In a country where businesses often operate along familial lines, with new investments coming from family and friends, Lebanon’s nascent entrepreneurial scene is experiencing some understandable teething problems when it comes to vital external funding and support. Growth hits a ceiling constrained by one’s inner circle, and opportunities are limited for entrepreneurs with ideas and drive who may not have access to financing and technical support. Calls for more support institutions for entrepreneurs have been made among those interested in enlarging the sphere in Lebanon. “We need many accelerators, we need many incubators, we need many [venture capitals] VCs,” says Tarek Sadi, managing director at Endeavor Lebanon, an NGO working to support entrepreneurs internationally. “We need to have that healthy competitive tension between these people so that the entrepreneur becomes the party that has the most leverage, to get the best deals, to get the most support.” Increasing the deal
