Rwaj Raises $1.2M Pre-Seed for Live Social Shopping and Auction Marketplace in the Middle East

Rwaj Secures $1.2M Pre-Seed

Rwaj, a Jeddah-based live social shopping and auction marketplace for the Middle East, has raised $1.2 million in Pre-Seed funding. The round was announced on September 4, 2026.

What Rwaj Does

Rwaj operates a live social commerce platform where sellers host live video streams and sell products through two primary formats:

• Fixed-price instant buys — buyers can purchase immediately at a set price.
• Timed real-time auctions — products are sold to the highest bidder within a live window.

The platform is designed to formalise the informal social-selling behaviour that already thrives across the region. It combines live video with transactional infrastructure, including escrow-protected payments and integrated carrier shipping.

Product and Market Focus

Rwaj is an Arabic-first bilingual app, serving sellers across all GCC countries and buyers worldwide. Payment options include Mada, Apple Pay, cards, and STC Pay, with escrow protection built in to support trust between buyers and sellers.

Founded in 2024 by Taher Alblowe, the company is headquartered in Jeddah. Its model targets the existing ecosystem of social sellers who currently rely on informal channels, offering them a dedicated marketplace with live streaming and auction capabilities.

Funding Details

• Round type: Pre-Seed
• Amount raised: $1,200,000 USD
• Announcement date: September 4, 2026
• Lead investor: Not disclosed
• Investors: Not disclosed

The company has not publicly named any participating investors or a lead investor for this round.

Why This Matters for the Ecosystem

Live social shopping has become a significant channel in markets where social platforms already serve as primary storefronts. Rwaj's focus on the Middle East and its Arabic-first approach position it to capture demand from sellers who are already using live video and messaging apps to sell. By adding escrow-protected payments and carrier shipping, the platform addresses two common friction points in informal social commerce: payment trust and logistics.

The Pre-Seed funding provides capital to develop the platform further and expand its seller base across the GCC. The company's dual model of instant buys and timed auctions gives sellers flexibility in how they engage buyers during live streams.

Acquisition Perspective

For acquirers and strategic investors, Rwaj represents an early-stage play in the live commerce infrastructure space in the Middle East. The company's combination of live video, auctions, escrow payments, and shipping integration creates a vertically integrated marketplace. Its bilingual Arabic-first design and GCC-wide seller focus could make it an attractive target for larger e-commerce or social platforms looking to enter or expand in the region's live shopping market.

At Pre-Seed stage, the company is still building its product and user base. The $1.2 million round is a modest but meaningful step for a marketplace that requires both seller and buyer liquidity. How effectively Rwaj converts the region's existing informal social-selling activity into a structured platform will be a key metric to watch.

Summary

Rwaj has raised $1.2 million in Pre-Seed funding to support its live social shopping and auction marketplace for the Middle East. Founded in 2024 by Taher Alblowe, the Jeddah-based company offers live video selling, instant buys, timed auctions, escrow-protected payments, and integrated shipping through an Arabic-first bilingual app. The round was announced on September 4, 2026, with no lead investor or investor list disclosed.