Karachi-based property technology startup Fortify has incorporated in Saudi Arabia and is preparing to hire locally, joining a growing number of foreign technology companies pursuing opportunities created by the Kingdom’s push to digitize its real estate industry. Founded in 2021, Fortify develops enterprise resource planning software for real estate companies, integrating sales, customer relationship management, finance and property management into a single platform, and the company began exploring the Saudi market after attending the LEAP technology conference in Riyadh in 2024.
Fortify says it secured an investment license from Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment in February and registered a Saudi company in July, positioning itself within the Kingdom’s broader PropTech push under Vision 2030, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s program to diversify the economy away from oil. Syed Zain Ali, Fortify’s CEO and co-founder, said Saudi Arabia is one of the largest markets within the GCC and that real estate carries real potential for digital transformation within the Kingdom, adding that the company sees Riyadh as its first priority for global expansion. Saudi Arabia’s Real Estate General Authority has established a dedicated PropTech Hub to attract local and international technology companies, connect them with investors, and allow firms to test new products and business models within the Kingdom.
Entering the Saudi market required Fortify to adapt its products and operations to local requirements covering taxation, cybersecurity and in-country data storage, with Ali noting that compliance, localized product adjustments and cybersecurity concerns tied to data residency are among the challenges that come with expanding into a new market. The company worked to meet requirements set by Saudi Arabia’s Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority along with cybersecurity regulations before expanding its operations, and says it has already begun securing Saudi business, with Keller Williams Saudi Arabia using some of its customer relationship management, brokerage management and finance products, and an agreement signed with Riyadh-based real estate valuation company Muathamad. Fortify is now recruiting Arabic-speaking and technical staff, with co-founder Sidra Shakeel noting that the company secured its MISA license in February, registered the company in July, and is now processing the Iqama needed before local hiring can begin.
Fortify’s expansion has been supported by BridgeStart Pakistan, a government program run through Ignite to help Pakistani startups enter international markets by subsidizing costs including accelerator participation, travel and accommodation. Shakeel said the team knew little about the Saudi market when it first attended LEAP two years ago, describing that visit as an early test of the waters before the company was accepted into a Saudi accelerator and received BridgeStart support. Fortify is part of a wider effort connecting Pakistani technology companies to the Saudi market, with eight Pakistani startups having recently completed a 12-week soft-landing accelerator run through BridgeStart, Ignite and Riyadh-based AstroLabs. Syed Azfar Hussain, project director at NIC Karachi, where Fortify was incubated, said Saudi Arabia is increasingly becoming a destination for Pakistani startups that previously looked primarily toward Western markets, noting a trend since 2023-2024 of startups shifting their sights from North America and Europe toward Saudi Arabia, where he said the Kingdom’s growing PropTech ecosystem offers considerable scope for Pakistani tech businesses to expand their reach across the wider GCC region.
Follow the SPIN IDG WhatsApp Channel for updates across the Smart Pakistan Insights Network covering all of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem.
