The television program dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs, Biban, showcased its third episode of the third season on January 17, 2024. The show, which is a collaborative effort between the public and private sectors produced by Hope Projects, the investment arm of Hope Fund, premiered for free on the region’s largest video-on-demand platform, Shahid, and on Bahrain Television.
In this latest installment, Omani company Innotek, founded by Usman Al Mundhiri, successfully secured $500,000 in funding. Similarly, another Omani enterprise, Seraj Al Afaq represented by Uday Al Farai, raised $330,000. Additionally, Bahrain’s TravelG, established by Salman Al Marzooq, garnered an investment of $50,000 from the show’s investor panel, totaling the third episode’s investments to $880,000.
Ayman bin Tawfiq Al Moayyed, the Chairman of Hope Fund, commented on the initiative’s goals: We launched Biban to provide entrepreneurs with access to funding, resources, and tools necessary to accelerate their business growth internationally. The program continues its efforts to foster an entrepreneurial environment for those with the ambition to dream bigger, work harder, and expand faster,
he said.
He proudly announced, Biban is the first regional investment platform that has brought together partners from both the public and private sectors to open doors of opportunity for their countries. We’ve seen over 100 entrepreneurs from the Gulf Cooperation Council participate in the program, facilitating over $6 million in investments during the first two seasons. This is just the beginning, and we aim to intensify our efforts in nurturing deserving entrepreneurs to create regional success stories.
In the same vein, Halima bint Rashid Al Zariya, the Chairwoman of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority, highlighted the significance of Omani startups’ presence in Biban as an opportunity to showcase inspiring success stories, broadening prospects for entrepreneurs to present their projects to local and regional investors. The Authority is committed to supporting small and medium enterprises and startups by providing them opportunities to participate in initiatives that promote their businesses domestically and internationally.
It’s noteworthy that Biban is the first joint public-private investment platform in the region, thanks to its partnerships within the Gulf Cooperation Council, including Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development (UAE), the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (Oman), GFH Capital (Saudi Arabia), Zain Kuwait, and the Sabah Al-Ahmad Center for Talent and Creativity (Kuwait), along with Bahrain’s Labour Fund ‘Tamkeen’.
