Hatch: The Centre of Gravity for Sri Lanka’s Startup Ecosystem

First Capital Startup Nation Presented by Hatch 2025

Hatch Chatham

In the heart of Colombo, historic architecture has been repurposed into something decisively future-facing. Since its inception in 2018, Hatch has evolved from a shared workspace into the central platform underpinning Sri Lanka’s startup and innovation ecosystem. Today, its influence extends far beyond desks and offices, shaping how entrepreneurship, capital, and innovation converge to drive long-term economic growth.

Hatch was founded on a simple but powerful conviction: entrepreneurs are engines of economic transformation. Hatch was built to ensure that opportunity is not limited by background, geography, or access to capital. Over the past seven years, that vision has translated into measurable national impact. Recent data indicates that more than 90% of active Sri Lankan startups have engaged with Hatch through its programs, facilities, or services, positioning it as one of the most deeply embedded innovation platforms in the country.

This impact has also earned international recognition. Hatch has received multiple global accolades, including awards for Best Incubator/Accelerator in the SAARC region and Best Coworking Space in the World at the Global Startup Awards in 2021 and 2022. These distinctions reflect a deliberate strategy, depth over scale. Rather than operating as a generic coworking provider, Hatch has focused on building specialized programs that address systemic gaps within Sri Lanka’s entrepreneurial landscape.

To date, Hatch has delivered more than 25 targeted programs spanning high-impact sectors such as FinTech, AgriTech, GreenTech, EdTech, and female entrepreneurship. These initiatives are designed not only to support early-stage founders, but also to create pathways to capital, market access, and global exposure.

Among its most prominent initiatives is AccelerateHer, widely regarded as Sri Lanka’s leading accelerator for women-led startups. The Green Innovation Lab supports founders developing solutions in clean energy, sustainability, and circular economy models, while GoviLab accelerator focuses on innovation in agriculture, particularly technologies that improve productivity and resilience for smallholder farmers. Hatch X, the country’s first fintech-focused accelerator, is designed to help Sri Lankan fintech startups scale beyond the island and compete in regional and international markets.

Building on this foundation, Hatch is extending its ambition beyond national borders through Startup Nation, a flagship regional initiative aimed at positioning Colombo as a convergence point for South Asian innovation. The 2025 cycle facilitated over USD 150,000 in investment commitments, validating demand for a structured, regional platform. The 2026 roadmap aims to attract high-potential startups from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives, culminating in a major regional demo day hosted in Sri Lanka. By mobilising investor networks and enabling cross-border collaboration, Startup Nation seeks to strengthen Sri Lanka’s role within the South Asian startup corridor.

While Hatch operates at an ecosystem level, it maintains a strong focus on community and foundational infrastructure. For individuals, freelancers, and early-stage founders, the Community Pass provides an accessible entry point into the ecosystem. Designed as more than a workspace membership, it offers access to curated events, workshops, and community-led experiences that allow members to test ideas, build networks, and gain exposure to mentors and collaborators.

At the other end of the ecosystem, Hatch has introduced the Investor Club to address a recurring challenge in early-stage investing: fragmented and unstructured deal flow. Designed for family offices, venture funds, and high-net-worth individuals, the club provides curated access to pre-vetted startups emerging from Hatch’s programs. By prioritizing quality over volume, it enables more efficient capital deployment while strengthening trust between founders and investors.

As Hatch expands its footprint to markets such as the UAE and Singapore, its trajectory illustrates a broader shift in perception. Sri Lanka is increasingly viewed not only as a source of talent but as a viable hub for innovation, experimentation, and regional collaboration. By connecting local founders with global capital and building the institutional infrastructure required for startups to scale, Hatch is not simply observing the emergence of a startup nation. It is actively contributing to its construction.

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