CADO, a UAE-born premium gifting platform, has raised $4.5 million in a pre-seed funding round to accelerate its regional and international expansion. The round was led by Sanabil 500, a venture capital and startup acceleration initiative in the MENA region, with participation from a German family office and several high-net-worth and angel investors.
Founded in 2019 by Leila Al Marashi, CADO began as a three-person startup in Dubai and has since scaled into a regional leader operating across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United States. The platform digitizes and elevates the gifting experience, merging creativity, logistics, and technology to make corporate gifting smart, effortless, and emotionally resonant.
CADO’s client portfolio includes over 500 repeat partners, such as Julius Baer, Cartier, Netflix, Gucci, Boucheron, Accor Hotels, Jumeirah Group, Net-a-Porter, Ralph Lauren, LinkedIn, TikTok, ExecuJet, and American Express.
The new funding will accelerate CADO’s expansion in Saudi Arabia, where it is developing a community ecosystem linking artisans, artists, suppliers, and investors. It will also fuel the company’s international growth, beginning with its launch in New York.
Amal Dokhan, Managing Partner at Sanabil 500, stated, “CADO is redefining what modern gifting means for today’s connected world. Their model merges creativity, technology, and cultural relevance—creating a new global category rooted in human connection.”
With this strategic funding, CADO aims to position itself as a global leader in the gifting industry, blending Middle Eastern craftsmanship with global innovation to create meaningful and personalized gifting experiences.
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