The food and grocery B2B e-commerce and distribution platform MaxAB has raised $40m in a pre-series B equity round.
MaxAB serves a network of traditional retailers across Egypt and Morocco.
Why it matters: MaxAB is trying to transform the food and grocery supply chain by re-engineering it. The company connects suppliers with underserved traditional retailers and offering a wide range of embedded finance solutions.
The new money will help MaxAB expand across the MENAP region.
This latest round included new investors:
- Silver Lake, a global leader in technology investing, through its Long Term Capital strategy;
- British International Investment (BII; formerly known as CDC), the development finance institution of the UK government;
- DisruptAD, ADQ’s venture platform.
Existing investors Beco Capital, 4DX Ventures, Flourish Ventures and Africa Platform Capital also participated.
Of merit, or more PR blurb? MaxAB rolls out solutions across its merchant base with the goal of digitizing the flow of cash. The fintech hopes to be a one-stop shop (excuse the pun), for traditional retailers. Since founding in 2018, it has served some 150,000 unique retailers, delivering 2.5 million orders. The proposition is compelling and the retailers have the advantage of being in a bigger network.
MaxAB, which is big in Egypt and in Casablanca, Morocco, aims for full geographical coverage of Morocco by the end of 2023 and a start in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Belal El-Megharbel, CEO and Co-Founder at MaxAB, said: “Within just four years of operations, we have been able to re-engineer the informal food and grocery market in Egypt and Morocco. We are thrilled to have gained the recognition and financial backing of world-class investors, adding to the reception and support we receive from the retailers and suppliers we serve. Going by the quality of investors who are
partnering with us, we are excited about venturing into the next stage of the MaxAB journey, which is further consolidation of the informal grocery sector, heavy focus and investments in Fintech and replicating our success in new markets to grow beyond borders.”
Amer Al Ameri, Head of Venture Capital and Technology investments at ADQ, added: “MaxAB are building technology-driven products and services that solve for challenges around better integrated, efficient, reliable grocery supply chains for the MENAP region. In digitizing the vastly traditional, multi-layered and fragmented food and grocery sector supply chain, they have broken the mould and presented a domino effect of opportunities, one of which is the launch of the fintech vertical. We are happy to be embarking on this journey with MaxAB and are looking forward to providing strategic guidance for continued growth and impact.”
In Egypt, small traditional retailers serve as the backbone of the grocery industry with a similar dynamic existing in many other markets across the MENAP region. Having gained traction in Egypt and Morocco, MaxAB has established a proven playbook of experiences, technology, data and relationships that can be leveraged for launch into new geographies and is looking to replicate the same
success across the region.
MaxAB estimates that there are more than 750,000 mom-and-pop businesses requiring its services in Egypt and Morocco alone while Saudi Arabia is particularly attractive due to the government’s drive to digitise the informal sector and the FMCG’s willingness to explore new business models.
Silver Lake is making the investment in connection with its Long Term Capital strategy, which was established in 2020.
MaxAB is a B2B e-commerce marketplace that connects food and grocery retailers to suppliers in Egypt’s most under-served countries. It was founded in November 2018 by Egyptian and Libyan entrepreneurs Belal El-Megharbel and Mohamed Ben Halim. The company is re-engineering the informal grocery and food market using empowering technologies and innovative supply chains that are designed to fit the needs of retailers in the areas they serve. Their technology enabled supply chain is helping put the correct amount of food at the right place at the right time.
DisruptAD, ADQ’s venture platform, was launched to accelerate innovation targeting the world’s biggest challenges through incubation, investment, and commercial scaling opportunities. DisruptAD also seeks to unleash the potential of the UAE’s innovative and entrepreneurial ecosystem by bringing together highly skilled founders, fund managers, incubators, and accelerators to build, support and scale disruptive technologies from Abu Dhabi.