Cairo, Egypt — Standard Chartered, AUC Venture Lab, and Village Capital announced the successful completion of the first cycle of the Futuremakers Women in Tech (FWIT) programme in Egypt, part of the Bank’s global Futuremakers initiative and funded by the Standard Chartered Foundation.

This pioneering programme aims to empower women entrepreneurs and drive innovation across Egypt’s tech-enabled sectors. With the graduation of the first cohort, the initiative underscores a strong commitment to advancing gender diversity and fostering a more inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem within the country’s technology industry.

Following a highly competitive application, evaluation, and screening process, twelve women-led, Egypt-based startups were selected from over 240 applications to join the first cycle of the programme. Of these, eleven startups successfully reached the graduation stage after completing more than 35 training sessions and participating in over 40 hands-on mentorship sessions and roundtables. The programme was rich with sessions led by industry experts, experienced investors, and seasoned entrepreneurs representing various sectors including technology, finance, marketing and Innovation management, who shared their journeys with the cohort. Participants received intensive training on key business aspects, including strategy, growth, and investor pitching.

The journey culminated in a highly competitive Demo Day, where the startups pitched their ventures before a distinguished panel of judges - Mohammed Gad, CEO and Head of Banking & Coverage, Standard Chartered, Egypt, Wasim Benkhadra, Head of Corporate Affairs, Brand and Marketing (CABM) & Head of Communications for the UAE, Middle East, and Pakistan, Standard Chartered, Dr. Ayman Ismail, Founding Director of AUC Venture Lab and Abdul Latif Jameel Endowed Chair of Entrepreneurship at Onsi Sawiris School of Business, the American University, Cairo, Mirhan Mandour, Managing Director, SalesARM, and Zeina Mandour, Venture Investments Manager, Dar Ventures and member of Global Women in VC. After a rigorous deliberation process, three outstanding startups: Aziza, Tribe and Learning Rockets, were announced as winners and awarded USD 10,000 each in equity-free funding, enabling them to scale sustainably and create lasting impact within their communities.

Mohammed Gad, CEO and Head of Banking & Coverage, Standard Chartered, Egypt, said: “We are proud to mark the graduation of the inaugural cohort of the Futuremakers Women in Tech programme in Egypt. This achievement represents a significant milestone and a strong start in our efforts to advance women’s participation and leadership in the technology sector. The dedication and excellence demonstrated by the graduates reflect the transformative potential of this initiative. As we continue to expand the programme, we remain committed to fostering an inclusive digital economy and supporting women as key drivers of innovation and growth across Egypt and beyond.”

“As we celebrate the graduation of the first cohort of the Futuremakers Women in Tech programme in Egypt, we at AUC Venture Lab are truly inspired by the resilience and hard work of our participants. Over the past three months, we have worked closely with these eleven entrepreneurs to strengthen their businesses, improve their success rates, and support the development of their skills while expanding their networks. Our meaningful collaboration with Standard Chartered and Village Capital has enabled us to offer the entrepreneurs a unique experience that combines knowledge with real-world insights, delivered through a programme tailored specifically to their needs. Today, we are proud of our entrepreneurs as they reach an important milestone in their journeys, and we wish them continued success in all their future endeavours.” said Dr. Ayman Ismail, Founding Director of AUC Venture Lab and Abdul Latif Jameel Endowed Chair of Entrepreneurship at Onsi Sawiris School of Business, the American University in Cairo.

The accelerator targets women-led early-stage startups in Egypt with a proven Minimum Viable Product (MVP) or validated business model, at least one woman founder aged 18–35, and alignment with one or more Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). From more than 240 applications, 63 startups advanced to the interview stage, 25 joined the bootcamp, and 20 underwent final screening. Ultimately, eleven promising startups were selected for the first FWIT Egypt cohort, representing six diverse sectors: healthcare, e-commerce, edtech, clean energy, manufacturing, and pet insurance. The cohort included Smart Content, Smart Solar, Aziza, Learning Rockets, Leona Pet Plan, Encore Plus, Green Flame, Tribe, Tutoruu, and Trace.

