• Saudi Arabia-based blockchain startup IR4LAB has secured a $1.5 million investment round from Aramco’s entrepreneurship arm, Wa’ed.

• Founded in 2017 by Majd Al-Afifi and Mohamed El Kandri, IR4LAB provides corporations, such as Aramco, with solutions enabling them to root out fraud certification through blockchain technology.

• The investment will allow IR4LAB to increase its customer base, expand the breadth of its coverage to more professional certification societies and intensify an ongoing partnership with Aramco’s Digital Transformation Office.

Press release:

IR4LAB, a Saudi Arabia-based blockchain startup, has closed a $1.5 million investment round from Wa’ed, the entrepreneurship arm of Aramco.

Founded in 2017, IR4LAB's solutions are enabling corporations to root out the resume and professional certification fraud certification. Their DocCerts product enables professional and technical certification providers and training centres to issue digital, immutable and instantly verifiable certificates that companies such as Aramco can use to determine whether workers and job applicants possess valid training certificates.

Mr Abdullah O. Al-Baiz, Saudi Aramco Chief Digital Officer, commented “Saudi Aramco is systematically capitalising on digital technology breakthroughs that accelerate business creation, support local content, promote efficiency and bring a more sustainable future. Blockchain digital platforms such as IR4LAB give employers a greater degree of certainty that certification for a job candidate is legitimate, which can accelerate employment decision making. There are many other deployment opportunities for such technology.”

Wassim Basrawi, Wa’ed Managing Director, added “Wa’ed is pleased to support IR4LAB, one of Saudi Arabia’s emerging blockchain leaders. IR4LAB’s blockchain digital solution, which helps simplify and streamline business processes, is the kind of paradigm-changing innovation we support at Wa’ed.”

“Blockchain is a transformative digital technology and we are proud to help the Kingdom stay at the forefront of this change,” said Majd Al-Afifi, CEO and Co-founder of IR4LAB, who started IR4LAB with co-founder Mohamed El Kandri, who is IR4LAB’s chief technology officer. Adding: “Our goal is to bring home the benefits of blockchain digital solutions to Saudis across the Kingdom.”

IR4LAB plans to use the investment to increase its customer base, expand the breadth of its coverage to more professional certification societies and intensify an ongoing partnership with Aramco’s Digital Transformation Office.