DUBAI: FENIX, a UAE-based e-scooter company backed by Israeli venture capital funding, has acquired Turkish scooter company PALM for $5 million, it said yesterday, as the start-up expands across the Middle East into its fifth country.
With almost 10,000 e-scooters in 13 cities, FENIX has the largest fleet in the Middle East and North Africa.
It was the first UAE start-up to get Israeli VC money after the two countries normalised relations last September, receiving $3.8m from Israel-based venture capital firm Maniv Mobility in November as part of its $5m seed funding.
Undisclosed additional funds have been raised since and FENIX aims for series A fundraising later this year, FENIX Co-Founder and CEO Jaideep Dhanoa told Reuters.
Moving into Turkey, which has milder summers, will help to offset the impact on scooter hires of the Gulf’s scorching mid-year temperatures, Dhanoa said.
FENIX also operates in Bahrain, Qatar and Saudi Arabial.
Pre-pandemic in 2019, McKinsey predicted the expanding global e-scooter market would be worth $300-$500 billion by 2030.
