• Saudi Arabia-based engagement platform Unifonic has raised a $125 million Series B round led by Softbank Vision Fund 2 and Sanabil. 

• The investment marks Softbank’s first direct investment in a Saudi-based startup and its second in the Middle East after Kitopi.

• Founded in 2006 by Ahmed Hamdan and Hassan Hamdan, Unifonic’s technology integrates customer communication channels including text, voice, messaging and web into a single platform to enable companies to communicate directly with customers. 

• The startup raised $21 million in its Series A round in 2018 and has since quadrupled in size, processing more than 10 billion transactions on its platform, annually. 

• This latest round of investment will fund Unifonic product development and hiring in order to expand into new markets around the globe. 

Press release:

Unifonic, the Riyadh headquartered customer engagement platform, today announces its $125M Series B funding round, led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Sanabil Investments. Unifonic’s solutions integrate customer communication channels including text, voice, messaging and web into a single platform to enable companies to create stronger customer relationships. 

Consumers expect brands, governments, banks and organisations to connect with them over a growing number of channels. As newer channels emerge, and user preferences change over time, organisations rely on Unifonic to maximise customer engagement and optimise communication returns on investment.

From SMS for online banking to WhatsApp vaccination requests, Unifonic empowers organisations to transform customer experience while allowing them to focus on core business activities without maintaining costly communication infrastructures.

The round sets a new Series B investment record for technology startups in the Middle East, strengthening Unifonic’s leadership and growth potential in emerging markets. It also marks SoftBank’s first direct investment in a Saudi-based company and further consolidates Sanabil’s ambitions to invest in high-growth, high-impact technology start-ups in the country.

Faisal Rehman, Managing Partner for SoftBank Investment Advisers, said; “Consumers and businesses are increasingly sophisticated in how they communicate digitally, but this has created fragmentation across multiple emerging channels. Unifonic’s technology manages this complexity into a single platform, enabling enterprise clients to form closer relationships with their customers. Our investment team on the ground in Riyadh has followed Unifonic for some time and we have witnessed first-hand the company’s progress in establishing significant market leadership in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We look forward to supporting the Unifonic team in scaling the platform across the Middle East and other emerging markets.”

A spokesperson for Sanabil Investments added: “Unifonic is poised to play a significant role in accelerating digital transformation initiatives for public and private enterprise in the Middle East. And so, we wanted to be a part of their journey, resulting in one of our largest investments in a high growth, high impact technology company in Saudi Arabia. We believe we can play a significant part in strengthening their strategic position and supporting their future international growth, while aligning with the country’s vision of fostering innovation.”

Less than three years after raising the largest Series A funding round in the Middle East at the time, Unifonic has quadrupled in size and now processes over 10 billion transactions on their platform, annually. Unifonic plans to continue this growth trajectory and will be accelerating product development and hiring in order to expand into new markets around the globe whilst bolstering its leading market share across the Middle East.

Ahmed Hamdan, founder and CEO at Unifonic highlighted; “At Unifonic our mission has always been to empower organisations to engage and communicate seamlessly with their customers. I couldn’t be prouder to see our solutions making such a positive impact and reaffirming that mission. This raise is an important milestone in our journey, it will allow us to scale our offerings and expand our reach to enable more organisations to connect with customers reliably and effectively. Our team is our anchor and together we aim to continue this journey and serve our clients in the best ways possible.”