Press Release.
Sep 5, 2021 (Manama, Bahrain) – The SC Women In Tech Bahrain Program, held in partnership with Standard Chartered Bank, the Supreme Council for Women (SCW), and Bahrain FinTech Bay, announce the top 5 winning teams.
During the demo day held on the 29th of August, the top ten teams of Bahrain-based female entrepreneurs pitched their solutions, focusing on various areas such as health, leisure, climate tech, and more.
Before the demo day, the ten teams participated in an 8-week incubation period where they received mentorship from Bahrain FinTech Bay’s team and some of the Kingdom’s subject experts. Additionally, the startups participated in workshops focusing on critical aspects of building and growing a tech startup and pitch practice sessions leading up to the demo day finale.
A combined total of $50,000 was awarded to the top five teams, distributed evenly with each receiving $10,000 to support and further develop their startups. Additionally, the teams will be incubated at Bahrain FinTech Bay for three months with access to its co-working space and facilities.
The top 5 teams announced are Maximize, Trillion Tree Fund (TTF), PawArabia, Yatta Sports, and Alrawi.
Dr. Boutros Klink, CEO of Standard Chartered Bank Middle East & Bahrain, said, “We would like to congratulate all the participants and especially the winners in the second year of Standard Chartered’s Women In Tech (“WiT”) Bahrain Program. Standard Chartered Women in Tech Incubators support female-led entrepreneurial teams with business management training, mentoring, and seed funding. The incubators are designed to help address gender disparity in the technology sector and to use technology to tackle social challenges faced by communities. They are an important part of Standard Chartered’s global initiative to tackle inequality and promote economic inclusion.
He also mentioned, “In collaboration with the Supreme Council for Women and Bahrain FinTech Bay, this program supports women leaders in the Kingdom launch tech startups by providing guidance, incubation, and support over an 8 week period, in addition to seed funding for 5 winners. The teams were directed by professionals in the fields of trade and entrepreneurship, helping them to advance and expand, while providing them with the skills needed to succeed and thrive in today’s challenging world.”
He further added, “Given Standard Chartered’s 100-year history in the Kingdom, we have witnessed and supported many successful and innovative companies in the past, and are extremely delighted and proud to support the companies of the future. The teams this year demonstrated incredible levels of energy, passion, drive, creativity, and resilience, and the ideas and discussions were brilliant.
He concluded, “On behalf of Standard Chartered Bank, I thank the Supreme Council for Women, Bahrain FinTech Bay, and our brilliant participants for making the program a resounding success.”
Ranya Al Jarf Director of the Gender Balance Centre at the Supreme Council for Women stated, “We would like to thank Standard Chartered Bank and Bahrain FinTech Bay for their efforts in organizing the Second Edition of the “Women In Tech” Accelerator Program in cooperation with the Supreme Council for Women (SCW). The program is an excellent added value platform for highlighting innovative and creative solutions to important challenges globally and through the latest technologies. We congratulate the winners on their achievement and hope the participants benefit from this experience in further developing their projects to more sustainable and advanced levels.”
Khalid Dannish, CEO of Bahrain FinTech Bay, said: “We would like to congratulate the ten innovative finalists that have once again delivered on making this program successful and showcase our Kingdom’s talent. The SC Women in Tech program has proven that it is an ideal platform for female-founded startups to gain traction, exposure, and grow their business. We are proud to have delivered the program in strategic partnership with Standard Chartered and the Supreme Council for Women, and we hope to build on this initiative to encourage even more talent in the Kingdom’s growing technology sector and startup ecosystem.”
Leena Al Olaimy, Founder and CEO of Trillion Tree Fund (TTF), said, “After 11 years of building the entrepreneurship ecosystem, this was my first time being on the other side as a startup. A huge thank you to the BFB team and Standard Chartered for being super supportive and genuinely engaged with the climate tech platform I’m building.”
Hanan Merza, CEO of Maximize, said, “Being part of the Standard Chartered Women in Tech program has helped us in many ways. It was a very insightful journey, and the highlight of it was being exposed to a new network of mentors and coaches who are experienced in different areas.”
