Cartona, the pioneering B2B platform that is revolutionizing Egypt’s traditional trade market, catering to a diverse range of stakeholders including mom-and-pop stores, hotels, restaurants, cafes, FMCG companies, and wholesalers, has successfully concluded an $8.1 million Series A extension fundraise.
The round was led by Algebra Ventures, the leading Egyptian tech venture capital firm. Cartona’s existing investors, Silicon Badia and the SANAD Fund for MSME, also participated. The round was raised from a strong position, with Cartona still having a significant cash position from its previous $12 million Series A funding, led by Silicon Badia.
Mahmoud Talaat, CEO and Co-Founder of Cartona, said: “We are delighted to complete a Series A extension – which we have done from a position of strength. Our operational and financial metrics are all progressing very positively which has helped us to attract capital from existing and new investors.
“We are committed to delivering our strategy which includes transforming the traditional trade market and creating value for all stakeholders in the marketplace. Our product rollout, verticals and offerings will continue to grow as will our penetration of the Egyptian market. We have an exciting future ahead, replicating the successful execution of our business model in other regional markets – all making trading as easy and accessible as possible for retailers and suppliers.”
Omar Khashaba, General Partner at Algebra Ventures, commented: “Cartona has built an exceptionally capital efficient model that has allowed it to deliver on strong growth and profitability, even during economic headwinds. The asset light nature of its model creates scalable infrastructure that can quickly be adapted for entry into new markets and adjacencies. Cartona has also been a driving force for financial inclusion in the retail sector as more and more of its small merchants take advantage of inventory financing options.
“Mahmoud is an incredible operator and seamlessly blends deep domain expertise in the retail sector with a willingness to leverage technology to rewrite the playbook. The team’s core focus on profitability, even when capital was cheap, helped establish credibility in debt discussions with banks and NBFIs. We’re grateful for the opportunity to partner with Mahmoud and his team and believe it will go all the way.”
Cartona empowers the traditional retail market to be more efficient by streamlining the distribution process – directly connecting retailers with wholesalers, suppliers and FMCGs.
Retailers can better manage stock and working capital via cash or credit orders – improving profit margins. Cartona’s proprietary technology can be fully integrated with retailers and suppliers for ordering, inventory management, branding, embedded finance, ledger and tax.
