A Saudi quick-commerce startup raised $212 million and just collapsed. MENA VC funding fell 37% year-over-year. Late-stage debt is frozen. Khaled Talhouni — Managing Partner of Nuwa Capital, one of the most active GCC funds with 53 portfolio companies across Saudi, the UAE, and Egypt joins With Loulou to break down what's actually happening in the regional venture market right now. 

Recorded in Dubai, April 22, 2026. 

Chapters: 

00:00 The state of MENA VC right now 

02:35 What's actually happening in the Gulf 

06:55 53 portfolio companies through the war 

12:45 The Q1 numbers: $941M, -37% YoY, and the late-stage freeze 

18:20 How to deploy capital when nothing is priced 

24:35 The case for investing during downturns 

28:05 IPOs, secondaries, and where MENA exits actually happen 

33:20 Why Nana burned $212M (the dark store math) 

47:30 The "Accenture for AI" thesis 

54:20 Rapid fire: 2026's biggest MENA exit, deals he regrets, the underrated sector 

57:15 What he'd do differently 

Khaled Talhouni: https://www.linkedin.com/in/khaledtalhouni/ 

Nuwa Capital: https://www.nuwacapital.io 

Follow Loulou: 

Instagram: /louloukhazen 

LinkedIn: /louloukhazen 

X (Twitter): /louloukhazen

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.