crowdfunding platform or fintech.
No equity — service or permission
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KDIPA
Government · Kuwait
Up to 100% foreign ownership and up to a 10-year tax holiday for investors.
No equity — service or permission
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Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA)
Government · Kuwait
Manages sovereign capital in the billions; not a direct-application funder.
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Ministry of Commerce & Industry
Government · Kuwait
Company setup fees, which can be waived for SMEs.
No equity — service or permission
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NTEC
Government · Kuwait
KWD 100M (~$350M) capital deployed via government-backed VC and projects.
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Oman · 7 →
Central Bank of Oman — FinTech
Government · Oman
Regulatory permission to test products live; no funding provided.
No equity — service or permission
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Duqm Free Zone
Government · Oman
Free zone incentives plus a 30-year tax holiday.
No equity — service or permission
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Future Fund Oman
Government · Oman
VC OMR 4K–100K (ideation to seed); SME equity OMR 250K–5M; SME debt OMR 100K–500K; projects to OMR 100M.
Equity or debt — up to 40% stake on project track
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Riyada — ASMED
Government · Oman
Grants and loans; amount depends on the project.
No equity — grant or loan
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Knowledge Oasis Muscat
Government · Oman
Free zone benefits and tax exemptions.
No equity — service or permission
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Oman Investment Authority (OIA)
Government · Oman
Sovereign capital backing, including the $180M Jasoor Fund; not a direct funder.
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Sas for Excellence
Government · Oman
Up to OMR 1M ($2.6M) per company, plus wage subsidies.
No equity — non-dilutive
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Bahrain · 5 →
Bahrain Development Bank
Government · Bahrain
SME financing with tenors up to 5 years.
Equity or credit
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Bahrain EDB
Government · Bahrain
Investment incentives, fast registration and a startup visa.
No equity — service or permission
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BENEFIT
Government · Bahrain
National financial infrastructure investment; not a direct founder funder.
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CBB FinTech Regulatory Sandbox
Government · Bahrain
Regulatory permission to test fintech, payments and crypto products.
No equity — service or permission
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MoIC Bahrain
Government · Bahrain
Fast-track business registration and regulatory support.
No equity — service or permission
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