Issue 1: barq became a unicorn in two years, plus the fall's biggest rounds

Story of the week: barq: 1 million users in 21 days, and a unicorn after two years

• Ahmed Alenazi ran the remittances division at Bank Albilad, then became CEO of stc pay. So he knew the wallet market from the inside.
• He founded barq in 2023. The app launched in July 2024 and reached 1 million users in 21 days.
• The idea: local and international transfers, cards and bill splitting, all in one app, for millions of residents who send money home every month.
• In September 2026 it raised a Series A of $329.5 million at a $1.85 billion valuation.

The lesson: Sometimes the best idea is the problem you saw with your own eyes at your old job. Watch the film

Funding rounds

• Tabby: $233 million led by Blue Pool Capital, at a $6.5 billion valuation
• barq: $329.5 million, Series A at a $1.85 billion valuation
• Erad: $22 million, Series A led by MEVP
• Syarah: $12 million from Impact46

September 2026 rounds documented in the directory, each number with its source on the company page.

Films of the week

• barq: 1 million users in 21 days. Two years later, a unicorn
• Calo: Sold his first company at 19. Today he delivers healthy meals to more than 280,000 customers
• Unifonic: A student couldn't send a message to the whole university.. so it became a company that 10 billion transactions pass through
• Geidea: Started as a loyalty program. Today it says it has more than 825,000 payment terminals
• Floward: Founded in Kuwait, but its real market turned out to be Saudi Arabia
• Sary: They built the app for individuals.. but the real customer turned out to be the grocery store owner
• Lucidya: The first company failed, the second had no money... and the third taught AI Arabic

Tool of the week: Free cloud credit for your company

AWS, Google Cloud and Microsoft run programs that give startups cloud credit, subject to eligibility. We gathered the direct application links on the Perks page. See the programs

Community question

What was the hardest part of landing your first 10 customers? Reply to this email and we'll share the best answers in the next issue (no names unless you say so).