Adeo Ressi Aims to Ignite 100 New VC Firms in the Middle East by 2028

Mohammed Fathy

Last updated 4-02-2026

3 min

Adeo Ressi wants to launch “at least 100” new Middle East VC firms by 2028.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are central, backed by Vision 2030, sovereign capital, young talent.

Decile Group has already helped set up 12 funds via its VC Lab.

Riyadh and Dubai could join a shortlist of cities with “full” VC ecosystems.

Visits to Dubai and Riyadh aim to build ties, borrowing Silicon Valley discipline.

Adeo Ressi, the chief executive of Decile Group and the figure behind Founder Institute as well as the SAFE Note, has set his sights on a bold target: helping launch at least 100 new venture capital firms across the Middle East by 2028. The idea, as outlined in recent comments, is to bring some of Silicon Valley’s hard‑won know‑how into the region while backing a fresh wave of startups that are thinking global from day one.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE sit right at the centre of that vision. Ressi believes both markets are well placed to lead the region’s VC scene, thanks to strong government backing in Saudi Arabia under Vision 2030 and the UAE’s mature financial infrastructure. Add to that a deep pool of young talent and sovereign capital, and you can see why these two keep coming up in every serious conversation about regional tech. From where I’m standing at Arageek, it feels spot on; founders I’ve met lately talk less about “if” and more about “how fast”.

So far, Decile Group has already helped set up 12 venture funds in the region through its VC Lab programme, with its largest regional fund closing recorded in 2025. The next batch of VC Lab is expected to spin out another 12 regional funds, while Founder Institute has supported close to 100 Middle East startups to date. It might sound like a numbers game, but anyone who has tried to raise a first fund knows it’s a bit of a faff, and these programmes can lower the barrier in a really practical way.

Ressi also points to Riyadh and Dubai as potential additions to a shortlist of around 20 cities worldwide that offer a full, integrated venture capital ecosystem. The emphasis, he says, is on borrowing the structure and discipline of Silicon Valley, but tailoring it to local strengths. I reckon that balance is crucial; copying a model wholesale rarely works, you know?

The Decile Group chief is due to be in Dubai between 9 and 14 February, joining events such as the Forbes Middle East Top Advisors & Investors Summit and STEP Dubai, before heading to Riyadh on 15 and 16 February to meet entrepreneurs, investors and government officials. These trips matter. Believe it or not, a quick coffee at the right moment can sometimes unlock more progress than months of emails… well, I mean, that’s been my experience following the regional startup trail.

For context, Decile Group runs VC Lab, which has helped create nearly 1,000 venture funds globally, and operates Decile Hub, a platform managing annual commitments worth more than $1 billion. Founder Institute, meanwhile, describes itself as the world’s largest pre‑seed accelerator, active in over 100 countries and 250 cities. It’s an ambitious setup, definatly, and I’m not a fan of hype for hype’s sake. That said, if even half of these plans land, the region’s VC landscape could look very different by the end of the decade.

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