SLASSCOM and LAN sign MoU to aid Sri Lankan tech entrepreneurs and start-ups in securing funding

MoU being signed by LAN Chairperson Chandi Dharmaratne (left) and SLASSCOM former Chairperson Sandra De Zoysa 

SLASSCOM and the Lankan Angel Network have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate in assisting start-ups and entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka’s tech sector to secure funding. As a result of this partnership, Sri Lanka will directly benefit in terms of an increase in the levels of demand and supply for knowledge workers, growth in global exports and enhanced economic dynamism, greater information technology adoption and a higher incidence of technology-focused start-ups.

This MoU between SLASSCOM and LAN builds on the strengths of both entities. LAN will provide investment opportunities for potential tech entrepreneurs, which will be backed by seed funding, while also supporting start-ups in their journeys with specialist coaching and mentor services. This will in turn better prepare each founder to raise funds by pitching via LAN’s Investment Committee and their wide network of investors both in Sri Lanka and abroad. 

LAN will also provide support in the form of workshops for tech companies registered with SLASSCOM, empowering them with the skills and knowledge required to successfully pitch to Venture Capital (VC) funds and High Net-worth Investors (HNIs). 

In return, SLASSCOM will reciprocate by bringing in its existing entrepreneur development programs into this initiative. These include the WTech Entrepreneur Development Bootcamp Program, Regional Entrepreneur Development Program, and the Tech Entrepreneur Market Access Program.

SLASSCOM will additionally host a call for applications for its member community, ultimately shortlisting deserving entrepreneurs based on a predefined set of selection criteria. SLASSCOM also plans to organise periodic webinars, in collaboration with LAN, to educate the local tech community on funding methodologies and how to best access them. 

As this partnership progresses, both parties expect to offer greater support to each other in certain key areas. These include marketing consultation, branding, valuation, website development, social media presence, on-boarding digital platforms for selected entrepreneurs, etc. 

SLASSCOM Former Chairperson Sandra De Zoysa commented: “Start-ups play a significant role in economic growth as they are the nucleus for innovation; creating more opportunities for employment, which in turn leads to a greater contribution towards economic success. Sri Lanka, as an emerging entrepreneurial country, has enabled many local start-ups and attracted a significant number of regional start-ups in the recent past that are seeking to scale. 

“Several of them are already great success stories. In fact, many of the of the highly successful IT/ BPM companies were start-ups within our eco-system that accelerated to maturity relatively fast to be the world class products and service providers that we see today. 

“At a time when our country is facing the worst social and economic crisis, SLASSOM is committed to support tech entrepreneurial initiatives to influence our country’s economic performance through the creation of new products, services, platforms, and production processes for the global market, thereby boosting productivity, foreign investor interest and funding aligned to SLASSCOM’s vision 2025 of launching 1,000 start-ups, creation of 200,000 jobs and generating $ 5 billion in export revenue. ” 

LAN Chairperson Chandi Dharmaratne noted: “It is essential that current and future technology-based start-ups are encouraged to scale, so they can become truly competitive in global markets.” 

She further signalled that LAN had already evaluated several high-potential start-ups emerging from SLASSCOM’s pipeline. Having exhibited the requisite criteria to move forward, these start-ups were being given the opportunity to pitch to LAN’s Angel Fund Investment Committee.

With the aim of supporting early-stage technology-based start-ups to be an important component of the innovation ecosystem in the country, SLASSCOM and LAN will continue to collaborate on programs of this nature, which will, in turn, contribute to their overall goal of establishing 1,000 IT/BPM start-ups as well as fuelling the industry to become the No. 1 export revenue earner for Sri Lanka by 2025.