Egyptian startups’ previously strong push to expand into Saudi Arabia has largely reversed after a wave of early market entries that burned capital and exposed stark differences between the two markets, says Dina El-Shenoufy , co-founder and General Partner at F6 Ventures . The expansion surge peaked in 2022 and 2023 amid economic uncertainty and currency devaluation in Egypt, prompting founders and some investors to pursue revenue diversification in the Kingdom; many later retreated after underestimating cultural, marketing and unit-economics gaps. “Many of them regretted it very much because many of them went and burned so much money, only to realize that the markets are very different,” El-Shenoufy said. Context and examples El-Shenoufy described Saudi Arabia as a large market with high purchasing power, strong card penetration and consumer familiarity with online services, attributes that make it attractive for business-to-consumer models but also raise the cost of mistakes. She warned that expansion should not be treated as an escape from home-market problems. Rabbit : The Cairo-based quick-commerce company announced Saudi entry in April 2025, set up a regional headquarters and local Riyadh team, and within six weeks its dark-store network reportedly covered half the city. The company had targeted delivery of 20 million items across Saudi Arabia by 2026, but later reports indicated Rabbit exited the market; the company has not formally confirmed a withdrawal. Tabby : The buy-now-pay-later provider paused commercial operations in Egypt in February 2023, less than six months after launching, citing macroeconomic developments that complicated its interest-free model. Investor behavior: Many investors encouraged portfolio companies to enter Saudi Arabia when Gulf or Saudi investors sat on capitalization tables, a dynamic that amplified cross-border expansion pressure during 2022–2023. F6 Ventures’ approach has adjusted. The firm’s Saudi fund, launched in 2023, has…