Cairo, Egypt (June 3, 2025) – Village Capital has announced its latest investments, totalling USD 200K, in three women-led, impact-creating startups: BeMe (Pakistan), Dabchy (Tunisia), and FreshSource (Egypt). The investments were made through the Futuremakers Women in Tech program, a philanthropic initiative by Standard Chartered dedicated to supporting women entrepreneurs across its markets. The facility is designed to back alumni of the Women in Tech program, enabling catalytic capital to help founders scale inclusive solutions in underserved markets.
Meredith Storton, Senior Manager, Investments at Village Capital, said: “These companies are creating bold, context-specific solutions in sectors that urgently need innovation. This initiative is about more than funding, it’s about long-term ecosystem support. That’s what this partnership with Standard Chartered has enabled.”
Regina Mukiri, Regional Head of Community Impact and Engagement, for Africa, the Middle East, and Pakistan, at Standard Chartered, added: “Empowering women is critical to sustainable economic growth. The Women in Tech Financing Facility is helping women-led businesses scale new heights by addressing systemic barriers to funding. Whether through this facility, our SC Women’s International Network, or our supplier diversity efforts, we remain committed to unlocking opportunities for women across our markets.”
The three startups receiving investment reflect the diversity and depth of innovation led by women across the region. Each is addressing a pressing local challenge with scalable, tech-enabled solutions.
BeMe is a mental health platform offering online access to certified therapists for individuals in Pakistan and the Pakistani diaspora. Amid a national shortage of mental health professionals, BeMe provides 24/7 access to therapy that is culturally relevant and accessible from the comfort of one's home.
“This investment will enable us to expand our team, focus on marketing and growth, and personalise client and corporate experiences. As we grow, we are also deepening our research and development, launching new wellness tools, and scaling marketing to grow our impact,” said Sharmeen Khan, Co-Founder at BeMe.
Dabchy is transforming sustainable fashion in MENA through its peer-to-peer online marketplace for second-hand clothing and is now expanding into a lifestyle marketplace offering books, sporting equipment, and more. Operating in Tunisia and Egypt, the platform enables individuals to buy and sell pre-owned fashion and goods, promote the circular economy, and reduce textile waste. With over 750,000 users and 4 million listed items, Dabchy is addressing a critical market gap in a region where fast fashion dominates, and over 70% of clothing is imported.
For Ameni Mansouri, Co-Founder at Dabchy, this investment marks a key milestone towards realising their vision of becoming the region’s leading second-hand marketplace. “It will help us strengthen our presence in Tunisia, ensure safer and more sustainable growth in Egypt, and explore new markets for expansion,” stated Ameni. “As we continue to scale, we remain committed to making pre-loved fashion and lifestyle items accessible to more people, offering a seamless and trustworthy experience that empowers our community and drives circular consumption.”
The third investee, FreshSource, a Village Capital alum, is revolutionising agricultural supply chains in Egypt by providing a tech-enabled platform that connects farmers directly with institutional buyers, reducing food waste and increasing efficiency. The startup optimises the fresh produce supply chain through data-driven logistics and provides smallholder farmers with fair market access, boosting sustainability in the region’s agricultural sector.
Farah Emara, Co-Founder at FreshSource, sees this investment as a catalyst for their growth. “The investment from Village Capital will accelerate FreshSource’s growth and deepen our impact across the agricultural supply chain. It will enable us to expand our operations, enhance our technology, and strengthen our logistics network to better serve farmers and businesses. With this support, we can drive greater efficiency, reduce waste, and create more opportunities for farmers, ultimately transforming the fresh produce industry in the region.”
“Sharmeen, Ameni, and Farah are developing innovative solutions across mental health accessibility, environmental sustainability, and small farm viability. Their lived experience in their communities has helped them identify significant gaps in the market and build enterprises to innovate and solve these challenges. We’re proud to support them on this journey,” concluded Meredith Storton, Senior Manager, Investments at Village Capital.
Despite the rise of women entrepreneurs in MENA and South Asia, access to funding remains limited. In MENA, just 8.7% of funding in 2024 went to startups with mixed-gender teams, according to Wamda. In Pakistan, women-led startups saw their share of funding drop from 34% in 2021 to 8% in 2022, according to data by Invest2Innovate. Initiatives like the Women in Tech Financing Facility address these gaps by providing catalytic capital to women-led startups, driving innovation, and dismantling barriers to investment.
For more information, reach out to Eva Waweru at Village Capital (eva.waweru@vilcap.com) or:
Wasim Ben Khadra (WBK)
Global Communications Lead, Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB)
Head of Communications, UAE, Middle East, Pakistan, and Africa
Standard Chartered
T: +97156 508 0106
M: +9714 508 3221
About Village Capital
Village Capital 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 startups to maximize business and impact growth.
Since 2009, Village Capital has supported close to 1,800 startups that have raised USD 7.5B in investment capital. It has made more than 150 investments through its various affiliated funds, including Vilcap Investments, which has invested in 110 peer-selected companies. Additionally, more than 25,500 members on Abaca, their web app that equips entrepreneurs, ESOs, and capital providers with tools for learning about, assessing suitability, and expanding access to financial capital. Its latest feature, Capital Explorer, helps founders identify the most appropriate funding options for their businesses.
Learn more at www.vilcap.com and follow @villagecapital.
About Standard Chartered
We are a leading international banking group, with a presence in 53 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.
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Futuremakers by Standard Chartered (Futuremakers) is Standard Chartered’s philanthropic global youth economic empowerment initiative which supports disadvantaged young people, particularly women and people with disabilities.