Speakers

Zunaid Ahmed Palak is the Honourable Minister of State for Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh. He has held this position since January 2014 as the youngest Minister of Bangladesh and currently serving his second term. He has been involved in active politics of Bangladesh for the last 25 years. He became a Member of Parliament (National Assembly of Bangladesh) in January 2009, being the youngest Parliament Member of Bangladesh till date. He was Member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee of ICT Ministry and Private Members’ Bill and Co-Chair of Parliamentary Committee on Climate Change from 2009 to 2013.

Born in 1980, Zunaid Ahmed Palak has led the ICT Ministry with great vigor and is taking forward the vision of ‘Digital Bangladesh’ with commendable foresight and phenomenal initiatives. Under his leadership Bangladesh is setting up 39 High-tech Parks and incubators launched the world’s 7th largest Tier 4 Data Centre to support technology companies.

Initiatives such as setting up of Sheikh Russel Digital Labs, specialized computer labs in educational institutions of all the districts are helping to accelerate the expansion of computer education, digital literacy, job opportunity, employment skills, and language competency of Bangladeshi students. Startup Bangladesh Limited was launched in March 2020 as the first venture capital company wholly owned by the Government of Bangladesh and one of the first few in the world. Porichoy, the e-KYC and identity management platform; EkPay, Bangladesh’s largest leading payment processor; National Emergency Service 999; and National information service 333 are other notable initiatives of the ICT Ministry. To mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and encourage economic and entrepreneurial activities, the ICT Ministry launched programs such as Call4Nation (a nationwide call for developing solutions to combat the pandemic – reaching over 1,000+ application), Food4Nation, Eduhub, Maa Platform (a2i), and online education solutions for Education Ministry by Startup Bangladesh Ltd. COVID Accelerator, organized by Startup Bangladesh Limited in collaboration with Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park was focused on building resilience of Startups during COVID-19.

During his tenure, more than 18,000 government offices across the country were brought under a dedicated high-speed intranet and one of the world’s largest web portal consisting of 25,000 government websites was established. These initiatives have been recognized and Bangladesh has won several awards and accolades including ICT’s Sustainable Development Award and World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)+10 Award from International Telecommunication Union (ITU)-the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication technologies (ICTs), the Public Service Excellence Award from World Information Technology and Services Alliance (WITSA) at World Congress of IT at their Global ICT Excellence Awards.

World Economic Forum listed him as a young global leader for his astute leadership in regard to developing the country. He was also listed as “World’s 100 Most Influential People in Digital Government” in 2018 by Apolitical, a London-based international organization. He received the National Award on Environment in 2010 in recognition for his role in the large-scale tree plantation movement.
Minister Palak is a lawyer by profession and is enrolled as an Advocate in the Supreme Court of Bangladesh.

Oli is the Founder of Intelligent Machines. The team builds enterprise AI products and also provides data science services. In five years, Intelligent Machines has deployed 32 AI products. Prior to starting Intelligent Machines, Oli worked at British American Tobacco where he led eight global and regional projects for 25 countries in the Asia Pacific region. He is married and blessed with two daughters.

Sami Ahmed is the Managing Director and CEO of Startup Bangladesh Limited (SBL), a flagship Venture Capital Company of Government of Bangladesh. Startup Bangladesh Limited invests in startups in the seed and growth stage and is also involved in policy formulation, supporting targeted and strategic impact investments for the Government, and in supporting the growth of the startup eco-system. Prior to joining Startup Bangladesh Limited, Mr. Ahmed was the Policy Advisor and team leader of the Leveraging ICT (LICT) Project of the Bangladesh Computer Council, ICT Division. Mr. Ahmed’s core responsibilities included Bangladesh IT-ITES Industry promotion and talent development. He has also played a vital role in many policy reforms for the ICT sector. He was the Executive Director of the Bangladesh Association for Software and Information Services (BASIS) and was instrumental in many policy reforms for the industry and in organizing key ICT events in the country. Mr. Ahmed also worked at the a2i Project of the Prime Minister’s Office where he was part of many national initiatives under the Digital Bangladesh platform and played several roles including leading the Innovation team. Mr Ahmed has also worked in the private sector in various roles: as Chief Operating Officer, Head of MIS and as a startup co-founder.

Mr. Ahmed is also a member of the Smart Bangladesh Taskforce, which is chaired by the Honorable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Zubair Ahmed "Zubi" is a Bangladesh and Singapore based Entrepreneur and TEDex Speaker. He has the knowhow of all the steps of Cross Border Merger and Acquisition, Venture Capital, Raising and Running companies, Raising funds and Management Consulting. He also Specializes in identifying companies with high growth potential around the world. He identified "Uber" as a potential investment target in early 2012 while their valuation was a mere US $12 Million. Today "Uber" is valued at over US $80 Billion. Zubi has closed 7 M&A Deals in 1.5 years which is a top tier performance for any Investment Banker. He has lead all the deals from Initial Contact till Closing. He has also planned a detailed Post Merger Integration plan and led the execution from the front in a record 1 year. During the planning phase, he has developed the Corporate Platform, Legal Platform, Accounting Platform, HR processes, Marketing strategy, Sales Plan, Mid Term Business Plan, and Budget for the company. He is Very well connected among VCs, Incubators, Investors, and Entrepreneurs in Singapore, Japan, Korea, HongKong, USA, UK, Germany, India, Bangladesh, Indonesia. Industry experience include: Information Technology, Computer Software development, Business Process Outsourcing, Consulting. Business Process Automation, Distribution business

Dr. Shaikh Shamsuddin Ahmed is a Commissioner of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission. Prior to his current assignment, he was a Professor of Finance in the University of Dhaka. Dr. Ahmed earlier served as a Senior Economist of the World Bank. He studied Bachelor of Commerce and Master of Commerce degrees in Finance from the Faculty of Business Studies, University of Dhaka. He earned a PhD degree from the University of Birmingham in the UK as a fellow of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission with a research focused on monetary policy and economic growth for developing countries. His research interests include capital market, fiscal and monetary policy, economic growth and human development. Dr. Ahmed’s current responsibility as a Commissioner of BSEC includes development of policies, issuing equity and debt capital, corporate financing, supervision of issuers of capital, corporate governance, financial technology and financial literacy.

Fahim Ahmed is the Managing Director & CEO of Pathao, the largest digital platform for ride-sharing, food delivery, e-commerce logistics and fintech in Bangladesh and Nepal. Fahim is an entrepreneur, executive and investor with over 20 years of experience in technology, investment banking, private equity, and venture capital in Bangladesh, South Asia and the US, spanning organizations that include Goldman Sachs, Royal Bank of Scotland, American Securities and Small Enterprise Assistance Funds. Fahim also serves as the Vice President (Finance) of Bangladesh Association of Software & Information Services (BASIS). He graduated summa cum laude from Middlebury College in Vermont, USA, with a B.A. in economics, and is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.

Zaved Akhtar CEO and Managing Director of Unilever Bangladesh Limited and joined Unilever in 2000 after 3.5 years in British American Tobacco. He has worked in multiple business units across Bangladesh, India, Philippines, and Southeast Asia and demonstrated the ability to thrive across different cultures. He has rich international experience in brands, innovation, communication development and business management. In his immediate past role as Vice President, Digital Transformation & Growth, Zaved led a comprehensive end-to-end digital transformation program with impact. He has also institutionalized Market Development and drove Net Revenue Management in Unilever’s business in South Asia. Zaved is a graduate from the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), University of Dhaka. He is also a Director of Foreign Investors’ Chamber of Commerce and Industries.

Tanveer Ali is co-founder and director of Data Bird, a Bangladesh internet startup comprising ShareTrip, Ridmik and Deshi. He is also a director of Olympic Industries, the largest biscuit producer in Bangladesh, and co-founder and director of Frontier Nutrition, a US company focused on treating and preventing malnutrition by offering fortified and nutritious products to low-income mass market consumers (and its Bangladesh subsidiary, Care Nutrition).  Tanveer has lived in Bangladesh since 2006 and has served as independent director of Genex Infosys, a publicly listed IT company. He is one of the earliest angel investors in Bangladesh, seeding 20+ startups including Pathao, Chaldal and ShopUp, among others. Tanveer received his BA in Political Science from the University of Waterloo and his MBA from IE Business School and Brown University. 

