Wa'ed Ventures
PE / VC / CVC
2011
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Saudi Arabia
Investment Ticket
Investment Horizon
Investment Stage
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Profile
Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Center (Wa'ed) promotes entrepreneurship and helps develop local Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) by encouraging aspiring entrepreneurs to establish or expand SMEs in their respective fields. The Center provides a variety of programs that offer non-collateralized loans or equity partnerships, along with the guidance and tools that develop and nurture entrepreneurs and their businesses. The Center’s programs include the debt funding program, Wa’ed Loans, with its robust pre-funding and post-funding support and Wa’ed Equity, which is an economic development program that offers equity partnerships in promising ventures. Aramco Entrepreneurship Center also established StartUp Lab which provides Business Incubation for innovative result-driven budding entrepreneurs. In addition, StartUp Lab hosts its flagship program “CO-OP to Entrepreneur” which supports the establishment of new businesses by university students even before they graduate, turning them to job makers rather than job seekers. Entrepreneurs and SMEs are key contributors to job creation and represent a major source of employment. Furthermore, Entrepreneurs act as powerful agents for economic diversification including developing local content and fostering innovation. Realizing the full potential benefits presented by this opportunity will require substantial effort to help the Kingdom’s entrepreneurial ecosystem reach maturity across structural and cultural dimensions. By combining deep sector knowledge and a collaborative team that is diligent, dynamic, and engaging, Aramco Entrepreneurship Center harnesses potential business ideas and cultivates a great atmosphere that empowers a new generation of entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia.
