Acasia

We’re here to back individuals who dare to be different and in innovation that pushes the boundaries of possibilities.

Our story from seed to tree

• The seed: In 2011, Aly El Shalakany and Hossam Allam founded the Cairo Angels, which was Egypt and Africa’s first angel investment network. The idea was simple - to bring together a group of mission driven investors to invest and support founders to build technology businesses right here in our region in order to have a positive impact on our societies
• The sprout: It was tough going at first and there were plenty of naysayers. There were too few of us trying to do too much.
• The seedling: Once you have a few wins under your belt, belief can be quite infectious. As the number of our investments grew, so did the number of founders building exciting new startups, which brought more and more investors to our community. Before we knew it, the perception of startups and investing in startups was changing all around us and a virtuous cycle began to take hold.
• The sapling: As we started making returns for our investors, we started to think to ourselves - what more can we be doing? How can we have more impact? Programs. Check. Partnerships. Check. Events. Check. Launch of our first fund. Check.
• The tree: Today, we look back at the last decade and think to ourselves - that was fun, where did the time go? But ten years is nothing in the life of a tree; we’re just getting started. We have places to go and people to see. We are the Acasia tree.

Our Philosophy

• First believers: We love to be the first folks outside of friends and family (and fools!) to back exceptional founders to build enduring companies.
• Founder-focused: The founders are at the heart of everything we do. We want to be partners for life in this exciting journey, through thick and thin, come what may. We’re in it for the long haul.
• Collaboration: It takes a village to raise a child. We’re happy to pay it forward, because we’re all in this together. That’s what ecosystem building is all about.
• Impact-driven: We believe that, given the possibility, we have the talent to build enduring technology firms right here in our part of the world.
• For Us By Us: We believe that, given the possibility, we have the talent to build enduring technology firms right here in our part of the world.

Enabling People

We empower people with big ideas to go the distance, and aspire to understand the humans behind the ideas.

Sustaining Growth

We commit to long-term, hands-on support in all aspects of a startup to facilitate personal and business development.

Fueling Innovation

We connect visionaries of the region by converting interest into investment.