Tina Gidwani, principal of First Rate Ventures, is one of our top 50 Rising Stars in corporate venturing for 2025.
Tina Gidwani manages the corporate VC pipeline for First Rate Ventures, the ventures arm of US-based SaaS B2B wealthtech company First Rate Inc.
“There is a wide range of innovative technology here, which is drawing significant global attention, especially with the financial landscape undergoing a digital transformation,” says Gidwani.
Gidwani joined First Rate Ventures as an associate in 2021, when the corporate venture unit was first launched. She has been a principal based in Dubai since April 2022, where she sources investment opportunities, conducts market research and due diligence, supports strategic decision making and supports portfolio companies.
The $25m CVC fund has made 10 investments so far, five of which have been acquired by the parent.
While the CVC makes minority investments in startups, it also actively functions as a venture studio. In this model, it accelerates product development and innovation by providing technology to startups.
“As we continue to explore emerging technologies, our goal is to empower founders and drive meaningful innovation in the fintech and wealthtech sectors.”
“We have 33 plus years of technology that we have built and acquired,” says Gidwani. “There are many talented founders with brilliant ideas for building their platforms or apps. Instead of having them start from scratch with a developer to reinvent the entire process, we integrate our relevant technologies to support them. That is our mission as a venture studio.”
This year, Gidwani’s attention is focused on generative AI and its impact on finance. She is also keeping a close watch on on developments in the cyber security and fraud detection space. Another area of growth and interest is in payments tech, particularly in the Middle East.
“As we continue to explore emerging technologies, our goal is to empower founders and drive meaningful innovation in the fintech and wealthtech sectors,” says Gidwani
See the full list of Rising Stars 2025 here.
