At the core of its strategy, the JEDI Fund follows a hybrid model that anchors exceptional emerging managers and selectively invests in proven category leaders. It combines the breadth of a fund-of-funds approach with the precision of direct investing. This combination has proven both resilient and rewarding, with the Fund outperforming many of its 2022-vintage global peers by delivering a 1.3x Gross MOIC (Gross multiple on invested capital). Coupled with its hybrid strategy, the Fund focused on resilient venture markets in emerging tech such as fintech, SaaS businesses and AI-native enterprise software.
Dalal Jamal Al Shaye, CFA, Director of Private Equity, said “The strength of the JEDI Fund’s model is best reflected in its direct investment program. This is where we managed to strategically identify breakout companies sourced through the Fund’s underlying managers and gained access to opportunities typically reserved for larger institutional investors.”
The Fund first recognized the potential of Mercury company through its 3.0 fund portfolio before increasing its position via secondaries and a tender offer, building it into one of the largest investments in the Fund. Mercury recently valued at USD3.5bn following a Series C funding round led by Sequoia. A similar conviction-based approach was applied to MaintainX company, which the Fund initially backed in its early stages before investing an additional follow-on check. Since the Fund initial investment in the company, Maintain X’s customer base has grown to managing over 11 million assets across manufacturing, distribution centers, and facility management. This enabled the Fund to invest early on in a company that has since emerged as a leader in AI-native enterprise operations.
The Fund leveraged its early exposure through emerging managers to secure a direct position in Kepler company, alongside Addition, GlobalFoundries, Temasek, Intel and others. Kepler is a leading player in AI infrastructure, developing a new type of chip architecture that will increase the storage capacity for High Bandwidth Memory Chips, a key component in the AI value chain.
The Fund built a meaningful stake in Deel company as well through secondary access despite the company being closed to new investors. Deel is a full payroll and HR software platform serving 1.25M workers across 150+ countries, recently valued at USD17.3bn and led by Andreesen Horowitz. The company hit a USD1bn revenue run rate; a milestone only a handful of companies ever hit..
Fahad AlSharekh, CEO of Techinvest and the Investment Advisor of The JEDI Fund, commented, “The success of The JEDI Fund reflects a combination of disciplined execution, strategic insight, and the strength of the relationships that supported its journey. From inception, we recognized that meaningful partnerships within the global venture ecosystem would be an essential part of the formula. By maintaining trusted connections and engaging with founders over time, we were able to access opportunities that align with our investment vision and long-term objectives.”
AlSharekh added, “The Fund has also demonstrated that competitiveness is defined by capability and conviction rather than geography. What began as a Kuwait-based initiative has evolved into a regional platform investing alongside leading global funds in Silicon Valley and beyond. With the Fund now almost fully deployed and performing strongly, we will build on this foundation through a new phase focused on growth-stage opportunities emerged from within our existing funds’ portfolio. This next step reflects our long-term approach to compounding value and sustaining exposure to exceptional companies as they continue to scale.”
Al Shaye concluded, “Beyond financial performance, the JEDI Fund represents a strategic step in positioning Kamco Invest as a regional leader in institutional venture investing. Our objective was to create a sustainable platform that connects Gulf capital with high-quality global opportunities. The Fund’s success reflects our ability to translate a long-term vision into measurable outcomes, strengthening our commitment to developing differentiated and creative investment strategies that deliver value to our investors and the markets we serve.”
It is worth noting that Kamco Invest was recently named Kuwait’s Best for Alternative Investments in 2025 by Euromoney, recognizing the company’s strong performance and diverse solutions in the alternative investment space which covers private equity, real estate and structured products.