Saudi Arabia’s erad secures $33 million debt financing led by Stride Ventures to unlock growth financing for SMEs

erad, the Riyadh-headquartered alternative financing platform for SMEs, has raised $33 million in debt financing to expand its operations in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the GCC.

The round wasled by Stride Ventures, which has recently doubled its team size in the region and also
achieved the first close of its landmark ADGM Fund V, alongside participation from other
investors.

This new round strengthens erad’s mission to close the region’s $250 billion SME credit gap
by providing fast and flexible Shariah-compliant financing solutions and make growth
financing accessible for GCC businesses.

The funding round, which was closed at Money 20/20 in Riyadh, will be used to grow erad’s
presence in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, scale its operations, and meet growing demand from
small and medium-sized enterprises across sectors such as retail, F&B, healthcare and e-
commerce.

Salem Abu-Hammour, Co-founder of erad, said: “This investment follows a strong period of
5x growth (YoY), as we double down on our expansion in Saudi Arabia. Access to capital
remains one of the primary challenges for SMEs across the region. We share a common
vision with Stride Ventures, and as their first regional fintech platform, we look forward to
delivering flexible financing solutions at greater scale.”

Since launch, erad has provided over $50 million in funding to regional SMEs. The
company’s Shariah-compliant platform utilises proprietary data modeling for risk
assessment, enabling it to review applicants and provide financing approval in just 48 hours,
one of the fastest in the region.

Fariha Ansari Javed, Partner at Stride Ventures added: “Debt remains an untapped and
powerful asset class in the GCC, offering immense potential to fuel growth for ambitious businesses without the need to dilute equity. Through our partnership with erad, we are leveraging our expertise to provide startups and SMEs across the region with innovative, alternative financing solutions that align perfectly with their growth ambitions.

This strategicinvestment in Saudi Arabia not only underscores our strong commitment to the GCC but also
advances erad’s transformative vision of revolutionizing capital access for the next
generation of trailblazing enterprises.

Since its founding, erad has received requests of more than $532 million in funding from
well-known regional brands from Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Founded in 2022 by Salem Abu-Hammour, Faris Yaghmour, Abdulmalik Almeheini, and
Youssef Said, erad is a financing platform that helps SMEs access Shariah-complian working capital solutions. Using a data-driven approach, erad leverages technology to offer fast and flexible financing to businesses in Saudi Arabia and the UAE across different sectors such as retail, healthcare, F&B, and moreFor media inquiries, please contact: media@erad.co

Stride Ventures Debt Fund V (CEIC) Limited (“ADGM Fund V”) is a private credit qualified investor fund incorporated as a closed-ended investment company limited by shares in the ADGM.

ADGM Fund V is managed by Stride Ventures Limited, a private company limited by shares incorporated in ADGM and regulated by the ADGM Financial Services Regulatory Authority.