Standard Chartered Bahrain, in partnership with Bahrain FinTech Bay, Announce the Sixth Cohort of Women in Tech Bahrain Incubation Programme
April 14, 2025, 12:49 pm

Standard Chartered Bahrain, in partnership with Bahrain FinTech Bay, Announce the Sixth Cohort of Women in Tech Bahrain Incubation Programme

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Standard Chartered Bahrain, in partnership with Bahrain FinTech Bay (BFB), announced the sixth cohort of its “SC Women in Tech” incubation programme in Bahrain, which will officially commence and open for applications on April 22, 2025. This marks the sixth anniversary of supporting female entrepreneurs in Bahrain. The programme was launched in collaboration with the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB), the Labour Fund “Tamkeen”, Supreme Council for Women (SCW), and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization Investment and Technology Promotion Office, in Bahrain (UNIDO ITPO Bahrain), and Innovate for Bahrain (I4BH).
The ceremony was attended by several dignitaries, including Dr. Boutros Klink, Bahrain CEO, Standard Chartered; Ms. Afnan Rashid Al-Zayani, Board Member, Supreme Council for Women; Ms. Suzy Al Zeerah, Chief Operating Officer, Bahrain Fintech Bay; Ms. Maryam Rahimi, Associate Director, Enterprise Programs and Partnerships Development at Tamkeen; and Mr. Ameer Abu Baker, National Investment Promotion Expert, UNIDO ITPO Bahrain, along with other senior officials and stakeholders.

The Women in Tech Bahrain Incubation Program aims to offer valuable guidance and support to female entrepreneurs in Bahrain, enabling them to expand and prosper. To date, the programme has supported over 50 local startups through mentorship, with 19 startups receiving prize money totaling over USD 305,000.

The programme aims to assist 10 businesses led by women through an intensive eight-week incubation period. Participants will benefit from access to workshops, industry experts, and an alumni community, enabling them to refine their business strategies and capitalise on opportunities in the current business environment.

Winners of the programme will receive prize money, with first-place winners receiving USD 35,000, second-place winners receiving USD 25,000, and third-place winners receiving USD 15,000. Additionally, all winning teams will be granted a 3-month residency at Bahrain FinTech Bay.
The event also featured the announcement of a strategic collaboration between QuickDine, a startup that took part in the fifth edition of the Women in Tech Program, and Payment International Enterprise (PIE), a leading Bahrain-based fintech company. The collaboration is set to enhance QuickDine’s operational efficiency by integrating advanced payment solutions, thereby offering customers secure and diverse payment methods.

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BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
Hanan Abdulla Hasan, Senior Manager, PR & Communication at BENEFIT, said: “We are honoured to collaborate with RUW in supporting this remarkable technology-focused event. It highlights our commitment to social responsibility, and our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital and innovation capabilities of young Bahraini women and foster their ability to harness technological tools in the service of a smarter, more sustainable future.”
For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”