Waseem Alim has over a decade of leadership experience in Information Technology, Venture Capital, Product Development, and Resource Management. He is the Founder and CEO of Chaldal and a Director at BanglaMeds. Under his leadership, the organisation has become a leader in e-commerce in Bangladesh. Waseem graduated from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and obtained a degree in Finance and Entrepreneurship. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and an Edmund Hillary Fellow.

Mr. MD SHAMSUL AREFIN, at present, the Secretary of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Division. Prior to that, he served as Secretary, Coordination and Reforms, Cabinet Division. Also, he served as Additional Secretary and Joint Secretary at the same Division. He started his career on 1 April 1993 as Assistant Commissioner and Magistrate at Manikganj District. He is a member of Bangladesh Civil Service (Administration) cadre and belongs to BCS-11th batch. He obtained B. Com (Hons.) and M. Com from Department of Finance, Dhaka University.

Mr. Arefin has served in almost all the core posts of the field administration like Magistrate, Assistant Commissioner (Land), UNO, DC in different parts of the country. Besides, he served as Deputy Director, Accommodation Directorate, Senior Assistant Secretary, Food and Disaster Management Ministry, Deputy Secretary-Economic Relations Division, Director-Rajdhani Unnayon Kotripokhho (RAJUK). He also worked as Assistant Commissioner (Land), Thana Election Officer and Returning Officer of National and Local Govt. level elections.

In his long service career Mr. Arefin participated actively in different meetings, workshops, seminars; regional, bi-lateral and multilateral meetings on different negotiations in the country and abroad.

Hasan A. Arif has 20+ years of global work experience and during his career held many senior management positions in Financial Services and Technology Management companies in the USA. He is a highly effective and results-driven Financial Services Professional with an exceptional record of advancement to senior management positions of greater complexity, scope, and responsibility. He has shown proven leadership in Private Equity and Investment Management and has successful track record of serving multi-billion dollar global Investment Management clients.

As Product/Platform leader, Hasan brings years of technology management experience for strategic deployment and optimization of complex financial product (including Derivative instruments) and E2E business processes as well. Having worked with VC firms and educational institutions previously , he also has experience with Startup due diligence as well as mentoring in accelerator/incubator. Hasan has also provided strategic guidance, QA framework and compliance related support to IDTP project for Bangladesh including globally recognized best practices of fund/transaction settlement and reconciliation.

Hasan is a collaborative and respected leader, team builder, mentor and has successfully led high performing teams that exceed business goals and customer expectations consistently. Prior to joining Startup Bangladesh Limited, he worked as a Vice President for State Street Corporation, one of the largest assets management companies in the world located in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

He has a master’s degree in Economics (policy and Planning) from Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts.

Salman is a dreamer and practitioner of innovation. He is a passionate digital product and technology expert with a proven track in building solutions and getting bottom-line results. He co-founded the largest Digital Farming App in Thailand, with over 500K registered farmers, while being the VP and Head of Innovation at dtac (Telenor Thailand). Before moving to Thailand, Salman led a team and bootstrapped the largest digital app in Bangladesh) among a few other eCommerce and mobile apps, managing an annual P&L of $100M+ for Grameenphone during his 3+ years working as Deputy Director, Head of Digital Channels, and Distribution. He's one of the key drivers behind the acquisition of G&R Ad Network (2014), the largest local Ad Tech startup in Bangladesh. His sales and marketing leadership led to a 20x revenue growth of the AdTech in less than two years. He is often the social glue, mentor, and connector of the rest of the entrepreneurial geniuses and skilled professionals around him. He was the co-founder of Google Business Group Dhaka. He is the co-organizer and curator of TEDxDhaka, while he is also the Founding Vice-Curator and first Global Shaper in Bangladesh of the World Economic Forum. Salman has more than 15 years of community service experience and feels passionate about developing the skills and competencies of the youth of Bangladesh and Thailand. He advises early-stage startups and invests as an Angel Investor. Salman is the Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer at 10 Minute School, the largest Edtech startup in Bangladesh, backed by Sequoia Capital India.

Shwapna Bhowmick, Head of Region of Marks & Spencer ( Bangladesh & India) is a true pride of Bangladesh as she is 100% made in Bangladesh, was born, and brought up in Bangladesh. After completing her bachelor’s from Dhaka University, she took Diploma in Fashion Merchandising from BUFT. “It’s a world full of men out there, you will be lost in oblivion.” She got used to it hearing these words in her earlier days of career. Yet, she rose up every day for her first Intern Job in an office of 250 peoples where the only other girl was the Telephone operator. Looking back on those days, Shwapna Bhowmick, Head of Region of Marks &Spencer feels like those days were not challenging at all, rather they helped her to unravel the opportunities lying beneath. And those beliefs helped her to work hard & break every glass-sealing. After working in Walmart & NEXT She joined M&S in 2006 & her passion and dedication for the work made her capable of climbing up the organizational ladder in a steady pace. She was appointed as the Country Manager, Bangladesh Sourcing Office of M&S in 2013. She was promoted as Head of Country, M&S BDSO in 2019. Again she promoted as Head of Region, Mid Shore in 2022 .Under her leadership, M&S Bangladesh almost tripled their exports and became the No. 1 RMG exporting country for the company. M&S Bangladesh is now considered as an example in the M&S global operations framework. Her integrity, indomitable spirit of bringing more business to Bangladesh, and her people management skills are highly appreciated by M&S globally.

She is involved in various community-based projects & the most successful one is creating employment for physically challenged people under Marks & Start project. This project employed 4200 physically challenged workers in the factories. Her involvement creating women leaders in the factories are considered an example to follow.

She had been recognized by National & International organizations for being an incredible leader. She is an inspiration to women who are dreaming for future full of empowerment and confidence.

Ataur Rahim Chowdhury is the co-founder and Chief Product Officer of ShopUp, the largest B2B commerce platform in Bangladesh with a network of small neighborhood shops that serve 20 million people. He oversees the development and growth of the platform, expanding its reach to new markets and improving user experience. Ataur is committed to empowering small businesses and mentoring young product managers.

Nadim Chowdhury is an assistant professor with the department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE), Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). He received his PhD in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA, USA in May 2022. Prior to that, he received Master of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the same in September 2018. He received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2012 and 2014, respectively. While a graduate student, he worked as a semiconductor device consultant for Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories (MERL), Cambridge Electronics Inc (now Finwave Inc) and GlobalFoundries Inc. He also worked as a summer intern for MERL in 2017 and in 2019. His research interest lies at the intersection of design, simulation, fabrication, and characterization of wide band gap semiconductor devices for RF, power electronics, harsh environment electronics and digital applications. Dr. Chowdhury is a recipient of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh Gold Medal in 2012, the Jacob’s Presidential fellowship at MIT in 2015, the Chancellor’s Gold Medal at BUET in 2018, the IEEE George Smith Award in 2019, MIT-MTL Doctoral Dissertation Seminar award (best PhD thesis award) in May 2022. He has authored over 30 journals and conference proceedings and holds 12 granted U.S. patents and 7 pending U.S. patent applications.

Amir Dhedhi is a visionary entrepreneur who co-founded Portonics—a global technology consultancy and software development company. Starting off in the US, the startup then commenced its journey in Bangladesh in 2011, it is a diverse team of 100+ highly talented and dynamic individuals working with clients globally.

Portonics works across a wide range of disciplines and industries using the latest technologies, building specialised applications that are used by large user-bases in various countries. Portonics is focused on innovation in the Digital Economy, and known in the industry for their stalwart integrity, keen attention to detail and implementation of the best agile development and management practices.

He also spearheaded one of the earliest payment platforms of Bangladesh called PortPos, formerly known as PortWallet. PortPos played an instrumental role in streamlining the payment landscape with highly secure technology, compliant with the highest level of international standards. PortPos quickly gained trust and popularity in the community for its reliability with seamless, simple solutions. It plays a vital role in the financial inclusion space, by creating a platform inclusive of all payment methods.

