Egyptian B2B Startup Cartona Raises $8.1 Million in Series A Extension

Egyptian B2B trade startup Cartona has raised $8.1 million in a Series A extension led by Algebra Ventures, Egypt’s leading tech venture capital firm. Cartona’s existing investors - Silicon Badia and the SANAD Fund for MSME - also participated. This latest round of funding adds to Cartona’s significant existing cash potion following a previous $12 million Series A funding round in July 2022, led by Silicon Badia.

Cartona has pioneered an online platform that has facilitated the digitisation of Egypt’s traditional trade market, empowering stakeholders including mom-and-pop stores, hotels, restaurants, cafes, Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies, and wholesalers alike.

“Our operational and financial metrics are all ​progressing ​very positive​ly which has helped ​​us to​​​ attract capital from existing and new investors​​​,” Mahmoud Talaat, Co-Founder and CEO of Cartona, tells StartupScene. “We have an exciting future ahead, replicating the successful execution of our business model in other ​regional markets​.”

The new injection of funding is set to further accelerate Cartona’s growth across several verticals including FMCG and Hotel, Restaurant, and Café/Catering (HoReCa), whilst also establishing foundations for regional expansion in MENA, and exploring possible B2B2C opportunities.

Cartona maintains an asset-light business model which remains a major competitive differentiator, especially amid an inflationary environment. Thus far, Cartona has on-boarded over 188,000 businesses across 17 Egyptian cities onto its platform.