Meet Aliph, the first all-women venture fund in the Middle East

Aliph all women fund, vc, abu Dhabi

All-women Aliph Capital secures $125 million USD investment from ADQ

Aliph Capital, an all women venture fund announced that it has secured a US$125 million investment for its maiden fund, Aliph Fund I (LP), from ADQ, an Abu Dhabi-based investment and holding company. No portfolio companies have been announced yet.

Based in Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Aliph Capital is an alternative investment manager founded by Huda Al-Lawati, a leading private equity professional with over 20 years of experience in emerging markets. Aliph Fund I (LP) is a US$250 million target private equity fund domiciled in ADGM aiming to invest in high quality mid-sized companies in the UAE and across the GCC to accelerate their expansion and growth trajectory.

Huda Al-Lawati, Founder and CEO of Aliph Capital, says “The timing is perfect for GCC-based private equity to invest in the region’s midmarket growth stars, who – when fully equipped with digital and tech enablement levers – will generate significant returns and power the ongoing diversification and transformation of the GCC economy.”

Aliph first women VC UAE
Head of Investments, Farah Al-Mazrui enjoyed presenting the masterclass on private equity at Davos in the Desert, #FII6 #ImpactonHumanity

Aliph Capital will seek to acquire sizeable, active positions in privately owned mid-market companies across the GCC that possess robust business fundamentals to realize attractive returns, through active ownership combined with strong value creation opportunities, institutional governance standards and digitalization.

Aliph has the investment and operational expertise to accelerate growth and scale up in companies by helping founders adopt technology platforms and tools to grow revenues, optimize operations, and cut costs to ensure the long term sustainability of its portfolio companies to generate attractive returns.

In short, we like women because they are good at cooperating and see the long-term value in sustainable businesses.

Murtaza Hussain, Chief Investment Officer from ADQ, commented: “Our investment in Aliph Capital underlines our commitment to delivering on a financially driven mandate that creates long term value for Abu Dhabi. Building a strategic partnership with an Abu Dhabi based private equity fund dedicated to serve SMEs further supports our aim to accelerate sustainable economic development and growth within the UAE and region. Together, we will work in partnership to capture growth opportunities, which complements our core portfolio and enable us to generate attractive, risk-adjusted returns.”

About Aliph Capital

Established in 2021, Aliph Capital is a private equity fund manager focused on midmarket and emerging high-growth enterprises in the Gulf region. Aliph aims to provide growth capital to attractive companies across the Gulf region with an active ownership model focused on growth, sustainability and bridging the old and new economy gap through digitization and tech enablement.

Aliph invests in businesses which create positive economic, social and environmental impact for GCC nations, while generating attractive returns. 

About ADQ 

Established in 2018, ADQ is an Abu Dhabi-based investment and holding company with a broad portfolio of major enterprises. Its investments span key sectors of the UAE’s diversified economy, including energy and utilities, food and agriculture, healthcare and life sciences, and transport and logistics, amongst others.

As a strategic partner of Abu Dhabi’s government, ADQ is committed to accelerating the transformation of the Emirate into a globally competitive and knowledge-based economy. 

 

Karin Kloosterman
Karin Kloostermanhttp://www.greenprophet.com
Karin Kloosterman is an award-winning journalist, innovation strategist, and founder of Green Prophet, one of the Middle East’s pioneering sustainability platforms. She has ranked in the Top 10 of Verizon innovation competitions, participated in NASA-linked challenges, and spoken worldwide on climate, food security, and future resilience. With an IoT technology patent, features in Canada’s National Post, and leadership inside teams building next-generation agricultural and planetary systems — including Mars-farming concepts — Karin operates at the intersection of storytelling, science, and systems change. She doesn’t report on the future – she helps design it. Reach out directly to [email protected]

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