Cartona raised $8.1 M debt, equity funding in extended Series A round funding
The successful completion of a $8.1 million Series A extension fundraise has been announced by Cartona (“the Company”), the leading B2B platform that is digitising and empowering stakeholders of Egypt’s traditional trade market, including mom-and-pop stores, hotels, restaurants, cafes, FMCG companies, and wholesalers.
Leading Egyptian tech venture capital firm Algebra Ventures led the round, and Cartona’s current investors Silicon Badia and the SANAD Fund for MSME also took part. Cartona came into the funding round in a strong position, having raised $12 million in Series A funding led by Silicon Badia, and still holding a sizeable cash position.
A total of $5.6 million in equity capital has been set aside for the purpose of expanding Cartona’s market share, accelerating growth in its various verticals, such as FMCG and HORECA, building strong regional expansion foundations into new, sizable MENA markets, and investigating promising B2B2C opportunities.
Caramel Ventures and GlobalCorp, two of the top debt providers, have contributed $2.5 million to this round of funding as part of Cartona’s strategy to have a variety of funding sources. The debt was raised in local currency on favorable terms, which will assist local retailers who would not have been able to obtain capital otherwise in meeting their working capital needs.
With a lean cost base and strong unit economics, Cartona’s asset-light business model continues to be a key differentiator in the market, particularly in an inflationary environment. The company has experienced levels of growth comparable to those of asset-heavy operating models.
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.”
By facilitating direct connections between retailers and wholesalers, suppliers, and FMCGs, Cartona streamlines the distribution process and enables the traditional retail market to operate more efficiently.
With cash or credit orders, retailers can better manage their inventory and working capital, increasing their profit margins. Retailers and suppliers can fully integrate Cartona’s proprietary technology for ordering.
