AngelSpark, a prominent angel investment group based in Dubai, UAE, has announced a new investment in SellAbroad – RYD2, a technology platform focused on simplifying cross-border e-commerce for Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) brands. The investment directly targets the massive MENAP (Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan) e-commerce market, which is valued at $100 billion, with cross-border transactions accounting for a significant 55% share.
Leveling the Global E-Commerce Playing Field
The challenge in the MENAP cross-border market is that the majority of activity is monopolized by the top 10% of global marketplaces, which have built proprietary cross-border infrastructure. SellAbroad aims to dismantle this barrier by providing D2C brands with the same infrastructure advantage.
The platform achieves this by offering essential localization features, including:
- Local Payments: Enabling D2C brands to accept popular local payment methods in over 100 countries, a critical factor for boosting conversion rates among global shoppers.
- AI Compliance Automation: Automating the complex process of calculating and managing customs duties and taxes at checkout, ensuring the customer sees the full landed cost and eliminating customs surprises.
- Storefront Localization: Automatically translating and adapting the storefront into over 55 languages and regional dialects, making the shopping experience native and trustworthy for customers in each region.
By democratizing access to this technology, SellAbroad allows D2C brands to retain higher margins and compete effectively with e-commerce giants like Amazon, Temu, and Trendyol Group, whose infrastructure the company leverages.
Strategic Investment in Market Enablers
AngelSpark’s investment in SellAbroad aligns with the regional trend of backing technology “enablers” that unlock growth in vast, complex markets. The firm, which sources deals via a syndicate model, recognized the potential in SellAbroad’s ability to simplify international expansion for brands looking to tap into the high-growth MENAP consumer base. The company’s value proposition is centered on speed and simplicity, promising brands the ability to go live in major markets like the UAE and Saudi Arabia in a matter of days with no developer work required.
About AngelSpark
AngelSpark is an active angel investment community based in Dubai, UAE. Established to empower early-stage startups, the firm pools capital from a large network of angel investors, entrepreneurs, and executives to invest in promising ventures across diverse sectors and geographies. AngelSpark focuses on pre-seed and seed-stage investments, aiming to fill a critical funding gap in the MENA ecosystem and provide founders with not just capital, but also hands-on mentorship and a powerful network for scaling.
Source: AngelSpark
