Gainz Secures Seven-Figure Investment to Revolutionise Gulf SME Financing

Majd Alshikh

Last updated 25-05-2025

2 min

Gainz, an Emirati fintech startup, secured a substantial seven-figure pre-seed investment round.

Leading investors include Antler MENAP, Lithium Holdings, and Eleventh Invest Inc, with regional support.

Gainz aims to address a $200 billion funding gap for Gulf SMEs with Islamic-friendly solutions.

The platform, launched by Shihab Mokhtar and Sherif Abdel Aaty, uses AI to assess credit risk swiftly.

Backers and a strong business model position Gainz to impact SME financing across the region positively.

It seems fintech is getting hotter than a Dubai summer these days. Gainz, a young Emirati financial technology startup, has just landed itself an impressive seven-figure pre-seed investment round, combining both equity and debt financing.

Leading the charge in this funding round were some familiar faces in the investment scene—Antler MENAP, Lithium Holdings, and Eleventh Invest Inc—alongside several affluent individual investors from around the region. Clearly, this little startup has managed to tug at just the right purse strings.

Now, for those who might be scratching their heads, wondering what the fuss is all about, Gainz is one of those fintech firms aiming to target a glaringly huge market gap. Apparently, small and medium-sized businesses across the Gulf region are grappling with an eye-watering funding shortfall of more than $200 billion. Gainz aims to step in with a digital platform offering alternative financing solutions that align with Islamic Sharia principles—a thoughtful move in a market that highly values financial products compatible with cultural and religious values.

Launched back in December 2024 by co-founders Shihab Mokhtar and Sherif Abdel Aaty, the Gainz platform uses artificial intelligence—which seems to creep into every sector lately—to assess credit risk quickly and accurately. Thanks to Gainz, businesses can swiftly launch working capital finance campaigns, dodging the slow, traditional hoops which typically might drag on for months—literally two to four months, to be precise.

I suppose even Arageek readers, usually busy scrolling through the latest tech yarns, can appreciate how this startup might be onto something meaningful here. With such robust backing and a solid business proposition, Gainz is undoubtedly setting itself up to play a significant role in helping SMEs across the region thrive.

As the fintech scene heats up across the Emirates, it’ll be fascinating to see how Gainz continues to develop—perhaps inspiring more enterprises to dip their toes into these alternitive financing solutions. Watch this space, fintech followers—the Gulf region seems ripe for innovation, and Gainz might just have the momentum to capitalise on it.

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