ShopUp circle brand pattern

Enabling Access to Quality Food at an Affordable Price

98% of consumption in Bangladesh, one of Asia’s most fragmented retail markets, occurs through 4.5 million small neighborhood shops. These shops face daily struggles when procuring and distributing goods, and have limited access to formal financing. ShopUp is solving this with its full-stack B2B commerce platform

ShopUp retailer man crossed hand in front of store
Hand made pottery

Our Story

The inspiration for ShopUp came from Afeef Zaman's visits to see his grandparents in Bauphal, Patuakhali, where the largest pottery cluster of Bangladesh is located. During his visits, Afeef noted how the small pottery businesses struggled to scale and compete with large conglomerates that easily captured the market due to strong distribution capabilities. Delving deeper into the challenges faced by small businesses, the primary obstacles hindering their growth were identified: efficient sourcing, seamless logistics, and affordable financing.

Today, ShopUp facilitates easy access to quality food and household items at the best price, for 31 million people in Bangladesh, by connecting mills and manufacturers to a network of small neighbourhood shops

Our Leadership

Afeef Zaman

Founder & Group CEO, SILQ

Afeef founded his first tech company at the age of 20 while still in college, leading a team of 150 and growing the business to $3 million in revenue before launching ShopUp. His vision for ShopUp was to equip MSMEs with the power of technology. Today, 31 million people in Bangladesh access food and essentials through ShopUp’s network of small neighborhood shops. Afeef now serves as the Group CEO of SILQ and is a resilient optimist, passionately advocating for the rising potential of a young, entrepreneurial Bangladesh.

Linkedin link
Afeef Zaman

Founder & Group CEO, SILQ

Afeef founded his first tech company at the age of 20 while still in college, leading a team of 150 and growing the business to $3 million in revenue before launching ShopUp. His vision for ShopUp was to equip MSMEs with the power of technology. Today, 31 million people in Bangladesh access food and essentials through ShopUp’s network of small neighborhood shops. Afeef now serves as the Group CEO of SILQ and is a resilient optimist, passionately advocating for the rising potential of a young, entrepreneurial Bangladesh.

Ataur Rahim Chowdhury

Co-founder & CEO, ShopUp (Bangladesh)

Ataur Rahim Chowdhury is the Co-founder and CEO of ShopUp (Bangladesh), where he leads the country’s largest B2B commerce platform. He oversees the entire Bangladesh operation—driving growth, expanding to new markets, and enhancing the platform experience for thousands of small neighborhood shops that collectively serve over 31 million people. A firm believer in the power of small businesses, Ataur is also passionate about mentoring the next generation of product leaders and building technology that creates lasting impact.

Linkedin link
Ataur Rahim Chowdhury

Co-founder & CEO, ShopUp (Bangladesh)

Ataur Rahim Chowdhury is the Co-founder and CEO of ShopUp (Bangladesh), where he leads the country’s largest B2B commerce platform. He oversees the entire Bangladesh operation—driving growth, expanding to new markets, and enhancing the platform experience for thousands of small neighborhood shops that collectively serve over 31 million people. A firm believer in the power of small businesses, Ataur is also passionate about mentoring the next generation of product leaders and building technology that creates lasting impact.

Sujayath Ali

Co-founder & Group COO, SILQ

Sujayath Ali is a Co-founder at ShopUp and currently serves as Group COO at SILQ. He began his career as a Senior Software Development Engineer at iNautix Technologies and was the first product manager at Amazon India. Sujayath later worked as a Senior Product Manager at Amazon US and served as Global VP of Product at Visa. In 2013, he co-founded Voonik.

Linkedin link
Sujayath Ali

Co-founder & Group COO, SILQ

Sujayath Ali is a Co-founder at ShopUp and currently serves as Group COO at SILQ. He began his career as a Senior Software Development Engineer at iNautix Technologies and was the first product manager at Amazon India. Sujayath later worked as a Senior Product Manager at Amazon US and served as Global VP of Product at Visa. In 2013, he co-founded Voonik.

Navaneetha Krishnan J

Co-founder & Group CTO, SILQ

Navaneetha Krishnan is a Co-founder at ShopUp and currently serves as Group CTO of SILQ. He was an early developer at Zoho and Freshworks and went on to co-found Voonik in 2013.

Linkedin link
Navaneetha Krishnan J

Co-founder & Group CTO, SILQ

Navaneetha Krishnan is a Co-founder at ShopUp and currently serves as Group CTO of SILQ. He was an early developer at Zoho and Freshworks and went on to co-found Voonik in 2013.

Our Investors

Investor valarInvestor Veon

Our Journey

‘25

In April, Sary, the leading B2B marketplace and services platform in the Gulf, merged with ShopUp to form SILQ Group, creating the largest B2B commerce platform connecting the Gulf and Emerging Asia. This strategic merger was backed by a USD$110 million funding round led by Sanabil Investments, a wholly owned company by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Peter Thiel’s Valar Ventures. This is Sanabil’s first-ever investment in South Asia, marking a step forward in economic connectivity between Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh as trade between the countries of the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) and Emerging Asia increases.

‘21

By June, Mokam became the largest B2B commerce platform in Bangladesh. In September, we successfully closed our Series B funding round, raising USD $108 million. This round was led by prominent investors including Valar Ventures, Tiger Global, Prosus, Sequoia, Flourish, Veon Ventures, and Lonsdale Capital. Notably, this marked the largest Series B investment ever secured by a B2B commerce platform in South Asia.

‘20

In January, we were named Best Startup of the Year! February brought two big milestones: Voonik's acquisition & our Bengaluru office launch. March saw the birth of REDX, and by April, we closed a $3.2M pre-Series A led by Sequoia, Surge, and Flourish. REDX conquered last-mile logistics in just 6 weeks, and in October, we raised $22.5M Series A, led by Sequoia, Flourish, Veon Ventures, Speedinvest, & Lonsdale Capital

‘19

In April, ShopUp became a part of the Surge 01 cohort. Our commerce platform, Mokam, was officially launched in December.

‘18

ShopUp's rocketship took off in February. In November, we successfully completed our seed funding round, raising USD $1.6 million. This round was led by Flourish and Omidyar Network.