SHUAA Capital, listed on the Dubai Financial Market, and Key Capital Ltd have launched a strategic partnership aimed at supporting the growth of the venture capital (VC) secondaries market across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
The partnership comes as the regional venture capital ecosystem witnesses rapid expansion, with annual VC deployment in MENA increasing from $1.1 billion in 2020 to $3.8 billion in 2025, according to Magnitt. At the same time, liquidity pathways for investors and early shareholders have lagged behind market growth, creating rising demand for secondary liquidity solutions.
Key Capital, described as the region’s first dedicated venture capital secondaries asset manager, said its Key Fund I LP targets a fund size of $50 million. The fund follows a secondaries strategy focused on acquiring positions in high-growth technology companies through off-cap-table transactions.
The strategy is intended to provide liquidity to early shareholders while offering investors access to scaled technology assets through diversified portfolio exposure and accelerated distributions. The fund has already completed two transactions and is structured as an Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) Limited Partnership.
Key Capital estimates the regional secondaries market at more than $1 billion and growing. Globally, secondaries transaction volume reached a record $240 billion in 2025, according to Jefferies, highlighting increasing institutional investor interest in the asset class.
Under the agreement, SHUAA Capital will provide advisory support across capital formation, strategic relationships and capital markets execution. The company said its institutional platform would complement Key Capital’s specialized secondary investment strategy, sourcing network and investment discipline.
Nabil Al Rantisi Group CEO – SHUAA Capital
“The MENA venture capital market has reached an inflection point, and the secondaries segment represents one of the most compelling and structurally underserved opportunities in the region today. Key Capital brings a highly specialized team with a proven track record and a clear first-mover advantage, and we are delighted to partner with them.”
Basil Moftah, Managing Partner of Key Capital, commented that, “Key Capital is built on the conviction that MENA’s venture ecosystem has matured faster than its liquidity infrastructure. The time has come for a regional secondary strategy, providing a dedicated liquidity layer, supporting early stakeholders with structured exit pathways while enabling investors to access high-quality technology assets at a more balanced entry point. SHUAA Capital’s institutional platform and regional reach will enhance our ability to scale this strategy and broaden access to the asset class as we approach our first close.”
