F6 Group Debuts In Egypt As Flat6Labs Restructures, Launches F6 Ventures

Flat6Labs, one of the MEA's leading seed and early stage venture capital firms that also runs startup programs, has announced a new corporate structure for itself. Under the new setup, F6 Ventures, a newly launched seed-stage investment firm, and Flat6Labs—which has been operating for nearly 15 years—will become subsidiaries of the newly formed F6 Group. 

The restructuring allows F6 Group, which will be led by founder and Chairman Hany Al Sonbaty and Dina el-Shenoufy as CEO, to bring venture capital and founder support under a single platform designed to serve startups in emerging markets. By combining investment capabilities with programmatic know-how, it provides access to funding, resources, and expertise, empowering founders to become industry leaders.

Meanwhile, F6 Ventures, which has el-Shenoufy and Ramez El-Serafy as co-founders, shall build on F6 Group’s strong regional footprint across Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, Amman, Tunis, and Nairobi, as well as its legacy of supporting entrepreneurs. With the aim to support visionary founders, drive tech-enabled innovation, and deliver long-term value to its stakeholders, F6 Ventures is being led by regional partners Eyad Albayouk, Ryaan Sharif, Rasha Manna, Walid Triki, and Christine Namara—an experienced leadership team with decades of expertise in venture capital, entrepreneurship, and market growth throughout the Middle East and Africa.

Speaking to Inc. Arabia about the new structure, el-Shenoufy, who is also a General Partner at F6 Ventures, said, “Flat6Labs was born over a decade ago with a simple mission: to find and invest in the region’s brightest founders at the very earliest stages. At the time, our investment had to combine both the cash, but also the networks, the tools, the mentorship, and basic business knowledge, all provided through our seed program. Over the years, two things happened: a new breed of mature founders emerged. Ones that didn't require the program. Simultaneously, the need for support ecosystems, corporate innovation, founder and pipeline creation grew bigger than the simple needs of us supporting our portfolio companies."

F6 Ventures was thus created to fill the gap that the team consistently saw in the market and extend F6 Group's expertise and funding to more mature entrepreneurs, el-Shenoufy said. "Under the Group, F6 Ventures provides the capital firepower for scouting and investing in strong founders at the onset of their journey, led by the same individuals that led the investment activities of Flat6Labs, while Flat6Labs continues to be the pipeline engine—sourcing, accelerating, and nurturing the next generation of founders," she explained. "Together, they create a seamless founder journey, supported by capital, mentorship, and market access, all under one umbrella."

With over US$90 million in assets under management (AUM) and a track record of backing more than 300 companies through its partners, F6 Ventures is set to manage six funds, with a focus on addressing the critical funding gap experienced by founders at the pre-seed and seed stage investments across the Middle East and Africa. “Launching with $90 million across six funds is the legacy from Flat6Labs that we carry forward," el-Shenoufy said. "Our target is to reach $200 million in AUM within five years and invest in over 200 startups. The plan going forward is to create more regional mandates that help us pick market leaders in certain regions to scale faster."

el-Shenoufy also revealed that F6 Ventures' priorities will include deepening its footprint in high-growth markets across Africa, the GCC, and the Levant, with a focus on enabling cross-border connectivity for its portfolio companies. It also aims to establish sector leadership by focusing on globally competitive industries such as fintech, climate tech, health tech, and logistics, while remaining flexible to innovations driven by founders. In addition, F6 Ventures will focus on follow-on capacity, with el-Shenoufy saying that it will prioritize ensuring that its most promising companies "aren't starved for capital as they scale, a gap we've seen far too often in emerging markets."

Through the combined structure, F6 Group will offer what is called capital plus programs, aligning investment power with hands-on founder support, with the aim of providing founders with the best of both worlds. “In many emerging markets, founders either get a cheque or a program—rarely both, and almost never in a sustained, coordinated way," el-Shenoufy said. "Our model flips that. Because Flat6Labs and F6 Ventures operate under one group, we can offer capital plus active, structured support from day one through to early growth."

This, el-Shenoufy said, will allow the group to support founders in multiple ways. For one, F6 Ventures will be able to support nascent founders through a dedicated seed program run by Flat6Labs, providing first-time founders with access to markets, playbooks, investor networks, mentorship, and coaching. Secondly, as Group companies, and with el-Shenoufy as Group CEO, she noted that there will always be alignment for Flat6Labs to create value and ecosystem development in markets where F6 Ventures invests in, which support with pipeline creation, but also programs that can support founders even at growth stages.

Third, F6 Ventures will be able to co-design custom support programs for companies post-investment. These, rather than just being generic workshops, will serve as targeted interventions based on the growth stage and the sector. Finally, el-Shenoufy pointed out that having the Group network already embedded across multiple ecosystems will enable F6 Ventures to unlock cross-border opportunities faster, in addition to supporting opportunities beyond the markets that F6 Ventures invests in. "Ultimately, our goal is to reduce the time it takes for a startup in our markets to go from zero to scale—and to do so with a higher survival rate than the regional average," she said.

Meanwhile, under the leadership of newly appointed CEO Yehia Houry, Flat6Labs will continue to offer support, innovation, and ecosystem development across emerging markets. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Cairo, Flat6Labs is a MENA-based startup accelerator and seed investment company that supports early-stage entrepreneurs through funding, mentorship, and training. The company runs accelerator programs across multiple countries—including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Tunisia, the UAE, and Bahrain—helping startups refine their business models, scale operations, and access regional and global markets. In addition to seed funding, Flat6Labs provides workspace, networking opportunities, and hands-on guidance, with a focus on fostering innovation in sectors such as fintech, healthtech, edtech, and digital media. 

Pictured in the lead image is the Flat6Labs leadership team. Courtesy of Flat6labs.