He continues to explore new ventures and innovations that would improve the quality of lives of people through technology solutions.

Hussain M Elius is a serial entrepreneur, and the founder of Pathao and Wind. Pathao is a super-app, based out of Dhaka, with a vision of Moving Bangladesh forward. The 14+ different services in Pathao include ride-sharing, logistics, e-commerce, food delivery, payments, BNPL, and more. Started the company in 2015 from a garage in Dhaka with 3 friends and scaled it to 600+ people. By 2021, the company has scaled to reach over 8mil+ users, 300,000+ drivers and over 30,000+ merchants and 10,000+ restaurants. In 2022, Elius founded Wind. Wind is a decentralised banking replacement built by self-custodial on-chain wallets that facilitate instant, almost free, global payments. We are bringing a familiar Web2 UI running on Web3 technologies, giving the masses access to instant payments, high yield stablecoin strategies, and access to digital assets. Hussain was born and raised in Dhaka, and completed his postgraduate degree from North South University, Bangladesh. He became a Forbes 30U30 Consumer Tech listee in 2019.

A serial entrepreneur, mentor, early stage startup investor, and currently, the Chief Strategy and Product Officer at Praava Health. Mr. Emon is the pioneer in the digital health in Bangladesh. He founded Doctorola in 2014, which was the first online platform for doctor appointments, healthcare services, and health insurance. Mr. Emon also has a rich background in corporate leadership and have been in the C-suite at multiple large foreign and local conglomerate groups.

Rohan M Ganapathy is CEO & CTO of Bellatrix Aerospace, a two-times National Award winning Indian spacetech company. He is an Aeronautical Engineer and his areas of specialisation include electric propulsion, rocket propulsion and space systems engineering. Rohan developed and patented the Microwave Plasma Thruster, an advanced type of electric propulsion system that runs on water as propellant and offers various advantages over existing technologies. He was also featured under 'Forbes 30 under 30' lists for India and Asia in 2018. Rohan was selected part of 'Club Young Leaders 2020' by the Government of France and was also listed on 'Deccan Herald Changemakers 2020'. Company Profile: Bellatrix is a vertically integrated space transportation company offering next generation engines to propel satellites in space. We use cutting edge technologies to offer satellite engines that are better performing, long lasting, more reliable and cost effective compared to conventional alternatives in the global market. The company has been supplying to ISRO and DRDO for the last 5 years. Our latest endeavour is to build a highly agile and modular orbital transfer vehicles, that can greatly disrupt the cost of access to space.

Siddartho Goushami is currently working at Innovation Design & Entrepreneurship Academy, ICT Division as Head of Operations. He is now leading the country's biggest Startup Competition BIG. He was the coordinator of the Digital Khichuri Challenge; a special social impact-focused entrepreneurship program of the United Nations Development Program. He is an innovation expert with more than 15 years of professional experience with National and International organizations in the field of Startup ecosystems, youth employment, and peace development. Siddhartho was the finalist of SAARC Startup Ecosystem Hero of the year 2020. One of his projects was nominated for Paris Peace Forum in 2019. He is the co-author of Essentials of Modern Marketing-Bangladesh Edition Book, written by Philip Kotler. He is one of the core members of the Bangladesh National Startup Policy Committee. He was President Candidate (2013-14) of the United Nations Youth Advisory Panel Bangladesh Chapter. He completed his MBA in Strategic International Management from the University of Dhaka. He also holds a post-graduation diploma in Genocide and Mass violence from the same institution. He also studied Design Thinking for Innovation at the University of Virginia.

Passionate to drive the 5D's fuelling our energy future: Decentralization, Decarbonization, Disruption, Democratization & Digitization! In line with these beliefs, together with his colleagues at SOLshare, Dr. Groh, the Founder, and CEO of SOLshare, a cleantech startup based out of Dhaka, Bangladesh that  built the world’s first peer-to-peer solar energy exchange platform (World Economic Forum, 2018),  raised USD 6.5M to date (50% in equity), and was coined the world’s best energy start-up (Free Electrons, 2018) & Earthshot Prize Finalist (2021). Dr. Groh is a 2013 Stanford Ignite Fellow from Stanford Graduate School of Business and holds a PhD from Aalborg University and the Postgraduate School Microenergy Systems at the TU Berlin where he wrote his doctoral thesis on the role of energy in development processes, energy poverty & technical innovations, with a special focus on Bangladesh. He published a book and multiple journal articles on the topic of decentralized electrification in the Global South. He is an Associate Professor at BRAC University in Dhaka (Bangladesh) where he teaches strategic management, as well as social entre- and intrapreneurship at the Brac Business School (BBS) via the Open Society University Network (OSUN). In 2014, Dr. Groh founded SOLshare, acting as its CEO since then. On behalf of SOLshare, he received numerous awards, among them Tech Pioneer ‘18 by the World Economic Forum, Finalist at the inaugural Earthshot Prize 2021, the most prestigious global environment prize in history launched by Prince William, and 2022 Winner of the Zayed Sustainability Award. Dr. Groh became an Ashoka Fellow in 2018, a UBS Global Visionary in 2019, and a Member of the Board & VP at the Bangladesh-German Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BGCCI) in 2021.

Mohit Gulati is the CIO & Managing Partner of the AIF Cat-2 fund called ITI Growth Opportunities Fund which specialises in early-stage venture investing. He's a passionate engineer from Pune University and has a PGDM in Finance from IIT Bombay.
Mohit has 13+ yrs of active experience within the Fund Management space. In his individual capacity, Mohit has led first-round deals across ECOM Express(Seris D), Grab(RIL Acquired), 1MG(Tata acquired), WigzoTech(Shiprocket acquired), HumourMe, and two dozen early-stage ventures. Within the ITI Group of 21 businesses, the technology fund under Mohit specializes in investments in Health Tech, New Age FMCG Brands, SaaS, IoT, and New Age mobility/Logistics.
The 1st fund currently has 18 active investments and 2 exits.

Nazmul is a Visionary Strategic Finance & Corporate leader developing sustainable business and high-performance Finance Operations in a very successful career spanning over 30 years with multiple S&P 500 companies. Expertise in Corporate Finance, Treasury and Strategic Management, Supply Chain Optimization. Worked with cross-cultural teams across markets in Asia Pacific, Canada and USA. A passionate believer in skill development, Nazmul coached & mentored individuals from diverse background and teams towards achieving outstanding performance and the fullest career potential. He worked with BASF, Aventis, Bata, Novartis and Perfetti Van Melle in Bangladesh, China, Mexico, and the USA. Nazmul did a master’s in Finance & Banking from Dhaka University, a Cost and Management Accountant and a Harvard Alumnus.

Sadia Haque, CEO and co-founder of ShareTrip is a renowned figure in Bangladesh's travel industry. With a double major in Marketing and Human Resources from North South University, she brings a decade of marketing and branding experience, working with prestigious companies like Grameenphone, BBC, Nokia, and Banglalink. As a passionate traveller, Sadia Haque co-founded ShareTrip and propelled its remarkable growth. Under her leadership, ShareTrip has become a market leader serving over 50% of online travel market in Bangladesh and has received countless awards and recognition from all major airlines operating in the country. Sadia Haque's exceptional achievements were recognised at the Kotler Awards 2023, where she was honoured as the Women Leader of the Year 2023.

Mr. Ariful Hasan-Opu, is an entrepreneur and a visionary who is widely recognized for his perseverance in the path of dreaming of a revolutionized Bangladesh. He is the CEO of e-Soft which is one of the leading Web-Based Solution firm in Bangladesh and also the Founder of doctorsbd.com, the first Health and Medical based web portal in Bangladesh. His company has been focusing on both Local and International Web and E-commerce Development and have gained massive recognition for their work. Other than working for development of his projects he has also been the Former Director of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) along with being the Independent Director of the Country’s first IPO listed software company, e-generation Ltd.

