Cairo – Mubasher: It is expected that Sawari Ventures will close the first stage of its $55 million investment fund by the end of June, a company official has said.

The ownership structure of the new fund involves four local financial entities and four international ones, partner Wael Amin told Al Mal newspaper.

He further revealed that the local partners include the National Bank of Egypt (NBE) and Banque Misr, whose combined contribution amounts to EGP 125 million ($7 million), while the European Investment Bank (EIB) is among the global fund participants.

Sawari Ventures is looking to invest the fund’s money in around 15 to 20 startups operating in the education, technology, energy-generation, and healthcare fields, Amin added.

We are also planning to allocate $2.5 million to each startup we work with, the top official noted, indicating that the value of the final investment depended on the size of its project or startup and its needs.

Sawari Ventures is also planning to increase the volume of the fund by adding another $15 million through a second tranche that will most likely take place 18 months after the closing of the first tranche of the fund, Amin told the newspaper.