# Usman Iftikhar

> Usman Iftikhar is the Pakistani-Australian co-founder and CEO of Catalysr, an Australian accelerator for migrant and refugee entrepreneurs. His own difficulty finding meaningful employment after a University of Wollongong engineering management master’s helped inspire its creation with Jacob Muller in 2016. Named Commonwealth Young Person of the Year in 2018, he has also worked in space-sector partnerships, venture investing and international refugee entrepreneurship networks. Catalysr currently reports supporting over 1,300 migrapreneurs from 87 countries who have created more than 300 businesses.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & CEO at Catalysr - Accelerator for Migrants & Refugees
- **Organizations:** Catalysr, Backbone Partners, SpaceBase, Obama Foundation Leaders: Asia-Pacific, Edmund Hillary Fellowship, Westpac Scholars Trust, Global Refugee Entrepreneurship Network, Space Without Borders
- **Nationality:** Pakistani-Australian
- **Education:** Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering, Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology, Master of Engineering Management, with distinction, University of Wollongong, Social enterprise fellowship (non-degree), School for Social Entrepreneurs Australia, Global Solutions Program (non-degree), Singularity University, Executive Program in Social Entrepreneurship (non-degree), Stanford University Graduate School of Business, VC Catalyst Program (non-degree), Wade Institute of Entrepreneurship, Executive Space Course - Asia Pacific (non-degree), International Space University
- **Known for:** 2018 Commonwealth Young Person of the Year and Pacific regional winner., 2018 AMP Tomorrow Maker., 2019 Westpac Social Change Fellow.

## Career timeline

- **2011** — Undertook an AIESEC management traineeship in Krasnoyarsk, Russia.
- **2013** — Moved from Pakistan to Australia and completed a Master of Engineering Management at the University of Wollongong.
- **2014–2015** — Worked on climate advocacy, including the Australian Youth Climate Coalition’s NSW leadership.
- **2016** — Co-founded Catalysr with Jacob Muller; a nine-week pilot in Parramatta worked with ten immigrants.
- **2017** — Completed Singularity University’s Global Solutions Program, including nine weeks at NASA’s Ames Research Center.
- **2018** — Named Commonwealth Young Person of the Year and Pacific regional winner; became Catalysr CEO after its inaugural CEO Jacob Muller.
- **2019** — Selected as a Westpac Social Change Fellow and inaugural Obama Foundation Asia-Pacific Leader.
- **2020** — Completed Stanford’s Executive Program in Social Entrepreneurship; won the Entrepreneurship category in the 40 Under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australian Awards.
- **2021** — Received the Western Sydney Champion award; Catalysr’s pre-accelerator expanded nationally.
- **2024** — Discussed Catalysr, Backbone Partners and SpaceBase in The Executives podcast, published 18 July.
- **2026** — Marked Catalysr’s tenth anniversary and introduced Victoria India Market Makers.

## Achievements

- 2018 Commonwealth Young Person of the Year and Pacific regional winner.
- 2018 AMP Tomorrow Maker.
- 2019 Westpac Social Change Fellow.
- 2019 Obama Foundation Leaders: Asia-Pacific participant.
- 2019 SmartCompany 30 Under 30 honoree.
- 2019 Western Sydney Leadership Award for Entrepreneurial Achievement.
- 2020 Entrepreneurship category winner, 40 Under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australian Awards.
- 2021 Western Sydney Champion, Committee for Sydney.
- Co-led Catalysr, which reports supporting 1,300+ migrapreneurs from 87 countries and 300+ businesses as of October 2026.
- Inaugural chair of the Global Refugee Entrepreneurship Network’s Design and Delivery Working Group.

## Latest updates

- **2026-10** — Catalysr’s live website reports 1,300+ migrapreneurs from 87 countries, 300+ businesses and 48% women among founders supported.
- **2026-10** — Promoted a planned 28 October Melbourne ecosystem mixer with Stone & Chalk, combining Halloween and migration themes.
- **2026-08** — Published “From Migrapreneur to Market Maker (part 1 of 4)” on 13 August, outlining Catalysr’s next chapter and Victoria India Market Makers.
- **2026-10** — Scheduled, not completed as of research: Victoria India Market Makers delegation to Mumbai and Bangalore, planned for late November to early December 2026.

## Links

- Website: https://usmaniftikhar1990.substack.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/usmaniftikhar/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/usmangiki
- Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/usmangiki.bsky.social

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/usman-iftikhar
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-26