Dr. Rubana Huq is a businesswoman, a poet, and currently the Vice Chancellor of Asian University for Women, an international university in Bangladesh. She is the immediate past President of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), and she was also the first female occupant of the post in four decades. She is the Managing Director of Mohammadi Group, a family business conglomerate whose journey began exporting readymade garments, and has since diversified into software, digital distribution, real estate, power generation and the group’s latest is the launch of a television channel called Nagorik. Huq won the SAARC Literary Award for her poems in 2006. Her first book of poems is titled Time of My Life. She is the former CEO of TV Southasia, a collaborative platform of South Asian electronic media based in Kolkata. She was featured in BBC 100 women in 2013 and 2014. She represents the global manufacturers in the UNFCCC fashion industry charter for Climate Action for the period of 2021-22. Dr. Huq holds a PhD in English Literature from Jadavpur University in Kolkata. She just completed her engagement as an associate at the Asia Center at Harvard and an Executive-in-Residence at Stern, New York University. She won the Human Rights Award by CNMI Sustainable Fashion Awards 2022 on the occasion of Milan Fashion Week.

Fahad Ifaz is the CEO and Co Founder of iFarmer, which aims to provide end-to-end solutions for smallholder farmers.Fahad has 10 years of experience in economic development with organizations like the World Bank,CARE International, Swisscontact and Palladium.He has worked extensively in South Asia managing and providing advisory services to multimillion-dollar projects to improve access to finance and markets of smallholder farmers.He holds an undergraduate degree in International Business and has a MSc in Economics. He is an Acumen and Mulago fellow.

Bijon is the cofounder and CEO of LightCastle Partners, an organization that focuses on creating data-driven opportunities for growth and impact for development partners, corporates, SMEs and Startups. Over the last seven years Bijon has led the company in engagements across 150+ businesses/development partners, 1,500+ SMEs/Startups and 50+ accelerator programs in multiple industries including Technology, Agriculture, Health, Energy and Manufacturing. Recently, LightCastle has also partnered to launch a Smart Capital Investment Program which facilitates growth capital for SMEs/Startups. Additionally, LightCastle is also a local partner to Biniyog Briddhi - first of its kind catalytic funding/impact investments program jointly run by Roots of Impact and Swiss Development Corporation. Recently, LightCastle has also been appointed as a deal-sourcing and due-diligence partner for multiple public and private investors. Previously Bijon has worked with Citibank, N.A. and Citi Foundation and oversaw execution of Bangladesh's first Interest Rate Swap, Equity Convertible Bonds, Largest IPO, Microfinance Securitization and Block Equity Trades. Due to outstanding performance, Bijon had received the CEO Excellence Awards for two years in a row in the organization. In 2015 Bijon was nominated as 15 under 35 in Bangladesh by Future Startup (leading Startup media in Bangladesh) and Top 7 Rising Young CEOs by Startup Dhaka. Bijon is an active ecosystem builder and has attended 100+ entrepreneurship development events as judge/panelist/resource-person including Startup Weekend, Startup Cup, Entrepreneurship World Cup (GEN), Global Startup Weekend, Facebook Circle, She Loves Tech, Founders Institute and Innovation Extreme. Bijon has Bachelors and Masters in Business Administration from Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka.

As the Managing Director and Co-Founder of Bondstein Technologies, I have been leading the company's vision and strategy to empower enterprises with industrial IOT solutions for the past 9.5 years. Bondstein is a pioneer in the field of IOT in Bangladesh and beyond, serving clients such as Unilever, Telenor, World Bank, and Government of Bangladesh. We have designed and fabricated smart devices enabled with sensors, launched a connected car solution in three international markets, and implemented a technology to stop question leak in national exams. We have also secured around $1 million in investments and built the first IOT Assembly Unit in the HiTech City. I am passionate about innovation and entrepreneurship, and I have been recognized as one of the Forbes 30under30 Asia in 2022. I am also a co-founder of Singularity Limited, a digital agency that provides content and technology solutions to enterprise customers, including web and mobile development, AR/VR/MR, and game development. I have been involved in several groundbreaking projects, such as building a humanoid robot for Google in 2013 and winning the International Robotics Challenge in 2013. Additionally, I am a Global Shaper at the World Economic Forum, a National ICT Award winner, and a SEED Transformation Program participant at Stanford University. I hold a B.Sc in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Islamic University of Technology.

Rezwanul Haque Jami is a visionary entrepreneur, innovative market disruptor, and self-taught programmer with extensive industry knowledge and work experience. As the Head of e-Commerce at a2i - Aspire to Innovate, under the ICT Division and Cabinet Division, Govt. of Bangladesh, Jami has been instrumental in the digital transformation of Bangladesh, aligning with the government's vision of a Smart Bangladesh by 2041.

He coined the term 'rural e-commerce' while presenting his paper in the 1st Digital World Summit back in 2017, which paved the way towards making ekShop a reality, a model now being successfully replicated in other territories of the world, after making a major paradigm shift in the e-commerce practices locally.  EkShop is the world’s first integrated assisted rural e-commerce architecture model.

He is a visionary leader and expert in the field of Supply Chain and Logistics. Currently, he holds the prestigious position of Chair of the Supply Chain and Logistics sub-committee at the IEEE Standard Association, where he actively drives innovation and sets standards in the industry. With a remarkable track record, he is credited as the visionary behind the highly impactful ekShop aggregated delivery platform. Moreover, he has made significant contributions to logistics nationwide by introducing the cutting-edge Smart Locker system. Continuously propelling the industry forward, he remains deeply committed to creating efficient and sustainable solutions for the world of logistics.

Before joining a2i, Jami co-founded and served as the elected Vice President of the e-Commerce Association of Bangladesh (eCAB), the only government-accredited trade association for e-commerce businesses in the country. A business graduate of the prestigious University of Dhaka, Jami hails from Rajshahi and has played diverse roles in the local telecom operator and telco service provider industries. He has also achieved success as a VAS entrepreneur, co-developing and rolling out commercially successful VAS platforms that are unique and innovative, such as the centralized SMS-based SSC & HSC exam results and Univ admission automation.

Jami is the innovative force behind Bangladesh's first ASR & TTS-based IVR and the pioneer of the first indigenous app store model, "Sprint World." This groundbreaking platform hosts hundreds of apps, VAS services, and infotainment content, revolutionizing the digital landscape in the country. He formulated the Bangladesh standard for mobile Bangla keypad, enabling almost all phones in Bangladesh to use Bangla as a native support for sending and receiving SMS text as well as using a unified keypad.

A father of two, Jami actively participates in entrepreneurship development and policy guideline formulation to shape the future of e-commerce in Bangladesh. He aspires to see an innovative, inclusive ICT-backed Smart Bangladesh thrive in the new era of AI-led world.

Serving 9M+ users in 195+ countries through NEXT Ventures & FundedNext. Transforming proprietary trading landscape globally. Specialised in digital business, SaaS, fintech and retail trading.

Sonia Bashir Kabir is a technology investor focusing on tech startups in emerging markets of South Asia. She is the Founder & Managing Partner of SBK Tech Ventures, one of the earliest & most active investors in the Bangladesh tech startup ecosystem. Sonia's career as a technology corporate professional included serving as the Managing Director for Microsoft Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan and Laos & Country Director of Dell Bangladesh. In 2017, Sonia was appointed as Vice Chairperson and Governing Council member of United Nations Technology Bank for LDCs.

Ms. Zahida Fizza Kabir is the Chief Executive Officer of SAJIDA Foundation and holds significant leadership experience in financial services, healthcare, and community development programs. She has been a part of the Foundation since its beginning in 1993, previously serving as its Executive Director and Head of Programs.

Ms Kabir is also the Managing Director of two specialised healthcare enterprises: Home and Community Care Limited and Inner Circle Limited. She additionally serves as the Chairperson of Psychological Mental Health and Wellness Clinic and sits on the board of Renata Limited, and Valor of Bangladesh.

Ms. Kabir holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Organizational Leadership, from Said Business School, University of Oxford, a Master’s Degree in International and Intercultural Management from Vermont, USA and a Bachelor’s Degree on Social Work from University of Philippines.

