"the difficulty Muslim entrepreneurs face when finding investors for their businesses"
LOL, like those in Dubai?
@Doubting Thomas
There's actually no substantial evidence that any of this is even true in the article above.
@article
"Venture capitalists, normally eager to back apps with the potential to reach a billion users, are more standoffish when it comes to startups with Muslim founders, or one that are targeted at a Muslim audience."
Evidence for this? One mobile app that didn't get enough investors. Sorry, not good enough. And even if it were true, what's stopping the creator of this app from finding investors who are also Muslim?
Just on the surface level alone, the premise is wrong too. There are 1.5 billion Muslims, true, it doesn't mean 1.5 billion people will actually use the mobile app. For one thing, subtract the very young and the poor that don't have smart phones in the first place.
Now, its purpose is to find spaces for prayer. So here you have to also subtract non-devout Muslims and Muslims who have NO issue with finding prayer spaces and are therefore not going to use the app.
New York is only a tiny minority Muslim so Rashid Dar not finding prayer spaces easily is one thing. Doesn't mean it's an issue in Muslim majority countries where most Muslims live.
Your target audience is not potentially 1 billion people, it's more like a minority of a minority of a minority.
Now the app can still be profitable even with a much smaller market, but:
1. you need to convince investors that it's worth it, the burden of proof is on you, you're not entitled to get investors just because you think you have a really really really good idea
2. even if the investor thinks it's profitable, it's his choice not to endorse a religion, could be a Christian, could even be a New Atheist who doesn't like religion in general and doesn't want to encourage religiosity with his money, all these choices are valid objections
Oh and you still haven't explained why Muslim investors are also uninterested in the app.