Standard Chartered and Village Capital Celebrate Startups of Inaugural Women in Tech Accelerator
2 days agoTwo startups were selected through a peer-review process designed to promote equitable access to capital and scale mission-driven businesses
Washington, DC and New York, NY (July 22, 2025)–Village Capital, in collaboration with Standard Chartered US, announced that Giving Credit and Imera were selected by their peers to receive USD 25,000 in grants to support their operations as part of the US Women in Tech Accelerator program.
The initiative brought together a dynamic cohort of ten women-founded startups developing solutions to advance economic mobility and equitable access to essential services for women, families, and historically underserved communities across the US. Over the course of the program, participants gained hands-on support to scale their businesses, grow their impact, and drive inclusive job creation in the communities they serve.
“What made this experience truly unique wasn’t just connecting with other female entrepreneurs and learning about their companies – it was learning to think like an investor as we assessed one another,” shared Ashley Sherwin, Co-Founder of Giving Credit. “I’m humbled and honored that this incredible group of women sees Giving Credit as an investable company.”
The ten participating startups evaluated each other through an investor lens, using eight specific investment categories that leverage Village Capital’s venture investment levels. This methodology allows entrepreneurs to decide who will receive funding based on each company’s progress, potential, and vision for impact. Studies show that this approach has proven effective in unlocking capital to a broader set of entrepreneurs and predicting future performance more accurately than conventional impact investment funds.
“We are proud to congratulate the two startups selected as winners of the inaugural Women in Tech Accelerator program,” said Mandy DeFilippo, CEO of Standard Chartered US and Americas. “At Standard Chartered, we believe inclusion is a catalyst for innovation and sustainable growth, and a key source of long-term competitive differentiation. Our partnership with Village Capital and its commitment to supporting women entrepreneurs reflects our shared commitment to expanding access to opportunity. This initiative aligns with our broader efforts to lift participation in the economies we serve by supporting inclusive innovation and helping to close capital gaps. Together, we’re backing founders who are driving real-world impact and shaping a more equitable and resilient future.”
The peer-selected startups focus on the following:
- Giving Credit (Malden, Massachusetts) facilitates peer-lending transactions, allowing lending and borrowing with friends and family through social networks to expand access to mainstream credit.
- Imera (New York, New York) is a go-to platform for over 40 million immigrants in the US. It offers personalized AI-driven guidance and streamlined access to essential services such as banking, housing, legal, healthcare, and more.
For more information, reach out to Yireth Villaverde at Village Capital (yireth.villaverde@vilcap.com).
The US Women in Tech Accelerator is one of several initiatives under the Futuremakers program in the Americas. Other programs include partnerships with Upwardly Global, Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America (LEDA), and Youth Business International. To date, the Futuremakers programs in the Americas have supported more than 2500 individuals through skills development, entrepreneurship, and employability training.
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About Village Capital
Village Capital is reinventing the system to back the entrepreneurs of the future. Known for its groundbreaking approaches to supporting founders who are building solutions to emergent social, economic, and environmental challenges, VilCap unlocks critical social and financial capital for early-stage startups to maximize business and impact growth.
Since 2009, Village Capital has supported close to 1,800 startups that have raised over USD 5 billion in investment capital. It has made more than 150 investments through its various affiliated funds, including Vilcap Investments, which has invested in 110 peer-selected companies. Additionally, more than 36,000 members actively engage on Abaca, their web app that equips entrepreneurs, ESOs, and capital providers with tools for learning about, assessing suitability and expanding access to financial capital. Its latest feature, Capital Explorer, helps founders identify the most appropriate funding options for their businesses. Learn more at www.vilcap.com and follow @villagecapital.
About Standard Chartered
We are a leading international banking group, with a presence in 53 of the world’s most dynamic markets. Our purpose is to drive commerce and prosperity through our unique diversity, and our heritage and values are expressed in our brand promise, here for good.
Our history in the US dates back to 1902, and we are currently present in nine locations throughout the Americas. Our Americas franchise focuses on financial institutions and select corporations and plays a key role in facilitating trade and investment flows between the Americas and Asia, Africa, the UK and Europe and the Middle East.
Standard Chartered PLC is listed on the London and Hong Kong stock exchanges.
For more stories and expert opinions please visit Insights at sc.com. Follow Standard Chartered on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.
About Futuremakers by Standard Chartered
Futuremakers by Standard Chartered (Futuremakers) is Standard Chartered Bank’s global youth economic empowerment initiative to tackle inequality and promote greater economic inclusion in the Group’s markets. Futuremakers supports disadvantaged young people, especially women and people with disabilities, to learn, earn, and grow. By 2030, Futuremakers aims to create and sustain 140,000 jobs by enabling young entrepreneurs and job-seekers to achieve economic power and participation. Visit www.sc.com/futuremakers
About Standard Chartered Foundation
The Standard Chartered Foundation (SCF) is a charitable organisation that tackles inequality by promoting greater economic inclusion for disadvantaged young people, particularly young women and people with disabilities. Its programmes focus on employability and entrepreneurship, helping young entrepreneurs and jobseekers access the skills, networks, opportunities and support they need to achieve economic power and participation.
Media contacts
Yireth Villaverde
Village Capital
yireth.villaverde@vilcap.com
Sammi He
Standard Chartered Americas
Sammi.he@sc.com