Startup Bangladesh managing director Sami Ahmed, a closed ally of previous Awami League government, has allegedly involved in allocating fund to innovators in political lens apart from claiming commission from the applicant.

Startup Bangladesh is lone government fund manager to support innovators across the country to develop an eco-system for tech-driven society.

Sami Ahmed got the post of managing director of the venture capital firm due to relations with former State Minister Zuanid Ahmed Palak who took several controversial decisions during his tenture, according to officials of ICT Division. Sami has been accused of political bias and personal commission trading in investment distribution since asumed office in February of 2022.

"This government platform is supposed to play an important role in building a startup ecosystem, but under Sami's leadership, it has in reality become a center for protecting personal and political interests. Opportunities for real entrepreneurs are diminishing,” says a tech entrepreneur requesting not to be named.

Sami Ahmed, when selecting startups, was mainly investing in entrepreneurs with Awami League political affiliations. During his tenure, despite billions of taka in government investment, most startups didn't see success.

"Despite the merits of our project, many innovators didn’t receive government investment due to lack of political affiliations. On the other hand, those whose projects were not very promising easily received investment because of their political affiliations," said Rezwanur Rahman who developing a startup for last four years.

Many entrepreneurs alleged that the applicants had to pay a fixed amount of commission. Multiple sources have confirmed that a commission of Tk 3 lakh was paid for each Tk 1 million invested.

“The syndicate remains active at Startup Bangladesh. If we want to develop a tech-enabled society, we should ensure that the fund manager issues ticket beyond political affliation,” said Mostafizur Rahaman Sohel, a former director at BASIS (Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services), told the Mirror Asia.

Regarding the allegations, Sami Ahmed denied all issues including commission. "I don't know who raise the allegations. Any applicant says. I think the issues mixed up with IDEA project. Startup Bangladesh never invest Tk10 lakh to any venture," Sami said.

On September 19, the official Facebook page of Startup Bangladesh Limited was suddenly shut down. It is alleged that Sami himself shut down the page to prevent the ongoing criticism and information about irregularities against the Palak-Sami syndicate from being disseminated.