Cuba’s private sector suffering from a lack of tourists
Omnipresent in tourist guides, it’s a must stop for many visitors, including stars such as Beyonce, Madonna or Pedro Almodovar, whose photos adorn the walls
Updated 20 April 2020
AFP
HAVANA: Havana is a ghost town. The American convertibles swooned over by tourists are back in the garage, while most restaurants and cafes are closed.
Cuba’s private sector has been suffering since the island nation closed its borders over the coronavirus pandemic.
In the charming old building where the 1993 comedy “Strawberry and Chocolate” was filmed, a spiral staircase leads to the deserted La Guarida, the most famous privately owned restaurant, or “paladar,” in Cuba.
“We decided to close the restaurant from March 15,” nine days before Cuba’s authorities imposed their first virus-linked restrictions, said owner Enrique Nunez.
By Saturday, the country of 11.2 million people had close to 1,000 coronavirus cases and 32 deaths.
“I have friends with restaurants in Spain, they told me what was happening, about the danger, the difficulty of continuing to serve customers in these conditions,” Nunez told AFP.
His restaurant usually serves 200 people for each sitting.
Omnipresent in tourist guides, it’s a must stop for many visitors, including stars such as Beyonce, Madonna or Pedro Almodovar, whose photos adorn the walls.
“That was the main reason we took this decision. We’re a very attractive site, many people arrive in Havana with the desire to experience La Guarida.”
What that meant was that “we were on the front line” of potential coronavirus infections.
In Cuba, the private sector has little by little managed to make its mark over recent years: It now employs almost 635,000 people, or 14 percent of Cuba’s work force.
These Cubans rent out rooms, run small restaurants or hair salons, among other activities.
“Many private enterprises were built on tourists, because no Cuban is going to go to a restaurant and spend $100 on a meal,” said economist Omar Everleny Perez.
So they quickly sensed the danger: Two days after the borders were closed to nonresidents — a measure subsequently expanded to all arrivals — 16,000 private workers asked for their licenses to be suspended, according to the Labor Ministry, which temporarily exempted them from taxes.
FASTFACTS
● Cuba’s private sector has little by little managed to make its mark over recent years: It now employs almost 635,000 people, or 14 percent of the country’s work force.
● The Cubans rent out rooms, run small restaurants or hair salons, among other activities.
By Wednesday that figure had risen to 119,000, around 19 percent of the private workforce.
This health crisis could not have come at a worse time, on the back of two bad years when Cuban businesses suffered under the increased sanctions imposed by the administration of US President Donald Trump.
“The private sector was already struggling, especially in Havana, after the American cruise ships stop coming” from June 2019 due to new sanctions, said Perez.
It meant that in 2019, the number of tourists dropped by 9.3 percent to 4.3 million.
Over recent years, Americans had become the second largest group of tourists after Canadians, thanks to the thawing of tensions with the US since 2014, under the Barack Obama administration.
In January and February, tourist numbers were down 16.5 percent on the previous year, with a drop of 65 percent for Americans.
The sector, the second largest revenue generator on the island nation, was worth $3.3 billion in 2018.
Fresh funding flows in even as broader market data points to a slowdown
Updated 20 December 2025
Nour El-Shaeri
RIYADH: Startup funding activity across the Middle East and North Africa delivered a mixed picture over the past week, with fresh capital flowing into gaming, fintech, deep tech, and travel, even as broader market data pointed to a slowdown in overall investment momentum.
Saudi Arabia’s Impact46 led a $1 million investment round in Hypemasters, an international game development studio focused on competitive strategy experiences for mobile. The round included participation from GEM Capital.
Hypemasters develops strategy titles designed for competitive depth and precise game mechanics and has attracted more than 7 million players globally.
The studio is currently advancing several new projects, including a title in soft launch, as it looks to expand its reach in markets with sustained demand for strategy games.
“Strategy is one of the most demanding categories in game development, and Hypemasters approaches it with uncommon discipline. Their work shows a clear understanding of what committed players expect from this genre, and we believe their upcoming titles can serve a global audience with genuine depth,” said Basmah Al-Sinaidi, managing partner at Impact46.
“We are pleased to support a team that builds with intention and long-term ambition,” she added.
Boris Kalmykov, CEO and co-founder of Hypemasters, said: “We’re focused on deepening our presence across the region and pushing forward with the next generation of strategy games, including a major new title already in soft launch. Partnering with Impact46 marks an important step for Hypemasters.”
The CEO added that Impact46 shares his company’s long-term vision for building “world-class strategy games” from the MENA region, and the support reinforces his firm’s commitment to expanding its portfolio with high-quality releases.
The investment reflects Impact46’s continued interest in game development and interactive entertainment and aligns with its broader strategy of backing studios building globally oriented titles.
Premialab raises $220m
UAE-headquartered Premialab, a provider of data, analytics, and risk management solutions for quantitative investing, has raised $220 million in a growth investment led by KKR, with participation from existing investor Balderton.
