About
MENADD is the advisory practice of Gennady Shafir, an Abu Dhabi-based CFO and independent board advisor. I work with founders on financing terms, ownership, control and the structure needed to execute a financing.
Over the past decade I have held operating roles as CEO, co-founder, COO and CFO in venture-backed companies. This work draws on those responsibilities for capital, corporate structure and international operations across the UAE, MENA and Europe.
Track record
As CEO and co-founder, built a B2B e-commerce company to over $50 million in annual revenue and more than 200 employees across multiple markets.
As COO and CFO, scaled a 3D-printing hardware company operating in over 30 countries through its Series B, at a valuation above $100 million.
As CFO of a deep-tech energy company, led finance and capital raising through more than $10 million secured and licensing expansion across MENA and the EU.
Across these roles: PE and VC transactions, cross-border structures involving the UAE, Europe and Central Asia, and diligence work on both sides of the table.
Founder and board advisory
I work with founders and boards when financing decisions change ownership, control or the options available to the company.
The analysis brings existing instruments, proposed terms and future financing scenarios together. It shows dilution, the effect of option pools, distributions under investor preferences and the decisions that require board or investor consent.
For cross-border companies, the work also examines the entity receiving investment and the structural dependencies that could affect execution.
Engagements can be defined projects, advisory support during a financing, or ongoing work around successive capital decisions. Legal interpretation and documentation are handled with the relevant counsel.
Why this site exists
Founder content overwhelmingly covers how to raise capital. Far less covers what an investor examines once diligence begins.
A company can have real revenue, a capable team and a growing operation. Then an investor arrives, and the questions change. Who controls the holding company. Where the intellectual property sits. How money moves between entities. What rights attach to each class of shares. What happens on a sale.
A structure built for licensing, banking and invoicing rarely answers these cleanly. By the time the gaps surface in diligence, the cost is not legal fees. It is timing, valuation, negotiating leverage, and whether the transaction closes at all.
MENADD starts from that process and works backwards: what a reviewer will check, where problems appear, and what a prepared answer looks like. Written for companies operating under MENA structures, with MENA capital, on MENA timelines.
Focus
Financing terms and capital planning. Founder ownership and control. Cap tables, investor preferences and governance. Cross-border structure supporting financing and exit. UAE, MENA and European corridors.
Structure is not admin. It is strategy.
Contact
Email: [email protected]
Book a call: Schedule a conversation
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/gennadyshafir