Malaysian state-owned accelerator opens applications for fourth cohort

The Selangor Accelerator Programme (SAP) announced it has opened applications for the fourth edition of its startup incubator, which will focus on segments including agritech, fintech, greentech, ecommerce, and smart-city solutions.

Photo credit: Selangor Accelerator Programme

SAP is an initiative of Sidec (the Selangor Information Technology & Digital Economy Corporation), a company created by Malaysia’s Selangor state government.

The accelerator is a three-month program that aims to prepare 30 early-stage startups and help them become investment-ready businesses.

Registrations for SAP, which is sponsored by Affin Bank, are open until July 14. The 30 shortlisted startups will begin the program from July 28 to September 5.

The winners of this year’s accelerator will win cash prizes from a pool of 50,000 ringgit (US$12,156). Apart from the cash prizes, participants will also receive guidance from mentors in the community, who will help participants with their soft skills and pitching styles. It will also provide teams with industry-related workshops.

“The Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent movement control orders have caused massive disruption to our daily lives, leading society to make a rapid transition toward digitalization and to take a new approach in business strategy,” the company said in a statement.

Due to the pandemic, the program will be conducted online, where participants will get their own dashboard for all the courses, webinars, and mentoring sessions.

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Startups will also get the chance to present on the final demo day on September 11, 2021, where they can pitch their businesses to venture capitalists, corporations, and government agencies.

According to SAP, it has incubated a total of 90 startups so far, which went on to raise 56 million yuan (US$8.8 million).

Currency converted from Malaysian ringgit to US dollar: US$1 = 4.11 ringgit