STARTUP WATCH- Plus Venture Capital looks to invest USD 60 mn in 120 MENA tech startups with new fund: Plus Venture Capital, a new VC firm set up by former 500 Falcons managing partners Sharif El Badawi and Hasan Haider, will invest USD 60 mn in 120 early-stage startups across the Middle East and North Africa over the next three years through its inaugural VC+ fund, according to a statement (pdf). The fund, which will target seed to series A companies, has received some commitments from public and private sector investors, El Badawi and Haider told Menabytes, without disclosing further details.

About the fund: VC+ will put USD 200-250k into seed-stage companies followed by up to USD 2 mn in follow-on funding, while series A funding will be geared towards developing companies already in its portfolio, El Badawi and Haider told Enterprise. The fund, which plans to focus on giving more funding and focused support to a smaller number of companies, will target tech and tech-enabled startups. Particular focus will be given to those operating in the education, healthcare and finance sectors — that have existing products and have been up and running for at least three months. The fund plans to reach its first close in 4Q2020, El Badawi and Haider said. The duo announced their exit from 500 Falcons last month, and will continue to support the firm over the next 18 months.