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Irfan Rafique
Retail Distribution & Fintech | Ex-Unilever
Irfan Rafique is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SupplyLine, a company based in Bangladesh.1 He has been serving in this role since December 2021.1
Professional Background
Before joining SupplyLine, Irfan Rafique co-founded and served as the CEO of Octaglory from April 2020 to December 2021.1 His career history suggests experience in the financial services sector and entrepreneurship.3
Achievements and Recognition
Irfan Rafique has represented SupplyLine and Bangladesh at international events. In November 2023, he participated in the Tenity (formerly F10) Demo Day event held at the AWS Office, showcasing his company's presence in global tech and business circles.2
Leadership at SupplyLine
As the CEO of SupplyLine, Irfan Rafique leads the company's operations and strategic direction. SupplyLine's leadership team also includes Salma Jahan as Co-Founder and Head of Growth, and Saif Kamal as Co-Founder and Head of Design.4
Irfan Rafique's role at SupplyLine and his previous experiences indicate his expertise in business leadership, particularly in the realm of startups and technology-driven enterprises in Bangladesh.
Highlights
🎉 Proud to announce that SupplyLine has successfully received funding from the Orange Corners! 🎉 We're thrilled to announce that SupplyLine has successfully received funding from the prestigious Orange Corners Bangladesh Programme! 🎉 An initiative by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Orange Corners Bangladesh has been instrumental in equipping young entrepreneurs like us with the skills, finances, and resources needed to turn smart ideas into sustainable businesses.💡 Through this incredible partnership, SupplyLine is now gearing up to empower last-mile retailers by providing them with the financial tools they need to improve their businesses and lives. Inspired by Dr. Yunus’ “Three Zeros”—Zero Poverty, Zero Unemployment, Zero Carbon Emissions — we’re focusing on: 1️⃣ Empowering young entrepreneurs in the retail industry 2️⃣ Using technology to make retail businesses smarter and more inclusive 3️⃣ Helping transform retail stores into social initiatives 4️⃣ Ensuring good governance through our credit rating program Through empowering sustainable financing, SupplyLine is set to bring lasting change to Bangladesh 2.0, and we’re committed to creating opportunities for last-mile retailers to thrive. Are you ready to join us in making a real difference? #SupplyLine #OrangeCorners #Bangladesh2024 #SustainableDevelopment #YouthEmpowerment #ThreeZeros #LastMileRetailers #SocialBusiness #Entrepreneurship #Fintech #FinancialInclusion #DigitalFinance #TechForGood #SMELending #FintechInnovation #InclusiveFinance Salma Nur E Jahan Saif Kamal Farhia Tabassum Hoque Zaved Akhtar Jacky Lou Alex Miller Elizabeth Yin Finnley Hui Yu, Lee Martin Pasquier Jonas Thürig Haley Bryant Eric Bahn Shiyan K. Craig Bristol Dixon Amra Naidoo Soham Lamba Shazeeb M Khairul Islam Sadia Hossain
Recently, I had the honor of representing SupplyLine and Bangladesh at the Tenity (formerly F10) Demo Day event at the AWS Office in Singapore, and also the SouthXChange Pitch Day at Google Singapore - where we shared the stage with fantastic fintech startups spread across the APAC region. Humbled by the opportunity to present the SupplyLine growth story of 20X growth over the last year to the 100+ Tenity Ecosystem Enablers and 40+ Fintech VCs.
Our journey with the Tenity Batch 6 has been awe-inspiring, and it helped us trod through major milestones in our business. In the past few months alone, we have locked relationships with BRAC Microfinance and 20+ FMCG Brands - which will enable us to 10X the growth of our Invoice Financing tool in the coming months.
Tenity is a Zurich-based early-stage investor, backed by the largest Swiss Asset Managers and Banks. Tenity’s goal is to be a global financial innovation ecosystem that supports early-stage fintech startups through incubation, acceleration, and early-stage venture capital investment.
Our hypothesis of alternative distribution enabling infrastructure is landing smoothly, and this journey towards building the one-stop solution for distribution and embedded fintech solutions for last-mile retail can only get better! This hypothesis of transformation is backed by our friends at Accelerating Asia, Hustle Fund, and notable angels - all of whom believe in the potential of Bangladesh!
This round is shaping up well, and we moving ahead with full steam for 2024!
Zaved Akhtar Saif Kamal Elizabeth Yin Alex Miller Brian Nichols Will Bricker Finnley Hui Yu, Lee Charleen Phor Azril Ikram, CFA Martin Pasquier Jonas Thürig Haley Bryant Eric Bahn Shiyan K. Craig Bristol Dixon Amra Naidoo
