Emerging companies & venture capital
Building businesses. Deploying capital. Driving growth.
Our emerging companies and venture capital team at Gateley Middle East advises founders, high-growth companies, venture capital firms and family offices across the full investment lifecycle.
From formation and first funding through follow-on rounds, regional expansion and exit, we help clients navigate the legal and commercial decisions that shape ownership, control and value.
We act on both sides of the table. That gives us a clear understanding of where founders need flexibility, where investors need protection and where a commercial solution will keep the deal moving.
From formation to exit
Our advice follows the lifecycle of a high-growth business:
1. Build
Formation and early growth
2. Fund
Fundraising and investment
3. Scale
Scaling and expansion
4. Realise
Exit and liquidity
Build it right from the start
The decisions made at the beginning can matter when it is time to raise capital.
We help founders put in place structures that are ready for investment and growth, advising on company formation and structuring, founders’ arrangements, governance, management and commercial contracts, employment arrangements, incentive schemes and regulatory approvals across the UAE and wider GCC.
The objective is not simply to establish a company. It is to create the foundations for what comes next.
Capital comes with terms. Know which ones matter.
We advise companies raising capital and venture capital firms, family offices and other private investors deploying it, from seed investments through institutional funding rounds and growth capital.
Our team advises on term sheets, subscription and shareholders’ agreements, SAFEs, convertible instruments and other equity and debt investments.
Working with both companies and investors means we understand where interests genuinely diverge, which protections matter and where there is room to reach a commercial position without allowing negotiations to overwhelm the deal.
Make sure the structure keeps pace with the business
The structure that worked at launch may not work at scale.
As businesses grow, new markets, shareholders, employees, commercial relationships and regulatory requirements bring new complexity.
We help businesses expand across the UAE and the wider GCC, evolve their corporate and governance structures, negotiate strategic and commercial arrangements and manage the legal challenges that come with growth.
Our focus is practical: making sure the legal framework keeps pace with the business.
Building value is one thing. Realising it is another.
Whether through a trade sale, secondary transaction, buyout or strategic investment, we advise founders, companies and investors through liquidity events and exits.
Because our team is experienced across both investment transactions and M&A, we understand the full lifecycle of the business, from raising and deploying capital to ultimately realising value.
Different capital. Different priorities.
Founders: You built the business. The right investment should help you build the next version of it.
We help founders look beyond headline valuation and understand what investment terms mean for control, decision-making, future fundraising and exit.
Our role is to help you secure the capital you need without losing sight of where you want to take the business.
Venture capital firms: Deploy capital. Protect value. Keep the deal moving.
We advise venture capital firms from term sheet and due diligence through investment documentation, follow-on rounds, portfolio matters and exit.
We focus negotiations on the issues that genuinely affect economics, governance, control, downside protection and the route to returns, without creating unnecessary friction around points that do not materially affect the investment.
Family offices: Private capital rarely follows a standard template. Neither should the legal advice.
We advise family offices on direct, strategic and co-investments, taking account of different investment horizons, governance requirements and approaches to liquidity.
We structure transactions around how you want to invest, hold and realise value, rather than forcing the investment into a standard VC model.
Why Gateley Middle East?
- We understand both sides of the table: We advise businesses raising capital and investors deploying it. We understand what each side needs, which issues genuinely matter and where there is room to move.
- Commercial advice, not legal theory: Sometimes the right advice is to push back. Sometimes it is to move on. Knowing the difference matters. We identify the issues that matter, explain the commercial consequences clearly and help clients make decisions.
- Built for transactions: One team. The full transaction lifecycle. From first investment and follow-on funding to strategic transactions and exit, we advise across the full lifecycle of a business. That means we do not look at an investment in isolation. We understand what comes next and structure and negotiate with that in mind.
- Fees that fit the mandate: A founder completing an early funding round and a venture capital firm deploying capital across multiple investments have different requirements. We offer flexible fee arrangements tailored to the nature and stage of the mandate, providing greater clarity and predictability around legal spend.
- Who we work with: We work with the people building and backing high-growth businesses across the Middle East. Our clients include founders, management teams, emerging and high-growth companies, venture capital firms, family offices and other private capital investors.