Zest Equity Secures $3.8M Seed Funding to Digitize Private Market Deals

UAE-based startup Zest Equity has successfully raised $3.8 million in seed funding to advance its mission of digitizing private market deals and making transactions more efficient. The seed round was led by Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), with participation from the Dubai Future District Fund (DFDF) and DASH Ventures. This latest round brings Zest Equity's total funding to $5.7 million.

Zest Equity was founded in 2021 and initially served as a secondary trading marketplace. However, it quickly evolved into a platform that enables ecosystem players, including founders and venture capitalists, to conduct fast and transparent online transactions. Traditionally, these transactions occurred offline, resulting in inefficiencies and higher costs. Zest Equity aims to bridge the gap by providing the infrastructure for effective digital communication and information sharing among stakeholders.

Founders and investors use Zest Equity's tools to streamline fundraising, share information, and track deal processes. The platform also offers legal infrastructure for investors to form syndicates or special purpose vehicles, simplifying the investment process. The funding will be used to develop additional tools to enhance the transaction process further.

Zest Equity is also working on tools to enable startups to standardize secondary share trades, offering greater transparency and liquidity control. The company has demonstrated its value in digitizing private market transactions in the Middle East and plans to expand into other emerging markets with similar needs and challenges, such as North Africa, South Asia, and Turkey.