Abdulla Hil Kafi, a developer of the First Bangladeshi Satellite named BRAC Onnesha, is a young Bangladeshi researcher who is enthusiastic about innovation and enjoys experimenting with new electronic equipment and technology. He has a highly creative background with developed skills in Space hardware, Robotics, & Embedded systems. He completed his M.Sc. in Applied Science for Integrating System Engineering from Kyushu Institute of Technology. During his M.Sc., he was the core member of the BIRDS-1 Project and the champion of the AIRBUS GEDC Diversity award 2017. He also received the youth excellence award 2018 from ACI Limited Bangladesh in the field of Science and Technology for his contribution to BRAC Onnesha. His significant research is on Single Event Phenomena in commercial off-the-shelf- components for space. His research interest includes space Radiation, earth observation applications using machine learning, and Space Robotics. He is the founder of the Laboratory of Space System Engineering and Technology. Abdulla Hil Kafi has been selected for 2022 IAF Emerging Space Leader by International Astronautical Federation. He is the advisor of the IEEE Aerospace and Electronic System Society student branch and Bracu Dichari (AI- robotics team), BRAC University. He also works as Satellite Mission Idea Contest Co-Ordinator of UNICSEC-Global for the Bangladesh region. He is also the co-advisor of BracU Mongol Tori.

Sia is the Founder of Skycatcher and Fund Manager for its Master Fund. Skycatcher is a full-stack Internet investor across the spectrum of public, private, venture, and on-chain digital assets. This full-stack capability powers the firm’s fundamental vision: that the future of humanity is a world of “virtual worlds.” Skycatcher executes its strategy by employing deep fundamental research, acting as business owners alongside founders, and engaged product enthusiasts. Skycatcher has backed some of the leading video game companies globally, seeded rising stars in India’s and Bangladesh’s venture ecosystems, and is an active builder in the on-chain economy.

Seasoned entrepreneurial executive specializing in scaling start-ups and high-revenue digital businesses (US$ 100 Mn+).Proficient in driving 360-degree digitization impact and leading the transformation of companies.Experienced technology innovator and product owner with a successful new business build-up background at Jio, Alcatel, and multiple start-ups. Currently, transforming Banglalink Digitisation and building, scaling telco SuperApp MyBL using a first-principles approach.

Asif Khan, CFA is an investment and wealth management specialist with more than 14 years of global experience in financial markets. Currently he is the co-founder of EDGE AMC Limited and EDGE Research & Consulting Limited.

Mustafizur R Khan, a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, TEDX speaker, and a fund manager with over 23 years of experience in heading teams across diverse industries in Asia. He was head of Marketing at HSBC Bangladesh and at HSBC Singapore.. He co-founded co-working space in Dhaka, directed a documentary on tech startups, and launched the first startup accelerator program in Bangladesh in partnership with a telco. He is also a partner at IDLC VC Ltd. He sits as board observer at ifarmer & Intelligent Machine.

Philip Kiracofe brings two decades of direct operational and venture financing experience spanning a diverse range of industries across three continents. He has co-founded, led, advised and invested in disruptive companies including a pioneer online grocery service company, two venture capital funds, the first large-scale social networking site, and a New York-basedproperty development firm. He helped bring world-class accelerators to Africa, and is the CEO and co-founder of Startupbootcamp Afritech. He has accelerated and/or invested in more than 50 African startups since 2013. In 2004, he co-founded Horizen Ventures which signed an exclusive partnership deal in 2006 with SoftBank China & India Holdings(SBCI). SBCI made 28 investments and Horizen Ventures’ portfolio grew to 12 companies, 5 of which were co-investments with SBC. In 2009, he founded Horizen Partners to incubate and advise audacious projects promoting innovation, adventure and sustainability. Notable projects include Quigler (transparency for real estate transactions), WhereIsMyTransport (informal transport solutions for governments and operators), and MTBAyiti (mountain bike stage race to promote eco tourism in Haiti). He has advised numerous South African start-ups through the LeanIterator.com methodology. He also co-founded the Failure Club and co-hosted an award-winning web series in collaboration with Morgan Spurlock. In his leisure time, Philip’s interests range from adventure and endurance events to wine. He has summited Mt Kilimanjaro, completed two Ironman triathlons and the Comrades Marathon. Philip attended the United States Air Force Academy, where he studied Computer Science and Behavioral Science. He currently lives with his wife and two daughters in Cape Town.

Kirill Kozhevnikov is a Managing Partner at Conjunction Capital – $50M technology fund for frontier markets, and a sister-fund of RTP Global. He is an early stage VC investor focused on MENA, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and currently residing in UAE. Previously he was a Partner of RTP Global, lived in India for 6 years and was investing in Indian and South East Asian technology companies at seed, Series A, and Series B stages. Kirill has a Master’s degree in Engineering and Economics from Moscow Aviation Institute, an MBA from ChicagoBooth, and is a Kauffman Fellow.

Mr. Ranajit Kumar, at present, the Executive Director, Bangladesh Computer Council, ICT Division, Bangladesh. Prior to that, he served as Additional Secretary at the same Division. He started his career on 25 April 1994 as Assistant Commissioner and Magistrate at Kurigram District. He is a member of Bangladesh Civil Service (Administration) cadre and belongs to BCS-13th batch. He obtained B.A (Hons.) and M.A from Department of Political Science, University of Dhaka. Mr. Kumar has served in almost all the core posts of the field administration like Magistrate, Assistant Commissioner (Land), UNO, ADC in different parts of the country. Besides, he served as NTRCA Secretary in Education Ministry and NBR Secretary in Ministry of Finance. He also worked in Ministry of Fisheries And Livestock, Ministry of Shipping and Ministry of Religious Affairs. In his long service career, Mr. Kumar participated actively in different meetings, workshops, seminars, regional, bi-lateral and multilateral meetings on different negotiations in the country. Mr. Kumar was born in Barishal City, Bangladesh. In personal life, Mr. Kumar is married and blessed with one son and one daughter. His vision is to serve the country.

Mushfique Manzoor is the Co-founder & Managing Director of OpenRefactory, Inc., a Silicon Valley based deep-tech software startup with proud Bangladeshi roots. OpenRefactory’s flagship product, Intelligent Code Repair (iCR) protects companies from catastrophic risks of software failure by very precisely identifying various security vulnerabilities, reliability and compliance bugs in source code that other tools miss to detect and automatically corrects those bugs with minimum human involvement. With more than 20 years of general management and functional experience in Telecoms, FMCG and Retail space, Mushfique was one of the Co-founders of Shwapno, the largest neighborhood Food & Grocery Chain in Bangladesh. In his long illustrious career, he has worked for BAT, Novartis, Axiata, ARAMEX and has led successful business and innovation projects in Bangladesh, Singapore, Vietnam, Nepal and USA. Mushfique is a two-time alumnus of Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka. He is married and is blessed with two sons and a daughter.

Samad Miraly is an Executive Director at Olympic Industries Limited, a publicly listed FMCG manufacturer and manages the IDLC Venture Capital Fund I. He also serves on various other boards and organizations, including JAAGO Foundation, Lightcastle Partners, and Bangladesh Angels Network.

His particular interest in investing in innovation led to his work in Bangladesh's tech startup industry, including co-founding Startup Dhaka, which designed and operated the GP Accelerator in partnership with Grameenphone (a Telenor company) - a project which he spearheaded.

Amra is Co-Founder of Accelerating Asia and General Partner at Accelerating Asia Ventures. Accelerating Asia is an early stage venture capital fund that runs programs for startups and investors. Our award-winning flagship accelerator is designed for pre-Series A startups to fast track growth and drive success. Accelerating Asia also has a consulting and partnerships arm which facilitates startup engagement with MNCs, corporates, not for profits and governments. At the core of the work we do is the guiding belief that entrepreneurs are one of humanity’s greatest catalysts for positive change.

For close to a decade, Amra has spearheaded high-impact partnerships and programs including the award-winning UN Women global social entrepreneurship program, Project Inspire and muru-D’s which was widely recognised as one of the top startup accelerators in Asia. It is this outlook and depth of experience that has fostered a unique perspective and ability to deliver high impact programs at Accelerating Asia for mulitnationals and governments to optimise startup engagement.

