Sonia Bashir Kabir is the first Woman Tech Venture Capitalist in South Asia and now she is currently the founder of SBK Tech Ventures which is a venture capital company. She is the founder of SBK Foundation which is a non-profitable organization. Prior to this, she was the Managing Director of Microsoft Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Laos for five years.
She is a technology investor focusing on tech startups in emerging markets of South Asia. Sonia began her career as a technology corporate professional and her journey led her to become a technology entrepreneur, an angel investor and a technology philanthropist.
Sonia Bashir completed her Senior Cambridge from Green Herald International School (St. Francis Xavier’s) and Higher Secondary Certificate from Viqarunnisa Noon School and College. She obtained her BSc. degree from California State University, East Bay and did an MBA from Santa Clara University. Ms. Sonia was a Bangladeshi national athlete; she has played for the Abahani women’s Volleyball and Cricket team and continued playing for the Bangladesh National Volleyball team.
Ms. Sonia was the Country Director of Dell Bangladesh, Director of Business Development for Southeast Asia, New Emerging Markets in Microsoft and Chief Operating Officer for Aamra Technologies Ltd. The Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appointed Ms. Sonia in 2015 to the Governing Council of the Technology Bank for the Least Developed Countries (LDC) for a three-year term. She was elected as Vice Chairman of UN Technology Bank in 2017.
Current UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres renewed Sonia’s appointment as Governing Council member and Sonia has been reappointed as a Vice Chair of the UN Tech Bank for the 2019–2022 term. Sonia is also a board member in UNESCO’s Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development. Sonia is the first woman to win the ICT Business Person of the Year Award from the Daily Star ICT Awards in 2019 and she was one of the 10 recipients of the Microsoft Founder’s Award in 2016 given by Bill Gates.
Sonia was recognized by UN Global Compact in 2017 as an SDG pioneer. Usually, only 10 people got this recognition globally. She was recognized for integrating seven Global Goals into her business practices and strategies: no poverty; quality education; gender equality; decent work and economic growth; industry, innovation and infrastructure; reduced inequalities; creating partnerships to meet the Goals. Sonia actively supports youth in technology and women empowerment with youth-led initiatives all over Bangladesh.