Founded in Hong Kong in 2016 by Adrien Geliot and Pierre Trecourt, Premialab operates a global platform serving the $800 billion quantitative investment strategies market.
Counterfeits don’t just impact economies; they erase identity, creativity and truth. Along with our investors, we’re building a movement to make the world’s stories verifiable again.
Walid Tarabih, founder and CEO of Relik
The company provides benchmarking, performance analysis, and risk analytics tools for institutional investors.
The funding will be used to support global expansion, strengthen core operational systems, and scale Premialab’s execution product, which was developed in partnership with Eurex, to broaden access to quantitative investment strategies.
“Quantitative investment strategies have grown rapidly in scale and importance, yet the market has lacked a truly independent standard for data, analytics and risk. Premialab was built to fill that gap,” said Adrien Geliot, CEO of Premialab.
Relik closes seed round
UAE-based Relik has closed a seed funding round with participation from KBW Ventures, Naatt Holding, Fort Holding, and Ayman Sejiny.
Founded in 2023 by Walid Tarabih and later joined by John Tsioris, Relik is an artificial intelligence-powered authentication platform designed to help collectors, brands, and marketplaces.
The company plans to use the funding to roll out additional products and expand across sectors including sports, luxury, and heritage markets.
“We are ensuring authenticity in a fakeable world,” said Walid Tarabih, founder and CEO of Relik, adding: “Counterfeits don’t just impact economies; they erase identity, creativity and truth. Along with our investors, we’re building a movement to make the world’s stories verifiable again.”
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al-Saud, founder and CEO of KBW Ventures, said: “Relik is creating a new global standard for truth and trust. At a time when counterfeiting and AI-generated content are rising, Relik’s mission to protect authenticity carries both cultural and commercial value.”
Nawah raises $23m
Egypt-based deep tech startup Nawah Scientific has raised $23 million in a series A round comprising a mix of equity and debt, marking a decade since the company’s founding.
The round was led by Life Ventures Holding, with participation from Den Ventures, Empire M, AfricInvest, Elsewedy, as well as banks and angel investors.
Founded in 2015 by Omar Saqr, Nawah operates a cloud laboratory model that enables remote access to advanced testing services. (Supplied)
Founded in 2015 by Omar Saqr, Nawah operates a cloud laboratory model that enables remote access to advanced testing services. Its operations span four business units covering life sciences, food and agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and certified reference materials.
The company plans to use the funding to build a global research and development center in Rwanda, double laboratory capacity in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and expand into North Africa and Europe.
Algeria’s VOLZ raises $5m
Algeria-based travel tech startup VOLZ has raised $5 million in a series A funding round led by a consortium of private investors under Tell Group, with participation from Groupe GIBA.
Founded in 2023 by Mohamed Abdelhadi and Hacene Seghier, VOLZ enables travelers to book flights in Algerian dinars using online payments or cash on delivery, while comparing multiple airlines through a single platform.
Announced at the African Startup Conference in December, the transaction is Algeria’s largest startup funding round in local currency and marks the first exit of the Algerian Startup Fund.
The capital will be used to launch new consumer and corporate travel products, strengthen VOLZ’s position in Algeria, and support expansion across North and West Africa.
MENA startup funding slows in November
Investment activity across the MENA startup ecosystem slowed sharply in November 2025, with 35 startups raising a combined $227.8 million, according to Wamda’s monthly report.
This marked a steep decline from the $784.9 million recorded in the previous month and a 12 percent drop compared to November 2024, pointing to a period of consolidation as investors moderated deployment toward the end of the year.
More than half of the capital raised during the month was driven by a single debt-backed transaction by erad, which propelled Saudi Arabia to the top of the regional rankings. Across 14 deals, the Kingdom attracted $176.3 million, accounting for more than three-quarters of all capital deployed in November.
Despite funding activity spanning 35 startups, capital was concentrated in just 5 markets. After Saudi Arabia’s dominant lead, the UAE followed with $49 million across 14 transactions.
Egypt recorded $1.12 million across 4 deals, while Morocco raised $1.1 million through 2 transactions. Oman saw 1 deal with an undisclosed value, with limited activity reported outside these markets.
Fintech emerged as the most funded sector in November, raising $142.9 million across 9 deals, largely influenced by the same debt-driven transaction.
E-commerce followed with $24.5 million across 6 rounds, while property tech, which topped the charts in October, slipped to 3rd with $18.9 million raised by 3 startups.
Debt financing dominated the month, accounting for more than $125 million through a single transaction.
The remaining capital was largely channelled into early-stage startups, with no later-stage funding rounds recorded in November, underscoring continued investor caution.
From a business model perspective, B2B startups captured the majority of capital, with 20 companies raising $197.1 million.
B2C startups lagged, with 9 companies raising a combined $22.2 million, while the remainder was split across hybrid models.
The gender funding gap showed no signs of narrowing, with male-led startups absorbing 97 percent of the capital raised during the month. Female-led and mixed-gender founding teams accounted for the remaining share.
