A local startup ePaikar Extensive Limited (Ltd), has received a grant worth Tk10 lakh from the government’s Innovation Design and Entrepreneurship Academy (iDEA) project under the Bangladesh Computer Council (BCC) of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Division.
ePaikar is working to make the bulk product sourcing process easier and more cost-effective by converting the country's conventional wholesale market into a digital distribution platform, says the founder, and chairman of the startup Sheikh Shafayat Hossain.
It has already been handed over a cheque of Tk300,000 as the initial portion of the grant.
The iDEA project is awarding the grant to encourage and support the expansion of the startup in recognition of providing innovative services.
Shafayat believes that being selected as a startup to receive the 'Pre-Seed Grant' of the year 2022, the grant from the iDEA project will play an important role in the growth of the organization.
With the grant, the startup will now look to grab more opportunities and fulfil the needs and expectations of the customers and consumers by expanding the services and enhancing the technological infrastructure facilities of the company.
The company made its debut as a private limited company on December 27 2020 with registration from the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms (RJSC).
E-commerce platforms are not a new concept in this digital age, however, wholesale or B2B e-commerce has often been neglected and ePaikar was conceived with the idea of working on that.
Two former students of Dhaka University Ariful Islam and Shafayat Hossain took this initiative, developing the technology-based platform to deliver quality products from producers and wholesalers to retailers in all parts of the country at a fair price.
The platform currently sells groceries, electronics, furniture, cosmetics, jewellery, fashion ware, kids' items, smartphones and cameras, home decor, and IT products.
Under the BCC of the Information and ICT wing, a grant of Tk10 lakh was given to the IT-based innovative startup organization at the pre-seed stage of the iDEA project.
So far, this grant has been given to about 300 startups.
In addition to providing grants, co-working space is being allocated for free for startups, as well as consultancy services in the field of startup ecosystem development.
Over the last decade, Bangladeshi startups have raised over $800 million in investments, spearheading the economy and creating 1.5 million direct and indirect employment opportunities while positively impacting the citizens’ day-to-day lives.
According to industry insiders, the Bangladeshi startup industry boasts more than 1200 startups.
More than 200 new startups are emerging each year with the booming landscape gaining increasing support from the public and private initiatives with access to funds.
Startups in Bangladesh are gaining increasing global traction, as $412 million out of a total of $415 million investments raised in the past decade came from global sources with Bangladeshi startups raising over $90 million just in the first half of 2022.
Booming digitization catalyzed by the Covid-19 pandemic, changing population demographics with increasing consumer demands, as well as increased public and private attention to supporting the startup landscape has cemented Bangladesh’s position as a maturing startup hotspot, even drawing international attention.
The government has already taken several initiatives to increase the flow of investments in the startup sector with the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) already drafting rules that will allow loss-making good startups to be listed on the country’s stock exchanges and offer IPO.
The startup is one of the digital platforms to have obtained a Digital Business Identity (DBID) and is also a member of the e-Commerce Association of Bangladesh (e-CAB).