All startups successfully completed the programme and participated in the Demo Day, where the top three were announced as winners. Beyond graduation, AUC Venture Lab’s engagement continues — supporting alumni through follow-up mentorship, investor introductions, invitations to relevant events, and opportunities to share their experience with future cohorts.

While this is the first FWIT cohort in Egypt, Futuremakers by Standard Chartered has been successfully running across other markets including Bahrain, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, UAE, Uganda, and Zambia. To date, the initiative has supported over 4,000 women founders across 17 markets.

For further information please contact:
Wasim Ben Khadra (WBK)
Head of Corporate Affairs, Brand and Marketing (CABM).
& Head of Communications for the UAE, Middle East, and Pakistan.

Standard Chartered
Email: Wasim.benkhadra@sc.com
Address: Dubai International Financial Centre
7th floor, Building One, Gate Precinct
PO Box 999, Dubai, UAE
www.sc.com

About Standard Chartered Foundation        

The Standard Chartered Foundation (SCF) is a charitable organization that tackles inequality by promoting greater economic inclusion for disadvantaged young people, particularly young women, and people with disabilities. Its programmes focus on employability and entrepreneurship, helping young entrepreneurs and jobseekers access the skills, networks, opportunities, and support they need to achieve economic power and participation.

Established in 2019, SCF is a registered charity in England and Wales (charity number 1184946) and is the lead delivery partner for Futuremakers by Standard Chartered, a global youth economic empowerment initiative. www.sc.com/scfoundation

About Standard Chartered

We are a leading international banking group, with a presence in 54 of the world’s most dynamic markets. Our purpose is to drive commerce and prosperity through our unique diversity, and our heritage and values are expressed in our brand promise, here for good.

Standard Chartered PLC is listed on the London and Hong Kong stock exchanges.

For more stories and expert opinions please visit Insights at sc.com. Follow Standard Chartered on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

About The American University in Cairo and AUC Venture Lab

Founded in 1919, The American University in Cairo (AUC) is a leading English-language, American- accredited institution of higher education and center of the intellectual, social, and cultural life of the Arab world. It is a vital bridge between East and West, linking Egypt and the region to the world through scholarly research, partnerships with academic and research institutions and study abroad programs.

The University offers 39 undergraduate, 52 master’s and two PhD programs rooted in a liberal arts education that encourages students to think critically and find creative solutions to conflicts and challenges facing both the region and the world.

An independent, nonprofit, politically non-partisan, non-sectarian and equal opportunity institution, AUC is fully accredited in Egypt and the United States.

AUC Venture Lab (V-Lab) is Egypt’s first university-based accelerator and a holder of 10 international awards as the top accelerator in the Middle East and Africa. With a mission to help entrepreneurs launch, grow and scale their innovative startups and provide a learning and research platform for the AUC community to engage with entrepreneurs, V-Lab has supported thousands of founders to turn their business solutions into viable, scalable and investment-ready tech startups.

Since 2013, V-Lab has graduated 300+ startups from its flagship accelerators,  creating  12K+ job opportunities and raising over 5 billion EGP in funding . V-Lab’s portfolio includes: Swvl (the first Egyptian unicorn to list on Nasdaq - tech and mobility), Koinz (F&B), ElGameya (fintech), Rology (health-tech), Dentacarts (e-commerce), Klickit (payments) and Orcas (education).

Learn more at https://business.aucegypt.edu/research/centers/vlab

About Village Capital

Village Capital (VilCap) is reinventing the system to back the entrepreneurs of the future. Known for its groundbreaking approaches to supporting founders who are building solutions to emergent environmental, social, and economic challenges, VilCap unlocks critical social and financial capital for early-stage companies to maximize business and impact growth.    

Village Capital has operated in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) since 2018, running over 11 accelerator programs. VilCap has supported more than 120 locally-based startups working in sectors such as data tech, financial health, green tech, and health equity. Learn more at www.vilcap.com and follow @villagecapital.