In Silicon Valley, fundraising announcements serve as a proxy for success because the ecosystem is mature enough that smart money usually flows to promising companies. In MENA, this correlation is much weaker. Money often flows based on relationships, geographic preferences, or strategic considerations that have nothing to do with business quality. This creates a dangerous dynamic where founders optimize for fundraising rather than customer satisfaction. They spend months perfecting pitch decks instead of talking to customers. They chase investors who don’t understand their market instead of focusing on revenue growth. They celebrate funding announcements while their core metrics stagnate. The companies that actually succeed in MENA are usually the ones that grow sustainably with minimal external funding, then raise money from a position of strength to accelerate growth they’ve already proven works. Funding follows success, not the other way around.

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Revenue is the Most Honest Signal

Revenue is the only metric that can’t be faked or spun. It means customers value your product enough to pay for it. It means your distribution channels work. It means your unit economics at least break even. Everything else—user growth, engagement metrics, partnership announcements—can be misleading. In MENA markets, this focus on revenue is even more important because customers often behave differently than they say they will in surveys or interviews. People might express enthusiasm about your product but never actually buy it. They might sign up for free trials but never convert to paid plans. Revenue cuts through this noise. This doesn’t mean you should ignore other metrics, but revenue should be your primary focus from day one. Every other metric should be evaluated based on whether it correlates with revenue growth. If engagement is up but revenue is flat, engagement doesn’t matter. If you have thousands of users but no paying customers, your user count is vanity.

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Further Reading

Paul Graham’s Default Dead or Default Alive? provides a framework for understanding sustainable growth and why revenue matters more than funding milestones. His essay Ramen Profitable explains why reaching profitability—even at a small scale—fundamentally changes your relationship with investors and gives you the freedom to build the company you want rather than the company investors think they want.