Digerati50: Thinesh Kumar flattens the playing field for the small guys

Digital News Asia's Digerati50 is an annual recognition of the fifty most influential figures shaping Malaysia's digital economy. In the 2022 edition, Lapasar founder and CEO Thinesh Kumar was profiled for his work in democratising access to procurement infrastructure.

Thinesh Kumar's Vision

The core of Thinesh Kumar's thesis is straightforward: small and medium businesses in Malaysia deserve access to the same procurement tools, supplier relationships, and pricing power that large corporations take for granted. Lapasar was built to close that gap — giving independent retailers, growing SMEs, and government agencies a single platform to source across all spend categories.

From Startup to Market Infrastructure

What began as a relatively narrow procurement play has grown into Malaysia's largest B2B marketplace. Today Lapasar's supplier network exceeds 10,000 vendors, its physical infrastructure spans over 250,000 square feet of owned warehousing, and the company has processed over RM3 billion in transactions. The Digerati50 profile captures the early conviction that made this scale possible.

Learn more about what Lapasar offers enterprise procurement teams and explore open roles if you want to help build it further.