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Anghami
Anghami launched in 2012 in Beirut, founded by Eddy Maroun and Elie Habib, two entrepreneurs who secured licensing deals with major labels at a time when...
Anghami
Anghami launched in 2012 in Beirut, founded by Eddy Maroun and Elie Habib, two entrepreneurs who secured licensing deals with major labels at a time when digital music piracy dominated the Middle East. The company grew into the largest music platform of its kind in the region, establishing offices in Cairo, Dubai, and Riyadh and listing on the Nasdaq in February 2022 via a SPAC merger with Vistas Media Acquisition Company that valued the entity at roughly $220 million. Anghami's core service spans a catalog of tens of millions of songs and podcasts, offered through freemium and subscription tiers. The strategy expanded markedly in late 2023, when the company completed a landmark deal to merge with OSN+, a Middle Eastern video streaming service owned by KIPCO, creating a combined entity that bundles music, podcasts, and premium film and television under one roof. The new structure reaches users across more than 30 countries, with regional headquarters shifting to Abu Dhabi, and includes exclusive Arabic content alongside global hits. Post-merger, Anghami operates with a deep coffer of strategic backing, with the Saudi sovereign wealth fund's SRMG Ventures and Dubai-based Oraseya Capital holding stakes estimated in the tens of millions. The firm's public filing for the first half of 2024 reported a top line approaching $50 million, driven by synergies with its OSN+ video proposition, even as it navigates the cost structure of an expanded content library. The combined user base stood at over 120 million registered users at the time of the merger's completion. Anghami's structure as a publicly traded company — majority held by founders and regional media patriarchs rather than a single family office — differentiates it from other regional players. It operates as a direct-to-consumer platform with a deliberate agenda to consolidate Middle Eastern digital media, absorbing OSN's video assets while positioning itself at the intersection of royal-family-aligned capital and an ambitions local content pipeline.
General information
Firm type
other
Year founded
2012
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
Middle East
Country
United Arab Emirates
City
Abu Dhabi
Corporate office
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Additional offices
Beirut · Cairo · Dubai · Riyadh
Principals
Eddy Maroun
Co-founder & CEO
Elie Habib
Co-founder & CTO
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
What was the structure of Anghami's public listing?
Anghami went public on the Nasdaq in February 2022 through a merger with Vistas Media Acquisition Company, a SPAC. The transaction valued Anghami at approximately $220 million on a pro forma basis, making it the first Arab-origin tech company to list on Nasdaq.
How did the OSN+ merger change Anghami's business?
The OSN+ merger, completed in late 2023, transformed Anghami into a multi-vertical entertainment platform spanning music, podcasts, and premium video. The combined entity operates under a holding structure in Abu Dhabi and generates revenue through bundled subscriptions, addressing the high churn rates observed in single-media streaming models in the Middle East.
Who are Anghami's principal institutional backers?
Post-listing, the shareholder register includes SRMG Ventures, the investment arm of the Saudi Research and Media Group which is closely tied to the Saudi Public Investment Fund's ambitions in culture and media, and Oraseya Capital, the venture arm of the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority. These stakes reinforce the firm's alignment with Gulf sovereign and quasi-sovereign capital.
Where does Anghami have a competitive advantage over global streaming services?
Anghami's catalog includes a deep library of exclusive Arabic music, user-generated content, and local podcasts that Spotify and Apple Music do not prioritize. Its licensing team has longstanding, direct relationships with Egyptian, Lebanese, and Gulf record labels, securing distribution rights for regional content that global algorithms often miss.
Is Anghami currently profitable?
As of the most recent reporting period in mid-2024, Anghami operates at a headline revenue run-rate nearing $100 million annually but has not yet recorded net income due to continued spending on content licensing and platform integration costs. The firm's public disclosure focuses on revenue growth and cost-efficiency gains post-merger.
What is Anghami's broader role in the Middle East media ecosystem?
Anghami serves as an aggregator and consolidator of digital media assets in the Arabic-speaking world. By folding OSN's deep video library into its platform, it acts as a local gatekeeper against the erosion of regional content share by Netflix and Amazon Prime, a role actively supported by Gulf sovereign wealth.
Does Anghami compete primarily with Spotify or with Middle Eastern telco- streaming bundles?
It competes with both. Anghami has direct artist-label relationships and a localized interface that counters Spotify, but its bundled video-music subscriptions also compete against the deeply discounted streaming bundles offered by regional telecom operators like STC, Etisalat, and Zain, which include global platform subscriptions as part of mobile data plans.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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