Amra led APAC for Shaper Impact Capital and was the Curator for the Global Shapers Singapore Hub from 2018-2019, an initiative of the World Economic Forum. She is the host and creator of the Doing Good Podcast, and has been interviewed and featured as a guest author on industry blogs, including The Straits Times, Techcrunch, Reuters and named as one of Harpers Bazaar’s Women Who Inspire Others.

Mr. Abu Farah Md. Nasser has been appointed as a Deputy Governor of Bangladesh Bank as per the Circular No: 53.00.0000.311.11.001.18-113 of Financial Institutions Division, Ministry of Finance, Peoples` Republic of Bangladesh dated 14 March, 2021. He assumed his responsibilities on 15 March 2021. Prior to the appointment, Mr. Abu Farah Md. Nasser served as Executive Director of Bangladesh Bank overseeing the functions of Banking Regulation and Policy Department, SME & Special Programmes Department and Department of Currency Management. Mr. Nasser began his career as an Assistant Director on 10th October 1988 in Bangladesh Bank. During his more than 32 years as a career central banker, he served Human Resources Department, Banking Regulation and Policy Department, Department of Banking Inspection and Accounts & Budgeting Department, Chottogram Office and Sylhet office of Bangladesh Bank in different positions. He also served in Microcredit Regulatory Authority as a Director from 02.01.2011 to 25.02.2014 on Deputation. Mr. Abu Farah Md. Nasser was born in Comilla in a respectable Muslim family on 24 February 1962. He had completed his B.Com (Hons.) and M.com in Accounting from University of Dhaka. He is a Diplomaed Associate of Institute of Bankers, Bangladesh. In his illustrious career, Mr. Nasser visited many Countries to attend various courses, seminars and conferences organized by international institutions; notably, World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB) & The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB).

•  Sushmit heads the Consulting and Analytics function for Visa in India and South Asia.

• Sushmit has been with Visa for more than 8 years in consulting roles across multiple geographies of India, Mexico and Singapore. Sushmit has worked closely with Visa clients to provide strategic and data-driven advisory across various topics of profitability and portfolio improvements for their payments business.

• Sushmit leads a team of consultants and data scientists who specialize in the areas of Payment’s strategy, Digital transformation, Risk – both credit and fraud and Portfolio optimization of cards businesses.

• Prior to Visa Sushmit has worked with some major financial institutions, most notably US based JP Morgan Chase and Mexican bank Banorte where he worked in credit risk management, product and portfolio analytics, authorizations and fraud management, segmentation and overall product development for the cards business.

• Sushmit holds an M Sc. in Economics from Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, and a BA (Hons.) in Economics from Delhi University

Van Nguyen, Resident Representative, a.i., UNDP Bangladesh Van Nguyen joined UNDP country office in Bangladesh in August 2019 as Deputy Resident Representative of UNDP Bangladesh. Prior coming to Dhaka, she has served in different countries including Vietnam, Papua New Guinea, Malawi, South Sudan, Ukraine and Afghanistan. Van is passionate about the UN values and her areas of expertise include providing policy advice, building strategic partnership, programme management and oversight. Being a lawyer by education, she has a soft spot for democratic governance and gender equality issues. Van has an MBA from North Central University, USA and a postgraduate from the University of Liverpool, UK.

Experienced professional in the financial services industry with diversified educational background. Skilled in Business Planning, Risk Management, Corporate Finance, Financial Analysis and leading change initiatives.

Kamal Quadir is a practitioner who focuses on technology that brings social progress by enabling and empowering people economically. He is the founder and CEO of bKash, a digital financial service provider that offers millions of unbanked and banked people access to financial services through basic cellphones or smartphones in Bangladesh. Earlier, Kamal founded CellBazaar that introduced cellphone based electronic marketplace for developing countries. Kamal is a founding member of Open World Initiatives, a Lausanne, Switzerland based organization of young thinkers. He is involved with Anwarul Quadir Foundation and Shireen Quadir Trust that recognize innovations in developing countries. He received Tech Award for “Applying Technology to Benefit Humanity.” He is a First Mover Fellow of The Aspen Institute. In 2023, he has been named as one of the global high-impact leaders in finance by this institute. This global organization included him in the list of 23 high-impact leaders who are shaping the future of finance. In 2009, the World Economic Forum and TED respectively selected him as a Young Global Leader and a TED Fellow. He was selected by The Daily Star as ‘ICT Business Person of the Year’ in 2021. He is an accomplished artist whose work is in the collection of Bangladesh National Museum. He has a BA from Oberlin College and an MBA from the Sloan School of Management at MIT.

Shammi Quddus is a product manager at Google where she works on payments, identity and privacy. She enjoys making money move in ways that are safe, secure, fast and privacy forward. Originally from Bangladesh, Shammi has an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business, a Master’s in Public Administration in International Development from Harvard Kennedy School and an undergraduate engineering degree from MIT, USA. An accomplished athlete, Shammi holds two black belts, one in karate and one in taekwondo.

Tech Entrepreneur, Founder of MyAlice.

Sajid Rahman is General Partner at MyAsiaVC - a venture capital firm that has invested in 10+ unicorns. He is in the board of a number of global companies including ICANN- the organization in charge of governance of internet. He is a strong believer in energy transformation and has set up the first 60 MW wind power plant in Bangladesh.

Sajid Rahman is General Partner at MyAsiaVC - a venture capital firm that has invested in 10+ unicorns. He is in the board of a number of global companies including ICANN- the organization in charge of governance of internet. He is a strong believer in energy transformation and has set up the first 60 MW wind power plant in Bangladesh.

Proven development practitioner and senior leader in skills and youth development, technical and vocational training, and monitoring and evaluation. Experience managing bi-lateral and multilateral partnerships including The World Bank, ADB, ILO, Unicef, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the EU, Australian and Canadian governments. Strong management, research, policy and critical analysis skills. More than 15 years of experience including 7 at senior level in Bangladesh and Nepal. Born and raised in Bangladesh, she has a good understanding of Bangladesh country context, with a strong understanding of the culture and social perspective as a native, as well as native level fluency in English. Co-founder of DSDE, largest development practitioner’s social media network, with over 32.5k followers. Loves to travel, loves music and yoga!

Born in Barishal city of South Bengal, I completed my BSC in 2008 and MBA in 2013 from East West University. Using my experience at Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services as a program manager, I applied for and got into a 2 month long post-graduation model course, funded by World Bank, at Hong Kong University in 2012. In 2014, I was awarded a scholarship by US State Department for Professional Fellows. During the Exchange Program, I was attached to McMahon Marketing, OK for 35 days and this experience propelled me forward and boosted my skills for my dream initiative, eCourier. Presently, I am the founder and chief executive officer of eCourier.com.bd, the first private 360 degrees logistics company run through environmentally sustainable practices. We have delivered 20 million parcels through 1200 field agents and 500 management employees with 39% of the population being female change agents ensuring female inclusion throughout the chain. The model framework that I created for the logistics industry is now followed by most delivery companies in Bangladesh for which I was awarded the best ‘Uddokta’ (Entrepreneur) award in 2014. I was awarded the best Digital Entrepreneur of 2020 by BASIS, a wing of ICT ministry of the Government of Bangladesh.

