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Bangladesh Startup Investments Report Q3 2024: Road to Recovery

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LightCastle Analytics Wing
December 11, 2024
Bangladesh Startup Investments Report Q3 2024: Road to Recovery

Despite political transitions and global economic challenges, Bangladesh’s startup ecosystem demonstrated resilience in Q’3 2024. The quarter saw USD 19.5 Mn raised across 8 deals, marking a 124% growth in funding from Q’2, driven predominantly by global investors who contributed 99% of the total funding.

Key Highlights

  • Steady Growth Amid Challenges: The quarter saw a 1.2x quarter-over-quarter growth in funding, totaling USD 19.5 Mn across 8 deals, reflecting investor confidence even during uncertain times.
  • Late-Stage Funding Dominance: Late-stage funding surged by 567%, accounting for the majority of total investments. This shift underscores the ecosystem’s maturity, as investors focused on scaling established startups.
  • Decline in Early-Stage Investments: Early-stage funding dropped sharply by 91%, falling from USD 5.8 Mn in Q2 to USD 553K in Q3, signaling the ecosystem’s pivot towards higher-value, late-stage deals.
  • Global Investors Take the Lead: International investors contributed 99% of total funding, amounting to USD 19 Mn. This overwhelming participation highlights the strong global interest in Bangladesh’s startup landscape.
  • Sectoral Focus: The logistics and mobility sector emerged as the highest-funded vertical, capturing over 60% of total investments, led by Pathao’s USD 12 Mn deal. Financial services secured the second-highest share, demonstrating strong growth and adoption.
  • Venture Capital Drives Growth: VC funding doubled quarter-over-quarter, reaching USD 18.5 Mn and representing 94% of total investments. Institutional investors showcased a renewed focus on scaling late-stage ventures.
  • Challenges in Local Investment and Early-Stage Growth: Local investment accounted for only 1% of total funding, and declining early-stage deal activity highlighted the need for recalibrating the ecosystem to ensure balanced growth across stages.

With growing international investor confidence and a focus on scaling, the ecosystem is well-positioned to drive economic growth amid ongoing reforms.

Our Partners

About our partners:

Startup Bangladesh Limited is the flagship venture capital fund of ICT Division and the first and only venture capital fund sponsored by the government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh. 

Anchorless Bangladesh is a New York-based early-stage venture capital fund dedicated to investing in critical businesses that empower Bangladesh’s socio-economic growth.

ExitStack is an online platform featuring stories, deal news, and analysis about Bangladeshi and diaspora startups. It aims to share insights on companies and founders to everyone, including potential investors and partners, around the world. 

BD Startup Founders Group is the leading startup community of Bangladesh that connects the prominent active startup founders and ecosystem builders in the country. 

Download the Full Report

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WRITTEN BY: LightCastle Analytics Wing

At LightCastle, we take a systemic and data-driven approach to create opportunities for growth and impact. We are an international management consulting firm which creates systemic and data-driven opportunities for growth and impact in emerging markets. By collaborating with development partners and leveraging the power of the private sector, we strive to boost economies, inspire businesses, and change lives at scale.

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