Saudi Telecom, an investor in the Middle East-based ride ordering service since its 2013 series A round, provided the funding at a $1bn valuation.

Board members of telecommunications firm Saudi Telecom have approved a $100m investment in United Arab Emirates-based ride ordering platform Careem, Reuters reported yesterday, citing a stock exchange filing.

Founded in 2012, Careem operates an app-based ride hailing service similar to that of Uber across the Middle East and North Africa. It announced a $100m research and development drive in July this year that involved establishing R&D centres in Egypt and Germany while expanding its team in Pakistan and its home…