She Loves Tech teams with Microsoft, earmarks US $10 M for women-led firms
According to Tech In Asia, She Loves Tech, a global non-profit dedicated to reducing the financing gap for women entrepreneurs, has created a $10 million early-stage accelerator fund co-managed by Teja Ventures.
Over the course of three years, the She Loves Tech Global Fund will invest up to $100,000 in pre-seed and seed rounds of 100 women-led businesses. There are no special prerequisites for startups in terms of geography or sector.
Microsoft Asia will work with She Loves Tech in a multi-year relationship covering 15 Asian nations to contribute to equitable economic growth, as announced during Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SWITCH) 2021.
Following the agreement, Microsoft will support an Azure-powered digital platform that will enable large-scale linkages between female entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and angel investors throughout the world.
She Loves Tech entrepreneurs will also have access to Microsoft’s cloud environment, technological tools, and security solutions in order to pilot born-in-the-cloud innovations and “grow from concept to unicorn,” according to a news release.
In addition, Microsoft’s worldwide ecosystem of industry professionals will contribute extensive technical and co-selling knowledge, as well as a community for mentorship, skilling, and investment for startups, to facilitate speedier go-to-market.
She Loves Tech’s curriculum will also include learning resources from Microsoft Learn and LinkedIn Learning.
She Loves Tech is an acceleration and community platform for women in technology that was founded in 2015 and is located in China and Singapore. It aspires to raise more than $1 billion in finance for women-led enterprises by 2030.
In 50 countries, She Loves Tech hosts an annual worldwide competition for early-stage, female-founded enterprises. So far, the company’s companies have raised more than $1 billion.
“By helping over 10,000 women entrepreneurs gain access to funding, a global network, and support from other women founders from around the world, we hope their success will indirectly contribute towards creating 100,000 jobs across local economies in Asia,” said Leanne Robers, co-founder of She Loves Tech.
The epidemic has increased the pay gap between male and female founders, as well as their access to capital. According to PitchBook, funding for female founders decreased 31% last year, compared to a 16% reduction for enterprises led only by men. In Southeast Asia, women-led businesses received just 0.9 percent of total funding raised in the area in 2020.
