• UAE-HQ Cloud Kitchens platform Kitopi has raised $50 million in a growth capital round led by EvolutionX (a private credit provider by Temasek and DBS Bank).
• Founded in 2018 by Mohamad Ballout, Saman Darkan, Bader Ataya and Andy Arenas, Kitopi operates a cloud kitchen network with 200+ outlets across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait.
• The funding follows Kitopi achieving profitability and will be used to scale its homegrown brands across high-growth GCC markets, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait, while accelerating its regional and international franchising strategy.
• In 2022, Kitopi raised an additional $300 million in its Series C round, extending the round's size to $715 million.  

Press release:

EvolutionX, the growth-stage private credit platform established by Temasek and DBS Bank, has announced its first investment in the Gulf region, leading a $50 million growth capital round raised by Kitopi, the Middle East’s leading next-generation F&B ecosystem.

The funding will fuel the expansion of Kitopi’s leading homegrown brands across high-growth markets, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait, while further accelerating the company’s franchising plans in the region and beyond. The investment follows Kitopi achieving its profitability milestone and will be used to accelerate further expansion and growth.

“Kitopi is a standout example of the kind of transformative, tech-driven scaled up business that EvolutionX has been set-up to empower, one that combines scale, innovation and execution to reshape a traditional sector. This investment marks our entry into the GCC, a region we see as a rising force in the global innovation landscape. We are proud to partner with Kitopi, a company that is reshaping F&B business models and reimagining customer engagement. As they scale their ecosystem and elevate food experiences across the region and beyond, we look forward to supporting their next chapter of growth and innovation," said Rahul Shah, Partner at EvolutionX.

The latest investment validates Kitopi's market leadership in building the Middle East’s next-gen F&B ecosystem, combining technology with consistent hospitality to deliver strong customer experiences. With over 200 locations, including both restaurants and delivery-only locations across five GCC markets, and its own in-house suite of applications called SKOS, Kitopi is known for its understanding of consumer preferences, technology-enabled operating model and its role in shaping the GCC’s F&B landscape.

“As we continue to scale our loyalty app alongside our regional growth and international franchise expansion, this funding round positions us perfectly to capitalize on the growing demand for our brands. What began as a local presence has evolved into a regional platform, and we’re now taking that momentum global.”, said Mohamad Ballout, CEO and Co-Founder, Kitopi.

The investment marks EvolutionX’s foray into the GCC market as part of its broader mission to provide less-dilutive, flexible capital solutions to high-growth, technology-enabled companies across emerging innovation hubs. The private credit fund targets new age businesses across sectors including technology, consumer, healthcare, financial services, electric mobility, and digital infrastructure. These companies are generally in the growth to pre-IPO stage and EvolutionX’s capital solutions are specifically tailored to meet their evolving needs. Since its launch in 2022, EvolutionX has committed c. US$450 million across multiple category-leading companies in Asia, establishing it as a trusted partner of choice for these companies.