Our Entrepreneurs

Company Snapshot

Nimble and savvy entrepreneurs Omar and Laith transformed what began as a small web-hosting company into a thriving online community. Now with over 8 million unique visitors and 25 million page views a month, Jeeran is one of the fastest growing social networking and blogging platforms in the Arab world. Equipping users with the latest tools and most creative means to communicate and interact on the web, the site has no doubt played a part in the recent political movements in the Middle East largely fueled by digital communication.

Omar and Laith have led Jeeran’s growth through its cutting-edge platform that is both useful and user-friendly. Early on, Jeeran differentiated itself from social media giants by tailoring its site to the nuances of local markets across the Middle East, expanding by maintaining community roots. An enormous source of online content, Jeeran hosts more than 650,000 websites and 120,000 blogs. According to TheNextWeb.com, Jeeran was one of the top 10 most visited websites in the Middle East in 2010. The site has been especially effective in giving voice to the younger generation, with 80% of its unique users between the ages of 19 and 35.

The founders have also managed to make the site profitable through highly targeted online advertising, which top multinationals such as Coca-Cola, Adidas, Nestle, Chevrolet, Cartier, Air Arabia, British Airways, and Pepsi have taken advantage of. With the combination of an innovative site and the rapid growth of Internet connectivity in the Arab world, this entrepreneurial pair is well positioned to ride the rising tide and become the next huge web 2.0 success story. To date, the site’s growth has been propelled by capital from IV Holdings (Accelerator Technology Holdings) and Intel Capital.

Omar and Laith have also been outspoken voices for digital media and entrepreneurship. In October 2010, Bloomberg Venture aired a video interview with co-founders Omar and Laith: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4. Their business vision and know-how make for an unstoppable team leading the change both in industry and in the world.