Vineet Rai is the Founder of Aavishkaar Group and chairs its Board and Group Executive Council. Aavishkaar Group is an Impact Investment Platform impacting millions of people in Asia and Africa using an entrepreneurship based development approach. Vineet believes in building impact ecosystems to deliver real Impact as enshrined in the vision of Aavishkaar Group “We exist to bridge the Opportunity gap for the Emerging 3 Billion”. Vineet believes that Impact Investing has the potential to change the world of finance irreversibly. The Group’s ecosystems include Aavishkaar Capital – the Impact fund manager focused on Global South, Arohan – One of India’s largest & most digitally advanced microfinance institution (MFI) targeting low income households, Ashv Finance – a Fin Tech NBFC, offering unique cash flow based business loans to Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises and IntelleCap –building Impact Ecosystems globally. Aavishkaar Group has 8000 employees, manages assets in excess of US $ 1.2 Billion while trying to serve needs of entrepreneurs from debt of US $ 150 (INR 10 thousands) to equity of US $ 15 Million (INR 100 Crore) while aligning the group to 13 out of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals or SDG’s. Vineet has received numerous awards including the 2021 Access-HSBC Inclusive Finance India Award for personal contribution to Financial Inclusion in India, TIE Hall of Fame 2018, the Impact Investor of the Year by News Corp for 2016, Porter Prize for Strategic Leadership in Social Space, 2016, CNBC TV 18 Award for being the Catalyst Fund for India 2016, G 20 – SME Innovation in Finance Award 2010 in Seoul South Korea, UNDP-IBLF –ICC World Business Award in 2005 and Lemelson Award for Social Venture Investing. In 2021 Vineet Rai and Swati Rai (Co-Founder) was awarded the Faces of Vibrant Bharat 2021 by Grant Thorton Bharat. He is an Ashoka Fellow and Honorary Member of XLRI Alumni Association. In 2022, Vineet has been appointed on the G20 Start up 20 Engagement Group Task Force on Sustainability and Securities and Exchange Board of India has appointed him on Advisory Committee of the Social Stock Exchange. Vineet was invited by the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for his “Roundtable interaction with Venture Capital and Private Equity Funds”. In 2021, Vineet was also invited by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for consultations on doubling the income of the farmers in September 2017 as part of his champions of change program. Vineet has also served on the advisory committee of SEBI for the formation of Social Stock Exchange, as Commissioner at the Business Commission for Sustainable Development, as Senior Advisor to Blended Finance Working Group at OECD and as an Advisor to United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Science Technology and Innovation Advisory Board Vineet featured on the cover of Forbes India, January 2018 issue. Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever endorsed Aavishkaar Intellecap Group for its efforts in furthering inclusive development. Driving on Indian roads is one of his passions and he tries to cover 50,000 KM every year.

Savinda is the project manager for regional youth project of UNDP Asia-Pacific – Youth Co:Lab, which empower youth to create SDG solutions through social innovation and entrepreneurship. He is also the manager for Regional Youth Empowerment in Climate Action Platform (YECAP), bringing youth, ecosystem partners and governments together for urgent climate action. He was born in Sri Lanka and now reside in Bangkok, Thailand. Savinda is a Civil Engineering graduate from Moratuwa University Sri Lanka, he also possesses charted qualifications in Management and Marketing and a Diploma in Buddhism.

He worked as an Environmental Engineer at Brandix ltd. And as a lecturer at Achievers and Wizma Business Schools. He has engaged in the development sector over a decade through his engagement with AIESEC, ADB, UNICEF, UNEP, UNV, UNESCAP and UNDP. Savinda also initiated five start-ups on diverse fields and his passion is to support start up ecosystem in Asia Pacific Region.

With the vision to end the public toilet crisis in Bangladesh, Farhana Rashid initiated her start-up 'Bhumijo'. Bhumijo is a social enterprise that is working to ensure hygienic and secured public toilets for all. Farhana holds a Bachelor's degree in Architecture from BUET and completed her Master’s degree in Sustainable Urban Planning and Design at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden with a Swedish institute scholarship. Her areas of research interest are gender-sensitive planning, placemaking, public health, and sanitation. She is an Acumen fellow from Bangladesh.

Anayet Rashid, the CEO and founder of 'Truck Lagbe,' is leading the largest truck booking app in Bangladesh. The app aims to unite the trucking industry in a single connected platform. Anayet was born and raised in Dhaka, with familial roots in Comilla, which provided him with diverse experiences. He attended multiple schools, exposing him to individuals from different backgrounds and unique real-life challenges. Anayet gained valuable insights into the hurdles faced by the marginalized trucking community during his 18 years of experience in the FMCG, manufacturing, and export-import sector. After completing his education at BAF Shaheen School and College and earning a BBA degree from North South University, Anayet, along with his school friend Mir Hossain Ekram, co-founded Truck Lagbe in 2017. With his entrepreneurial mindset and unwavering determination, he successfully built Truck Lagbe into a platform that connects thousands of individuals, SMEs, and large enterprises. Anayet envisions establishing a trucking ecosystem in Bangladesh, where all services related to trucking can be accessed through a single platform.

Kazi Ashikur Rasul is a visionary entrepreneur with a mission to revolutionize the healthcare landscape of Bangladesh. Over the past 12 years, he has achieved remarkable success through the establishment of two thriving software development companies. However, his deepest passion lies in his current venture, Pulse Tech Ltd., where he is building an end-to-end Pharma-Stack to empower 230K pharmacies for the $3.7Bn market in Bangladesh. To date, Mr. Rasul has introduced two innovative services under Pulse Tech Ltd. branded - the Pharmacy Management System "MediPOS" and the B2B commerce platform 'MedBox'. As the Co-Founder & CEO of Pulse Tech, he leads with boundless enthusiasm, a collaborative spirit, and the ability to inspire his team to achieve excellence. Through Pulse Tech Ltd., he is determined to redefine the healthcare sector by leveraging cutting-edge technology and forward-thinking approaches. With a strong focus on sustainability, he aspires to make a profound and lasting impact in the industry, creating a healthier and more advanced future for all stakeholders.

Experienced manager with strong technical background, innovative business vision and entrepreneurial experience. Worked for multinationals and innovative startups. 10+ years operational experience in Mainland China. Extensive network in TMT Industry across Europe and Asia. Fluent in English, Spanish, Business Chinese (Oral and written).

360º manager with experience across multiple functional areas: Business Development, Product Management, Strategy and Innovation Consulting and Venture Capital Investment.

Consulted and worked in the following industries (B2B/B2C): IoT, Digital Technology (Cloud, Mobile, E-commerce), MedTech, Telecom, Automotive, Industrial (Machine tool and components), Tourism, FMCG.

Specialties: Business Development, Technology, Innovation, IoT, Product Management, R&D, Entrepreneurship, Design Thinking, M&A, Telecom, Management Consulting, Multicultural leadership, Business Modeling, Venture Capital, Digital Business, Strategic planning

Founder & CEO 10 Minute School Forbes’s 30 Under 30 Queen’s Young Leader 5x Bestselling Author Online Teacher w/ 10M+ social followers

My name is Afshin and I'm an entrepreneur turned venture capital investor. I have always had a passion for entrepreneurship and a keen interest for emerging markets. This led my journey to join Razor Capital, the first institutional investor dedicated in investing in Bangladeshi startups at Series A. I have been active in the Bangladesh ecosystem since 2018 and I look forward to contributing to this market and the country for the decades to come.

Tazin is on a mission to build a world where everyone has easy access to quality healthcare. He is the co-founder of AmarLab, a health-tech startup that has built the first diagnostics marketplace in Bangladesh. A practitioner of Human Centered Design for over 20 years, Tazin spent 10 years at Microsoft Headquarters as a Senior Design Strategist building innovative products and services. Tazin is the founder of Spreeha, a non-profit that designs creative solutions to some of the toughest social issues of our times. He has also co-founded multiple startups such as neofarmers, Spider Digital, Cholo Shobai, and Ooroh Venture Studio. Tazin also works with global brands in advisory roles on topics related to design, UX/CX, leadership, organizational strategy, entrepreneurship, non-profit management, public health, etc.

