FigureAsia 35 Under 35 · Finance
M. Alfatih Timur
Age 34 · Social finance and digital crowdfunding · Indonesia
A social-finance founder who turned Indonesia's tradition of collective giving into a large digital crowdfunding and protection platform.
- Age at the edition eligibility date
- 34
- Field
- Finance
- Country or region
- Indonesia
- FigureAsia U35 Assessment
- 67.0 / 100
Profile
Career and documented record
M. Alfatih Timur founded Kitabisa after observing that Indonesian social organisations could identify need but struggled to reach donors. He initiated the platform in 2013, established the foundation in 2014 and incorporated the operating company in 2015. A detailed case record attributes the founding idea and early product testing to Timur and describes management's later decision to build in-house technology, while also documenting the roles of co-founder Vikra Ijas and the wider team. By 2021 the platform had facilitated more than six million donors, more than 100,000 social initiatives and thousands of partner organisations.
Timur moved from chief executive to president in November 2023, retaining responsibility for long-term direction rather than daily operations. A 2024 external institutional report described Kitabisa under his presidency as hosting three million unique donors and collecting roughly US$80 million in donations annually. The platform's work also extended to a Malaysian collaborator that adapted its crowdfunding model. These are organisational outcomes under sustained founder stewardship, not Timur's solo production; his individual credit lies in originating the model, leading its development and continuing to shape its strategy.
FigureAsia selection
Why M. Alfatih Timur is on the list
FigureAsia selected Timur for completed work in a consequential but sometimes overlooked part of finance: the collection, verification and distribution of small contributions for medical, humanitarian and disaster needs. His agency is documented at the points that matter—problem definition, platform initiation, product iteration and institutional development—rather than inferred from his title. The platform's reach and annual flow of funds establish significance beyond a personal campaign or media presence.
The assessment also treats trust as part of the achievement. Crowdfunding platforms face fraud, verification and fund-use risks, and the record documents layered checks, public reporting and direct-to-hospital disbursement for some medical campaigns. Those controls belong to the institution and evolved across a large team. Timur receives credit for founder stewardship and strategic continuity, while current self-reported transaction measures are not substituted for independent or audited evidence.
Verified work
The 2025–26 record
Annual donation operation recorded at US$80 million
An external institutional report described Kitabisa under Timur's presidency as hosting three million unique donors and collecting approximately US$80 million in donations annually. The scale is attributed to the platform and its team.
Kitabisa initiated and institutionalised
Timur initiated the crowdfunding project in 2013, established its foundation in 2014 and incorporated its operating company in 2015 after testing the concept and assembling product support.
More than three million donors funded social campaigns
Kitabisa connected more than three million donors who collectively contributed more than IDR835 billion to tens of thousands of campaigns during 2020. The result was delivered by the organisation under Timur's leadership.
Field context
The work in its field
Digital crowdfunding is financial infrastructure even when its purpose is philanthropic. It aggregates payments, verifies campaigns, handles sensitive beneficiary information and directs funds to urgent needs. Scale without controls can magnify harm, so consequence must be judged alongside transparency, licensing and fraud mitigation.
Kitabisa's significance lies in formalising a familiar Indonesian practice of mutual assistance through a repeatable digital system. The model's extension into zakat, mutual protection and a Malaysian collaboration shows how social finance can cross product and national boundaries while remaining rooted in local trust.
FigureAsia U35 Assessment
Assessment breakdown
67.0out of 100
Completed financial consequence
20 / 30
Annual donation operation recorded at US$80 million is treated as a delivered financial outcome. The score is confined to the completed result described in the record and excludes projections or paper valuation.
Individual agency and execution
16 / 25
The documented role—President and co-founder—and the attributed actions in the profile establish accountable execution. Institution-wide results are not assigned to the person alone.
Verified reach and significance
14 / 20
Digital crowdfunding is financial infrastructure even when its purpose is philanthropic. It aggregates payments, verifies campaigns, handles sensitive beneficiary information and directs funds to urgent needs. Scale without controls can magnify harm, so consequence must be judged alongside transparency, licensing and fraud mitigation.
Innovation and field influence
9 / 15
The record combines social finance and digital crowdfunding with the completed work described in More than three million donors funded social campaigns. Credit reflects demonstrated practice, not a claim of novelty by itself.
Stewardship, access and Asian relevance
8 / 10
The Asian connection is explicit: Born in Bukittinggi, educated at Universitas Indonesia and based in Jakarta, Timur created an Indonesian platform for donation, zakat and mutual-protection finance. Stewardship credit is limited to the regulatory, governance, access or stakeholder evidence described in the profile.