RiseUp and Bosta Alliance Aims to Supercharge Startup Logistics Across MENA

Mohammed Fathy

Last updated 8-02-2026

3 min

RiseUp Summit 2026 gathered founders and investors in Cairo under the theme “The Turning Point”.

A strategic RiseUp–Bosta partnership aims to ease startups’ “most painful” scaling challenge: logistics.

Founders gain access to Bosta’s “tech‑driven” delivery and fulfilment, plus knowledge sharing.

Mohamed Ezzat debated “M&A or IPO?”, stressing timing, governance and sustainable growth.

He urged startups to build products that “travel well” beyond Egypt from day one.

The corridors of the Grand Egyptian Museum were buzzing last week as RiseUp Summit 2026 unfolded in Cairo, running from 5 to 7 February under the banner “The Turning Point”. Anyone who has spent time around founders in the region knows this feeling well… big ideas, loud conversations, and that nervous optimism in the air. It’s very Arageek energy, if you ask me.

Among the familiar faces was Mohamed Ezzat, co-founder and CEO of Egyptian logistics startup Bosta, who took to the RiseUp stage as the summit brought together entrepreneurs, investors and operators from across the Middle East and Africa. RiseUp has long positioned itself as a meeting point for knowledge-sharing and debate around building scalable companies, and this year leaned heavily into investment trends, tech shifts and what it really takes to grow beyond one market.

One key moment was the announcement of a strategic partnership between RiseUp and Bosta. In simple terms, the idea is to help startups tackle one of the most painful parts of scaling… logistics. Through this collaboration, founders in the ecosystem are expected to gain access to Bosta’s tech-driven delivery and fulfilment solutions, alongside opportunities for knowledge exchange and new partnerships. Having watched more than one promising startup stumble because shipping was a bit of a faff, this move feels spot on.

Ezzat also joined a panel that asked a question many founders quietly lose sleep over: “M&A or IPO?” The discussion dug into exit options for startups in emerging markets, weighing mergers and acquisitions against public listings, especially in the face of economic uncertainty. Panellists highlighted timing, governance and business model maturity as decisive factors, not to mention the need for sustainable growth rather than quick wins.

During that conversation, Ezzat pointed out that while Egypt offers scale and depth, startups shouldn’t design only for their home turf. From day one, he argued, products and business models need to travel well across borders if companies want real, lasting growth. I reckon that mindset is finally sinking in across the ecosystem, though it’s easier said than done, well… I mean, ask anyone who has tried to expand beyond MENA’s patchwork of regulations.

Bosta itself is a good example of how logistics has become a strategic lever, not just a back-office function. The company provides end-to-end delivery services tailored for e-commerce businesses, using technology to improve efficiency and speed, and helping merchants scale within Egypt and beyond. Believe it or not, small tweaks like better last‑mile data can make or break regional expansion, something founders on the ground know all too well.

On the flip side, partnerships alone won’t magically fix structural challenges. I’m not a fan of overhyping ecosystem announcements. Still, tying a major entrepreneurship platform like RiseUp with an operational player such as Bosta feels like a practical step, and definately one worth watching as the region’s startups look past survival mode and towards growth.

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