Our friends at homegrown food ordering platform Elmenus closed a USD 10 mn pre-series C funding round led by Fawry, Marakez, and Luxor Capital (in the latter’s first-ever investment in MENA), according to Magnitt. Fawry’s investment comes as it targets the country’s large, fragmented restaurant industry. Elmenus will use the investment to expand their operations and increase their user base.

Elmenus expects by the end of this year to have 12k restaurants from 20 Egyptian cities on its platform and offer them new data tools to help them scale their businesses. The company is also planning to expand into new markets in Africa by the end of the year, CEO Amir Allam said in April. The statement came after former Just Eat CEO David Buttress invested an undisclosed amount in Elmenus earlier this year and joined the company’s board of directors.

ALSO FROM PLANET STARTUP- 10 startups could receive investments of up to EGP 1 mn each under a new corporate accelerator program titled Raya FutureTECH that is being launched by Raya Holdings subsidiary Raya Customer Experience and VC firm Openner, according to a press release (pdf). Under Raya FutureTECH, selected customer experience startups will participate in a three-day bootcamp, after which 10 will land investment. Participants will also receive hands-on support from Openner including mentorship on design, technology, and growth plans. Applications are open until 31 July on the Raya FutureTECH website.