Syed Gousul Alam Shaon is a global award winning and distinguished creative industry professional and the current Managing Director at DotBirth Limited, a leading Creative Solutions Company based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. With an illustrious career spanning over 20 years, Shaon has demonstrated exceptional leadership in strategic planning and creative direction. He began his journey in the advertising realm, working with renowned firms such as Redifusion DY&R and McCann Dhaka, where he led the strategy department. His passion for creativity led him to assume the role of Creative Director at Asiatic JWT before taking over as the head of GREY Dhaka in 2007. During his tenure at GREY Dhaka, Shaon played a pivotal role in elevating the agency to unprecedented heights, receiving numerous prestigious awards and accolades. His visionary approach and relentless pursuit of innovative ideas have resulted in breakthrough solutions that uphold Grey's commitment to delivering "Famously Effective" work. Under his creative leadership, Grey Dhaka achieved remarkable success, including a coveted Gold Lion at Cannes Lions in 2016, making it the sole Bangladeshi agency to achieve this honor. The agency further solidified its global standing with 2 Silver Lions and 1 Bronze Lion in 2019, ranking 23rd worldwide and 7th in Asia according to the 2019 Global Creativity Report by Cannes Lions. Grey Dhaka continued its winning streak with additional Silver and Bronze Lions at Cannes Lions 2020-21 and a Grand Prix, 2 Gold, 3 Silver, and 3 Bronze awards at Spikes Asia 2019. To date, the agency has received 28 international awards, including a Grand Effie, 2 Gold Effies, and 1 Silver Effie in APAC Effie 2021, and one Silver Effie in APAC Effie 2008. Shaon's creative expertise extends beyond advertising, encompassing film, theatre, acting, and production. His debut film, 'Aynabaji,' earned him the esteemed Bangladesh National Film Award in 2016 for Best Screenplay, showcasing his versatility and talent in various artistic endeavors. Additionally, he played the role of Creative Producer in the first and second seasons of Coke Studio Bangla, the Bangladesh version of the internationally beloved music franchise by Coca-Cola. In his current role as Managing Director of DotBirth Limited, Shaon continues to lead a dynamic team dedicated to delivering innovative and impactful creative solutions. His passion for excellence, combined with sharp business acumen, positions him as a visionary leader in the ever-evolving creative industry. Outside of his professional pursuits, Shaon remains deeply committed to his interests in Table Tennis, literature, movies, and music. He cherishes his role as a devoted family man, being happily married and blessed with two beloved children.

Rakesh Sharrma, a BTECH (BITS) / MBA(XLRI) is the Founder CEO of Mobilous with granted patents in US/India/Japan on AI-enabled Nocode generator. Two exits, HP(USA) & Reliance (India) and the third on a tedious post-covid recovery, but finally found its groove. Rakesh continues his passion for sports/adventure/music, as he pursues triathlons, deep-sea diving and basketball. Also, plays the saxophone and spiritually evolves at Ananda in pursuit of new inventions

With 15 years of experience restoring youth, women empowerment, and social change, Ms. Tawhida Shiropa, the CEO and Founder of Moner Bondhu, her startup Moner Bondhu started (Friends of your Mind) in 2016 with a strong passion for offering affordable and accessible mental healthcare services for everyone in Bangladesh. She has been a mental health activist for the entirety of her career and has taken many innovative approaches to help people speak about psychosocial issues and to raise awareness. She is an entrepreneur, young leader, mental health advocate, and popular columnist as a relationship expert. Her startup has provided mental health and well-being support to over 4 million people and 300+ national and international organizations in Bangladesh especially youth, women and readymade garment factory workers. Moner Bondhu is a portfolio company of Startup Bangladesh Limited (SBL). SBL has invested Moner Bondhu in 2021. Ms.Shiropa has completed executive education program and impact and social entrepreneurship program from INSEAD Business School, Fontainebleau, France. This year 2023 under her leadership Moner Bondhu won the Tommy Hilfiger Fashion Frontier Challenge Award 2022. She is a certified NLP practitioner and led over a hundred mental health and well-being training programs. In February 2020, she took part in the U.S. Department of State's prestigious exchange program, International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) there she got a chance to take classes from the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Texas, and Temple University. She is also an Acumen fellow of the year 2020. Shiropa was rewarded with national international honors including UN WEP's and many more. Tawhida Shiropa is an alumna of Bucerius Summer School in Germany. Shiropa also completed a one-year fellowship from Cherie Blair Foundation on a women's program about women in business in 2022.

Mr. Mashrur, the CEO of IPAGE Bangladesh, is an engineer by profession, a second and a dedicated advocate for agribusiness development. He has undergone extensive training in entrepreneurial skills from renowned institutions such as the Miami Herbert School of Business, Stanford Seed Program, UNDP - Youth Co:Lab, and the Grameenphone Accelerator program. His initial startup has evolved into a fully-fledged IoT R&D Company, catering to clients both locally and internationally. Through his visionary leadership, iPAGE has emerged as a prominent agricultural information technology start-up, forging numerous partnerships and earning recognition on a local and global scale.

Sylvana Q. Sinha is founder and CEO of Praava Health. With decades of experience leading teams in international law, business, development, and government relations at major international management consulting firms and think tanks, she has also independently advised private and sovereign clients on investments, projects, and disputes in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia. Ms. Sinha moved to Bangladesh for the first time in her life to build Praava Health from scratch. Praava Health is a patient-driven company disrupting the standard for healthcare for Bangladesh’s 170 million citizens. Launched in 2018, Praava Health has become one of the fastest-growing healthcare providers in emerging markets, having already served more than half a million patients to date in Bangladesh. Praava's unique click-and-brick platform that combines innovative digital health offerings - including remote care management - with a full suite of quality in-person patient care services that prioritize improving patient experiences and outcomes. Ms. Sinha is a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a member of the Board of Directors of global health nonprofit PATH.org. She is a graduate of Columbia Law School, Harvard's Kennedy School, and Wellesley College and was a Visiting Scholar at the University of Oxford.

Olga Speckhardt has many years’ experience in international reinsurance and insurance. She holds a degree in Law and has a solid background in underwriting and in the development of regulatory strategies for international insurance supervisory standards. Olga is responsible for developing the Syngenta Foundation insurance/financial inclusion initiatives globally together with international reinsurance/ insurance partners, microfinance institutions, governments, stakeholders and investors. These form a crucial factor for the success and sustainability of the Foundation’s Agricultural Insurance and Financial Inclusion program. Olga additionally is a Member of the Board of ACRE Africa and Swiss Capacity Building Facility (SCBF) Board Chair.

Jaan Tallinn is a founding engineer of Skype and Kazaa. He is a founder of the Cambridge Centre for the Study of Existential Risk and philanthropically supports other existential risk research organizations such as the Future of Humanity Institute, the Global Catastrophic Risk Institute and the Machine Intelligence Research Institute. He has also served on the Estonian President’s Academic Advisory Board.

Building marketing automation from Bangladesh for the world

Moinul Zaber , Ph.D., is a computational social scientist focusing on applied machine learning and data science for technology policy. He works on designing artificial intelligence powered applications to understand human habitats, mobility, environment and to analyze impact of policy and regulatory interventions on the lifecycle of these technology. Moinul's recent works evolve around near term regulations of AI and the voice of the global south. Zaber received is PhD from the Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. As a professor and researcher, he has worked in renowned universities, think-tanks and research facilities in Bangladesh, Japan, Sweden, Sri Lanka, and Portugal. He is well published and works closely with regulators and competition authorities in the global south.

Omer Zabit is a Principal with Shorooq Partners, leading their venture investment efforts across key markets. He is also actively involved in managing portfolio companies while driving the sourcing initiatives across the wider MENAP region. He joined the investment firm from Careem, the regional super-app, where he worked as the global head of food delivery business. Omer's expertise in strategy, operations, and market development mainly comes from his time at the company where he directly contributed to Careem's growth across various markets & business-lines. Prior to joining Careem, he led product & strategy functions at leading mobile money players. He began his career with IBM, consulting their clients on technical projects across banking, energy, and agri sectors. He earned his MBA from the prestigious LUMS University and his B.E from NUST. In his free time he likes to play racquet sports and unwind with his loved ones.

Asif Zahir is the Deputy Managing Director of Ananta Group, a leading apparel exporter in Bangladesh with a turnover of $350 million and employing over 25,000 people. Asif has been responsible for setting up strategic partnerships with investors from USA, EU and China to expand Ananta Group’s product portfolio towards higher value products. Asif is also the Managing Director of Sindabad.com, the first and largest B2B focused e-commerce company in the country. Asif is also serving as a Director of National Finance Limited, a non-banking financial institution. Prior to returning to Bangladesh, Asif Zahir spent several years in the USA working as a Product Manager at Google, Inc. where he focused on developing applications for the Android mobile operating platform. Asif graduated from Stanford University, USA with a degree in Computer Science, where he was recognized as a President’s Scholar and a Mayfield Fellow. Asif has also completed his MBA from Harvard University, USA. More recently, Asif was named as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in March 2019.