Raphael Cohen
About Raphael Cohen
Raphael Cohen is a co-founder of Deskimo, a startup incubated by Y-Combinator, and has extensive experience in international business development and e-commerce. He has held various leadership roles in notable companies and has lived in multiple cities across the globe.
Work at Deskimo
Raphael Cohen is a Co-Founder of Deskimo, a company that was incubated by Y-Combinator, a well-known startup accelerator. He has been actively involved with Deskimo since its inception in 2021 and continues to contribute to its growth and development in Singapore.
Education and Expertise
Raphael Cohen holds a Bachelor of Commerce with High Distinction from the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management, where he studied Finance and Economics from 2007 to 2011. He also completed a long-term Chinese refresher course at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 2011. His educational background includes advanced studies in Mathematics at Lycée Louis Pasteur and an international exchange program at The University of Hong Kong, focusing on Finance, Economics, and Marketing in Asia.
Background
Raphael Cohen has lived in various cities including Paris, Toronto, Shanghai, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City, and Hong Kong. He has traveled to over 100 countries, gaining diverse cultural experiences that inform his work in international business and startups.
Achievements
Cohen has a notable track record in the startup ecosystem. He co-founded HotelQuickly, which became Asia's largest last-minute hotel booking app. He also led Gobee.bike to become a leading station-less bike-sharing operator outside China. During his tenure at Rocket Internet, he incubated 12 companies, including Spenmo, Tinvio, Ofload, and Flash Coffee.
Professional Experience
Before co-founding Deskimo, Raphael Cohen held several significant roles. He served as Managing Director for Asia at Rocket Internet SE from 2018 to 2020 and was a CEO & Co-Founder of Gobee.bike from 2017 to 2018. He also worked at Google as a Start-up Mentor in the Empowering Young Entrepreneurs Program from 2014 to 2015 and was Managing Director for foodpanda in Vietnam in 2012.