Bangladeshi entrepreneur Shafayet Siddiquee has built a Malaysia-headquartered education business spanning Asia and Africa, connecting students, universities and recruitment partners through a cross-border network and a developing digital marketplace.
Siddiquee, Founder and CEO of Explore Global, is expanding the company around international education consultancy, student recruitment and an education marketplace, using Malaysia as the strategic base for its regional growth.
The company’s operations and business-to-business partnerships extend across Malaysia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia and selected African markets, linking high-potential student-source markets with universities and education providers, particularly in Malaysia and Southeast Asia, according to a press release.
Siddiquee began his entrepreneurial journey in Bangladesh, initially working in travel and international mobility. His exposure to the growing movement of people across borders eventually led him towards international education, where students, universities and recruitment partners increasingly need reliable connections across markets.
He subsequently established his business presence in Malaysia and founded Explore Global, seeking to build an international education company with a regional footprint rather than a conventional consultancy dependent on a single country.
Malaysia sits at the centre of that strategy. From its headquarters there, Explore Global is building relationships with universities and education institutions while developing recruitment networks across South Asia, Southeast Asia and Africa.
Through its B2B recruitment network, the company is developing a cross-border distribution model that allows universities to reach prospective students in multiple markets while connecting recruitment partners and students with international education providers.
Explore Global is also developing an education marketplace platform designed to bring students, universities, education institutions and recruitment partners into a connected digital ecosystem, giving the business a potentially scalable platform alongside its consultancy and recruitment operations.
Under the model, Malaysia serves both as an international education destination and Explore Global’s operational hub, while its network across South Asia, Southeast Asia and Africa provides access to expanding student and partner markets.
The company is now preparing for its next stage of growth by expanding student recruitment networks, strengthening university partnerships, developing the technology infrastructure for its marketplace and increasing its presence across emerging international student markets.
Explore Global is also seeking strategic investors and growth partners that can support its expansion through capital, technology, institutional relationships and access to new markets.
For Siddiquee, the longer-term ambition is to turn a business journey that began in Bangladesh into a Malaysia-headquartered international education company capable of operating across regions — using technology, institutional partnerships and recruitment networks to connect more students with international education opportunities.
